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Your experiences with IBS
It would really be helpful for me to hear from others about what they're going through and how they cope with their IBS issues. I've never had this problem and could always pretty much eat what I wanted without any ill effect. Now if I accidentally eat even the smallest amount of gluten or anything with dairy I am sick for 2 to 5 days and I feel totally exhausted the entire time. First starts belching, then painful bloating and cramping and I become constipated. My upper abdomen hurts as if I had been hit with something hard, my gut feels raw inside and often unremitting nausea also sometimes happens. Once the bloating calms back down, out of the blue I experience urgent diarrhea that can come even if I eat even a few bites of "approved" food. (I've been on FODMAP since Feb). My appetite has gone away and I've lost 19 lbs since I started eliminating foods on the list. The diarrhea can last the entire day and by the time it stops my body is weak, i'm very tired and my abdomen feels tender for the next few days. I've become hesitant to eat, although I'm falling woefully short of calories nearly every single day. Food has lost it's appeal to me and feels more trouble than it's worth. My social life has been totally impacted by these problems and I pass up on fun activities that have been a part of my life forever. Going out to a restaurant is mostly a nightmare now. My GI dr prescribed Bentyl and Omeprozole, which didn't help much, and basically sent me on my way telling me that I need to work on reducing my stress levels. I have dealt with major depression and an anxiety disorder for going on 25 years, which is currently well managed with the exception of the anxiety that being this ill can trigger. I'm getting acupuncture twice a week and that does seem to help. The D.O. that is doing this for me also has me on a regime of Digestive Enzymes. He's also given me a recipe for a "gut healing smoothie" that contains several holistic ingredients, including probiotics with acidophilus/bifidus. I'm currently waiting for these things to come in the mail so I can't speak to its effectiveness yet. At this point I'm willing to try just about anything to get my life back. I feel that I am constantly complaining to my friends and family when they ask how things are going, The only thing that I can point to as what brought this all on, although my GI dr wouldn't agree, is that I had two colonoscopies within 6 months (March and August of last year) as a result of numerous polyps, one of which was difficult to fully remove in one session. None were cancerous but all were of the type that will eventually turn into cancer. Because of this she now wants to start doing colonoscopies every 3 years, which I totally dread just it case it triggers my IBS to become worse. If its not related to those procedures and their prep, can and did your IBS just come on suddenly with no warning and nothing particularly prompting it? Do you feel, or have you been told that this illness will be something that you have to live around forever? Have you ever heard of it going into remission and/or going away entirely? I've done a lot of reading on this subject but really need to hear from those of you who understand and can relate to what I am talking about. I feel alone in this and am afraid that this is my new normal. Thank you for reading this and for hopefully sharing a bit about your experience with IBS.
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You just eat papayas fresh, as any fruit. You just cut a piece, and eat it! It's kind of a perfumey tasting fruit, and I am not crazy about it, actually. But it is great for belly problems. I know nothing about cooking it, or if it can be cooked. I just started using powdered bone broth because I thought it would be easier to deal with. I just put a few tablespoons into a smoothie or juice, and drink it down. But mine has to be drunk with some source of vitamin C. I do not know if they are all like that. I know if I do that every day, I will not have any stomach problems. So easy. I prefer doing the bone broth to the papaya, because it is tasteless and so easy. So try both and see which helps your stomach and what you like! Lori Renee
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1 Reaction@lorirenee1 Thank you for the response. I wonder if you can mix the powder into a hot drink like tea. I really do not drink any juices, so I would need to take a vitamin C tablet with it.
JK
As far as I know, you can put it into tea. Could you handle hot apple cider? That has vitamin C. I put bone broth into my hot apple cider quite a bit. You may be able to find some herbal teas with vitamin C. Maybe go into a health food store and ask about bone broth, and how to use the powder. I know I can't seem to be without it. It normalizes the way my stomach works, for sure. Best of luck!!! Keep me posted! Lori Renee
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1 Reaction@lorirenee1 maybe I could just drink bone broth with a vitamin C tablet.
JK
You could drink bone broth with a vitamin C tablet. That is perfect. Why not? Lori Renee
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1 ReactionHave you ever been tested for delayed gastric emptying? For years they told me I had IBS. I did everything I could for IBS and never got better. Finally a Dr tested me for delayed gastric emptying and found out food was sitting in my stomach for an average of 4 hours which is way too long. Basically food was fermenting in my gut causing the bloating, gas, diarrhea, and pain. Then I'd be constipated for a few days instead of diarrhea but then it reverses. I had surgery for the delayed gastric emptying and all has been good. IBS is a diagnosis they give when they can't figure anything else out. Good luck to you.
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1 ReactionThank you for your reply and suggestion, I’ve never heard of delayed gastric emptying. I will definitely look into it and see if I think it matches my symptoms enough that I should request having the test done. I completely agree with you that a diagnosis of IBS is something that drs recommend (at least mine did) as an across the board diagnosis that is given without considering other issues that might be the base cause of problems. So far my Naturopath seems to be guiding me more effectively than my g.i. dr did. One thing that’s really beneficial is that I see him twice a week for digestive focused acupuncture and so he is always totally current on what’s going on with me and can tweak supplement recommendations based on how my system is functioning. I’m glad to hear about your success once you finally received the proper diagnosis!
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1 ReactionI am recently been diagnosed with UC. I have been told it is my companion from now on. I can go into remission, but this as of yet is not the case. I too have lost weight dramatically. I have not put it back on yet either. I have not had the food reactions you describe though. I began the food list recently and found out that I really don't know what is or isn't fiber... long story short - Special K is fiber !!!! Today has been rough with the cramping and pain. Oddly enough, right now milk helps this... I read to avoid it though. I guess we all are a bit different. At least Dr. said I can get the abdominal Aortic Aneurism taken care of while ensuring this UC crap.
I was told I had UC a long time ago. I went to a different doctor after not getting any relief from the medications. Thank God I did because it turned out that doctor was wrong.
For me, gluten free is a part of the Low Fodmap diet--along with other "no eat" foods. I like carbs too but I have learned to work around the gluten restriction. Finding good bread (including things like hamburger buns and bagels) without the additives that are restricted on the Low Fodmap diet, is not easy but I have found some that I can eat. Not great, but better than nothing. There are also some sweets (like cookies) that are OK for me and are actually good. I do make my own sometimes (using modified regular recipes or low fodmap recipes) but my husband is diabetic so I end up eating most of them myself!