I Hate Ibs

[Teddy Bear Brian]

Oh today is not the best day. I had to go and as I was running up the stairs I coughed, messy underwear were the result. It has happened at work, it has happened in town. I hate the fact that I have to know where every toilet is in town. My wife gets frustrated that I have to go every time we go somewhere. I can't even finish this post with out an attack hitting me today. Mostly I make it to the toilet it is like a once a year thing that I don't so yeah I guess I'm lucky in that. But bad days they are just frustrating.

Just a bit of a vent.

[ItchyTasty]

Wear diapers then.

Oh and the best thing that worked for me to more or less control it, was eat a high fibre diet.

My IBS is different as used to get extremelly severe intenstine cramping/pain(so bad I was literally moaning and groaning loudly from the pain), trapped wind, feeling lightheaded/like I was going to faint, hot sweats. Which was relieved by defacating, many times a day. Some days even 1 drop of water would flare it off again. Started to think I had bowel cancer.

But thankfully after having various tests done doctors said was just severe IBS. But doctors can be useless at times...

Could also be intestinal parasites(candida) which a few friends said when I mentioned the symptoms.

But strangely enough if I eat like a large amount of musli for breakfast daily, and probiotic or live yogurt a few times a week, I don't get ANY of symptoms at all. Haven't had an IBS attack for like 7 or 8 months now.

[Teddy Bear Brian]

yeah I get a lot of those symptoms too. Interesting that high fiber diet helped you. Most people with IBS find that counterintuitive. Glad you found something that helps.

[riflemanjon]

i leak from time to time seems like it is mostly water. i drink to much water. about 1 gallon a day. so i had a lady friend say use a tampon. so i did that day and they work. i use playtex and u kotex an ob. the ob expand real big and no leaks. i pulled out one this morning and the u kotex had expand like 2 inches. got me through. i use about 40 tampons a month.

[sarah_ab]

I had awful IBS from the time i was around 18 until 26..... to the point we would have to pull the car over and i would be going IN THE WOODS!!!! it was so bad..... got to the point a 5 mile ride to work i would have to stop TWICE to use the bathroom.

Finally i found a dr who didn't just say "ohh lose weight and it will go away" because IBS isn't just about weight or diet.... I had cut all dairy out of my diet for two months, still had all the symptoms, i cut all meat out of my diet for two months, still all the symptoms, i pretty much tried every thing imaginable, including high and low fiber diets, the activia yogurt, even did two months of drinking apple cider vinegar mixed with water.... nothing, nothing worked.

My PCP sent me to a GI dr, who of course did all the tests imaginable to rule out other disorders and when she could find nothing, I was diagnosed with IBS. My GI dr told me how many people find that a low dose of an SSRI (an anti depresent) and by low dosse i mean what would be considered sub therpeutic if you were taking it for depression, but this low dose is enough to balance the seratonin receptors found in the GI tract. My GI told me that while many people automatically attribute seratonin to the brain, there are a large majority of the receptors in the GI tract. By taking this sub therpeutic level, I have been free from being tied to the toilet for two years now.

I do still get very bad abdominal pains, but again my GI prescribed a sublingual medication ( a pill that disolves under my tongue) that works within minutes to stop the pains.

For the past two years I have been able to travel, to go on weekend trips, to eat out, without having to take 10-15 anti diarrheal pills a day, or having to stop at every single bathroom imaginable.

While there are so many different causes of IBS and as we all know what works for one, may not work for another, it may be worth talking with your GI dr about trying it. The medication I was started on was Imipramine i started at 25 mg a day to start and then moved it to 50 mgs a day. Thats all it took, one little green pill and i've been symptom free for two years!!!!

I mean yes i still get occasionally diarrhea, like if i eat mexican or chineese buffet, etc.... but we are talking like 2-3 times a year for maybe half a day!!! imagine that!!!!!