IBS? (tmi in places)

[Ovalina]

Yep I have it too - started v. mildly about 10 years ago to pretty damned unpleasant a couple of years ago.

I have triggers that took years to find out what there were - worst are commercial breads and biscuits and cakes - I have to bake everything with organic flour. Wine consumed too often and sugar would you believe. Then theres coffee, citrus, peanuts (they're awful ) the list is endless really.

The only way you'll find out what your triggers are is to detox and eat known safe foods for a few weeks like potatoes, white rice, chicken, leeks, de-skinned apples and only drink herbal teas. It is a complete pain in the a*** but boy it works.

I felt marvellous when I gave everything up - but to be honest do you really want to live on the above diet? No me neither, so I occasionally eat the naughty stuff and accept that I'll have pain and the rest. .

[Siena]

I'm another one. Went into hospital like you mrs fibbles about 7 years ago and was diagnosed. I also find that taking more fibre makes that problem ten times worse. Not worth it. I was on the antispasmodics at the start but once things started to settle down I only used the colpermints.
I would agree with the chicken broth suggestions as well as when mine flares up this is the only thing I can hold down.

Feeling your pain. Oh and don't feel bad about ignoring it, sure I did (and still do half the time) the exact same thing

[2+bump]

another IBS sufferer here too. the food diary idea is a fab one cause what triggers for one wont trigger for all. mine are too much red meat, greasy food, diary and stress. if i can keep that to a minimum mine is now bareable, but while i was working it out the antispasmodics were a godsend. i've lived with it since i was about 13 too and my the time i was in my 20's i no longer needed the medication to help manage it

[growingthings]

As someone who was incorrectly diagnosed with IBS in my teens and then correctly diagnosed with Coeliac Disease at 26, I think that it is worthwhile remembering that IBS is purely a name for a condition that is in actuality a list of symptomatic problems brought on by an endless list of triggers.

The food diary is the way to go, as it is the only way that you can acurately monitor what is going into your body, and please remember that if you aren't making the improvements that you think you should go back and nag. I quietly thought that everyone had nagging stomach aches and growling tummies for years, it took weight loss down to 6 stone (i'm 5'8') to realise that something had to be done!

Prolonged diarheoa like that won't do you any good either, as a Coeliac that sort of BM tends to indicate that either I have been Glutened or there is something seriously wrong. The last bad bout I had the doc was muttering on about Lymphoma! so don't forget that BM's like that are telling you that something is NOT right down there.

Oh as an aside, I also have Buscopan to help if I have been Glutened, which can leave me suffering as in the days of IBS, but I find what really helps is sticking to a restricted diet for a day or so to cleanse the system, I use the BRAT diet, and it works on the smallies when they have had upset tummies. Bananas, Rice, Apple Sauce, and Toast (Gluten Free of Course )

The other thing to do is when you have bad Diarheoa DON'T drink cold water, have warm watered down apple juice, this does the same things as Diarolytes, the cold water just irritates the bowels moreso and makes you go even more times -that little snippet was the golden chalise for me as I found I was always making my bouts worse without realising it.

for feeling so rubbish all the time MrsF I know how it feels, but am really glad that you know that now is the time to do something about it!

Lorna x

ps. I have just realised reading it through that it is painfully obvious that I have had many many years of upset tummies and thinking on I can't believe that I put up with feeling like that for so many years idiot woman!

[Thomzo]

Don't blame yourself, Growingthings. I had years of having bloating and upset stomachs after meals and thought it was normal. My parents kept telling me that it was just indigestion from bolting my food down.

It was only when I left home and couldn't afford luxuries like coffe that I realised I could eat a meal without suffering afterwards. It was the coffee that used to follow every meal at home that caused the problem.

Cheers
Zoe

[mrsflibble]

well, as an update i am wondering if lcatose or maybe even dairy itself could be a trigger to something. i have been suffering random allergic reactions (bane of my life), sickness and diarrhoea and i have linked them getting worse to me eating lots of dairy, so for a week or so i am totally cutting dairy out to see if it helps.

so, my next questin is.... can anyone help me with dairy free recipes?!?!? *pootles off to find clara on facebook*

i am seeing a dr on 17th. if i could guarantee getting one who listens i would go sooner, but at least this way i get to see someone who listens, is proactive and i trust lol!!

[Mylovelyhorse]

Yes, mrsflibble, I can help with dairy-free recipes!

Tell me what kind of things you like to eat, and I'll try to come up with something suitable. (I'm vegan though, so if you want meat in your dairy-free, you'll have to work that bit out yourself!).

So... Pasta? Curries? Pastry? What shall we have??

MLH

[Clara]

so, my next questin is.... can anyone help me with dairy free recipes?!?!? *pootles off to find clara on facebook*

Oh dear....was feeling stupid enough for not being able to resist homemade icecream despite the fact that I have the snot-cold from hell...now i'm being sought after for dairy free advice

I've just recommended something on your other thread, but I also make the vegan pastry from cranks, can't remember the recipe but I just do it by eye basically adding equal parts oil and water to the flour til it comes together. Can be a bit harder to handle than regular pastry so chilling it before rolling it works well. Not being vegan I often add an egg yolk if I've got one, does make a much better pastry.

For a quiche alternative, make pastry above and line your tin. Bake blind til firm. Mix equal parts oatly cream and dijon mustard and put inside pastry case. Peel tomatoes (optional but preferable), slice, put on top of cream mix. Season with salt, pepper and thyme leaves and bake til tomatoes are roasted. Yum.

[Mylovelyhorse]

I also make the vegan pastry from cranks, can't remember the recipe but I just do it by eye basically adding equal parts oil and water

I sometimes make my own, but quite often I use Sainsbury's own brand ready made - the standard shortcrust and puff pastry are both dairy-free (obviously not the one which says 'pure butter puff pastry...).

[Clara]

I also make the vegan pastry from cranks, can't remember the recipe but I just do it by eye basically adding equal parts oil and water

I sometimes make my own, but quite often I use Sainsbury's own brand ready made - the standard shortcrust and puff pastry are both dairy-free (obviously not the one which says 'pure butter puff pastry...).

that's interesting, what are the ingredients? sounds like there's potential for lots of additives and hydrogenated fats in commercially made pastry. be great if there weren't.

[Mylovelyhorse]

The ingredients on the shortcrust are:

wheat flour, palm and rapeseed oils, water, salt.

So, not as good as just plain old olive oil/flour/water, but it's good to have another option sometimes!

[bryony]

mrs flibble i feel your pain, having had an almost sleepless night last night due to thinking i could get away with a cup of milky tea yesterday! (i couldn't, it was agony )

I can't think of any particularly good recipes atm, but i use soya milk as a replacement usually, and some brands really do taste quite nice, and not too unlike real milk. S@insbury's own brand is quite cheap, only about 60-70p a carton and quite good (sorry to suggest a supermarket , but when you're ill and if money's an issue, as it is for me, sometimes i just have to make the compromise) i use it in cooking quite a lot too. also, lots of asian and north african recipes are dairy free so maybe worth looking up? If i think of any recipes in particular i'll post again.

hope your tummy troubles settle soon

[ellie12022]

There are also other milks available, rice milk, nut milks, which you could experiment with. I have to be careful of dairy too (it creates loads of mucus in me), but it is so difficult to avoid completely. You may find you can tolerate goat's milk. some people can (if you like the taste!), and I have even seen sheep's milk for sale on the internet. Also if you can get raw milk locally that might be worth a try.

Good luck, we're all in sympathy

[boboff]

Well, the have you had Runny poo for 3 weeks or more Ad on the Telly, you need to tell your Doctor has been on. Well having had that for about 6 years I thought it was best to go and have it checked. So they did blood and poo tests and said I could have IBS, as all those results were ok / normal.

I wanted to go as I have been suffering a bit from depression, and have stopped drinking, mostly, started exercising, seen a councellor etc, but was still pretty lathargic, and thought the explosive BM's might be in some way depriving me of energy to do things. I still don't know whether this is true or not.

I have bought some peppermint tea!

Can anyone give any further advice, update, as I feel like that Kevin Bloody Wilson Parody about never Pooing solid again..... My stomach aches/cramps eased off a fair amount when I stopped drinking all together for a couple of months, but the loose BM's, and explosive BM's persist.

Sorry it's an awfull subject, they are refering me to the Doc at the Hospital, etc I feel a bit of a fraud for going to the Docs ( they hadn't seen me in the 8 years we have lived here) but seeing as I spent last night wondering how I would deal with Cancer or Parasitic Worms, in some ways it's a bit of a relief, and I would like to get it sorted.

[Susie]

Sorry it's an awfull subject,

No, it could have been a far worse subject. You could have been telling us about how industrialisation is TERRIBLE AND WE MUST DO SOMETHING ABOUT IT NOW or how if everyone just drank juice we would all be thin like whippets, or, I shall not even mention vaccines. IBS is fine ;-).

I get IBS (although the main symptom I get is pain). As far as I can tell, my triggers are:

1/ stress
2/ menstrual cycle (sorry, that doesn't help you)
3/ sugar
4/ coffee
5/ alcohol.

I can manage any of them up to a point, but if I have too much of a combination of a few of them I somehow go over a tipping point and have an attack; it's the same triggers I have for migraines (I can't imagine they're related, but I do wonder). It also helps my stomach generally if I don't eat too much processed food and cook most things myself, that isn't an anti-processed food rant, it's just what seems to have worked (although, when I'm in the grip of an attack I only want to eat things in tins, so go figure) - when I ate a lot more processed food I had about 1 attack a fortnight (but I also had a lot more stress then and that affected things).

Sympathy from me, IBS is rubbish, also I think unless you have it it's difficult to believe quite how painful and debilitating it is!