[cookies4marilyn]

Hi DC - IBS has a very strong mind-gut - anxiety component.Thanks Eric for posting the info above. Both Eric and I and many here on the BB have had our IBS symptoms greatly reduced through hypnotherapy - Take a peek at this link and also the forum below my name for additional info.http://ibsgroup.org/eve/forums/a/tpc/f/43110261/m/471103451We and many others here on the BB have used an in-home recorded program called the IBS Audio Program 100 which has been used by thousands of IBS patients worldwide. It does break that anxiety/mind/gut connection - the fear of having an IBS attack, fear of travel, urgency, etc.You can do it from your home - once a day (about 1/2 hour of time) over a period of 100 days, with 5 sessions you listen to according to a specific schedule. I would be happy to answer any questions you might have about it. You can find info on the program here: ibsaudioprogram100.com or http://www.ibscds.com for short! (Goes to the same link.Just let me know.There are many avenues to IBS treatment, and what may work for some, may not work for others. When taking supplements, be sure to look at the contents, and note if there are any studies on how the supplement works. Some people have wonderful relief, some have short-term relief, and others have none - everyone is different, so it's hard to know if what works for others will work for you.With the IBS Audio Program, most IBS patients were those who had exhausted every other treatment method, and did the program as a last resort, and wished they had used it as a first line of treatment. It isn't a cure, it doesn't work for everyone due to the wide spectrum of IBS etiology, but it does work for over 90% of those who have completed the program, and continues working after completion as well.

 

[cookies4marilyn]

Good luck on your plan - I hope that it works for ya - sometimes just being proactive is helpful in its own way. But just to clear up a few things - pure IBS is NOT caused by specific foods or lack of fiber - we know this because so many IBS patients have different "trigger" foods and different diets/fiber applications, yet their symptoms may return. We also know this because after clinical hypnotherapy, most patients go back to eating foods that were once triggers, and no longer follow any specific diet or fiber regimen. There are some individuals who have food intolerances and/or food allergies, but that is not IBS - for those individuals, diet or exclusion of the offending foods would take care of the problem - then there are those who have both IBS and food intolerances/allergies - and for them relief can become more complicated.Just from what you have mentioned here, it seems that you have anxiety related IBS (you should be diagnosed by a doc for IBS to make sure it is nothing else) - if the fiber system works for you, this is great - and I hope it does, but what has happened in my own experience and many of those I speak with is that the IBS symptoms return after various treatments, and most things usually are short-term relief. I believe that your belief system plays a big role in this - if you believe that the fiber routine will help you, it may in fact do so, but many here on the BB who have been told by their docs to take fiber have not met with long-term success. That doesn't mean that you won't - but if this were the universal answer to the problem, then everyone would just take fiber and there would be no IBS and no BB. It may work for some patients, and it may work for a time for some patients, and not at all for others. The fact that you mention you functioned prior to using fiber (although you still had the symptoms) indicates that you are aware of how things may or may not work in the long term. Many here on the BB have been helped with calcium supplements (especially those with post-operative IBS) and for emergencies for IBS - D, Imodium may be helpful.There is a lot more info on how the brain-gut connection works; many people who have been miserable and who have had to put their lives on hold due to IBS are now functioning quite well as a result to hypnotherapy - over 90% of the folks who use it have had good symptom reduction. The reason I mention this is because I have two kids about your age - I know of young adults whose lives have been literally put on hold because of IBS. The sooner you could possibly consider the program, the better outcome you will have. I know of teens who spend their time curled up in the fetal due to IBS, and my heart goes out to them - I know that $89 is a lot to a student, but divide that by the number of days of the rest of your life and feeling better - and it takes on a different perspective. Well, best of luck to you on your graduation - I hope you feel better and your plan works out. But if later in the summer, you are still having problems, let me know and I will see if we can't help ya out somehow. Take care.