[joelcoqui]

I thought I had things under control. I have been eating right and did not go BM all day. Right after dinner...cramps, and the runs 3 times already. How am I suppose to travel 40 mi. for thanksgiving with my family???

 

[Kathleen M.]

Imodium might be something to consider for controlling the diarrhea and will work fast enough to be useful by tomarrow.K.

 

[BQ]

quote:I thought I had things under control. I have been eating right and did not go BM all day.

I have learned that it doesn't matter what I eat or how careful I am sometimes. And the D isn't my fault nor is it yours. Not everything is within our control as much as we would like it to be. But you can prepare some and then feel a bit more comfortable during the ride.I second the imodium idea. And I would bring some with you too, in case you want or need to give yourself some protection for the ride home too. Like K said.. it works fast and fairly efficiently for most folks.Don't let it stop ya from enjoying the day with your family.And Have a Happy Thanksgiving!BQ

 

[lja]

I'm no expert at this by any means...but...Get your head in the right place...in other words..believe that you CAN!Pack an emergency kit in case the immodium doesn't work.Get in that car...crank up the music and sing along...in other words...try not to think about it.It really does help not to think about it.

 

[Jannybitt]

I third the Immodium!! Take some tonight before bed and use what you have to tomorrow. 40 minutes is not that long a drive, and if you have to stop at a gas station, I know, YUK!, but you just do what you have to do. I had a bad stomach day, as I call them, but I managed to make 2 loaves of pumpkin bread, 10 lbs of mashed potatoes, glazed carrots, clean my kitchen, go out to dinner with hubby and daughter. You CAN do this. Like lja said, it won't do you any good to worry about it. It took me a really long time to realize that I had to take control of this disease and NOT let it control me to the best of my ability. It doesn't always work, and there are some days I want to scream

but I won't let it take my life. I think that is so much of what is talked about on this site with Mike's tapes, hynotherapy, that kind of thing, so you can learn to manage the stress and anxiety. Some of us need a little more help than that, like me, who takes Cymbalta, but I've also learned "do whatever it takes".Happy Turkey Day, and relax. It will be ok!!

 

[joelcoqui]

Will the immodium stop the D along with the cramping?. I cant imagine having the pain and cramps with nothing to deficate. I really want to eat everything. Thank you all.

 

[Jannybitt]

Works for me. If you have an antispasmodic, you can take the immodium and then the antispasmodic 30-60 minutes before you eat. Sometimes I have to take 4 Immodium, and then,usually, no cramping, and no diarrhea. Everyone is different. It will be ok.

 

[BQ]

Imodium stops D. You have taken it before, no?If your cramping only comes when you are about to have D then maybe if you don't have D, because you took the imodium, you won't have cramps. Also like Jannyb said, if you have an antispasmodic.. take that as well.About wanting to eat "everything".We all wish that, but.. There's a trade off. Do I eat that even though I know it will give me trouble? Well, do you mind having trouble where you will be at? Some folks will say, YEAH I am going to eat it anyway.. bowels be damned! lol Others will say YEAH! I mind having trouble! And then skip that particular dish.Well, I know for me, I will be passing up the creamed onions tomorrow. lol But I will probably at least taste everything else. And much of the food I know will be fine for me.And I will take my meds. Will I be totally symptom free because I skipped the onions or other goodies & took my meds?? Who knows.. but I doubt it.. cuz I have IBS. And I have symptoms.. every day.There are no guarantees. Everyone eats stuff they normally may not at the Holidays. And I bet many folks without IBS may have cramps tomorrow. But for us.. we just need to maybe be a bit more careful depending on whether we care if we have symptoms or not.If you know certain things may set you off.. skip them. Or not.. depending on your preference.Have a wonderful time and just let the fun of being with your family distract you away from this for a bit.

BQ

 

[joelcoqui]

I dont have an anti spasmodic. I only have NU-Lev thats expired a year now. Do you think they are still good? I will take the Imodium a few hours before leaving the house tomorrow and about an hour before coming back home....and I wont eat anything stupid. Thanks. Happy Turkey Day to all.

 

[BQ]

Don't know about the Nulev shelf life. After the holiday, you might want to ask the Doc for a new script if you think you want to try an antispasmodic again.Tomorrow... I think you will be fine with the plan you have. And I am hoping you enjoy all the bounty and catching up with family.

BQ

 

[15976]

quote:Originally posted by Jannybitt:I third the Immodium!! Take some tonight before bed and use what you have to tomorrow. 40 minutes is not that long a drive, and if you have to stop at a gas station, I know, YUK!, but you just do what you have to do. I had a bad stomach day, as I call them, but I managed to make 2 loaves of pumpkin bread, 10 lbs of mashed potatoes, glazed carrots, clean my kitchen, go out to dinner with hubby and daughter. You CAN do this. Like lja said, it won't do you any good to worry about it. It took me a really long time to realize that I had to take control of this disease and NOT let it control me to the best of my ability. It doesn't always work, and there are some days I want to scream

but I won't let it take my life. I think that is so much of what is talked about on this site with Mike's tapes, hynotherapy, that kind of thing, so you can learn to manage the stress and anxiety. Some of us need a little more help than that, like me, who takes Cymbalta, but I've also learned "do whatever it takes".Happy Turkey Day, and relax. It will be ok!!

Does the Cymbalta help the IBS?

 

[19528]

so i was really nervous about thanksgiving as well...but i am a firm believer that if you believe you can make it through the day, than you can. i think it helps, i know its optimistic

 

[17190]

I went to my son's for Thanksgiving. No IBS problems! I didn't eat much during the day, so I think that made a difference for me. Sometimes I have an IBS attack in the afternoons after I eat lunch. No such problems today. I ate very hardily at my son's. I am home now and tired but feel fine.

 

[Jannybitt]

Kad;Yes, the Cymbalta helps me alot.Nerfmom;Glad you had a good day today! Mine was great also! I ate and ate!! No problems at all! I'll probably suffer for it tomorrow, but I don't care! Today was a great day!

 

[joelcoqui]

I ate just about everything too! Took the lactaid, probiotics and digestive enzymes at the end of the night when the gas and bloating started. I never had to take any Imodium. Its the morning now and Im waiting for the peristalis to start off my "D". At least Im home. No earlybird Christmas shopping for me today. Enjoy the weekend everyone.

 

[17190]

I did fine on Thanksgiving day, but yesterday afternoon was the pits! I had really bad cramping and a big explosion in the bathroom. I still had abdominal pain when I went to bed last night. I was ok this morning though and throughout today, so far. I even went out to breakfast with my younger son before he and his girlfriend left for home.

 

[Nanobug]

quote:Took the lactaid, probiotics and digestive enzymes at the end of the night when the gas and bloating started.

Huh? That sounds really silly! One should take those enzymes prior to symptoms so that one doesn't get them in the first place. And be careful with probiotics. Unless they are just Bifidobacteria, you might be causing more problems than helping.

 

[joelcoqui]

Let me rephrase that. I took probiotics, lactaid and enzymes. Then ate the end of the night, I started to get gassy. What causes this damn gas anyway. There is no ryhme or reason to it. The probiotics I use is the Jarrow.....Dr. recommended. What do you think? Thanks

 

[Nanobug]

quote:What causes this damn gas anyway.

Bacteria.

quote:The probiotics I use is the Jarrow

The type of probiotics that tend to help with IBS are bifidobacteria. Jarrow has a product called "Bifidus Balance + FOS". Is this what you are taking?Another very promising probiotic for IBS is B. Infantis 35624: http://www.aligngi.com

 

[joelcoqui]

Its the yellowish orange package Jarro-Dophilus EPS. It says the bacteria are selected from the following 4 genera: Lactobacillus, Bifidobacteria, Lactococcus and Pediococcus. Is this good for predominant IBS-D.?