[Beckyll]

Hi, I am 20 years old and I live in a suburb of Minneapolis, MN. I had an emergency Appendectomy in February of 2001. A few weeks after my operation I started having Symtoms of IBS. But the doctors thought that maybe they left a sponge or something inside of me. So I had a ton of X-Ray. When those came back fine I went in for tons more tests. I had Barrium Enemas, Colonoscopy, and a bunch of other x-rays tests and ultra sounds. Finally they said that since nothing was showing up it was IBS, this was of course after 6 months of tests and constant abdominal pain and suffering. I was put on Bentyl which is supposed to help with the bloating, Constipation, diareaha, and abdominal pain. But I still have problems, are there any meds that are working better for any of you? Also I have found out that I cannot digest or handle, red meat, nuts of any kind, dairy, or corn. These are my favorite things to eat.. But if i eat them I am sick for about 2 or 3 days, until I get them out of my system. I need help! I was also told to eat more fiber and I am having trouble finding food with enough fiber in them. I am a very picky eater and I am really having hard time finding food that my body can handle and that I will eat. Please, any help is greatly appreciated.~Becky

 

[kac123]

Hi Becky, Welcome to the board! I'll try and answer a few questions for you and hopefully someone helpful will come along and fill in any gaps

I am also on Bentyl - i take a total of 50mg of the stuff a day, mainly around when i eat. Bentyl is an antispasmodic, which means it should stop your colon from spasming ridiculously and thus should reduce some of the pain. I have never heard of it being used to treat bloating or constipation (in fact for some people it makes constipation worse!). Do you have more problems with C or D or pain??A lot of IBSers can't handle the same foods you can't handle, because frankly a lot of those foods are tough on a normal digestive system! There are lots of veggie substitutes out there if you can handle soy to replace the redmeat. And feel a little lucky that you've been able to identify what some of your trigger foods are. My doctor told me to bulk up with fiber as well -- and like you, my body was not happy about it. I have found the easiest way to get fiber into me is to take fiber supplements with a whole lot of water. I have gone thru every type of fiber out there -- metamucil was awful for me - increased the bloating ten-fold and made the bms i had just plain weird. I ended up with citrucel and have no bloating and it definitely helps out. I am sorry that you have to deal with IBS, but glad that you found the board -- keep asking questions, the more you learn the more control you get back!Hope you are feeling well today!kac

 

[BQ]

Hi Becky, Welcome

Sorry you are here though, but you have come to the right place!Here is a link to some info on IBS. At the very bottom of this page, you will definitely want to click on the "Related Diets" link. That will give you a list of foods and their respective fiber amounts. It will also explain the different kinds of fiber.Click here: http://www.gicare.com/pated/ecdgs03.htm Hope this info helps. Keep reading things here and post your questions and we will try to help ya out.BQ

 

[Johanna Lytton]

Hi Becky,Just wanted to let you know that like you i only developed IBS after my appendix was removed. The only things i have found to help is staying away from food that provoke an attack, fiber supliments, drinking water and pain killers. I still have pain and D but no where near as bad as i have been in the past.CheersJohanna

 

[lflower]

Is there any fresh fruit that you like? Like nectarines, cherries, or even dried apricots? This is such a great season for fruit! Prunes of course, classic. Applesauce? Canned peaches are very soothing. Oh and baby food, plum is my favorite! If you could just find something that you like and pig out on it. I remember traveling when I was a kid I'd get constipated and my mom would buy bags of dried apricots. I loved 'em. I liked to suck them slowly.

 

[julesishere]

Welcome to the board! The book Eating for IBS by Heather VanVorus has helped me tremendously. Make sure that you have soluable fiber (v. insoluable fiber) with each meal and on an empty tummy. Raw fruits and veggies are horrible for IBSers. Make sure you cook your veggies or puree soups (www.fatfree.com) make non-dairy smoothies, and have lots of soluable fiber-filled foods such as potatos, rice, oatmeal and French or sourdough bread. I take a soluable fiber supplement (FiberCon, Citrucel, Benefiber) every day. Two capsules 4x/day. Start at the recommended dosage and work up from there. Regardless if you're C or D. Avoid such fiber supplements such as Metamucil, which has psyllium in it and is very disruptive to the tummy. Both types of fiber are necessary for the body, but be very careful about insoluable fibers, and incorporate them slowly and carefully (meaning, after eating a soluable fiber-filled meal). I also take Phazyme, Levsid (anti-spaz script) and drink LOTS of fennel tea (for gas), peppermint tea (soothing), and ginger and chamomile teas. In case I forgot to mention, I've been IBS-C for nearly a year. After starting Heather's diet two weeks ago, I've felt the best I have in months. This doesn't work overnight, so you have to be patient and trust that it will work. To get your body on track, eat only soluable fiber-filled foods for two or three days, along with lots of strong peppermint tea, then begin incorporation the recommended foods and recipes in the book (www.eatingforibs.com). Her recipes are excellent, and the first few chapters have a TON of information in them. Good luck!!

 

[mirage^^]

Tough isnt it?? I had a horrible time trying to figure out what to eat. A friend at work is a vegan and helped me out alot. She reminded me that just because you should eat whole grain and fiber doesnt means just bran and whole. I visited my local heath food store and found plenty of things to keep me filled. Also try looking up recipes online. I found a support unit helps. Someone who cooks for you and still takes what you need to eat under consideration and someone who will eat with you when you cook. i even got my meat and potatos man transformed.

 

[Beckyll]

Wow, you guys are all so helpful! Thank you all so much! I thought that i was the only one suffering. I have both C and D, they Alternate. It is a pain when one day you have C and the next D and so on. I just want to be Normal!! This board is so helpful. i will try all of the suggestions and see if i can't get working right. My Fiancee has trouble making dinner because everything he likes i cannot eat, so hopefully i will find some foods that we both enjoy! Take care, and thanks again!~Becky

 

[Pitzi]

Hi Becky, welcome

regarding the food problems, I understand what you are going through as I cannot eat a lot of foods, here is a list:Cornany wheaten products (gluten)DairyChickenSome fruitsMost vegetablesAnything that even remotely contains oil or fatSpicesFizzy drinksCoffeeI need to go slow on fruit because too much fructose makes me sick, so do artificial sweetners These are just some of the foods that come to mind, so imagine what its like to live without all of that! on top of this I am also a diabetic, so no sugar

I think that the foods that you cant eat are taboo for most people with IBS, so I can sympathise with you

Try to avoid foods that give you symptoms and I am sure that you will feel better soon

 

[kac123]

Hey Becky, I alternate as well (and i'm 24) so we're in the same sort of boat

I have found that if i can keep the C in check that i can keep the D at bay (unless my stress level skyrockets). My real problem is that the things that the "soley C" people use to help their C, pushes me into my D phase, and things that the "soley D" people use to stop their D, just stop me! So for me its a balancing act, and i still haven't figure it out completely....but i'm trying

Good luck and you are definitely not alone!-Kac

 

[nmwinter]

ditto what kac said about the balance. keeping the C in check is the key usually for me although I tend to worry more about the D. I do think hypno was the best thing I've done for my IBS.nancy

 

[Beckyll]

yea, the C doesn't bother me as much as the D. But is is just a guessing game which one i am going to have that day! It's like a awful little guessing game, that is not fun at all. This board is so helpful, i really appreciate all the help and support that i have found here!you guys are all so great!~Becky