I feel so hopeless
#212149 - 09/09/05 05:31 PM
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crew
Reged: 06/24/05
Posts: 170
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So, I have been trying really hard to be patient with all of this. I have managed to keep the tears away, and I have been able to supress my frustration. But, its just too much. I am so sick of being C and bloated. I am doing everything I can to get myself better ... but I feel like I have gotten worse! Because I'm C, its nearly impossible to identify my "triggers". Occasionally, I will realize that something is giving me gas or causing major bloat .. but I don't care as much about that as I do about know what is triggering my C!! Everytime I feel the slightest urge to go the bathroom, I run to the toilet and just hope for a normal BM. Doesn't happen. I always end up straining and forcing the tiniest bit out. I'm afraid I'm going to give myself a hernia  . I don't know what to do. There is so much stuff to remember .. I don't know the difference between a probiotic, and a prebiotic, and the SFS, and Miralax, and acidopholus (or HOWEVER you spell it!). I feel like I am so scrambled in this. I already have major issues about my body .. so bloating is about the worse thing for me right now. I get SUPER selfconscious and I feel disgusting when my belly gets so bloated. It keeps me from going out .. and in turn, my relationship with my boyfriend is suffereing. I feel like I am keeping him from so many things. Plus, and this may be TMI, but I don't ever want to have sex b/c i am embarrassed of my bloating, or just b/c of the fact that my IBS causes sex to be painful! AAAAAAHHHH! I am 19, and I just want to be a normal teenager ... instead I spend my time crying in the bathroom just wishing I could go like a normal person!
I'm sorry for the long post .. I needed to get this out. I don't have anyone else to talk to about it ... my family just can't understand how miserable IBS really makes you. If there is a C person out there who is stable ... can you give me some advice as far as a routine .. I mean .. what is your exact daily routine as far as supplements and foods. How quickly does Miralax take effect, and how long will I be on the toilet with it (would it be ok to take it, if I have plans to go out?) I don't know .. I just need help. I keep starting the entire diet over from the beginning b/c I get scared that I am not doing it right.
Thanks for listening 
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I'm sorry you feel so upset and hopeless, but seriously try to look at the positive side...you still have a lot of options and things to try that could help you! And if it makes you feel better, I started out with my IBS-C feeling bloating and in pain all the freakin time! I could only go to the bathroom like once a week on my own I too wouldn't have sex with my boyfriend(now ex) because I was in pain and felt so uncomfortable. And I couldn't digest many things well, barely any insoluble fiber. BUT...now I'm doing SO much better!! I can eat most things (except still am intolerent to whole wheat) and I'm ok, and I can go to the bathroom everyday, or almost everyday  So you know what, that shows that people can improve with their IBS. Just gotta find the right stuff to use, and be patient with it. Everyone's different though, so what might work for some may not work for others.
I think the best thing to do is to start off with a stool softener(Colace or store brand equivilent, but NOT Peri-Colace) and start with a small dose of soluble fiber supplement. Keep in mind that often people will respond well to certain fibers and not so well to others, so if you start one and it gives you attacks, don't give up, you may just need to switch to another. Personally I took Metamucil and it helped me a ton, though I could not tolerate the other brands of fiber, but I think usually it's the opposite. If a stool softener and fiber aren't working and you've been on them for awhile, then I'd say progress on towards Miralax. But try over the counter stuff first. Personally, Miralax gave me bad attacks and I was unable to use it. But most people can tolerate it fine.
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IBS-C
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sorry to hear about your frustrations. i can relate 100 fold. i'm just curious, do you eat dairy? if so, i would try eliminating dairy from your diet since it is a major trigger of IBS-C.
you should try different fiber supplements, drink tons of water, eat prunes, walnuts, pumpkin seeds, and take magnesium supplements. you should also do a trial run of aloe vera supplements (no more than 2 a week) to get things moving. also go get a deep tissue massage - there are pressure points on the back that stimulate peristalsis in the bowels. i would seriously recommend a daily enema just to train your bowels to get moving. they are completely safe.
hope this helps
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Hi Chelsea, I know how you feel, I'm in the same boat, and
have the same problem with the BM's and straining. I often
feel rather hopeless too:(. I pray a lot, and just hope for
the better. With Miralax,it depends on how much you take
and when you take it. With one 17gram dose first thing in
the morning will usually generate a BM sometime the next
day. You can take up to 4 doses spread out over the day,
that should get you going first thing the next morning,
and you may have to go a couple times in a row. Hang in
there! I hope you get some relief and improve, and feel
better. -Bob
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<img src="http://www.math.mtu.edu/~rwkolkka/BritPicA.jpg">
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Oh my gosh...you sound just like me. I just recently started having IBS symptoms (at least bad enough that I considered it being IBS). I don't have constipation too often, but I do get bloated and gassy a lot. I get very self conscious too. I won't let my boyfriend touch my stomach because it feels so huge to me, and I lose a lot of my sex drive just because I feel fat and/or uncomfortable. Hopefully we can both find some relief. If I were you, I'd try eating oatmeal on a daily basis (this has been keeping me regular for 2 yrs now)and drinking some hot beverages- tea, coffee, whatever.
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Kim
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Oatmeal is a pretty regular breakfast for me .. although, I don't think i tolerate as well as some ... its more like "BLOATMEAL" for me! 
I drink tea .. it just doesn't help much. Maybe I just need to keep trying different tea? Thanks so much for your advice! Its good to remind myself that there are people in the same boat as me
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...if it bloats you up and doesn't agree with you. Are you taking it because it helps you to have BMs? It's hard to choose between increased BMs and bloat!
Maybe consider another breakfast? I don't know what else you could eat, but there have been some threads lately on what people eat for breakfast who have Constipation.
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Heather recommends not taking aloe. See these posts in the Research Library web page and web page I don't know if she means long term use or using it at all. 
Is it really safe to take an enema (like fleets) everyday?
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aloe is fine if taken in moderation, or just to give your system a little kick in the ass. my ex girfriends grandfather has been taking it for years and he is perfectly fine and 95 years old.
regular enemas with water are fine. i wouldnt do fleet enemas frequently since the chemicals in there can disrupt the balance of electrolytes and cause dehydration.
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I'm not IBS-C, but perhaps I can help with a few of your more general questions.
Quote:
There is so much stuff to remember .. I don't know the difference between a probiotic, and a prebiotic, and the SFS, and Miralax, and acidopholus (or HOWEVER you spell it!).
A probiotic is good bacteria. It's sort of the opposite of an antibiotic because it adds bacteria in, rather than killing them off. Some people think IBS is partly caused or made worse by too few good bacteria and/or too many bad bacteria. If you take a probiotic, you're giving your body good bacteria which may help you digest your food.
A prebiotic is a substance that helps feed the good bacteria. So it's something you might take before you take the probiotic, so the bacteria have a kind of food they like and are more likely to take up residence in your gut.
An SFS is a Soluble Fiber Supplement. As Heather explains it, Soluble Fiber is good for IBS because it helps normalize the colon spasms (that's a really simplified version). It's hard to eat enough Soluble Fiber to make a difference to an IBS colon, so she strongly recommends taking a Soluble Fiber Supplement to get enough Soluble Fiber to calm down your gut.
Miralax is a laxative. I think that in the US it's only available by prescription. A lot of people believe it's safe to use everyday because it works by drawing water into your gut to make it easier to have a BM. That makes it gentler than laxatives that force your colon to move. I don't have an opinion on Miralax, since I've never had to use a laxative, but I know some people swear by it so you might discuss it with your doctor.
Acidopholus is one kind of probiotic. It's a particular kind of good bacteria that a lot of people think is particularly important for your gut. It's also the kind found in yogurt, if I remember correctly, so it's one you can get "naturally". (I don't think our bodies care whether we get our bacteria naturally from soy yogurt or unnaturally from a pill.)
Quote:
I keep starting the entire diet over from the beginning b/c I get scared that I am not doing it right.
If that means you keep going back to eating just Soluble Fiber foods, that seems to be a really bad idea for people who are C. If you're C, you need Insoluble Fiber to make you go. The trick is to eat Insoluble Fiber with enough Soluble Fiber to cushion it.
You might consider keeping track of what you're eating for a couple of days and posting it on this Board. People here are very good about taking a look at information like that and making suggestions that might help.
If you didn't see it, Heather had a series of FAQs about Constipation in a couple of recent newsletters. You can look at old newsletters here. Maybe some of those suggestions would help.
For the bloating, people recommend fennel tea and Gas-X, so you might try those.
I'm sorry you're having such a terrible time. I hope this helps.
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[Research tells us fourteen out of any ten individuals likes chocolate. - Sandra Boynton]
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