Irritable Bowel Syndrome Message Boards

New here, so its a bit of a long post, question's at the bottom.

I've been "sick" for about a year. In December the doctors said they had it all figured out, and yanked out my gall bladder (20yr male no stones but very "dysfunctional"), well I felt amazing now that the gallbladder attacks were gone. The down side was that my digestion got worse. The doctor has dubbed me "IBS-like syndrome, that may resolve over the next 6-12 months, due to the body being upset that it lost a gallbladder".

Through therapy, some of it hypno, I'm dealing with everything a lot better now, and I'm trying to get everything settled so I can finish my college education this summer. I'm about a month into adding fiber to my diet (say, 4-8 500mg pills a day) and cut out a lot of the fat in my diet. Now its pastas, sandwhiches, chicken and fish. No red meat, no fried, no sauteing on the stove, no junk food, chocolate in tiny amounts, and absolutely no fruit juices or sweet teas(instant D for the rest of the day with sugary liquids).

As long as I watch what I'm eating, my only problem is this: In the mornings, about an hour after I wake up (up at 8) I get cramps and feelings of "abdominal soreness" for a few hours, gas, gas pains(chest) and I absolutley always have 1-3 bowel movements between 9 and 12. I'm in the bathroom sometimes 6 times in one morning because I can't tell if its gas or a real movement, thankfully though, since the dietary chages, my movements have been pretty normal (very soft before, you could almost call me an IBS-C).

What am I to do! I've got to start 8 am classes in May. I'm already setting aside 10-15 minutes in the evening after dinner to try to go, and hoping that by body catches on, but no luck. I'm tempted to try some kind of Immodium at night maybe to prevent the morning movements, and hope that it wears off by the evening? Has anyone used Immodium like this? I'm hesitant to start using any laxatives since they have been less then dependable for me in the past, and I don't want to mess up the quality (firmness) of my movements since I changed my diet. If I can change when I'm having my daily movements, the cramps and such would be bearable so I could get back to school and finish my degree.

If anyone has any experience altering their body's schedule it would be greatly appriciated. I just picked up some acacia fiber from here and some fennel tea (also prone to heartburn). About the tea, if I use it at night, would that be more likely to stimulate a movement, or hold it back from the anti-cramp/gas properties?

Thanks for any advice.

Jason

Oh! and I'm open to suggestions for a good dry cereal to have in the mornings, cheerios are getting kind of plain and I hate the texture of oatmeal. Need to add some flavor to my mornings besides the chocolate soy milk.

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