re: I am afraid to eat - need your help, Heather et al!
#201415 - 08/01/05 11:46 AM
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Shakasue
Reged: 08/01/05
Posts: 12
Loc: USA
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Hi Everyone:
I am hoping you can help me with my IBS problem. The last seven (7) years have been a long tough road and right now I am afraid to eat and I don't like food at all. I used to be a collegiate athlete and one who continued to workout and eat healthy well after that.
Like many of you, I am desperate for help. I have bought & read Heather's books on IBS, done countless hours of research, keep a food journal, etc. I have done counseling, bio-feedback, working out, seen a nutritionist, and take organic fiber and a fiber regulator daily. But I still don't know what my triggers are and I am so frustrated. My main issues are severe bloating, abdominal pain and constipation. If I don't take the regulator, I won't go to the bathroom for a week. (Fiber and increased water intake is not enough.) I have tried a water bottle enema but don't want to rely on something that my body should be doing naturally.
If I eat a trigger, within 15 minutes of eating I will increase from size 8 pants to over a size 14. I look very pregnant and the pain is extreme. I bring a second pair of pants to events, just in case I "outgrow" the first pair.
I think my GI problems stem from a bad car accident I had while on a business trip seven years ago. I lived in increasing daily pain for 5 1/2 years prior to getting a diagnosis due to the work comp system. On top of that, I was placed on pain meds for 3+ of those years whic are lovely for our GI tracts. (Ultram/Norco/Vicodin/Xtra Strength Vicodin/Darvocet)
Listed below, if this helps give insight to my problem, is a timeline of what happened. Any thoughts or suggestions would be greatly appreciated. Best of luck to all of you also.
~ Sue
Sept. 1998: In car accident with shuttle bus while on a business trip.
October 1998: Submitted work comp claim (never do this)
October 1998 - August 2000: Pain continues to worsen - tried working out to mitigate pain - do not sleep a whole night through for over a year and a half due to pain - passed from one dr. to another with no diagnosis.
August 2000: Finally get on pain meds and sleep for first time throught the night.
April 2001: Notice G.I. symptoms. Major gas/bloating begins.
Ocotber 2001: Taken to emergency room by parents for extreme stomach distention and pain. Have had symptoms for several weeks by now. E.R. doctors do litany of tests, but do not know cause. They find stomach to be "strange" and "may have to operate." Recommend lower GI and colonscopy.
November 2001: Pulled off of work by doctors - suffering major depression and anxiety as well by now. Daily severe distention. Chronic neck and back pain continue.
December 2001: Lower GI - notes severe spastic colon. Colonscopy - overall normal.
March 2002: By now, am on too many meds with no one watching their interaction with one another: Vicodin, Klonopin, Buspar, Prozac, Neurontin, Wellbutrin, Librax & Levsin for colon; Nexium and Zantac 150 for acid reflux.
From 2000 - 2003: had variety of attempted (none worked) pain-reducing procedures...cervical steriod shots, facet joint blocks, medial branch blocks, occipital nerve blocks, rhizotomey (cut nerves down spine), etc.
August 2003: Diagnosed with ruptured and stretched neck ligaments @ Cedars Sinai Institute for Spinal disorders. Neurosurgeon states it will continue to get worse and recommends cervical fusion with titanium plating.
February 2004: Neck is fused @ 3 levels with titanium plate and screws inserted. Do surgery on own health insurance because work comp refuses to pay for treatment.
March 2004: Off pain meds (was on extra-strength Vicodin prior to surgery) within one month post-surgery - have stayed off of them since.
November 2004: Return to new career(had to change due to accident) for first time in 3 years. Work comp is still delaying reimbursement for surgery even today. My IBS symptoms continue though....
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Are you on the diet and NOT cheat, do you take a SFS regularly, do you drink plenty of water, do you use fennel tea, do you exercise, what meds do you take, what tests have you had?
That's the info I'd want to know before commenting on what you could do.
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well here's my story - I've had IBS for ten years with nothing helping really (apart from psyllium in the last month) - finally I saw an incredible doctor who said my neck is not aligned properly due to a huge hit on the head during a hockey game and it is restricting flow to the pituitary gland which controls digestion. No conventional doctor is going to accept this theory as this doctor I saw is a very prestigious conventional MD and naturopath - but his theory works - he prescribed me lots of sports injury massage and yoga and vigorous exercise to get blood to the area and lately if I start to get spasms or pain or bloating my husband quickly massages my neck or if he isn't around I massage my own and get in an upside down position to get blood to my head and my symptoms drasically improve. sounds weird!
I would say that your IBS is directly related to your car accident and to see if you can get lots of massage done on your insurance.
I really really hope this helps you and that your suffering ends...I am so sorry for what happened to you.
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Feel the fear and do it anyway!
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You say you've bought Heather's books, but since you're still eating triggers it doesn't sound like you're on her diet. So, like Linz, I'd like to know what you are eating, supplementing, etc.
I'm sorry you've had such a tough time of it. Perhaps the IBS is something these Boards can help you get sorted out.
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[Research tells us fourteen out of any ten individuals likes chocolate. - Sandra Boynton]
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All are great questions...thanks for asking me them. If I am doing something to worsen the pain, then by all means call it out.
Plenty of water - yes. Exercise - Yes. Cheating - could be based on food reactions. Recently gave up coffee - liked it because of C, but realized that it was causing things to spasm too much. Based on my journal, last week I began to think that I am reacting to foods with preservatives...i.e. saltines make me swell. (All crackers seem to as well as baked chips.) I react to oatmeal. Prepared with hot water, sliced bananans and brown sugar. Sometime with blueberries (cooked.) Not sure why I react - the oats? It's the Quaker Oats brand. Had grilled chicken breasts (fresh lemon & salt were the seasonings) I bought @ Ralph's & Trader Joe's - got severly distended for hours. Salmon set me off before - again grilled with fresh lemon. I typically eat egg whites or eliminate yolks, red potatoes, bananas, avocados, salsa in egg whites, zucchini (steamed), spinach (steamed). I try and cook everything but would like some convenient items. I did forget and had grapes the other day and paid dearly for it. Just wanted some fresh fruit, but now (after reading her book again) am switching to mangoes. Luna bars don't go over well. Soy products are a problem. Canned tuna is a problem - probably preservatives.
TESTS: CA-125 blood test; test for celiac; upper and lower GIs; colonoscopy; endoscopy; bllod/stool/urine analysis @ the emergency room. All of these test were conducted Fall 2001 or Spring 2002. I do not have a good GI spercialist - the one I go to is part of my work comp case and passive. Just told me to take Zelnorm (didn't work), avoid the broccoli/cauliflower family, and that I'd have this the rest of my life. No proactive diet, game plan, regimen. Live in Orange County in Southern Cal.
FOOD ALLERGIES: Have a history of food alleriges. Was allergic to chocolate & peabnut butter as a kid and outgrew them. Don't eat them now though.
Do I need additional or more current tests? What does SFS stand for? Thanks for your time and feedback...
Sue
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Thanks so much for your kinds words and your story. Ten years is long time and I too am sorry you have had to go through with this.
Nothing sounds too weird in terms of getting better. And ironic that you mention the pituary gland. At the peak of my pain and intake of prescription meds, I was given a stimulant (Provigil) so that I could stay awake. So many of my meds had sedative properties that I was falling asleep behind the wheel. Had to stay awake to get to doctors appointments as that was my full-time job while on disability.
Long story short, I took the Provigil and began lactating within two weeks. Was not pregnant either - but had a scary drive to the obgyn. To rule a tumor in my pituitary gland, they gave me an injection and an MRI of the brain. The gland was normal, but obviously I was not running "right." Got off the meds (again, no doctor was doing blood work to check the impact of these meds in my system) and the symptoms went away.
Your doctor sounds great and now I need to be alot more proactive about my care. Glad to hear that your hubby is helping you.
And yes, I do get massages on my insurance, they are a god-send.
Thanks,
Sue
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Well, my only advice is to read Heather's books carefully and then try her full-blown diet. I can't tell from your list of foods what you're eating when, but in Heather's plan you must lay down a solid base of SF foods for each meal and snack. That is, eating chicken for lunch because it's not a trigger food won't do it - you need to eat SF before it - or at least with it.
Given that you're afraid to eat, you might want to try the Break The Cycle Diet for 2-3 days - no more. Given that you're IBS-C, you need IF and probably more than you're getting, but you need to get it safely - chop, dice, cook. You might look through posts by epa_ginger and, I think, bamagirl over the last few months. I think both of them have posted about what they eat to get IF. (BTW, spinach can be brutally hard to digest.)
A SFS is a "soluble fiber supplement". This is a key part of Heather's approach. I take acacia, but there are a zillion of them out there. SFS FAQ (BTW, there are a handful of sticky posts on the first page of this Diet Board that have useful info for newbies, like what abbreviations mean.)
Your tests sound extensive. You can compare them with the list of tests to have and conditions to rule out that you'll find in "The First Year".
Lots of people report problems with oatmeal.
Do you have an official diagnosis of IBS from your doctors?
Is Zelnorm the only medication you are one currently?
Is Zelnorm what you meant in your original post when you referred to taking a "regulator"?
Have you tried fennel tea to help with gas and bloating?
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[Research tells us fourteen out of any ten individuals likes chocolate. - Sandra Boynton]
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Hi Sand:
Thanks for your input. I will avoid spinach for now - that was great information. (And good info on oatmeal too.) I ordered the peppermint pills and fennel tea yesterday and have been using the organic peppermint tea from Whole Foods for a while now - love it! The SFS I use is great and I take it throughout the day. The fiber regulator is its counterpart and helps with the C by "encouraging" things to move.
For medication, I am not taking any prescription meds at this time. I have used Levsin & Librax (presciptions from my GI) but they didn't seem to help. Zelnorm is only recommended for short-term (up to 6 weeks) use.
I will look up the "Break The Cycle" as you suggested. And yes, I have an offical diagnosis from 3 dr's that I have IBS. One made this through tests, the other two from my symptoms.
I was inspired by all of your comments & the other message threads so I went to whole Foods last night with a printout of HEather's list to get new items. I had never posted to the message board or delved into it and it was comforting to hear that there are a lot of us out there.
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when you said "The SFS I use is great and I take it throughout the day. The fiber regulator is its counterpart and helps with the C by "encouraging" things to move".
what is the name of these products?
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~ Beth
Constipation, pain prodominent,cramps, spasms and bloat!
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I am sorry to hear you have had such a battle over the years. Mine was not a good either (had a diagnosis of Crohn's, then ruptured diverticuli, three major surgeries, and four hospitalizations after that all related to constipation). Finally a diagnosis of IBS. I found Heather's information and right away it made a difference but I modified it a little for me. I eat soluable fiber almost all day long. I hardly ever go two hours without eating some type of soluable fiber (crackers, bread etc).I eat only some insoluable fiber and always eat it pureed, chopped to bits or cooked to death after eating soluable fiber. I found that taking SFS and eating lots of "roughage", which my dr. recommended only made me more constipated.
The diet is definitely something you have to play around with. Oatmeal does not sit well with me. I do much better with Cream of Wheat. I do use soy milk but have also made it in my hotel room with water when traveling. I have been generally stable for about six months (very minor flare-ups). I attribute a alot of that stability to Heather's diet, the Zelnorm, Milk of Magnesia, and exercise. (I joined Curves in April and work-out 4-6 times a week). I wish you the best of luck.
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