Irritable Bowel Syndrome Message Boards

I'm sorry to hear you are not feeling well these days.

I too had a bad couple of weeks after Christmas. I'm only beginning to feel better now! Hopefully you will too

Anyway, these are my thoughts on your "winter" IBS troubles, but obviously I can only speak from personal experience. Like you, I did not cheat once over the holidays. I followed the exact same diet I had been following previously when I was stable. But still, after Christmas (the very next morning starting at 4 am to be exact!) I had terrible IBS symptoms that have come and gone but mostly persisted since then. I'm IBS-A and I really have just been fluctuating between painful/uncomfortable C and D with nausea and gas all in between! (Despite my clean diet) I personally don't think that my symptoms have gotten worse/persisted because it is winter time, but more because of the stress from the holidays. For me, Christmas was a VERY stressful time. I was busy buying and wrapping presents, cooking safe foods for myself as well as foods I could share at parties. My boyfriend, 9 month old son, and I were busy scooting around from family party to family party, trying to please everyone. The stress from the holidays (as well as sleepless nights due to my teething 9 month old!) probably just caught up with me. Maybe you too feel out of control and anxious around the holidays because of all there is to do? Or maybe you get less sleep because of traveling or what not? Those sort of things always catch up with me and cause me IBS distress. Not only that, but my symptoms persisted for weeks, but most likely because of my mindset. I don't know if you're like me, but when I feel terrible from my IBS I get angry at myself. Usually, as was the case this Christmas, I couldn't understand why I felt so sick since I ate so safely. I always forget that stress (not necessarily caused by me, but by my family) can be so hard on my stomach! I just get so upset that I eat so safely and try to please others and I still end up sick as can be. When I get depressed like this, I swear I only make my symptoms worse and last longer. Finally, three days ago, I felt better than I had in weeks. So I did the opposite of what I normally do; Instead of getting depressed over feeling bad, I got incredibly happy and optimistic about feeling so good and I've felt great since. I just keep to my diet, think positively, try to rest, and hope for the best...it has helped for the past week at least.

Well, I don't know if I've helped at all or at least given you some hope, but I really do wish you end up feeling better real soon!

Take care,
Amber

PS- a lot of ppl get depressed in the winter simply due to the weather/darkness. I think it is called SAD? (Seasonal Affective Disorder) A lot of people get it. I'm sure depression, anxiety, etc could make IBS symptoms worse. Try to take care of yourself. You deserve to feel good! Tell yourself that.

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