A very odd thing!
#304634 - 04/11/07 04:53 PM
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I have had pretty bad symptoms now for some weeks. I did an elimination diet in December and felt better and then had greasy hashbrowns at a restaurant and got sick. Looking back I think I have been bad all through January, February and March and the first week of April. Then something strange happened. Thursday I felt some really sharp pain in the morning, with dizziness it was so bad. Then I had a little more later. But by late afternoon when I normally am at my worst, something was different. I didn't get bloated and painful. I could tell something changed. I didn't feel the tight bowel feeling like my guts were in knots. Since then I have been just fine- a little bit of bloating last night and a little bit of gas tonight. I can tell I am out of the bad streak I was in. I feel like everything will work for a while. But the odd thing is I didn't do anything to change it. I was going to buy food for another elimination diet and start Saturday but I felt so good there would be no change in symptoms. So it seems like my gut just does its own thing- true IBS. Eating right will help me stay this way, but as soon as my gut decides to change I won't be able to prevent it. This new thing just makes one more unsolved mystery in IBS. I wish I could figure out what to do about it. Is it just the time of year? Its not warm here at all so it doesn't seem to make sense.
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IBS-A for 20 years with terrible bloating and gas. On the diet since April 2004. Remember this from Heather's information pages:
"You absolutely must eat insoluble fiber foods, and as much as safely possible, but within the IBS dietary guidelines. Treat insoluble fiber foods with suitable caution, and you'll be able to enjoy a wide variety of them, in very healthy quantities, without problem." Please eat IF foods!
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I have a few ideas that I want to get comments on. For those on oral contraceptives, have you noticed any effects on IBS?
Also for everyone: has anyone noticed that just eating more in general, not at one time but the day as a whole, causes them problems? I feel better when I eat less in general and that could be why winter is so tough. My appetite just dropped this month and could be leading to my stabilizing.
What about season, besides depression symptoms, do you have worse IBS symptoms in winter and if so why do you think that is?
What about stress, how much of a factor is that to you? I was stressing because my IBS was so bad I was having trouble working and when I got better I don't think my stress was less, so it is confusing.
Any comments will be helpful.
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IBS-A for 20 years with terrible bloating and gas. On the diet since April 2004. Remember this from Heather's information pages:
"You absolutely must eat insoluble fiber foods, and as much as safely possible, but within the IBS dietary guidelines. Treat insoluble fiber foods with suitable caution, and you'll be able to enjoy a wide variety of them, in very healthy quantities, without problem." Please eat IF foods!
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Stress is definitely a big factor with my IBS. Other than that I can find no rhyme or reason. It is an enigma to me.
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Snookie, IBS-C
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Regarding BC, getting on a monophasic pill and skipping periods has been HUGE for me. PMS used to wreak havoc with my IBS, and I'd get horrible migraines. Not anymore!
The less I eat, definitely the better I feel. I typically can do really well eating very little during the day, but once I get home from work, I get the munchies. I think that's why I tend to get a little gassy in the evenings.
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Lisa, IBS-C (Vegan)
Stable since July 2007!
Mommy to Rhiannon Marie (Dec. 13, 2008)
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I'm on the pill skipping my periods and that has definetly helped calm my IBS down. However I have been looking into other alternatives such as NuvaRing to give my digestive system a break from the hormones.
I definetly feel great if I eat small amounts during the day, and keep the overall total low. I'm underweight so this really isn't an option. I find trying to gain weight makes me have more symptoms because I'm eating too much overall during the day, even if it's safe good IBS food.
Winter overall my symptoms are worse probably because of mood and comfort eating in the evenings. This could also be due to school since I am most stressed with this November-April. Summertime I get worse symptoms only on really hot humid days, but it's isolated to those days only.
As for stress, normal everyday stress doesn't affect me (ie: running late for an appt, getting my work done, having time to cook dinner) but unusual stressors like giving a presentation, meetings, exams, etc all cause more problems..
Hope that helps,
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Kat
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I find this frustrating, too. Stress and hormones are my biggest triggers, I think. But I am really careful with diet and sometimes the pain and upset just hits out of the blue - it really gets me down. My period was really awful this time and has triggered major upset - it doesn't matter what I eat, I have pain and C. Like you say, it's a mystery.
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What I found so strange about the breaking of my bad streak was that I got better when I stopped the pills and got my period. The afternoon my IBS got better was exactly when my period started. They are very light and my IBS is usually not worse, excepting stinkier gas at times. So I have been on BC since getting IBS and I wonder if my body doesn't like that being pregnant feeling BC causes. I also think it leads to being 10 lbs overweight too. I am going to journal it and pay attention to how I feel on and off BC. I definitely don't want to alter efficacy!!!
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IBS-A for 20 years with terrible bloating and gas. On the diet since April 2004. Remember this from Heather's information pages:
"You absolutely must eat insoluble fiber foods, and as much as safely possible, but within the IBS dietary guidelines. Treat insoluble fiber foods with suitable caution, and you'll be able to enjoy a wide variety of them, in very healthy quantities, without problem." Please eat IF foods!
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I'm also on the pill but don't skip my periods, and yes, my IBS is always worse during this time. Is continually taking the pill and skipping periods something that is recommended by your doctor? I'm just wondering if it is a healthy/safe thing to do.
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I do the exact same thing. I do really well not eating too much at once during the day (I don't want to have problems at work), but once I get home I have a really hard time controlling my portions. And yes, I have more problems in the evening too. I'm still trying to work on this one.
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It was recommended to me by both my family doctor and my gynecologist to deal with really bad periods. Everything they have told me and everything I have read online shows that it poses no more risks than taking the BC pill normally. If it's something you want to consider, then you should discuss with your doctor whether it's a good option for you.
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Kat
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