|
|
okay ladies i know it won't be easy but try to be polite in the responses,
here goes,
is this denial or just a valid question?
my work schedule is 7 on and 7 off. yes sounds great but the seven on i'm all over the country and not home at night with the family. it is great but not quite as good as it sounds. anyway here goes and again, please be kind, remember i'm doing heather's year in a week. i've already read both books purchased some new food started with the soluble and had some words with my gi after he told me it was not necessary to do any tests, this after the er doc said to get a cat scan in two days.
ok now for the fireworks. i only have an episode once per month on average and if not for work i'd just deal with it than to give up my favorite foods. Ice cream? Maybe i missed it but heather never mentioned a conditioning of the stomach. What about the week i'm off can i just live it up take my chances knowing i'm home and then go back on the ibs diet 2 days before work? after all my bouts are infrequent and only last 1-2 hours, ie minor cramps and 2-3 episodes of the D, then i'm fine.
and what is a normal time interval between eating the trigger and the episode? i guess what i want to know is can i come home from my trip and have popcorn with my wife and a big bowl of icecream knowing it will hit me in 24hrs if it's gonna. after all i can eat every bad item on the list everyday and be fine for weeks. this makes me sound like a junk food junkie and i'm not. my real problem is the veggies and nuts that i love to eat raw.
alright let me have it!
--------------------
Luke
<><
Print
Remind Me
Notify Moderator
|
|
|
Hi!
Welcome to the board. I'm sorry you are having so much trouble. It's got to be hard trying to follow "safe" food guidelines when you are on the go and don't have access to your own refrigerator, pantry, and most importantly, your own bathroom. My husband and I went to a pro football game yesterday and both of us spent last night tossing and turning in bed----tummies rumbling and then running back and forth to the bathroom with diarrhea! I'm just glad it happened after the game and not at the end, when the line was snaked out the door of the ladies restroom. I don't think I'll be sampling that stadium food again!
I hate to make light of your situation because I know it's not funny; however, I've never thought about what a pilot would do if he had to go to the bathroom right away! It reminds me of that tv commercial for Immodium that shows people in certain situations and says "Where will you be when your diarrhea returns?" I think you need to contact the company and maybe you could star in one of their commercials. I can just see this picture in my mind---a pilot all red in the face, sweating, and frantic, searching for an alternate place to land the plane because his diarrhea has returned. Please don't take this the wrong way! It's just something most of us have never thought about. It's kind of like teachers----we think they don't ever have to go to the bathroom!
I don't have many suggestions for you except to stay away from the junk food (candy and greasy fast foods). You are just going to have to pack some safe things to take with you----fat-free saltine crackers, graham crackers, pretzels, rice cakes, bananas, applesauce in those little individual containers). And don't forget to take the fiber supplement 2-3 times a day. Then when you do sit down and eat a meal, your stomach will not be empty.
Good luck and let us know if these suggestions help.
Print
Remind Me
Notify Moderator
|
|
|
Denial would be a good term to use in your case. Coming from past experience, my advice would be to not play with this as it can and will get worse if you don't listen to it. It took some horrible things to happen before I stopped eating fat-full, and since I didn't know about the right way to eat, I didn't know what to do. Since you have these episodes infrequently, you may be able to be a little more free with your diet, but I will stress to try and learn the triggers and eat lower fat. Your body will thank you for it anyway, my blood pressure went down and my husband's cholesterol went down also (don't check mine as it's always low). My feeling is that had I taken care of myself earlier, I wouldn't have to be so strict now.
Print
Remind Me
Notify Moderator
|
|
|
First, welcome to the board! 
Second, either you are in denial or you are a glutten for punishment.  (This coming from the girl that went out to celebrate her official IBS diagnosis and the end of a million tests to determine this by going out and indulging in ribs & chicken with a side salad, washing it down with a few margarittas.  Oh yeah - three months AFTER I discovered Heather's books.  )
Anyways....how do you know you have IBS if you've had no tests? Anything at all? Bloodwork? Anything? A few words seems a little weak for a proper diagnosis.
As for triggers - they can come instantly or a day or two later. For example, if I eat anything dairy or fried, I'm having an attack before I've finished clearing the dishes. If I eat raw veggies, I'm having an attack the next day. It all depends on how your attacks come if you want to schedule them.
You could also make some adjustments on some of your things. For example, I can tolerate hull-less popcorn if I'm stable and have had a good safe meal earlier. You could also have baked potato chips (Lays) or baked Tostitos. You could also have soy or rice ice cream instead of regular. I haven't tried them yet, but I've read a lot of posts on Toffuti Cuties.
Well, was that a polite response?  I hope so, because I can't stand rudeness. 
Print
Remind Me
Notify Moderator
|
|
|
An IBS diagnosis?
My aeromedical examiner said ibswithout any tests then sent me to a general prac who said ibs try fiber supp. after no improvment probably because i didn't take it regularly and didn't know about trigger foods then sent me to a gi who did all the blood work, and other bio samples found no disease, blood where it's not supposed to be said it's ibs, no need for further tests do to age, health, history etc after the worst attack ever almost passing out and dialing 911 after an hour of extreme pain i took matters into my own hands and searched and found heather's books. i informed my gi that we would be doing some more tests just to be sure. we are following it up with more tests tomorrow followed by an abdom cat in two weeks. So yes i have had 3 diagnosis' but not all of the tests. my gi claims that there is no way do to my symptoms ie stomach pains, blood (there aren't any)etc that it must be ibs.
sounds alot like chapter 2.
don't know if i answered your question or not.
--------------------
Luke
<><
Print
Remind Me
Notify Moderator
|
|
|
i din't take it the wrong way. 
i will tell you a funny story well funny now and only if it never happens again. i used to fly the little 19 seat props with no bathroom, yep no bathroom. how about an hour and 15 minute flight every morning departing at 6 am. yep.
well fortunately the first time i was able to hold it for a half an hour that had to have done some internal damage right there. well i had the sense enough to carry a portapotty from then on in my flight bag, yep you guessed it. it was black with a yellow drwstring named Hefty. not to mention a small roll of charmin. any months later when i got caught fortunately only 3 passengers on board that day 2 of which were asleep and the third deep in his USA Today. well i quietly tip toed to the back wnet through a secret door to the baggage compartment and well no one was any the wiser. I'm just hoping those days are soon to be behind me.
If Imodium AD picks me up i'll split the royalties with you along with a box of graham crackers and peppermint tea. well maybe not the tea i can't seem to stomach the herbals. i'v only tried peppermint, chamomille, and earl grey. Yuck! I think that's one thing i just won't be able to do think i'll have to stick with the altoids and fibercon capsules.
any idea on hot chocolate. like nestle or swiss miss. it's cocoa. not sure about the dried dairy in it.
thnaks for the laugh
--------------------
Luke
<><
Print
Remind Me
Notify Moderator
|
|
|
Hi Skywalker,
When I first got IBS, I had extreme D. I can totally relate to the 911 call. There were a few times where I felt ready to crawl on the bathroom floor and die.  It's a hard condition to deal with, especially when you have to work a full-time job. I feel for you.
The best way for me to deal was to snack throughout the day so that when meals come around, I wasn't not starving and more likely to eat things I knew were going to cause me problems. I was never an herbal tea drinker (I used to live on Pepsi!), but I must admit that I got used to the taste and now, I actually look forward to a hot cup of tea. The benefits are wonderful and well worth it.
Stick with it and hang in there.
Kristine
Print
Remind Me
Notify Moderator
|
|
|
Bless your heart! A black Hefty bag and a roll of toilet paper? I don't blame you for bringing that along. Just the thought that there was no bathroom on board would give me a panic attack. (Of course, I'm terrified of heights and fast things, so I wouldn't be in the pilot's seat in the first place.)
I'm glad you have a sense of humor about this. I know it's not funny, but just the thought of you with that black trashbag and that roll of toilet paper . . . I will never fly again without wondering if the pilot has tiptoed to the back of the plane for a trip to the potty. Yikes! Do those planes just fly on auto-pilot all by themselves? What if an emergency occurs? Great, as if takeoffs and landings wasn't enough for me to worry about when flying. Now I have to worry about the pilot and his bodily functions!
Hope you get this resolved soon----not just for you, but for the sake of your passengers too!
Print
Remind Me
Notify Moderator
|
|
|
That answered it! I was afraid some doc just said yep that's it and sent you on your merry way.
Print
Remind Me
Notify Moderator
|
|
|
just so we'd have an official meeting between you two!
Everyone has given you fabulous advice. The hard part is following it, which I know is not fun or easy, especially when you're trying to make so many tremendous changes all at once.
Do make sure your doc did the bloodwork for celiac. That's often overlooked.
If you loathe the herbal teas you've tried so far, give fennel or anise a chance. Also, any caffeine free herbal tea on the market (and between Celestial Seasonings, Republic of Tea, etc. there are about a jillion) will be better than the black tea you're drinking. Try Bengal Spice, or one of the fruit flavored ones. Something is bound to taste good to you.
The peppermint caps suggestion is great too - you won't taste those, you can easily travel with them, and they work really well.
About eating safely on the road and then splurging at home...well, you probably know we're all going to say this, but it's really not a great idea. The big problem is that by setting off attacks once you're home, you're also setting yourself up for a cycle that you may find harder and harder to get under control each time you go through it.
Your best bet is to get yourself stable with the breaking the cycle info folks are recommending. Get yourself on a good dose of the soluble fiber too - most people don't take nearly enough. Check the links on the front page of this forum for detailed info on both of these topics.
Do eliminate dairy altogether. Try different brands of rice and soy milk until you find one you like. You can even get little cartons to take with you.
Don't feel that you're going to be deprived of great food - you won't be. There are healthy, low fat, vegan versions of just about every junk food out there - from baked potato chips to soy or rice ice cream, to soy or turkey bacon, and more. You can also cook your own safe versions of all types of treats, so if you're craving something you know will make you sick, ask for an IBS version on the recipe board. It's much better to splurge on these foods, and keep yourself stable, then to go all-out on your week off with foods that can upset all your hard work to get stable.
Hope this helps, and that you're feeling better soon. Please ask any other questions you have.
PS - My grandfather was a pilot. He doesn't have IBS (in fact, he has a cast iron stomach that I most definitely did not inherit!) but I've always had a soft spot for pilots as a result. If you have a picture I'm happy to post it for you...maybe one in those cute pilot uniforms?
- Heather
--------------------
Heather is the Administrator of the IBS Message Boards. She is the author of Eating for IBS and The First Year: IBS, and the CEO of Heather's Tummy Care. Join her IBS Newsletter. Meet Heather on Facebook!
Print
Remind Me
Notify Moderator
|
|
Posts
