What do you do when you sense an impending attack?
#360636 - 08/27/10 11:59 PM
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kem
Reged: 06/09/10
Posts: 104
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I'm interested to get people's tips/strategies on this. I appreciate that EFI is all about preventing the 'attack' (and everybody's all for that!), but sometimes . . . stuff happens. So, I'm asking:
Do a lot of you get "that feeling" before an attack hits?
How much time do you find you have when that happens?
Do you find there is anything you can do at that point (besides getting home!) that works for you?
Are you able to halt or reverse the situation?
I do understand that many people get hit out of the blue and find themselves in the middle of big trouble with no warning! But apparently some people sometimes get a bit of "advance notice," so to speak, and if you are one of those, I think the rest of us could learn something from your experiences. What can you tell us?
Thanks in advance to anyone who takes the time to reply.
kem (12 yr old daughter w/ibs-d)
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My IBS is a chronic condition I am always aware of. I don't really have attacks, but I don't really go out much to put myself in a situation to have a major attack. Some people have very severe cramping, diarrhea or pain attacks, but many also suffer just from irregularity which causes problems.
For example some of the big problems I face are incomplete bowel movements leading to many trips the bathroom, it's not diarrhea, I am not cramping, I just have that feeling that I have to go rather often & when I do go, it doesn't feel like I've accomplished much  . Other issues are things like bloating and feeling fatigued.
Now, I would say there are some days I know that will be better than others. Such as if I am not feeling bloated, had a complete bowel movement & feel less fatigue, then I'll have more confidence in heading out the door.
There is the mental fear of an attack when going out and about which leads me to often focus on "getting through" whatever event or errand I am taking care of so I can get back home. It puts a damper as it's hard to enjoy what I am participating in when constantly thinking of the threat.
I have only had two experiences that I would deem as being extremely urgent attacks. Once on a trip at the coast with my girlfriend & once while taking a family friend to the airport. I got very bad diarrhea & cramping, luckily I made it to a public restroom in time, but they were close calls.
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I've dealt with IBS, Acid Reflux, Emetophobia & Gastroparesis. I run The Digestion Blog.
Edited by DigestionBlog (08/28/10 05:25 AM)
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When I sense that trouble is on its way all I can do is get prepared for 2-3 days of discomfort. Reduce stress, drop back to a basic safe diet and get the heating pad ready. I have never found anything that will reduce or abort the attach except time 
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STABLE: ♂, IBS-D 50+ years - Science of IBS
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to go wrong, and being unconscious on the floor from the pain. Only thing that works for me is very strong, very hot peppermint tea (and I mean strong - I brew it black).
If I can't get that and there is no one around to help me (my husband knows the drill, so I'm in luck if he's nearby), I chew Altoids two at a time (usually 10-12 total). I actually keep Altoids in my bathroom, at my desk at work, in my luggage, and in my car. I keep peppermint tea bags in all those places too.
Best,
H
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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!
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I have severe pain from IBS everyday. The thing that helps the most (besides the EFI diet) is peppermint oil. I take 3 of Heather's spaced out over the day and 3 smaller ones (50 mg) spaced out during the night when I wake up. This allows me to tolerate the reduced pain.
The teas don't seem to help. Nor do the Altoids.
Cheers.
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ibs-d (pseudo)with pain and bloating
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What do I do? Panic. 
And that's kind of funny, but then again it's not, but it's what seems to happen. I've had too many close calls (and two definite accidents in the same store) to calm myself quickly when I sense an attack coming on. I try, but there's always that feeling of "What if this is going to be when I poop my pants?"
If I'm going to somewhere new, I make a quick mental note of any bathrooms I see. If it's somewhere that I'm going to be walking from place to place, I keep making those mental notes of the bathrooms. That way, if I have to get to one quickly, I can. If I'm going to be sitting, I ALWAYS sit on the aisle. These are small things I can do to make sure my mind is at ease, that I know if need be I can get out and to a bathroom fast.
I carry peppermints around with me and I'll pop one if I start to feel weird.
I try to take deep breaths and relax as much as possible.
Weirdly enough, I try to buy a lemonade...not the HFCS-full crap, but a real lemonade of some kind. This does seem to help settle my stomach down. Usually it's the Simply Lemonade brand.
I usually carry a small, battery-operated fan in my purse. This helps when I get that hot-flash feeling that usually signals an impending attack for me.
I carry a bottle of activated charcoal and I'll pop a couple of those. Doesn't really do anything quickly, but mentally it helps.
I pray a lot. (And not just, "Oh, God, let me get to the bathroom!!!")
I do get the feeling that an attack is impending, usually with a hot flash. I have anywhere from thirty seconds to up to five or ten minutes to find the potty.
Halt or reverse...no. Not a chance. But breathing deep, trying not to panic, and knowing where a bathroom is can greatly reduce the stress of an attack.
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IBS-D since...well, a long time
(probiotic acidophilous, SF supplements, IBS eating plan)
my blog
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To expand on my earlier thought...
I think that knowing that I have options helps. Knowing where the bathroom is, for example. Or knowing that I have Imodium in my purse. Or knowing I have an extra pair of underwear. Knowing that I have some control over what could possibly turn into an uncontrollable situation helps me mentally, and I think that reduces stress to some degree, and that in itself can help during an attack. I don't think it helps PREVENT an attack, but it does take away a little of the stress. I think. Or maybe it's just me. 
For example: When I go into a mall, I like to know exactly where the bathrooms are, both main bathrooms and the ones in the stores. I like to know my purse has Imodium and activated charcoal tablets. I like to know I have an extra pair of underwear in there too. I like to know I'm wearing a long pantiliner covering any possible poopy areas (I get sweaty, I get crampy, I get skid marks...ICK). I like to know these things because invariably when I go into a mall, my digestion wants to go into overdrive, I start sweating, I start feeling "unfresh", my OCD starts going off the charts...it's a chain reaction.
I'm trying to train my body to not go into these reactions when I hit a mall, but the only way I can really do that is to train my brain to "know" all the remedies are in line. MAYBE...if I can train my brain to KNOW that anything I need is handy, then MAYBE I can lessen or even prevent an attack that might be CAUSED by the very act of being in a mall (which, I think, has happened before). Pavlov's Dog sort of thing...go in a mall, have diarrhea...because I mentally think I won't be able to get to a bathroom, I create my own worst scenario. Same thing happens when I go to my local library...go inside, have to poop. Every. Single. Time!
So, all that to say this...I might not be able to stop an attack, but using some coping strategies and some pre-planning, I might be able to live through one.
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IBS-D since...well, a long time
(probiotic acidophilous, SF supplements, IBS eating plan)
my blog
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fairleas...have you tried the hypnosis cd's?
It seems like you have already trained your brain to have an attack not prevent one.Certainly not on purpose.
The cd's really help with that.
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IBS-D since 1999...mostly stable..i do cheat too.Bad me.
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Many of my attacks came out of the blue - and many of them came when I knew I had to be away from the house.
The very comments you make regarding needing to know where the bathrooms are, etc. are discussed in the IBS Audio Program - in fact, in the introduction he almost uses your very words...
Here is the message forum if you want to learn more:
http://www.helpforibs.com/messageboards/ubbthreads/postlist.php?Cat=&Board=hypnotherapy
and here is the info on it -
http://www.helpforibs.com/hypnosis/
There is a lot of hope there - even after YEARS of having IBS - even as children who are now adults, using this program have taken their pain and frequency of pain way down. And most sufferers have done this as a last resort when other things did not help... So there is hope!
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My Journey and Success with the IBS Audio Program Hypnotherapy Program: www.helpforibs.com/messageboards/ubbthreads/showflat.php?Cat=&Board=hypnotherapy&Number=224850
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Thanks.
I can see that there's such a spectrum of responses to this that it's got to be a lot of (probably painful!) trial and error for each individual.
The reason I asked this is because I see my daughter getting an earlier and earlier sense that something's not right BEFORE the physical symptoms start. She gets a weird sense that she can't really describe very well - it seems like the aura of migraine or even of epilepsy that some people describe prior to an attack. Oddly, I think this is helping her lately. I mean to say, originally she either just felt increasing pain or would suddenly be hit with 'the big one.' When attacks decreased a bit, she began noticing this 'feeling' which prefaced a bad attack (by 5-20 min, I'd guess). Because of that she naturally became more aware of her 'signs' (as she was petrified of them!) and we started trying to react ASAP in various ways, attempting to see if anything helps. The thing that seems to help the most has been immediately swigging Imodium and then using a relaxation technique; lately, NO attack has been following that . . . wow.
I wish we could try the pep caps in these circumstances (maybe that would work, too) but she isn't able to swallow even tiny pills!
Does anyone recognize a scenario like I described above? (or tried to describe - it's hard to put into words) I don't know how usual/unusual it might be.
[Maybe I should mention that my daughter has stuck to the diet and done the hypno program, among other therapies, in the time since her worst symptoms surfaced, so perhaps any/all of those may have contributed to her increasing awareness or something. ?]
grateful, but still trying for more improvement,
kem (daughter w/ibs-d)
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I'm IBS-C, but during an attack, I flip to D with nausea and a different kind of cramping. I always have advance notice -- usually a hot flash, a general "blerg" feeling that is pretty specific, and a sort of specific sort of "transitional" cramping. I am working on finding better relaxation/breathing techniques, because that's the one thing always available to me, but I also carry Altoids at all times. Peppermint tea is the best remedy I've found, brewed so strong it refreshes your toes.
The WORST thing I can do is panic or get upset, as it makes the attacks last longer. Lately I'm finding that hard, as I am truly unstable for the first time in a few years. Partly that was because I let the diet slip a bit too far, but mostly it's stress and anxiety cycle-induced. I'm going back to the hypnosis CDs, which I'm ashamed to admit I never finished the first time around.
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IBS-C, D and nausea with acute attacks, stable on EFI for 3 years
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I get alot of weird symptoms...mostly in the morning when I get up (on bad days). I get a strange feeling in my chest (under my breasts)...it's not really pain, but, rather uncomfortable and I also usually start to feel dizzy. It is hard to describe and it usually lasts the morning whether I go to the bathroom once or more, the feeling stays awhile. Seems like after I get a couple meals in me (maybe things are moving through) I feel better???
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IBS-D. Eating gluten and dairy free.
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Please finish the CDs. You will be amazed at the improvement. I am on my third go-round and it gets better and better. Sometimes diet is not the answer for some folks.
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