I really feel for you, its not fair when day in day out life is miserable. I know that conflicting advice is what causes you the most stress but I would like to add something myself. Please don't misinterpret what I'm saying below, I have tremendous respect for Heather, the IBS diet and message board. I just thought you might like to hear my story.
6 months ago I thought I simply had food intolerances. I went to a naturopath/ food allergist who tested me for all the foods under the sun and put me on an elimination diet, containing only the foods my body wasn't reacting to (eg rice, fish, chicken, seeds, rice milk, a small number of veges and fruit). He also prescribed supplements, and outlined exactly when and how much to take. The diet was tough but after 1 week by BMs were gloriously normal and after 6 weeks I was almost symptom free except for mild bloating.
I then went for a colonoscopy/ endoscopy to test for coelic, was 'diagnosed' with IBS, and found this website. The wealth of info here was like a dream come true! But I also found there was too much info to digest, one person was saying this, another was saying that. I was trying fennel tea, peppermint caps, SFS, aloe vera, introducing white bread, cutting out fruit and veges, etc etc, and in the end I got really sick. I was trying too many things when all along I should've just stuck with the allergy diet I was originally put on and the supplements I was prescribed, because they worked for me.
What I found was that putting complete trust in one person to tell me what I was doing wrong and how to fix it really really worked for me. By adding in so much extra information, confusion and conflicting advice I got sooo stressed and became obsessed with IBS and focused on my symptoms minute in minute out.
Unfortunately I am still obssessed with IBS, I still have worse symptoms then I did before I knew I had IBS (through obsession with my condition and the stress of trying to find out how to fix it). I love this message board and have grown immensley because of it, but some days I wish I had just kept faith in my allergist and the diet & supplements I was on. Its only now that I realise he really did know what he was doing.
So I suppose in a long winded way, I'm trying to say - is it possible your search for answers is making you more and more sick as time goes on? Are you able to see a food allergist/ naturopath/ dietician who can give you personal advice on what will work for you? I can't praise my allergist enough, he has been an absolute godsend. When we are sick we don't want to know what has worked for everyone else we want to know what is going to work for us.
I know I feel tired. Tired of trying sooooooo many different things and tired of having none of it work for me. Tired of taking so many different supplements cos they work for others. Tired of trying so many different things cos they work for others. Tired of eating, sleeping, drinking, not eating IBS!! I think its possible we rely on this message board too much and it overwhelms us. Learning from people in the same situation as us is the greatest gift anyone can offer, but when this information overwhelms us and causes our symptoms to grow worse through stress and depression perhaps we need to stop and take a breather. Of course I'm not suggesting you leave us Beth!!! Absolutely not!!!! But are there additional avenues of support you can tap into?
DISCLAIMER! I really hope my intent of this post is clear, I have tremendous respect and gratitude for this message board and everyone within it. Its just that I became obsessed with it, and my search for answers, and this ended up making my symptoms worse. I really hope one day soon you'll find the answers you've spent so long searching for
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~ Live life, don't let life live you ~
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Dear Augie
