Irritable Bowel Syndrome Message Boards

Hi MsMizzle!

Well, I'm going to try and offer some suggestions but I'll try and mainly stick to stuff that isn't really obvious so I hope it is helpful.

First off, I would say definately give the diet a real good try. No cheating...that way you can see what a difference it'll make. When I first started the diet I thought I was being extremely good, but I quickly realized I was cheating without even realizing it, because some of the foods I was eating had hidden ingredients (especially dairy) that I wasn't supposed to have. It can be hard to give a lot of stuff up (chocolate and coffee were killer for me) but it's worth it once you do!

As for your comment about how your D goes away when you eat things that are supposed to be "bad" it could be because you're not eating fruits and vegetables then. Steak and high fat foods are definately normally triggers, but fruits and veggies will normally cause more D because of their high insoluble fiber content. If you're not eating any of those when you're eating "bad" you're probably swinging over the C, which is fairly common with IBS.

You mentioned that you have a hard time following lunch when you're teaching. I think that the Equalactin is a great idea, as is trying to remember to take a soluble fiber supplement everyday as that will really help. Do you ever try and take any anti-diarhheal medication? I've found Lomotil to be really effective. It won't necessarily help with cramps but it gets rid of D for me really quickly, and maybe that could help you on really bad days when you're at work.

As for your teas, there are a lot of herbal teas that you can make into ice tea. You could try peppermint or fennel as both of these are great for the tummy. I like some of Celestial Seasonings teas for making iced tea, especially the strawberry and raspberry flavored ones. Plus, they're completely caffeine free so I don't have to worry about it triggering attacks.

As for your comment about chills, I can't say that I've ever experienced that, but hopefully someone else here has.

Anyways, welcome to the boards, I hope that you'll get lots of helpful information!
Kelly

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