Irritable Bowel Syndrome Message Boards

geez, i hope i meet someone as understanding and nice as you.

Bevrs said everything there is to say! read it, study it, have your girlfriend live it! sometimes i wish that everyone with IBS could try these changes for 3 weeks. if, after that time, they noticed no improvement, then what have they really lost!? but i know they'd all notice some kind of improvement, however subtle (and most times it will be dramatic!).

i'll tell ya a something: i have had the IBS for a few years now... it kinda snuck up on me and hit me really really hard last year. i was quite the unhappy (and therefore unpleasant) gal. it's so hard to be upbeat and pleasant when your stomach feels like it's grinding up razorblades. if it's not your stomach stabbing at you, then you get to contend with a ridiculous bloating that makes wearing your normal clothes impossible! some of us get terribly painful and can't go to the bathroom. others spend hours in the bathroom with our "D" and it's not just that: there's the crying, sweating, shaking, dizziness, nausea.... er... you get the idea. then most of the time people just look at you and think "she doesn't look sick." or worse, they have the attitude i had before i got really sick. i used to think that people who spent a lot of time being concerned about what they ate were neurotic. well, that's not the case, as i've learned. the people i've met through IBS are lovely people battling an illness, and they will do just about anything to feel better!

so now i check ingredients, take my soluble fiber supplement (acacia), carry my Equalactin, avoid dairy (not as hard as you may think!), eat low fat (it's better for you anyway), drink my fennel tea, and eat smaller amounts more frequently. subsequently, i haven't had an attack since.... hmmm.... i really can't remember!

i agree with Bev... see if you can get your girlfriend to come online, even just to look and lurk. there's so much to learn and i swear if she follows the directions she'll feel tons better and then feel less frustrated and irritable. right now, being sick, it's a wonder she has any kind thoughts at all! the diet helps you regain control of something that makes you feel helpless, and that's a wonderful feeling!

hopefully your girlfriend appreciates how wonderful you are and how concerned you are! it's great!

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