Re: Irritable Bowel Syndrome and Me, a 21 year old
04/16/05 06:41 AM
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Sand
Reged: 12/13/04
Posts: 4490
Loc: West Orange, NJ (IBS-D)
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Stephie did a fabulous job answering your questions, so I'll just add some fairly random thoughts.
You can try drinking non-alcoholic beer. Since one of your symptoms is bloating, you're probably reacting to the carbonation as much as the alcohol, in which case this won't help, but it's worth a try. And make one last.
As someone who is definitely middle-aged, I'd be willing to bet that 95% of the people on this Board are younger than I am. There are even posts from mothers with very little children who have IBS.
As someone who is female, I can tell you that there is research indicating that the presumed gender imbalance in IBS sufferers is not as great as usually thought. I've seen studies that say in India and China more men than women seek help for IBS and even in the US, random surveys (rather than seeking medical help) indicate a no more than 2:1 ratio of women to men suffering IBS.
When it comes to eating out, try turkey breast on a white roll with mustard at your sandwich shop. Try pizza with mushrooms and without cheese - this won't work if it's super greasy, but it's worth a try.
Decide what you're going to tell your friends if they ask why your eating habits have changed. I do think honesty is the best policy, but I know it's a lot easier for a middle-aged woman to admit to IBS than it is for you. You can always fall back on, "My stomach's been killing me and the doctor wants me to try changing how I eat." With any luck your friends will assume you have something fatal and therefore romantic. 
I think Heather's diet and lifestyle changes are your best shot at feeling better. You can get all the info you need from this Website, but if you're more linear - like I am - buy or get from the library Heather's book, "The First Year-IBS". It goes step by step, day by day through what you need to know.
Last, but not least, welcome. IBS is a miserable illness, but a lot of people have gotten a lot better with Heather's guidelines. And these Boards are a great place for advice and just to come to vent.
HTH.
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[Research tells us fourteen out of any ten individuals likes chocolate. - Sandra Boynton]
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