I have studied your website for two days now and found that over the years I learned most of the tricks listed there by trial-and-error. I have had IBS since I was in the third grade. I have had multiple episodes of explosive diarrhea in public places, and although I was able work for over 35 years, I have now had to stop. I had 15 inches of my sigmoid colon removed due to recurrent diverticulitis, and if you think the cramps from IBS are bad (and they can be), the diverticulitis pain is excruciating. I have also had blood clots in my legs and both lungs, and must take blood-thinners for the rest of my life. Over the years I have just learned to live with all of the issues you list and others have spoken about. After my colon surgery, the only thing that changed for me was that "transit time" of a meal was reduced from about two hours to thirty minutes, and most of the cramping I used to have, as well as the gas, is now gone. For that I am thankful.
I have been calling myself a "vampire" for years, because my IBS has always been worse during the day than at night. Anything I eat between about nine or ten in the morning and seven or eight at night goes right through me. After nine o'clock at night I can eat ANYTHING without distress. I often have a glass of 2% milk as a sedative before bedtime. I am acutely aware of the humiliation of incontinence in public, and my cubicle at work was right next to the bathroom. During the final ten years of my work I did not eat at all during the day. This ultimately led to dizziness and fatigue long before the day ended, to say nothing of the social isolation. Co-workers want to go out for group lunches, and I always declined.
As much as I like to drink water, I drink nowhere near the recommended six 8oz. glasses per day, and could not possibly double that amount. It seems to me that by doing this you are just replacing one reason for runnning to the bathroom for another! I shall try the soluble fiber supplements, and I shall stop drinking all colas and coffee from now on. Other than that, I don't know what else I can do. I have not been able to travel in retirement due to this issue -- I have stopped and eaten on the road -- driven thirty more minutes, and then had to stop for a restroom at least twice within about fifteen miles.
Thanks for the great website, and for sharing all your stories. It is nice to realize I am not alone in this struggle.
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Life-long IBS
