Irritable Bowel Syndrome Message Boards | just starting out, how bad am i doing? now i am depressed......

i am just starting an IBS diet, at least i am trying to- i had my gallbladder out a year ago, and unfortunately what that meant was that i was able to eat all sorts of unhealthy things- with the "only" bad side effects being wt gain and severe constipation. Fried food,candy- esp chocolate, ice cream and sherbet with chocolate shell, italien subs and pizza- that was my diet this summer

i have a terrible sweet tooth, i am the first to admit it! but i think the changes i have made, while not ideal, are reasonable given just how hard it is for me to give up sweet things.

so far my subsitutions have been: pears, apples (no peel) homemade applesauce with just a tiny bit of added sugar (under 1TB in 3 cups of applesauce)
bananas, low fat cinnamon graham crackers, no sugar added blueberry spread, and fruit and cereal bars (low fat, sugar about 13 grams each)

i have been eating carrots and plain white potatoes and soup (beef & barely soup, i take the beef out- its 99% fat free) and my sisters great chicken noodle soup (no idea how much fat is in that, but knowing her,its very little)

i know that i can have oatmeal, but the only way for me to eat it without adding honey, or maple syrup or brown sugar, is to put raisins and apples in it.

i told my sister about my diet (she recently lost over 30lbs and i think she is embarrassed by my size- currenly 193lbs and i am only 5 ft 3 inches)
and she thought it was horrible!! "all sugar" she said

well ok, i admit that there are sweet things, fruit is sweet, and so is the fruit spread, but just what am i supposed to eat? i cant imagine cutting all sugar out of my diet all at once. i think i would be miserable, in fact, just thinking about it, made me so depressed i went back to bed after talking to her. now *thats* not gonna help any!!

sorry, i have ordered the IBS book (thru half dot com- i have a very low income) and until it comes and i have a better idea what i can and cant' eat, i think i am doing ok with what i have.
i have no money left for the rest of the month to go out and buy things like the fennel tea or the acacia (i am using benefiber) i can not make drastic changes until i can actually afford to.

plus a lot of the things she was telling me i should eat, would aggravate my GERD (i can not even think about eating anything spicey) i love brussels sprouts, but i am afraid of what that might do if i were to eat them now. i have IBS-A and need a delicate balance or i will be a mess.

sorry to vent like this- i was so happy when i found this site and really thought i had things under control, and at least headed in the right direction.

now i feel like i am doing everything wrong.

i also eat whole eggs, i cant' eat em without the yolk. they are cheap and quick and easy, so i cant see me cutting those out of my diet.

after talking to my sister it seems like the only safe foods i have in my house are oats for oatmeal (she eats them dry!!) and some frozen winter squash.

help!! what do i do, stop eating altogether?? i know my GERD is severe if my stomach is empty. my insurance (medicaid) will not pay for the medication i need (nexium or prevacid) and i cannot afford the prilosec otc (its over $20 a box!!)

my sister eats a lot of salads too, i have TMJ, i cant eat salad. i have not been able to eat any raw veggies in a long time (tomatoes on a sandwhich maybe, if my GERD is under control)

sorry this is so rambling. i was just starting to feel good about things..........

sigh

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