Irritable Bowel Syndrome Message Boards

Hi Everyone,

My name is Maia... I live in Seattle with my partner and two kitties. I am currently in my second year of grad school for psychology counseling, and just started my internship as a therapist, which has been an amazing experience. I have been visiting this site for the past few weeks and reading a lot of the information, posts, etc...

I have been dealing with IBS-C for, looking back, most of my life. It has gotten much worse in the past year or so. For me, the IBS shows up as really uncomfortable, intense bloating and constipation. A naturopath had me try the Whole30 diet this past summer, but I found that I was still dealing with the bloating. I had not cut out alcohol at that time, so I am sure that was a trigger as well. I saw a doctor (just the first and only time) for the first time about the bloating during the summer and she told me that she believes I have IBS due to fitting the criteria. I tested negative for celiac's disease and I have known for years that dairy is a major trigger. I was following the FODMAP diet for a few months, but not strictly and was still drinking alcohol at the time.

For about a week-and-a-half, I have been doing my best to eat according to the diet rules on this website. I eat soluble fibers first and do not eat insoluble fibers on an empty stomach. I have been taking the tummy fiber daily for a little over a week, along with the peppermint oil capsules. The tummy fiber has me regular again (yay!). I also recently purchased the two IBS books that are recommended. I have noticed the bloating has gone down some, but I am still bloated every day. I also have cut out alcohol (not easy for a wine lover), and I am on day 12 alcohol free. I know that I need to work on using less oils for cooking, as I regularly use infused garlic olive oil for flavor. Even with non-stick pans, using a very small amount can still make it difficult for food to not stick.

I love to cook and have been eating a pretty healthy diet for a long time now. This is what an average daily meal look like (I avoid anything with onion and garlic like the plague!):

Breakfast: Oatmeal, banana, and sometimes a smoothie with spinach, banana, blueberries, and sometimes peanut butter (using peanut butter less often because of the fat content).
Lunch: Leftovers from dinner
Dinner: Chicken or fish, often mashed sweet potatoes and sometimes regular potatoes, and cooked greens (spinach, chard, kale) or squash.
Snacks - Rice crackers (very plain without any extra flavoring such as garlic or onion), pretzels, graham crackers, and low-fat saltines, homemade IBS friendly banana bread. I've noticed that the pretzels, graham crackers, and saltine crackers all have enriched wheat flour. Is this not good? I've tried dried mango, although it may be a trigger for gas.

I am struggling with the information around eating things that are not whole grain. I have read about why this can be a problem. My concern is the nutritional value of refined grains. Is this really good for you? It seems like A LOT of carbs are a part of this diet, which is another concern that I have.

While doing online research, I found a study that shows people with a history of trauma are more likely to have IBS than those who have not experienced trauma. This doesn't surprise me at all, with what I know about the mind-gut connection and the effects of trauma on the body. This makes sense for me, considering my childhood. I am seeing a somatic therapist and we did some somatic work around my stomach issues and emotions. It was very helpful and my stomach felt more relaxed than it has in a while.

I appreciate any thoughts and tips you might have.

Thank You,
Maia

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