promisetobehealthy-deactivated2 asked:

I just noticed that you haven't been on in 3 weeks... but I hope you're still here! I have questions about IBS... I feel like I have that problem but I'm never going to be diagnosed because my mom doesn't notice anything wrong. I just feel like it's so hard to poop and I'm always bloated and gassy and annoyed, and when I press on my stomach it makes gurgling sounds all the time. I have no idea what's up, and I'm just confused in general :c

Ah! Yes, I am still here. This isn’t my main blog, so I tend to not update— even on my personal one, since I’m still in school currently.

And I’m sorry to hear about your tummy troubles! IBS and other functional GI diseases are really hard to diagnose, trust me, it’s been a long six years of this. There are a lot of tests, and some don’t necessarily give a definite answer. It can be frustrating and confusing, not only for yourself but for your parents as well.

To address some of your concerns:

1. Constipation is one of the key, prevalent signs of IBS. In fact, constipation IS NOT normal. Even in patients who do not have IBS, constipation is not a normal bodily phenomena, and should be considered. It can be dependent on diet, but in the case of IBS, diet is not always a trigger to constipation, but does play a key part in whether or not you experience constipation.
2. Bloating and excessive gas is another key sign of IBS, especially if it takes place immediately after a meal. Again, this is not normal. There is a grey area where some foods will typically cause bloating and gas, but this should not be an every day experience.

My suggestion to you is that you make a food journal (I’m a hypocrite, I know, I hate doing it). Document when you ate, what you ate, how you felt before and how you felt after. Try to include any medication you took, and what your bowel movements were like too.

If you have a hard time convincing your mother that something is up, showing a journal with the symptoms you feel and how often they occur can be a real eye opener. A lot of the times, patients with IBS don’t feature any external features of pain, other than a discomforted look on their face, so it can be extremely difficult for other people to notice the symptoms, let alone understand how much you are affected by the problem.

Another small thing that may help is to try to eat as healthy as possible. It seems really simply and ridiculous, but I’ve found that most people who suffer from IBS do so much better on a diet of especially healthy foods. I’ve even found that many people who aren’t actually gluten intolerant do much better on a gluten free diet (for me, it seems that gluten free foods are so much easier to digest).

Oh, another little thing: try to document when and how much Ibuprofen/Acetaminophen you take; a big reason for IBS issues is misuse of over the counter pain relievers. It’s part of the reason I have IBS symptoms. (And by abuse, I do not mean in terms of addict abuse, but by taking large dosages close to one another, for an extended period of time. I.E. taking advil for my migraines and menstrual cramps, 1200 mg+ every couple of hours, for about three days straight)

Lastly, if you ever get to go to the doctor for these issues, make sure to test for Crohn’s diease, gluten intolerance, iron levels, as well as an MRI/CAT scan to rule out everything else (also: there two specific studies, one involves digesting radioactive material to see how long it takes for food o be digested, the other involves ingesting contrast material to see the GI tract[I had both done, but I’m honestly forgetting what the last one was for.] are pretty important as well. If your doctor decides to do one or the other, they can deduce what a endoscopy or a colonoscopy might miss.)

I hope this helps, and if you have any questions please feel free to ask. I promise to respond as fast as I can; even though I’m not updating as I would like to, I’m still checking tumblr on my ipad when I get the free time to. I have so much experience with this, so honest to goodness, fee free to pick my brain.

(I’m going to make this a public post for the rest of my followers, but I will ask you back to tell you I responded, if you don’t happen to see this!)

sabrinagetfit asked:

hey! i stumbled upon your blog to find we have a lot of similarities! haha i'm short :p [5ft] & have the same UGW and want to get healthy. Along with I just got diagnosed with IBS over the summer & its the most irritating thing in the world. So my question to you is what sets off your IBS? (hopefully i didn't word it too weird) maybe asking you what foods do you stay away from now because of your IBS. i know everyone is different, but i'm def curious to see if we have similarties in that too

I want to publish this publicly, so I hope you can see this(I’ll ask you back, just to make sure).

Anyway, I actually got a call from my doctor today(which reminds me that I probably should update my info) and I’ve pretty much been diagnosed with Dyspepsia. Now, this doesn’t mean I don’t have a hell whole lot of experience with IBS.

With this new diagnosis, I basically have agitated intestines that hate me, but when I was under the assumption that it was IBS, heavy foods like burgers and pizza and essentially fried and unhealthy things made me want to barf. Spicy things now set me off with heartburn, but that’s completely manageable for me.

Even now, I like to eat plenty of fruit and veggies, and I usually eat what I consider “light” things. Yogurt, toast, fruits, veggies, lean meats, pastas when my mother made it for dinner, salads. Nine times out of ten, I’d be eating crackers(which is what I’m doing right now).

I drink lots of tea. Like at least a pot every day lots. Chamomile is my favorite, but we have fancy teas from Teavana that I love too. I love Chamomile for it’s soothing effect. Peppermint also has this effect, although it may upset your stomach or cause heartburn. I don’t think it happened with the tea, but peppermint supplement pills gave me horrible heartburn, so I don’t recommend it if you’ve had a similar effect with peppermint or something like it.

My nutritionist a while back basically told me to stop eating raw fruits and vegetables, because the soluble fiber is larger than that of processed and canned foods, and therefor can upset digestion because the lining of my intestines are already agitated and scarred. However, I never really stuck to the diet because literally that is my diet. I eat fruit at least once a day, and couldn’t tolerate processed stuff because ew. It’s processed. However, the logic is there. If you find that juices upset you, you may need to cut out raw fruits and vegetables. This is not to say CUT OUT those foods, but make sure that the are canned or thoroughly steamed(for vegetables) when eating them.

Someone previously told me they couldn’t handle juices, while I’ve never had a problem with liquids. So try cutting out caffine, juices, or pop. Maybe one of them is a trigger? I stopped drinking soda a LONG time ago. I have maybe a gingerale ONCE a month, MAYBE. I stopped drinking coffee freshmen year after realizing I got gassy and crampy afterwards. Juice remains completely neutral, and like I said, tea is wonderful.

Hm, what else. Oh! About a month ago, I went on a gluten free diet. I’ve been cheating the last two, three days, seeing if I would get sick, and after eating a couple Madeline biscuits, my stomach got gurgley. So I hve deduced, while my tests show that I’m negative for celiacs, that I have a small intolerance. I intend to keep up a mainly gluten free diet. It might benefit you to go on a free diet yourself. Remove gluten, soy, dairy, eggs, all at once. Bring them back one at a time, see if anything flares.

What else what else.

Yeah, I can’t think of anything else. Anyway, I really hope you learn to cope with this. It’s one of the most frustrating and misunderstood diagnosis to come by. Anyway, fell free to drop by any time to ask questions or talk. I’m always always in the mood to give advice or help out. I know this sounded a bit formal, as far as responses go, I just wanted to give as much information as I could.

Anyway, thanks for the ask! Good luck with your IBS, getting healthy, and reaching towards your goal weight! :)

ps. You didn’t ask that awkwardly at all. Also, twinsies!~~~