i.b.s

[starman700]

i kid you not my last visit to the drs about irregular bowel movements and pains there ,we agreed it may be i.b.s he advised me to look on the internet my question is does anyone know or have any tips to relieve my situation i have read somewhere at least 1 in 10 in the uk have this so there must be more than me on this board as a sufferer thank in advance

[shybearuk]

I used to suffer from very bad bouts of IBS, which were largely related to my diet and stress levels. The best thing to do is have a look at your diet, try cutting out various things to see which particular ones may be affecting you (dairy, wheat, etc), and also see if there are strewssful things in your life which may be causing you adverse effects. Something else which some people have luck with is charcoal tablets. Mine cleared up after a while, and I have maybe a couple of nights of pain every few months now. I hope yours does the same :).

[JB]

May be worth speaking to your doctor again to make sure - my mum was wrongly diagnosed with IBS when in actual fact she has Crohns Disease. Everything is fine now but everything that she did to alleviate IBS (high fibre diet etc) made the Crohns worse.

[Ember]

My hubby has it and its is far from funny and I haven't any real tips to help except make a note of what sets you off and avoid like the plague and make a note of all available toilets when going on a journey, and I am not being facetious about this.

[starman700]

yeah my everyday trips are governed by how close i am to a toilet so no you werent being faecetious :) and im also in the process of elimination on foodstuffs

[Cetti]

A second or third opinion is definitely required and even then proceed with caution. Like JB's answer my husband was diagnosed with IBS which turned out to be a gastric hernia requiring surgery.

However if it is IBS, on top of the good advice you've already been given you might want to try something that has helped me enormously - Aloe Vera Gel capsules from Holland & Barrett. You just take one a day with food.

[coemgen]

Hi Starman I've suffered for years on and off, so I can empathise with you. I find that stress and diet are the link. For some weird rerason I can't eat doughnuts or cakey things as it gives me chronic cramps and diarrhoea. I also find too much fibre can bloat me and make me feel uncomfortable. A couple of websites which may help are http://www.ibsnetwork.org.uk/ http://www.netdoc
tor.co.uk/diseases/facts/irritablecolon.htm Hope this helps.

[tracymort]

I saw on tv that worms can help crohn's disease! honest! Anyway what might help IBS is to look into the possibility of candida. to get rid of you go on a diet cutting out sugar, and mould based food/drinks etc pretty strict. taking a good probiotic will help too. http://www.whatreallyworks.co.uk/start/articles.as
p?article_ID=184

[SophieUL]

I also have IBS and it can be so difficult to deal with - my symptoms are pain and mainly constipation as well.

There is a website at http://www.ibstales.com which has lots of stories from IBS sufferers and self-help tips which could help you, plus have a look at the introduction to IBS in the 'About IBS' section which gives a good rundown of IBS and its symptoms etc.

[AB Editor]

For all medical questions, we strongly advise you to seek professional advice from your doctor or healthcare professional.  Please do not rely on or wait for advice from Answerbank users.

[Sykesy]

I have suffered from IBS for about 15 years and have tried various forms of antibiotics and herbal remedies. The only thing that works for me is Reiki - which is hands on healing - quite expensive but worth every single penny, I no longer suffer from IBS

[starman700]

since i last posted my question all that time ago i found out it was colitus

i am currently having steroid treatment for it as it seems to flare up on and off  at reguler intervals

there is long term talk of a colostomy bag

thanks for all your input people