I B S

[birdie73]

I suffer from irritable bowel & will be travelling first by coach & then a flight to Austria this month & wondered if anyone can give me any helpful hints on coping with this problem. I have little or no warning of an attack & cannot track down any reason as to why they happen.

[supersuezy24]

Are you on any medication for it Birdie?x

[supersuezy24]

My mam was prescribed Colofac(Not sure of spelling) and says it's very good :)

[jackthehat]

How does an attack manifest itself ? (You can be a little coy with the answer, if you like :o/)

[birdie73]

Thanks for interest shown from both of you. Yes supersuezy24 I take colofac & peppermint oil & use immodium as a last resort. To try to put it delicately jackthehat I get cramping pain followed by several trips to the bathroom.

[jackthehat]

Right..............:o)
Try to relax as much as you are able prior to travelling; stress can be a contributory factor.

[supersuezy24]

What about Arret and Motilium Birdie, The Motilium will settle your stomach and the Arret will help with diarrhoea..

[20SilkCut]

Not much use if you are travelling but before you go, why dont you have a series of reflexology treatments... I have been told it can help a lot with IBS

[boxtops]

not very nice to describe, but my old mum was on a coach tour of Bulgaria many years back when several of them got an attack of the squits but had no choice than to travel - I know it's not nearly the same as IBS, but the result may be - they resorted to wearing incontinence pants and pads, just in case.

[ayabrea38]

Maybe have a chat to your GP about a sedative for the flight(lets face it you poop less when you sleep!)
Omzerprazimol can help,but I would make sure you eat before you are on the flight,but only things you know wont cause you problems(obvious but sometimes missed)
I know someone in a fairly similar situation so good luck!

[Sqad]

birdie..a difficult question.
Anxiety may or may not be a trigger factor........you will know if it is. You will also know by now which foods start off your attacks, but back to your question.

Try this..Loperamide (fortasec or imodium) the night before you go away and then on alternate nights whilst you are away.

Good luck.

[cazzz1975]

I also have IBS and I find stress can set it off, as well as eating trigger foods. try to relax and if you need the toilet go straight away, It may not happen with you but I find that if I hold on it causes an attack as well.

[angiealf]

I have IBS, I take Codine Phosphate prescribed by my gp. They are a very strong pain killer with the side effect of constipation. I take 1 - 2 on un-safe days - eg. when I'm not near a loo, or during a long drive. It seems to stop the loo visits for a while as well as easing any pain.

[birdie73]

Thanks so much to you all for your very helpful advice, so many things to consider I like the sound of the reflexology will probably give that a go.I think stress has a lot to do with it, don't know about food as it can flare up at any time.Will also try to get to see my GP but am not very good at taking tablets they usual have side effects !!!
Thanks once again to all.