# Looking for advice from people who have learned to deal



## 16789 (Mar 26, 2007)

I'm very new to IBS. First felt sick in October 2006, diagnosed in December with IBS-C and some gastritis. I am on Zelnorm for the IBS and Zegerid for the gastritis which is the only thing under control. Xanax for the anxiety. I have zofran and phenergan for nausea. Recently, almost 2 weeks ago, they started me on xifaxan to see if it was caused by bacteria and to try to fix it. I will be finished with the xifaxan on Thursday and I feel some improvement but it's getting closer to Thursday and still haven't had a completely good day and still haven't tried eating anything new. *So my first question is for anyone who has tried xifaxan.* If you did get better with it, did it not happen til the last day or how fast were you better. If you took it and it didnt make you better (completely) did it improve??My second concern is I am so afraid of food that I eliminated almost everything and lost a lot of weight. I have added mant carbs like biscuits or toast for breakfast, and I can eat a turkey sandwich for lunch but that is what my diet has become. I'm in college so I can't really cook myself things like chicken but I have eaten it in small portions at home during breaks. *So my second question is for people who got scared of food and then discovered things they could eat.* I've heard some people say when they have their stress under control they can eat almost anything they want, including fried foods but I think even when I am feeling good that would kill me. I was feeling good around valentines day and had about 3 m&ms and just wanted to die for the rest of the night.Sorry for rambling but please give advice. Thanks everyone.Ali


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## nogo (Dec 18, 2006)

I'm sorry to hear of your awful problems. I have had IBS-C for years but it really flared up badly within the last couple of years. I lost a ton of weight because I couldn't eat anything or it made me feel like I was a huge balloon, so gassy and blown up. I went from a size 8 to a size 2 in a matter of months. I have learned to eat lots of small meals and if I am going to have anything remotely gassy, I take Beano and Gas-X with an antacid. I am on Xanax, Aciphex, Zelnorm and Amitiza. I try to take a colace every three days to keep things moving so I don't have the gassy build up. When I am constipated, I don't want to eat anything or even move because I am so uncomfortable. OF course that makes it worse because the exercise would help it move along, but it's hard to do it. So try eating small amounts every couple of hours. Tough to do in college, but pack a little protein in your bag or something to nibble to keep your stomach comfortable. The fast and tremendous weight loss also caused me to start having hair loss (telogen effluvium). That can be attributed to the weight loss and stress...hard to know what came first. Hang in there, you'll find the right combo. nogo


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## 16004 (Nov 17, 2006)

Have you looked into Heather's diet at all? www....com. I haven't had much success with her diet but I do use her list of safe snacks and meals on the go. This might give you a starting point, easy things to grab and go in college. I also lost weight and I started out thin. I now look like a frail little girl. Since I have to stay on this high fiber, low fat diet, it's difficult to gain weight.Definitely try to eat small portions often. I eat 3 meals a day and 2-3 snacks. Don't eat too much in one sitting.Good luck!


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## 16789 (Mar 26, 2007)

When I go to that website I can't find any information on snacks/meals on the go. Help?


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## 16004 (Nov 17, 2006)

Copied and pasted from the website:Crackers - Rice thins, Rice crackers - Graham crackers - Arrowroot crackers (make sure they're dairy free) - Animal crackers (make sure they're dairy free) - Fat free saltines Cereals - Heather's Honey Chex Mix - Barbara's Bakery Puffins Cereal - Honeycomb - Rice Chex - Corn Chex - Crispix - Cheerios - Kix - Barbara's Bakery Shredded Spoonfuls Bars - Nature's Choice Multi Grain Cereal Bars (cherry flavour) - Zone brand Apple Cinnamon Bar, Chocolate Raspberry Bar - Luna bars Chips etc. - Baked Lay's - Baked Tostitos - Pretzels - Rice cakes - Quakes - Sakata Salt and Vinegar Baked Crisps - Kellogg's Apple Jacks - Bachman's Pretzel Twists - Quaker brand Mini Rice Cakes - Baked Ruffles Cookies - Fortune cookies - Peek Freans brand "Nice" cookies - Newman's Own organic cookies - Second generation alphabet cookies, ginger sandwich cookies - Carr's brand Biscuits for Tea - Trader Joe's Meringue cookies - Uncle Eddie's Vegan Chocolate Chip Cookies - Nilla wafers Soy - Genisoy Apple Cinnamon Soy Crisps - Soy chips - Provamel Soya Desserts (vanilla)Bars - Dairy Free Cliff Bars - Dr. Soy brand Soynuts - Glenny brand Soy Crisps - Belsoy brand soy pudding cups (vanilla, chocolate) Safe Bread/Rolls - Peanut Butter Roll-Ups (soft tortilla with 1 tsp peanut butter, rolled up) Fruits and Vegetables - Betty Crocker brand Fruit Roll-Ups (strawberry sensation) - Veggie Stix - Dried Papaya - Mott's Health Harvest Applesauce - Mott's Fruitsations individual size applesauce cups Drinks - Your favourite herbal tea in a thermos - Cranberry Juice in individual size containers (ie. juice boxes, bottles, etc.) - make sure they're cranberry juice ONLY Please take your own tolerances for things like high fructose corn syrup and trace amounts of dairy into account when choosing a pre-packaged food, and always read the ingredients so you know what you're eating! Brand Name Recommendations for IBS-Safe Foods 11/09/04 02:49 PM	Edit Reply Quote This list is organized by country, and was compiled thanks to hundreds of suggestions from people on this board, and the hard work of our amazing Sinead (Cailin). Thank you!! USA â€œDairyâ€ products 8th Continent Soy Milk Blue Diamond Almond Milk Lundbergh products Silk chocolate Soy milk Silk Soy Lemon Yogurt is excellent Silk soy products (inc vanilla) Vitasoy Creamy Original Natural Soymilk West Soy (inc fat free vanilla soy drink) Rice Dream rice milks - chocolate is heavenly! Cheese Galaxy Veggie Slices, cheddar or American flavor (haven't tried the other flavors) Okanagan pepper jack and cheddar SoyaKaas Soyco veggie or vegan Parmesan Tofutti Better than Cream Cheese (Plain, French Onion, Herb & Chives, Wild Berry, Smoked Salmon, Jalapeno, Cheddar, Ginseng & Dill, Garlic & Herb, and Garden Veggie flavors) Tofutti Low Fat Better than Cream Cheese (Plain and Herb & Chive flavours) Butter/Margarine Earth Balance Natural Buttery Spread Soy Garden Shedd's Willow Run soy margarine Smart Balance LIGHT (the regular is not dairy-free!) Yogurt & Sour Cream Silk and Stonyfield Farms soy yogurt Soyco Rice non dairy sour cream Tofutti Sour Supreme (= sour cream; thin it with lemon juice for a more realistic texture) WholeSoy Creamy Cultured Soy (= yogurt) Sauces, Soups and Ready Meals Amy's brand Marinara Amy's Tofu Veggi Lasagna Golden Mountain Sauce Imagine creamy mushroom soup "It's Pasta Anytimeâ€ (Kraft) Marinara and Mushroom flavors Maggi Sauce Santa Cruz Organic Applesauce Spectrum canola oil mayonnaise Thai Kitchen Instant Rice Noodle Soups Thai Thin Soy Sauce, or Thai Light Soy Sauce. Whole Foods Brand Fat Free Marinara Sauce Ragu Light Tomato and Basil pasta sauce Musselman's Natural applesauce Herb Ox chicken bouillion Meat/Meat Subs/Fish/Tofu Boca Burgers Empire Turkey Breasts pre-packaged (fat free) Fantastic Brand Taco Meat Replacement Morningstar Chik Patties Morningstar corn dogs Morningstar breakfast sausage Target organic chicken brand. (It's already packaged like Tyson's) Whole Foods market fresh salmon Jennie-O Turkey Ham Drinks Northland 100% Cranberry Juice nSpired Natural Foods Cool Fruits Fruit Juice Tropical Orange Trim Advantage (from Nutrilite brand)â€” Teas Heather's Tummy Tea Fennel Heather's Tummy Tea Peppermint Alvita Fennel Tea Celestial Seasoning Tummy Mint Tea, Chamomile, Peppermint, Honey Peach Ginger, and Echinacea Complete Compare Flora Brand Fennel Tea Galil Fennel tea (a Turkish/Israeli company--you can find this in a Kosher store Ginger Aid ginger tea is a good brand Lipton Peppermint Tea Frozen Yogurt/Ice Cream/Sorbet Dryers Peach Sorbet Eddys Strawberry sorbet Edy's Mango Whole Fruit Sorbet Haagen Dias Rasberry Sorbet Rice Dream orange vanilla ice cream Soy Delicious Non dairy ice cream (the chocolate taste like chocolate cake!) Soy Dream Mocha Fudge Tofutti Cuties WholeSoy Frozen Cultured Soy (= frozen yogurt) WholeSoy Glace Bars, Candy, Cookies and Chips Arrowroot crackers are good little snacks Baby animal cookies Barry's Bakery French Twist cookies Baked Lays Baked Tostitos Edy's Lemonade, Peach, and Variety Packs of Grape, Cherry, and Tropical or Lime, Strawberry, and Wild Berry Whole Fruit Fruit Bars GeniSoy Rice Cakes Health Valley granola bars Kettle Baked Potato Chips - all flavors Kraft marshmallows Luna Bars Keebler Original Grahams graham crackers Twizzlers The Ginger People original ginger chews Bread/Pasta/Noodles/Rice Country Hearth English Muffin toasting bread Earthgrains Sourdough English Muffins No Yolk brand noodles Original Premium Saltine Crackers Pepperidge farm plain bagels Rudi's Organic Bakery Country Morning White Bread Soy Boy Tofu Filled Ravioli Thai Kitchen Rice Noodle bowls Bell's Stuffing Thomas' Mini Bagels, plain or cinnamon brown sugar J.J. Nissen Giant white bread Koyo Organic Ramen Noodles, any flavor Preserves Bonne Maman Preserves Smucker's all-natural seedless jam. Smucker's Simply Fruit Vavel brand preserves and fruit butters Breakfast Cereal Quaker Quick Grits Quaker Oatmeal Quaker Oatmeal Squares (brown sugar) Thomas english muffins Team Cheerios Honeycomb Corn Pops Alphabits Miscellaneous EggBeaters Frozen Mrs. Pauls sweet potatoes Gerber Baby Food Imagine Brand Organic Creamy Butternut Squash IGA store-brand Yellow or Chocolate cake mixes USA Restaurant Choices Chili's- Grilled Chicken Plate Chiliâ€™s- basil chicken and pasta is okay if you ask them to go light on the sauce Johnny Carino's (an Italian chain restaurant found mostly in Texas) -Lemon Rosemary Chicken Longhorn Steakhouse - Grilled Barbeque Chicken Sandwich Red Lobster - Snow Crab or North Pacific King Crab Legs Like I said in my last post, staying completely on this diet does NOT work for me but it is a starting point. I need to eat foods high in soluble fiber to be able to go, I can't tolerate apples or applesauce... Take into consideration your own food tolences. Hope this helps!!!! Maureen


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