# New IBS-D Sufferer Here!



## HateIBS1989 (May 8, 2013)

I'm new here and today was diagnosed with IBS-D which obviously not happy about so came to ask some questions with others who have the same 

People with IBS-D what can you and cannot eat which won't cause a flare up? I know a major thing for me is dairy, I had a chicken wrap today and didn't know it had a very small amount of mayo in and ran through me 

But anyway after visiting my doctor today he told me to cut out all dairy products, fatty foods and I did tell him I was taking Benefiber which he told me to cut off that, said fibre including fibre supplements can have the opposite effect so that went in the bin.

Also he prescribed me immodium and to take 1 everyday until my stool firms up again. Can immodium be taken everyday even when my stool does go back to normal or should I only take it until its back to normal and then stop? And also is he right about Benefiber having the opposite effect?


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## Dianaearnshaw (Feb 22, 2013)

It doesn't sound as if your doctor is interested in anything other than symptom control. So many IBS sufferers are led to believe that they have to live with it, but in most cases, it's reversible.

The last thing you should do long term, is cut out fat! Or at least, you should cut out all vegetable fat except olive and coconut oil. But it is the saturated animal fats that will not only supply the much needed fat soluble vitamins but are also needed fot the health of the gut wall.

Best wishes.


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## Aelise (Feb 10, 2012)

Sorry for your recent diagnosis but you are in good company here! Wish I could recommend simple fixes or foods to avoid but it really is a highly individualized thing - meaning, what works for you, may not work for the next person. Therefore, it's hard to make recommendations about which foods to avoid. I suggest starting with the basics such as alcohol, coffee, and caffeine. Cutting out dairy is not a bad place to start either. Keep a food and symptoms log to see if there is any pattern with your symptoms, that might help too.

I agree with Diana in that it does seem like your doctor is working on treating symptoms. Although that is an acceptable place to start, do not be fooled into thinking you can't get rid of your IBS, or at least manage it really well. Some people can't, but many can. Never assume you're doomed to live this life forever until you've tried EVERYTHING. And I do mean everything!

What did not work for me: probiotics, avoiding dairy, wheat, gluten. Celiac tests were negative. FODMAP diet. Xifaxin.

What did work for me: limiting coffee and alcohol, and eliminating as many sources of insoluble fiber as possible - no whole grains, no brown rice, no beans or legumes, no fruits, and only a few types of cooked and peeled vegetables were acceptable.To a lesser extent, taking NOW brand Super Enzymes with every meal.

Good luck and don't give up hope.


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## JUDY A (Feb 2, 2008)

I have had ibs-d for 15 years now.
i used to come on this group for "solace" & information when I first got ibs-d...but haven't posted in years.
But I came today to see what people were saying about probiotics & found this thread.
I'm always sympathetic to anyone "new" who has just been diagnosed with this scourge and find myself trying to respond & help them even though we all know that like Aelese said, it is so individualized it is almost impossible to say what will & won't help any one person.
Having said that I will say that what she says she has found helpful to her has been almost exactly what I have found helpful to me...no roughage, raw fruits or veggies, alchol, caffeine, legumes...basically I live on plain chicken, green beans & potatoes...which is sa very bland diet & gets horribly boring...to the point you are ready to kick over the traces & have to have soemthing with flavor & texture
Along with the extremely bland diet I have been taking Immodium daily for 15 years...I'm up to 6 a day now! That is the only thing that has helped control my diarrhea since my only problem seems to be too strong intestinal contractions & too much water in the intestines.
I also agree that most doctors treat the symptoms because they don't know what else to do for it. As I've gone thru the years with this I have found that I now know more about IBS than most of the doctors I've been to due to much study, research & personal experience.
If people say there is a cure & even a natual cure, I'm happy for them but I have not found one.

Which brings me to the topic I came here for...probiotics. Have heard about them all along but with IBS-D you become afraid to put anything in your gut because almost everything irritates it then matters get much worse..better to stick to what we know, right! But everytime I have a period of some improvement I always manage to try somethig new...usually doesn't work but I keep doing it anyway!
But recently I have finally gotten up the nerve to try a probiotic someone gave me some samples of. Much to my amazement I have noticed a difference in my gut for the few weeks I've been using it. So am now looking into investing in a bottle of the same kind...Complete Probiotic by Mercola. But they are expensive so I have been looking around to see if I am getting the best deal for the best med! So that is why I came on here today . 
But have found relatively little being discussed about them currrently.
So, if anyone has any mput on this subject I would be very interested in reading about it.

I have looked into kefir but up to this point have not tried making any..sounds awful besides. But...if it would work rather than buying an expensive probiotic I would be willing to try it.
So, Aelise, since you seem to follow the same type of diet I do, would you be willing to put kefir in your gut???

I've also read so much about sugar being the worst thing you can eat but....after I got this diarrhea I lost 20 pounds pretty quickly...which put me at 96 pounds. It took me 13 years to get back up to my normal weight of maybe 116 & I fnally acheived that goal by eating lots of candy, cookies & anything with lots of calories in a small amoutnt of food...which is another thing that helps ibs-d...small amounts of food many times a day...never overload your gut.
So now that I am trying to cut back on sugar...I"m up to 119 now & want to stop there....what do I eat that replaces all that sugar & carbs...that I can tolerate???? I'm staying hungry all the time! Which makes me want to snack all the time.
Any thoughts on any of the above would be apreciated!


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## Louise Rizzo (Apr 16, 2013)

Hi,

I have recently been diagnosed with IBS-D . It's really frustrating not knowing what to eat but it's really down to the individual so I guess doctors can't really say what you should and shouldn't it.

I personally avoid: alcohol, tea/coffee, chocolate, fried greasy food, certain fruit juices and foods that are high in fibre such as broccoli.

I've started having yogurts with probiotics which seems to be helping, and it tastes good! I keep a food diary too so I can see triggers, that may be worth a try. I also try and eat frequently as I find if I have one big meal it makes me feel worse.

I don't think it's a great idea to take Imodium too often as I found it made me really constipated. I went to my doctor and he prescribed me mebeverine which is an anti spasmodic tablet. It helps a lot, slows down the bowel movement so my D isn't as often and it helps with stomach cramps. 
Hope this helps!


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## Aelise (Feb 10, 2012)

JUDY A said:


> I have had ibs-d for 15 years now.
> i used to come on this group for "solace" & information when I first got ibs-d...but haven't posted in years.
> But I came today to see what people were saying about probiotics & found this thread.
> I'm always sympathetic to anyone "new" who has just been diagnosed with this scourge and find myself trying to respond & help them even though we all know that like Aelese said, it is so individualized it is almost impossible to say what will & won't help any one person.
> ...


I would be okay giving anything a try but only because I don't think I have such violent reactions as you describe. BUT. That said, I have tried probiotics and found they did absolutely nothing for me. But perhaps more importantly, they definitely didn't make things worse. However, since I have narrowed down this insoluble fiber demon, it's possible they would help me now. I was thinking of giving them a try in fact because things are a bit irregular now between the frequency and the constipation.

The only thing that gives me a violent reaction is probably beans. Whoooooo. Even I don't want to sleep in the same bed with me after eating those.


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## janjan (May 14, 2013)

I'm just taking Imodium aswel some days I just need 2 but yesterda .I had 8 and today my stomach sounds like a washing machine :-(


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## h8ibs (Oct 24, 2004)

I've had ibs-D for almost 20 years. What you will find is that everyone's experiences and severity differ. With that said, you'll find great info on this site with lots of suggestions on things to try to help control your symptoms. Since Ibs is so "individualized", what works for some people doesn't work for others.

For me, my ibs-D is mild to moderate but I occasionally get flare-ups where my cramping, urgency and diarrhea get pretty bad, which can last from days to weeks. Having had this for 20 years, I've tried many things like elimination diets, different types of meds, etc and I've found that for me, it doesn't matter what I eat/drink or don't eat/drink, there really is nothing that makes me better.

The only thing I can count on is Imodium. I buy the generic (Look for Loperamide as the active ingredient). When I'm not having a flare up, I'll take 2 pills in the AM after my first bout of D. Usually, I'm good for a day it two before I have to take it again. During a flare-up, I take 3 after a bout with D and that tends to do the trick. I've been doing this for years without problems.

Good luck and welcome to the board!


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## Aelise (Feb 10, 2012)

I have never tried immodium because I don't have proper diarrhea as I define it. It's more loose/frequent stool. Would immodium even work for me? Who wants to weigh in?


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## missnancy (Mar 19, 2013)

My fifteen year old daughter has ibs-d. Her diarrhea had her in bathroom all day. Long story short this is what worked for her and it is now under control. She takes a calcium carbonate 600 mg twice daily. It also has d3 in it. She also takes acacia Senegal tummy fiber that you can get online from helpforibs.com. It is a great site. The calcium worked in two days and the fiber also helps but takes a little longer. Please try the fiber I mentioned and most people have good results with calcium. She also takes L-Lysine-500 mg supplement once a day to ward off the mouth sores people get from ibs. She hasn't had one sore since taking it. Good luck and don't give up.


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## Aelise (Feb 10, 2012)

HateIBS (great name btw): I would suggest making a list of all these different approaches people are recommending. I still haven't done this yet myself but there are a lot of obscure treatments that a lot of us have never heard of. Write them all down, prioritize, and just start tackling them one by one. Start with the basic elimination diet of primary trigger foods, keep a food and symptoms diary for each trial, and attack this beast systematically. That's my advice to you.

The time it takes you to feel better with each treatment will vary depending on who you ask... for me personally, I can tell if something is working after a week or so. If I don't see ANY changes within a week, I know that it's not working. Careful of that placebo effect though ;-)


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## Leila1934 (May 15, 2010)

Eating for IBS, by Heather Van Vorous was a very helpful book for me. There is a list of the most likely triggers and other very practical, helpful information. My reactions to a trigger were fairly quick which makes them easier to identify;

however, I must be honest and admit that it is a tricky process because there are so many variables.


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## h8ibs (Oct 24, 2004)

Aelise - YES, Imodium works with loose stools as well. Not just diarrhea. I often just have frequent loose stools and Imodium works wonders. I would DEFINITELY give it a shot.


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## Aelise (Feb 10, 2012)

h8ibs said:


> Aelise - YES, Imodium works with loose stools as well. Not just diarrhea. I often just have frequent loose stools and Imodium works wonders. I would DEFINITELY give it a shot.


Interesting... how long do I need to take it before I can expect it to work? For example, let's say I need to go on a road trip one morning. When should it be taken to help with something like that?


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## h8ibs (Oct 24, 2004)

Imodium for me starts working 20-30 minutes after I take it. So for a road trip, I'd take it immediately following your first BM after waking up. Normally I make I sure I go to the bathroom first thing, then take 2 Imodium, then get ready (shower, etc). By the time I'm ready I'm usually good. Also, if you are in the US, you can buy generic "anti-diarrheal" at any pharmacy. Just look for "Loperamide" as the active ingredient.


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## Aelise (Feb 10, 2012)

h8ibs said:


> Imodium for me starts working 20-30 minutes after I take it. So for a road trip, I'd take it immediately following your first BM after waking up. Normally I make I sure I go to the bathroom first thing, then take 2 Imodium, then get ready (shower, etc). By the time I'm ready I'm usually good. Also, if you are in the US, you can buy generic "anti-diarrheal" at any pharmacy. Just look for "Loperamide" as the active ingredient.


So helpful - thank you! I will definitely do this. Sorry to hijack this thread everyone, carry on with the original topic


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