# Looking forward to normal living



## Insanemustang (Feb 2, 2010)

Well, here I go. My name is Brandon and I am a 25 year old Male. My story begins around thanksgiving of '09 with some stomach bubbling. Eventually the bubbling got so bad that I began experiencing (what I did not know at the time) anxiety. This all hit a peak on Dec 4 as I had a complete anxiety attack. I had no idea what was going on so I called 911 and went to the ER. At the ER I had an ultrasound of my gallbladder which showed some "sludge". I was set up to visit a gastroenterologist. I did that and he recommended an upper GI. I did that and he diagnosed me with gastritis. I began taking 40mg Nexium pills every morning. While I did feel better, the constant stomach bubbling got worse over the next few weeks, to the point where I was absolutely miserable. I then had a HIDA scan, all was well. I had my blood tested, everything was ok. Looking for answers I went to a general surgeon who suggested we remove my gallbladder to see if that helped. It did not help, and may have only made things worse (lesson learned about having surgery just for the hell of it). But the truth was that I pushed it because I needed answers, I needed a change. The anxiety worsened to the point where I could not sleep. When the TV was off and it was quiet. It was just me and my stomach bubbling, which resulted in my anxiety getting horrible. Enough so that I would take an ativan, wait 30 minutes and fall straight asleep. I'm currently seeking some help for the anxiety. So that brings me to late January, which my gastroenterologist recommended a colonoscopy, which I was fine with. My mother was diagnosed with colon cancer at 50, so I also saw the need to eliminate that possibility. I had that done yesterday and everything was fine. My gastroenterologist said it pretty much has to be IBS. So here I am today, researching IBS and learning what I can about it. I am willing to do pretty much anything, easy and hard, to get this manageable. I know I may never be 'healed' but if I can get back to living and working like I used to, I will be so happy. I have lost 25+ pounds. I am 6 feet tall, and now weigh approximately 139.I guess my question is, where do I start with medicines and dietary changes. I have some medicines at home, nexium, fiber pills, and bentyl. The problem I have is that my doctor said I have to figure out the best way to manage all of this. And I have no idea where to start.I am extremely grateful that this website exists, and I know that I'm going to get some relief from reading others stories and hopefully suggestions on how to take medicines and dietary changes.As far as symptoms, I would venture to say that I have the alternating IBS, between constipation and diarrhea. That part of this whole deal isn't too bad, it's the stomach bubbling and bloating which is driving me nuts.If you have any ideas, or suggestions about how I should attempt to help with the medicines I listed, please say so Thanks and God Bless,Brandon


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## transatlanticist (Dec 24, 2009)

Hi Brandon,It sounds like you're going into this with a great attitude, which is one of the best tools you can use to treat IBS. This "bubbling" sensation you're describing might mean that you have gas trapped inside your colon -- and even though it sounds benign, for those of us who have IBS or IBD, it can be excruciating! Granted, I'm certainly not a medical professional, but I've tried a few remedies for reducing gas production and I hope I can give you some advice that you could find useful. First of all, one of the best things you can do is keep track of when and what you're eating, and how you feel afterward. Some trigger foods like carbonated sodas, raw vegetables, beans, and chocolate can create tons of gas during digestion. Moderating the intake of foods that cause problems can help alleviate your symptoms. Secondly, there are some OTC drugs and natural remedies that decrease gas production. If you're suffering from gas and diarrhea, Imodium makes a product called Multi-Symptom that contains an anti-gas medicine in addition to an anti-diarrheal. If you're worried about taking something that will constipate you, you might consider instead taking a digestive enzyme, probiotics, activated charcoal tablets, or drinking a glass of water with 1 tsp baking soda will often help when taken with meals. Lastly, some anti-anxiety medications can relieve symptoms of IBS. It might be useful to talk to your doc about this option, especially if worrying about your symptoms just makes you suffer more. I hope you find relief soon! Best of luck.


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## Insanemustang (Feb 2, 2010)

transatlanticist said:


> Secondly, there are some OTC drugs and natural remedies that decrease gas production. If you're suffering from gas and diarrhea, Imodium makes a product called Multi-Symptom that contains an anti-gas medicine in addition to an anti-diarrheal. If you're worried about taking something that will constipate you, you might consider instead taking a digestive enzyme, probiotics, activated charcoal tablets, or drinking a glass of water with 1 tsp baking soda will often help when taken with meals.


Thank you for your response. I was getting worried no one was going to reply. I am concerned to take immodium as I have taken that to stop diarrhea and am feeling a bit stopped up alright. This "probiotics" that you speak of, what exactly does that mean? And can you give me specific examples of this, and of a digestive enzyme as well?Also, do you have any thoughts on taking Beano? And lastly, can IBS cause back pains, because my back is killing me. I'm not sure if it's just because I am carrying myself differently since all of this began or what, but it's hurting pretty bad.Again thanks for the reply.


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## johcof (Jan 20, 2010)

Hi BrandonMy name is John and like you I am an IBS sufferer. I have had IBS since I was 18 years old and I am now 48. That's 30 years of discomfort, pretty much day in and day out. Like most sufferers in the early years of this affliction I tried just about everything I could think of, but quite frankly none of it bloody worked (I'm a New Zealander ...we say bloody quite alot). I have spent mega dollars over the years trying different remedies, backwards and forwards to the doctors, specialists, but to no avail...well not until 3 or 4 weeks ago when I stumbled on a book in my local book shop. I had a quick read in the shop but I have to say over the years I have become quite skeptical and so I don't part with my hard earned money too easily these days. I was interested enough though in what I was reading to loan a copy of the book from my local library to continue the read.The book is called "The IBS Low-Starch Diet" and is written by another IBS sufferer called Carol Sinclair. The back ache you mentioned is just classic in terms of what Carol has discovered about IBS and she talks about it all in her book.If you really mean what you say about being ready to try anything to manage this problem, get this book and have a read. I have been on this diet for approximately 3 weeks and this is the first time in 30 years that I am feeling really well, and each day is better than the last. Carol has also posted a 10-15 minute video clip on youtube, take a look.The ISBN for the book is 0-9582529-0-4 if you want to loan it from the library.The diet really works, although I have seen some blogs where people say it didn't for them. I suspect that this is because they didn't do the diet properly and were not prepared to make the necessary change. The diet is easy and not that hard.If my own experience is anything to go by (and yes I know it's only been three weeks) I think it is bloody criminal for anyone not to at least try it out. No pills, no medication, just delicious ordinary everyday food.Go for it Brandon. Good luck mate.


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## Insanemustang (Feb 2, 2010)

Thanks for the response. I have tried eating differently but it doesn't change how I feel in the least bit. I cutt out caffeine and coffee. Neither helped. I cut out fried foods, didn't help. I am so tired from this whole ordeal.


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## transatlanticist (Dec 24, 2009)

There's actually an entire forum dedicated to probiotics: http://www.ibsgroup.org/forums/index.php?showforum=40. I heard somewhere that Beano can help with gas caused by sugar, but I've never noticed a huge difference by taking it.


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## Guest (Feb 5, 2010)

Hi Brandon-Like you I'm a newbie to the site. I'd been told I had mild IBS in the past and a basic probiotic (Lactobacillus acidophilus) had kept it to a minor nuisance but nothing like I've been reading about here. However around the first of the year I began having severe abdominal pain, indigestion, heartburn, gas, bloating, nausea- you name it. I was miserable. Fortunately I already had a dr apt. scheduled (just a follow up for cholesterol check- yes at 31 I already have high cholesterol- gotta love those genes). Long story short (too late







) I did the round of tests. The endoscope showed gastritis (apparently I produce a lot of acid) and ruled out Celliac or H. Pylori infection, so he sent me home with Profonix (proton pump inhibitor for the acid), Carafate (to coat my poor burned up stomach), & Robinul (to help with the cramping). The indigestion seemed to get better but the cramping, gas, and nausea kept up. When I went back in and showed him where it hurt, he said "well, that's not your stomach- only thing there is the small bowel" (foolish me). So he was stumped and sent me in for a CT scan to make sure there weren't any surprises (scary weekend waiting for those results). Next appointment "well you are a very healthy young woman"- great, then why do I still feel like garbge. He said it fits with IBS. Told me he would have proscribed the Robinul for the IBS so to bump it up from "as needed" to "every 3-4 hours" & sent me home with a sample of Align. From what I figured out- Align is a brand name for the probiotic Bifidobacterium infantis which has been in some trials that substantiated an improvement for IBS. Apparently the GI's really like it. That was Tuesday. So far... the remaining symptoms are gas, nausea and constipation.Yesterday was a good day, but today not so much. I think the constipation may be the root of the remaining symptoms. The Robinul is giving me really bad dry mouth and skin and I think it may be causing the constipation, so I think that I am going to call the Dr. tomorrow to see if I could try giving it a rest for a bit. Right now I am on short-term disability from work but I go back in a week or so. Hoping I can get back to working order by then. I'm hoping that the gastritis kicked up the IBS attack and that I'll be able to go back to my 'minor nuisance' version of IBS. But even if it does I need to be better about my diet and now that I've kicked my caffeine habit, I'm going to try to keep it kicked. The strangest thing for me was that when he gave me the IBS diagnosis, I started crying. It's not that I wanted to have an obstruction but if I did that would be a surgery and then done. This whole chronic condition is depressing and I'm already on anti-depressants (again mild case- mainly to keep it at bay). Weird huh. Since stress is always an issue with me and my GI system, I've been trying the relaxation suggestions on the site. I haven't gotten the hang of the Progressive relaxation exercises, but the deep breathing seems to help, even when I'm real gassy. You might try some of those until you get to the dr. about the anxiety medicines. One of my best friends has severe anxiety disorder and has found a lot of help with her therapist, but it took her a while to find the right medicine for her- so be sure to keep in mind that the first one might not be the right one. It sounds like stress could be a major trigger for you so getting that under control should help alot (from what everyone else has been saying on the forum).Anyway- it's nice to meet someone in the same place as me with this. Good luck!


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## johcof (Jan 20, 2010)

Hey mate, you really need to read Carol Sinclair's book or at least have a look at her video clip on You Tube. From my experience and that's 30 years of discomfort, no matter what anyone says, there is no pill or potion that's gonna fix this, well not at the moment anyway. Eating food that has a nil/low starch content in my experience is the answer. Coffee etc does not contain starch so stopping coffee wouldn't make one bit of difference.While I wish that I knew about this years ago, I am just so happy to know about it now. Give it a go mate, don't waste any more of your time and money on remedies that don't work, including letting doctors poke around inside you. Cheers, John


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## r3trograd3 (Feb 9, 2010)

Hey guys, I'm Nick, 20 years old from New Jersey. I was diagnosed with IBS when I was in high school, about 3 years ago. Since graduation I have been fairly fine, not many issues to report in the IBS department. However, over the past few weeks it seems that my symptoms have began peaking again. Can anyone report instances of good digestive behavior, followed by rapid onset again?I've also noticed that my anxiety has been extremely heightened through these instances. I'm a vegetarian, typically healthy eater, but still have issues with the IBS. Just joined the forum and looking for some insight from those who have experienced this for some time.


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