# Much needed help and advice



## IBSandAllThatJazz (Jun 21, 2013)

Hi there everyone

Ive just signed up to the forum in search of some much needed advice.

Im a 19 year old girl and I suffer from IBS-a

Every single time I eat or drink I get extremely bloated within minutes. I also have sever abdominal discomfort, my stomach and intestines feel full, heavy and tight.

My bowel movements are very erratic, I can have diarrhoea and constipation in the same day. I usually get the feeling of needing the toilet when I eat.

I have tried to identify what foods set me off but I just seems like everything I eat does! Ive cut out as much dairy as I can, I don't have milk, cheese, ice cream, yogurt, cream or anything with a lot of dairy in, I use almond milk and a very small amount of vegan cream cheese. I also don't eat meat but I do eat Quorn and fish. I love vegetables and eat them in almost every meal. Im struggling with fruit because I really don't like most of them, I do try and eat bananas though.

I don't drink anything fizz or carbonated and I don't drink tea or coffee anymore.

I exercise as much as I can and I really try to live a healthy lifestyle, I do suffer with anxiety and stress though.

I went to the doctors to beg for help as I was so sick of feeling so tired, ill, bloated and in pain. She prescribed me a tablet called Melbeverine (135mgs) and I take one 20 mins before I eat and they do seem to reduce the bloating.

I would love some advice, help or a point in the right direction in finding some relief. I was thinking of trying the FODMAP diet, should I give it a try? Is there any other diets I should try or any foods or drinks that I should definitely not have?

Many many thanks for anything that could help me.

Jazz x


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## Shaylu (Feb 12, 2013)

Hi there, I would say 100% start the FODMAP diet. I have been on it since feb and noticed a huge improvement within days.
Looks at the Monash university website for info.
Also ask your GP to refer you to a dietician trained in FODMAP. They can help you ESP when you need to reintroduce foods.

Banana are very difficult to digest so you may want to cut them out for now.

Quorn I am not so sure on, but keep an eye on your symptoms as quorn products contain wheat. Wheat contains fructose which are the cause of problems if FODMAPS are your issue.

Also try meditation. Will really help on your stress and anxiety.

Hope this helps


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## Shaylu (Feb 12, 2013)

Also try adding fresh ginger and ground flaxseeds to your diet. Ginger aids digestion and flax seeds will keep you regular...I add a spoonful with grated ginger and cinnamon to my warm almond milk.


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## IBSandAllThatJazz (Jun 21, 2013)

Thank you Shaylu! I really appreciate the advice.

I will cut out bananas which Im glad about to be honest as I don't really like them haha

I will slowly cut out Quorn as I do think it makes me worse...oh how Im going to miss Quorn!!









I went shopping today and heres what I got:

Sweet potatoes

bell peppers

aubergine

olives

swede

cucumber

green beans

potatoes

carrots

courgettes

parsnips

lettuce

butternut squash

spinach

bean sprouts

kale

pink grapefruit

white grapefruit

honeydew melon

Cod fillets

salmon fillets

tofu

brown rice

almond milk

Vegan cream cheese

wheat and gluten free brown bread

amaizin chilli corn rolls

amaizin corn chips

wheat and gluten free spaghetti and pasta

Natures store corn cakes

Nairns oat cakes

rude health puffed rice

Is that all ok? is there anything I should add or take away?

For my dinner I had a sweet potato with vegan cheese and tofu. I did have bloating and pain as usual which was a bit disheartening but I noticed that it faded away quicker than normal which made me hopeful.

Thanks

Jazz xx


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## Shaylu (Feb 12, 2013)

Hi Jazz

Sweet potatoes 
bell peppers - avoid green ones
Aubergines *
olives 
swede 
cucumber 
green beans *
potatoes
carrots 
courgettes 
parsnips 
lettuce 
butternut squash 
spinach 
bean sprouts *
kale

pink grapefruit *
white grapefruit *
honeydew melon

Cod fillets 
salmon fillets 
tofu 
brown rice

almond milk 
Vegan cream cheese

wheat and gluten free brown bread * - can contain fruit juice and or sugar. Warburtons or marks and Spencer's I have found to be 'best' but still give me symptoms so try different ones and keep a note of symptoms.

amaizin chilli corn rolls ** not tried any of these. I just have tesco, m&s or Doritos plain nachos They only have corn, salt and oil in the ingredients list and are MUCH cheaper.
amaizin corn chips **

wheat and gluten free spaghetti and pasta * - this stuff is made from a wide range of ingredients depending on which brand. So keep an eye on your symptoms and try out different ones, eg corn pasta, rice pasta, brown rice pasta, etc.

Natures store corn cakes ** - see above under amazin brand
Nairns oat cakes * - watch your symptoms as these have gluten. Nairns do gluten green oatcakes in some flavours.

rude health puffed rice

* = keep an eye on your symptoms.
I would suggest you write down everything that you eat or drink and keep a note of symptoms.
Try and eat those things with stars on there own so that you can pinpoint symptoms. Same if you introduce anything else.

Your dinner option sounds great...I eat sweet potatoes and always wonder what do have with it

There is a lot of info on the web re FODMAPS, here's one link that I found useful ( substitute American brands for UK):

http://www.todaysdietitian.com/newarchives/030612p36.shtml

Hope this helps. Good luck.
S


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## IBSandAllThatJazz (Jun 21, 2013)

Thanks so much! That really does help!

Its day 3 of my FODMAP diet and boy is it tough! Its especially hard to sit with your bowl of rice and plain veg when the rest of your family is tucking into lasagne and chips with chocolate cake for pudding....

But luckily for me a really love my veggies and I love trying to eat healthy, I see it as a fun and interesting experiment.

I have found that I am more tired the last few days which I presume is sugar withdrawals! I also have PMT so Im craving cakes, chocolate, bread, crisps, pasta..etc etc haha

I love cooking and making recipes, Ive already come up with quite a few FODMAP friendly dishes which I will share with you all once Ive tested them out









I am keeping a very detailed food and symptoms diary so I can hopefully pinpoint what my triggers are.

Todays meals were:

GF = Gluten free

Breakfast

Half a bowl of Rude healths GF puffed rice with 100ml of Alpro unsweetened almond milk and two table spoons of clarks maple syrup.

I had mild bloating at first which increased to medium bloating after about half an hour and lasted about two hours. I also had abdominal mild discomfort.

Lunch

A two egg (one of the yokes removed) omelett with one finely chopped tomato and a quarter of a cup of tuna. I also had a quarter of a cup of lettuce.

Mild bloating and abdominal discomfort with didnt get worse.

I had been feeling quite tired all morning but by lunch time it had go to full on fatigue, I could barely walk around the house and moving felt quite uncomfortable. I don't know wether this was due to the food i'd eaten or something else? I think it may have been sugar withdrawals (if thats even a thing!?) as Ive not eaten any chocolate, cakes, sweets or anything with lots of refined sugar and I usually have these things every day...which I know is very naughty!

Snack

Three Nairn's gluten free oat cakes

Medium bloating and medium abdominal discomfort.

Dinner

Homemade curry made from half a cup of seamed butternut squash chucks, a quarter of a cup of steamed carrots, a quarter of a cup of steamed parsnips and a whole cup of sautéed spinach. The curry paste I used did contain garlic extracts but I really needed to use it up haha next time I will make my own FODMAP friendly paste. I had half a cup of brown rice with the curry.

I did have quite bad bloating immediately after eating this but I did calm down within an hour. I also had a firm bowl movement with reduced the bloating and discomfort quite a lot.

For my dessert I had three squares of green and blacks dark 70% cocoa chocolate which did cause some discomfort but Ive not had milk chocolate in nearly a week and I REALLY needed a chocolate hit!

My fatigue reduced considerably after my dinner.

So Im wondering why I am still experiencing bloating and discomfort even though Ive only eaten things on the FODMAP ok list...am I being to impatient? Does it take time for my body to adjust to the diet? or am I doing something wrong?

Thanks

Jazz x


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## Kathleen M. (Nov 16, 1999)

Well food is not the one and only trigger. Sometimes there are over-responses to the act of eating that can cause symptoms.

So you may need diet AND other control measures and not assume diet is the one and only problem and it will control everything 100%.

And often the GI tract can react to a big change in diet no matter what the change is.

I think rather than "am I having any symptoms at all" it is better to look at "are my symptoms substantially less". Because even if you need to take a digestive enzyme with meals to control bloating (ones with pancreatic enzymes can help with the bloating that even healthy people get after certain types of meals as that is just how the body reacts to those kinds of rich heavy meals even if you don't have IBS) from an overreaction to eating (so every meal is like you ate 2 days worth of fat and calories at one sitting), you may need a lot less and get much better control eating in a way that reduces the symptoms by 50% than just eating foods that are working against what the other measures are trying to do.


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## Shaylu (Feb 12, 2013)

Hi Jazz,

thats a fab attitude..fun and experiment

Your menu looks great...but a couple of things you may want to watch***

Breakfast 
Half a bowl of Rude healths GF puffed rice with 100ml of Alpro unsweetened almond milk and two table spoons of clarks maple syrup.***MAPLE SYRUP. TRY YOUR BREKKY WITHOUT THIS TOMORROW, GRATED FRESH GINGER AND CINNAMON ARE GOOF FLAVOUR ALTERNATIVES. THEN SEE IF YOU STILL HAVE DISCOMFORT AFTER.
I had mild bloating at first which increased to medium bloating after about half an hour and lasted about two hours. I also had abdominal mild discomfort. 
Lunch 
A two egg (one of the yokes removed) ***WHY ONE YOLK. YOU'RE REDUCING SO MUCH SO I WOULD SAY KEEP IT IN.omelett with one finely chopped tomato and a quarter of a cup of tuna. I also had a quarter of a cup of lettuce. ***TRY WITHOUT THE TOMATO SKIN. IF YOU STILL HAVE SYMPTOMS TRY WITHOUT THE TOMATO.
Mild bloating and abdominal discomfort with didnt get worse. 
I had been feeling quite tired all morning but by lunch time it had go to full on fatigue, I could barely walk around the house and moving felt quite uncomfortable. I don't know wether this was due to the food i'd eaten or something else? ***I'D SAY IT IS A COMBINATION OF YOUR BODY ADJUSTING TO LOW CARB DIET. KEEP AN EYE ON THIS AS YOU SHOULD SEE AN IMPROVEMENT. YOU MENTIONED PMT SO TRY AND KEEP PROTEIN LEVELS UP. think it may have been sugar withdrawals (if thats even a thing!?) ***YES DEFO A THING. IT TOOK ME TWO WEEKS TO GET OVER THE CRAVINGS AND MY TASTE BUDS THEN CHANGED THAT I DIDNT LIKE THE TASTE. CRAVINGS ARE A SIGN THAT YOUR BODY IS OUT OF CONTROL as Ive not eaten any chocolate, cakes, sweets or anything with lots of refined sugar and I usually have these things every day...which I know is very naughty! 
Snack
Three Nairn's gluten free oat cakes 
Medium bloating and medium abdominal discomfort. **PROB A BUILD UP FROM THE DAY
Dinner 
Homemade curry made from half a cup of seamed butternut squash chucks, a quarter of a cup of steamed carrots, a quarter of a cup of steamed parsnips and a whole cup of sautéed spinach. ***KEEP AN EYE ON THE NUMBER OF DIFF VEG AT ONE SITTING. THEY COULD ADD UP TO MORE 'BAD STUFF' THAN YR BODY CAN HANDLE The curry paste I used did contain garlic extracts but I really needed to use it up ***LOL haha next time I will make my own FODMAP friendly paste. I had half a cup of brown rice with the curry. **BROWN RICE NOT EASY TO DIGEST SO TRY WHITE.
I did have quite bad bloating immediately after eating this but I did calm down within an hour. I also had a firm bowl movement with reduced the bloating and discomfort quite a lot.
For my dessert I had three squares of green and blacks dark 70% cocoa chocolate ***YIKES!! LETS SEE IF YOUR CRAVINGS REDUCE OVER THE NEXT COUPLE OF WEEKS. I BET ONCE THEY DO YOUR PMT WILL REDUCE TOO which did cause some discomfort but Ive not had milk chocolate in nearly a week and I REALLY needed a chocolate hit!


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## Shaylu (Feb 12, 2013)

LOL....' grated ginger and cinnamon are GOOD flavours'


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## Shaylu (Feb 12, 2013)

One more thing, try adding sesame seeds and pumpkin seeds to your diet as both are a good source of vitamins, minerals and protein.


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## zane21 (Jun 24, 2013)

I have been doing LOW FODMAP for 9 days now...and thru trial and error, I have found that ALL FRUIT makes me a mess. I bloat, I belch..it's terrible.

ALL DAIRY is out also. I have tried some lactose free milk with a GF, WF cereal and I was fine.

I DID try swiss cheese as that was on the ok list...1hrs later I had D. 4 times. so cheese is out.

I have IBS-d btw.

The diet is hard core...but it has helped me ALOT..and I am 47 and have suffered with this off and on for over 15 years.


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## IBSandAllThatJazz (Jun 21, 2013)

Shaylu said:


> Hi Jazz,
> 
> thats a fab attitude..fun and experiment
> 
> ...


Thank you soo much! That has really helped me. It is so hard not to just give up and go back to eating anything but I am determined to beat IBS!!! I went to the doctors yesterday and she said that I might have a Fructose intolerance! I'm going to research this and see what else I have to cut out haha My doctor says that she will try and get me a Hydrogen and methane breath test for Fructose malabsorption, Lactose malabsorption and Small Bowel Bacterial Overgrowth Syndrome but she doesnt know if she can get it







xx


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## Shaylu (Feb 12, 2013)

Hi Jazz, I was going to mention fructose intolerance to you. Have you tried the brekky without the maple syrup? If you are without symptoms after that than a high chance fructose could be an issue, especially as you are also craving it. This is just like me and I have just had the hydrogen breath test which came out positive.

You are lucky that your Dr recognised this, I had to push my gastro to check this after much persuasion!

Just a word of advice, the Dr may want to give you antibiotics, but they may add to your problems as they kill off good bacteria. If you can start researching alternatives now it may help. I am currently looking at probiotics ( but so many have a form of sugar in them!) and also looking at the relationship between fructose intolerance and candida.

Best of luck


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