# IBS-D - Ruining My Life



## Dragon32 (May 5, 2010)

Hi, I have extreme IBS-D and its ruining my life completely. I have had it for the last four years and it doesn't seem to be getting any better. I have lost my job due to this illness which doesn't help matters. I have tried all sorts of different meds from over the counter to prescribed. I have even tried herbal meds but nothing has helped. I have been seeing a specialist in this field but No luck there either. I have to go twice in the morning and that's like clockwork, then i take my meds and that does constipate me but i always feel like I need to go. I'm taking codeine phosphate tabs, trazodone and hyosine tabs but they don't really help. The anti-d make me feel worse and have the worst thoughts ever. I eat but get annouyed cos I need to go to the bathroom. Can anybody help with advice or guidance please as I have had enough of this???Thank you


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## DDodge (Apr 29, 2010)

I take Immodium nearly every day, it helps after a while. What improved my attitude was an SSRI. I still feel crummy most of the time, but I can deal with it better than before. There isn't any easy way out of this.


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## Dragon32 (May 5, 2010)

Thank you for your advice, appreciated. I think I have tried immodium before so will just have to see what else is out there.


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## IrvinPlank (Mar 29, 2010)

One way to find out what foods are hurting you is to follow an exclusion diet, where you gradually cut out different foods for a week or so and see if you feel better. This should be carried out with the help of a nutritionist to make sure you don’t end up with a diet that hurts you more than it helps.


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## overitnow (Nov 25, 2001)

I've been using a flavonoid supplement, Provex CV, which has kept the D at bay for over 10 years.Mark


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## clareuk (Feb 7, 2006)

Codeine didn't make any difference with me either. I did find the contraceptive pill made the diarrhea worse and things improved a lot after I stopped taking it. I do still have problems but I have always found the immodiums help me. If you're not sure whether you have tried immodium, it would be worth trying it again just to make sure. I take 2 tablets as soon as I get out of bed before things get too bad. I also have got some help with my anxiety because of he diarrhea. I take propranolol which actually does help to calm me down and therefore helps the diarrhea a bit as well. I tend to get my self more and more in a state when i have diarrhea, so they actually help to relax me a bit. Hope that helps a little.


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## LNAPE (Feb 9, 1999)

Read the calcium info at the top of the page and let me know if you have questions. It can help control the diarrhea.Linda


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## Dragon32 (May 5, 2010)

Hi everyone, IrvinPlank - I have tried leaving foods out before and that got me in a state as everything i eat affects me. So now i try to eat anything to a limit to see if i can get used to it. Will keep with that for the time being and see how that goes. Thank you for your help.overitnow - So do you no longer have IBS then? does the supplements really work??? And where can i get them from?? Thank you for your help.Claireuk - Will defo try the immodium again just so i can rule it out. What side affects to you get from propranolol? How long have you been taking the propranolol for? I am willing to try anything once. It might work better then the trazodone and hyosine tabs. Thank you for your help too.LNAPE - I will defo read the calcium info at the top of the page and will also get back to you with any questions. Thank you for your help aswell. Thank you all


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## overitnow (Nov 25, 2001)

I still live with the problem; but I no longer have to deal with the symptoms, if that makes any sense. I suggest at least starting with the Provex CV, because it has worked so well and for so long for me. I am convinced that a great part of that has to do with ingredients that are added to boost the absorbency of the grape flavonoids (over 4 times normal grape seed extracts). It's effectiveness for heart disease has a 12 year clinical pedigree. As far as I have been able to piece this together, working from my own results back to a supposed cause, the way it treats blood platelets to stop cholesterol from depositing should also effect the same behaviour of platelets described in the creation of bowel (and presumably stomach) inflammation. If it works, you can always "downgrade" to grapeseed and/or resveratrol at your local vitamin outlet and see if those results continue. Of course, if your condition does not stem from an inflammatory base--and even stress can be linked to histamine release which has strong linkages to inflammation--then it is likely not to be a help. In the end, for me, to take a daily food based supplement that lowers my risk of heart disease, eliminates my bowel and digestive problems, provides a good level of anti-oxidation and anti-inflammation, increases my circulation, and (maybe) keeps me from going senile a little while longer is a great bargain.It is formulated and sold by Melaleuca Inc, of Idaho Falls. Fair warning, they are a customer-marketed company.Cheers,Mark


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## GR123 (May 7, 2010)

Overitnow - I am ordering the Provex CV. I did not see any reference to the dose that you take. How much and when? Also, how soon after I begin do you think I might notice a change?I will report back to the group my own experiences.GR123


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## overitnow (Nov 25, 2001)

It took me a complete year to be finished with the D and the urgency; but I "knew" something was happening within a couple of months. (My constant indigestion stopped cold one day after about 6 weeks.) I started taking it in July, noticed a lowering in my brain fog by September, was able to be "on site" for a large weekend convention I was organizing in October, and told my doctor in November that I thought I had finally found a treatment. None of this means that everything had gone into remission, just that the frequency and urgency had both begun to drop.The dose is now 2 caps a day, one with bfast and one with dinner--down from 4 with the addition of resveratrol in the past year. Keep it in the fridge for best results and at least begin by taking it with food.Look for small changes at first. I stopped the "surprise farts" fairly quickly. My frequency dropped slowly. The consistency went from all out unorganized D and mucus to an IBS-Mud to one piece soft stools, to eventual normal poops. At that point I added a daily fiber supplement which really began to give it some surface detail. After about 6 months I began to add back in milk and other triggers. It probably extended the recovery period but it made my life at least seem more normalized.Finally, if you have cholesterol problems, you may find it drops your numbers. Mine went from borderline high to just above the normal range over that same period, although it's actual intent is to just keep it in solution.Good luck.Mark


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## Nancy from Safety Harbor (Apr 8, 2010)

Overitnow,"Surprise Farts". That is too funny, but also sad for those of us who experience them. Walking down the hall, and here goes one. I hate those. Try to cough, laugh or something to cover it up. Who am I kidding? You are a blessing Mark.


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## Big_D (Mar 25, 2011)

overitnow said:


> The dose is now 2 caps a day, one with bfast and one with dinner--down from 4 with the addition of resveratrol in the past year. Keep it in the fridge for best results and at least begin by taking it with food.Good luck.Mark


I read that Resveratrol may cause D and so stopped taking it. Comments?


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## susie64 (Apr 1, 2011)

Dragon32 said:


> Hi, I have extreme IBS-D and its ruining my life completely. I have had it for the last four years and it doesn't seem to be getting any better. I have lost my job due to this illness which doesn't help matters. I have tried all sorts of different meds from over the counter to prescribed. I have even tried herbal meds but nothing has helped. I have been seeing a specialist in this field but No luck there either. I have to go twice in the morning and that's like clockwork, then i take my meds and that does constipate me but i always feel like I need to go. I'm taking codeine phosphate tabs, trazodone and hyosine tabs but they don't really help. The anti-d make me feel worse and have the worst thoughts ever. I eat but get annouyed cos I need to go to the bathroom. Can anybody help with advice or guidance please as I have had enough of this???Thank you


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## LNAPE (Feb 9, 1999)

susie64,You can give the calcium carbonate a try as you can see it has helped many. Try to stop all the other things you can as you said they are not working and only make you feel worse. Start with 1/2 tablet of calcium carbonate and vitamin d with each meal. DO this for the first 3 days and see what happens.Linda


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## KarenMcP (Mar 29, 2011)

I've found probiotics and acupuncture helpful. Immodium was of dubious benefit at times and not helpful at all at others. Also I eat a pretty restricted diet while I'm trying to balance my internal flora again (took antibiotics last fall that caused severe diarrhea and horrible gastritis attack that has lasted 4+ months)


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## CousinSal (Apr 6, 2011)

Dragon,I feel the same way as you do. I've had this for 3-4 years now and I'm still experimenting to cure it. I'm going to try to unify all these different posts with a new post called something like "IBS-D and extreme Diets". I'm gonna try to get everyone to write out their symptoms, different medical tests, meds, date of onset, etc and then see what different types of diets they have used. So just be on the lookout for that.Cheers,Cousin Sal


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## BQ (May 22, 2000)

Just keep in mind though that for many IBS'ers the food they eat has nothing to do with their symptoms. So it isn't _what_ they eat. It is more the fact THAT they ate that causes the symptoms.


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