r/SiboSuccessStories

Dealt with stomach issues and eventually got diagnosed with sibo and ibs for about 6 years with no progress until I heard about the elemental diet . I read about it and decided to do it but buying the products is ridiculously expensive ( 1500-2000$ for the 2 weeks) so I ended up making the diy version which costed me around 450$ . Disclaimer tastes digusting . But before all that I ran 4 weeks of herbal supplements to lower my sibo (methane dominant) . After the 4 weeks I then started the elemental diet for 2 weeks in conjunction with intermittent fasting , 9-10 hours feeding window . I did 2500 cal a day so it was 5 shakes . Took about 1 h to drink a shake or else you might literally shit yourself. 2 weeks of elemental was most definitely one of the hardest thing I have done , mentally anyways . The shakes an absolutely disgusting and you have to sip on it hours on hours throughout the day …

After the 2 weeks was over I introduced food , but only one small meal a day then shakes , and over 2 weeks I progressively went back to fully eating food . Supplement at this point was glutamine , mcc support , probiotics. As for food I started with bone broth then chicken ( plain or salt) and added 1 food every day or every other day obviously starting with low fodmap food .

As far as how I felt throughout each phase

Herbal phase : this was not too bad , I was told not to do low fodmap at this point cause I could cause the bacteria to hide or create biofilm… something like that I ain’t no biology teacher 😆

So I did all date and stomach felt like 💩 for the first 2.5 weeks then got a lil better ( in the afternoon ) but I would still wake up absolutely bloated and the bloat that don’t leave you until mid day…

Elemental diet phase : this was an actual mental challenge, the drink are so bad specially when you make it yourself and it just feels like you constantly need to be drinking it . First week was really hard but then second week I felt like a robot program to drink that drink all day long . My stomach started feeling light on day 8 ( haven’t felt like that in years at that point ) and at that point I was motivated to finish strong

Post diet : I was really scared going back to eating food which is why I took things super slow reintroducing food super slowly and kept the elemental shake in for a lil longer . This phase actually went much better than I expected! I heard too many story of people sibo relapsing right after that I didn’t want to risk it and it paid off

Now : I now basically eat all I want , I’m an healthy person so I almost exclusively eat whole foods and often eat low fodmap ish diet just cause I got so use to it over the years. I no longer have this terrible morning bloat that ruined my life for many years and the insta gaz after every meal . I would say I’m cured at this point , this process took about 2.5 months all together . It has now been 4 months and I am feeling good , I kept the same gym routine as before calisthenics and powerlifting and started gaining a muscle like as if I was on some enhancement drugs 🤣. The doc told me I most likely been absorbing only a fraction of the nutrients while my stomach was ill and now that it’s back to normal my body is thriving.

I know this shit feel super depressing when in the middle of it , I spent years doing testing , different diets , medication and nothing helped but I never gave and kept educating myself about the subject and this is what I figured would help me the most … idk I just felt like this made sense , 4 weeks to lower the bad bacteria count , 2 weeks to then kill the bacteria ( think I forgot to say I was using mcc support at this point too to keep things moving and get rid of the bacteria ) and then a another 1-2 months rebuilding and strong stomach with great caution.

This is oblivious just my experience and not medical advise

So a year ago I started experiencing SIBO symptoms that went from occasional bloating on random days to bloating all day after every meal and even after exercising.

My country offers a SIBO test that takes about 40days roughly to come back with results which seemed insane, considering we all know how depressing and discouraging living with SIBO is. I went to a GI that diagnosed me with chronic colitis and gastritis but soon after I realized that stuff that should cause discomfort if I truly had those conditions wasn’t a thing… I had no issue with coffee and no issue with hard liquor (however any sugar, milks, potatoes or any carbs really or any other alchohol would send me into a week of fighting brain fog and sever bloating accompanied with burping) Throughout this entire time I could not pass gas downward. I never experienced true constipation but it would alternate between hard to pass and way too easy…

So I took it into my own hands to treat it with antimicrobial herbals. I added motility agents and I upped the doses slowly. However end of February I was diagnosed with an ovary infection which required me to take a 9 day course of Azytromicin. I was also given an antifungal to take with it. On the second day I was already in the ER with what appeared to be a bad allergic reaction. However this incident made me rethink the way I treat my body and how many stuff I’ve been putting in my system the past few months. So I dropped everything apart from the antibiotic.

After the antibiotic I felt surprisingly better gut wise even tho this is not even close to a first line treatment with SIBO. However soon after i found myself bloating up again until I realized that my stomach had shrunk so much that it was due to “overeating” (not in the standard sense but more so that my body couldn’t keep up with the amount of volume even though it was regular meals). I’d also like to say that I kept a strict diet with only eggs and meats for a while after stopping the antibiotics as well.

After some time, my new GI told me it was time to reintroduce gluten and test for celiac as I also suffer from Hashimoto. However on the 3rd day I was already fighting for my life with symptoms and discomfort… So I guess what I am getting at is that I accidently cured my SIBO and also accidently found out what caused it in the first place and that was that my stomach was so severely damaged from untreated celiac diseases that no enzymes were being produced to digest my food which in turn sat and fermented and so on.

Honestly I was pretty discouraged and depressed for a long time and felt incredible guilt for weighing down on my family for emotional support and if you think there’s no way to get better, honestly just give it time.

I also want to encourage people to stick through all of the treatments BUT also listen to your body. If your body is too tired and physically tells you it’s bad enough off all this stuff that goes inside, listen to it.

In my opinion we as humans were meant to be able to self regulate our bodies without crazy external help but sometimes in the times that we live we need to add an extra hand and help it out (however not poison ourselves)

I also found out that stress and anxiety were so deeply routed in my stomach issues which I assume is the case for so many people here in this ever repeating cycle of eat -treat - look for symptoms - be afraid of this food forever.

I would also like to say that I do still struggle with occasional bellow belly button bloating that comes and goes unrelated to food but it’s only been a couple of months and it surely is nothing like my symptoms before so it does get better!

I was diagnosed with SIBO more than a year ago and for months I battled with constant loose yellow stools, weight loss, bloating, constipation / diarrhea, nausea etc.

At some point I noticed that I had completely stopped feeling hungry. I came across a video that explained how chest breathing could maintain chronic illness. I have always been a chest breather (I have a noticable rib flare) so I tried diaphragmatic breathing exercises. It took some time but whenever I would focus on expanding my stomach and my ribs sideways (diaphragmatic breathing) my hunger would come back and my stomach would gurgle. After repeating this practice almost daily for 6 months I only get symptoms occasionally. Apart from that I experienced a lot of anxiety which I couldn’t figure out what was causing it and diaphragmatic breathing positively affected it too.

For anyone interested I can advise you to look into how breathing affects the nervous system and the migrating motor complex. I always focus on my breathing first thing in the morning, avoid it right after eating because it made me feel nauseous a few times. Waking up at the same time every day (stable circadian rhythm) makes the onset of hunger and gurgling more consistent.

Hi guys today's the exact date when one year ago I first started experiencing chronic bloating after that I spend a year trying to fix it , I tried lowdoomap diet helped for a while then I was constantly bloated even on lowfoodmap diet , then I strated eating regular shit with a loot of milk and my symptoms started getting better for a week i think it was because of the probiotics but im not sure i don't even know if I have sibo my symptoms are bad skin and bloating, i know I have gut issues for years since I have low libido 3 years now I generally have no idea what to do , please someone help

Hello!

I just found this sub through r/candida and wanted to share my own success story and information about my treatment so that perhaps it could help someone else!

Bullet point version:

- suspected candida fall 2023

- strict candida diet protocol winter/spring 2024

- April 2024 met with Functional Medicine Doctor regarding symptoms

- Started Low FODMAP diet due to suspected SIBO

- May 2024 took SIBO breath test. Resulted in high hydrogen and elevate methane

- June and August 2024, x2 rounds of Anti-biotics and Biofilm Buster treatments: neomycin, rifimixin, nystatin, biocidin, NAC

- September 2024 Considered "in remission" and could stop treatments; have not had major issues since

Note: I still have "trigger foods": Rice, Runny/Scrambled Eggs

Update 2025: suspected histamine intolerance, ongoing observation
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My situation is a bit unique. In 2018, I began a new job as a flight attendant. Prior to this job, I was a very active person. I went to the gym and did HIIT and strength training 3-5 days per week, and jogged regularly on rest days. I had no obvious or extreme dietary issues besides being allergic to onions.

Between 2018 - 2021 I developed a whole gambit of symptoms, including chronic "tired but wired" fatigue, rapid weight gain, foggy head, random patches of skin rashes, shortness of breath, watery eyes, migraines, a bursar's cyst in my kneecap, fluid sensation in my left ear, and inflammation of my left nasal cavity. To make a longer story short, my flight attendant uniforms were manufactured cheaply, and thusly, riddled with toxic chemicals and heavy metals that would thrust me into this spiral of symptoms and no relief.

After seeing a dozen different doctors and specialists for various potential issues, I was eventually recommended to see a Naturopathic Medicine Doctor. After my first visit and a thorough blood panel, my doctor suspected SIBO might be a primary cause of my issues (rather than candida, as I had informed her that I suspected it might be. I had no idea SIBO was a thing prior to this appointment), as I was also experiencing distention and slow motility.

Somewhat unrelated, but the blood panel also found that my BUN ratio was low, and that my free testosterone levels are severely low (am cis male). I mention this simply to emphasize that the chemicals and heavy metals, some of which are known endocrine disruptors, were likely a factor in developing SIBO. Buy the time I saw my ND, she said there was no way to directly test what exactly the uniforms were doing, but based on the list of chemicals I gave her, she concluded that my body likely had some internal inflammation, which over prolonged exposure, developed into SIBO and my other symptoms. I am emphasizing this to also suggest that there may be environmental factors that could be contributing to your own condition, and recommend you to look at all possible facets as a potential contributor; especially if you have received treatment, but have yet to find relief.

After initial bloodwork, my doctor prescribed me to follow a Low FODMAP diet to get my body into enough of a stasis to prepare for the SIBO breath test; to ensure the test results were as accurate as possible. She also prescribed me to abstain from any and all probiotic foods and supplements (up to this point, I was eating a half cup of yogurt/kefir every morning for breakfast).

I don't remember the exact measurements of my results, but the SIBO breath test came back positive for high hydrogen and elevated methane production. She said based on the results, I likely had SIBO for a few years already (which tracked with my timeline starting my flight attendant job).

For treatment, she had me continue my Low FODMAP diet, as well as cut out refined sugars entirely for the duration of treatment. I want to point out too, that prior to seeing this doctor, I switched from drinking bottled alkaline mineral water to boiled/filtered tap water with lemon juice. I noticed an immediate improvement of mental clarity and less bloating and fatigue the very next day. In addition, she had me take x2 anti-biotics (Neomycin & Rifimixin(Xixifan)), x1 anti-fungal (Nystatin), and x2 supplements (Biocidin as a biofilm buster, & N-Acetyl L-Cysteine for liver and kidney support, as well as to help clear biofilms).

I went through 1 round of medication, and felt major improvements in symptoms. My doctor wanted to be proactive and combat my issues aggressively, so after a 1 month rest period, she had me do a 2nd round of medications. I felt even better after the 2nd round, and my doctor said that I was likely in remission and could slowly re-introduce foods. She also *very specifically* instructed me to continue abstaining from eating probiotic foods for 1 year following treatment; to help my gut repopulate its natural flora.

UPDATE: it's been 2 years since my treatment, and I am still feeling good with little to no symptoms. I say "little" because I still have mild flare ups when I eat too much of my trigger foods; specifically rice, and scrambled or runny eggs (tho oddly enough hard boiled eggs are fine). When I eat these foods, especially together, I experience slow motility and distention, but it does not last after I have passed the foods through my system. I am able to eat small amounts of rice without issue, but not an entire serving (so I don't seem to have issues when eating sushi for example).

UPDATE 2: this past March, I noticed I was crashing shortly after waking (sudden onset of intense fatigue and brain fog). One day, I noticed it happen soon after eating my usual breakfast of plain oatmeal with honey, cinnamon, and banana. I am currently waiting to see a doctor to explore if this is potentially a histamine intolerance or to try and figure out what might be the cause. Regardless, it does not seem to be linked to SIBO.

Hi all, my SIBO test came back positive and my gastro just prescribed me 14 days of xifaxan. I’ve been dealing with feeling full quickly, extreme bloating by the end of the day (waking up flat), constipation and nausea since January.

Colonoscopy, endoscopy came back normal and results didn’t show any food intolerances. Biopsies were normal. Doctor just noted inflammation in my esophagus and stomach.

While I’m partially glad to know what I’ve been feeling hasn’t been in my head, I am also a bit terrified because I keep reading how hard SIBO is to treat.

Can anyone share success stories with xifaxan? Do I need to follow a low-fod map diet during treatment? I typically take ozempic low 0.25 maintenance dose, should I stop that during treatment? I just asked my doctor all of this but wanted to hear some success stories as I’m feeling a bit nervous! Thank you in advance ❤️

I'm 5'8", 117 lbs and my gut has been slowly destroying my life for over a year. Need advice from people who've actually been through this.

I'll try to keep this readable but there's a lot so bear with me.

It started in 2024 when I was put on antibiotics for a dental infection. Not long after finishing the course I started getting trapped gas, loud bowel sounds, and constipation lasting 4-5 days. Annoying but I figured it would sort itself out.

Then I did H. pylori triple therapy and everything fell apart almost overnight. Constipation went from 4-5 days to 7-10 days between movements, the gas became constant and completely uncontrollable, I developed diarrhea on top of the constipation somehow, and the weight started dropping. I got a stomach endoscopy done which showed moderate chronic gastritis. Everyone told me to just let my gut heal and give it time.

That was over a year ago. Nothing got better.

The gas is honestly the thing that's taken over my life the most. I live in an apartment building with thin walls and my gut sounds are so loud that my neighbors are genuinely irritated about it — this isn't me being dramatic. The gas gets trapped and instead of coming out it just bounces around making these horrible liquid gurgling sounds through the walls. The only way I can move it at all is lying on my left side and using specific breathing patterns I've had to teach myself. Even that barely works now because my stool has become this liquid pasty consistency that basically acts as a seal the gas can't push through.

Speaking of stool — here's the part that confuses everyone I describe this to. I go 7-10 days between movements but my stool isn't hard. It's liquid, sticky like peanut butter, pale, no real shape. Sessions take 15-20 minutes, come out in chunks, and I've had to start using digital stimulation just to get things moving. Straining does absolutely nothing. Stool only comes out when my colon decides to push it on its own.

Food sits in my stomach for 6+ hours. I get foul-smelling burps hours after eating. My diet has basically collapsed down to boiled potatoes and plain bread because anything else causes a gas explosion and diarrhea. Tried bacterial probiotics twice and both times made everything dramatically worse — more constipation, more trapped gas, worse reflux. Sardines caused what genuinely felt like a poisoning reaction.

After about a year I finally got to a GI doctor who suspected SIBO and prescribed Rifaximin 200mg three times a day. I made it 4 days.

The die-off hit me like a truck. Gas volume exploded at exactly the time I had no way to expel it. Then explosive diarrhea started which made things even worse because now liquid stool was completely sealing off any chance of passing gas. The noise going through the walls became unbearable and I live with other people. I had to stop. After stopping, nothing improved. If anything it got slightly worse.

I know 4 days is nothing. I know I need to complete a full course. But here's my problem — I can't figure out how to get through 15 days of amplified gut warfare when my current baseline is already causing problems with the people around me.

So I guess my questions are:

Does this presentation actually sound like SIBO to you? Specifically the constipation-dominant pattern with liquid stool and the fact that Rifaximin alone seemed to make things worse — does that point toward a methane/IMO component that Rifaximin can't reach on its own?

For people who've dealt with severe constipation during treatment — with 7-10 days between movements, dead bacteria and toxins have nowhere to go. Did anyone use enemas regularly during their course to manually clear things out? Did that actually help manage the die-off?

And for the gas specifically — what got you through the die-off without the volume and noise becoming unbearable? Simethicone? Eating almost nothing during treatment? I'm open to anything.

Any input from people who've been through the rough end of this would genuinely help. I'm stuck.

One of the biggest lessons I learned during my gut healing journey is that “healthy” does not always mean “healing.”

When I was dealing with erosive gastritis, H. pylori, and SIBO, I tried many foods and habits that are normally considered healthy, but some actually made my symptoms worse.

These are my personal experiences and educational information, not medical advice

For me, some triggers were:

Foods & Drinks,

Raw salads increased my bloating - Steam them!

Garlic and onions triggered gas - I tolerated small amount

Protein bars caused stomach pain - Do not buy any!

Artificial sweeteners worsened bloating

Large amount of nuts were hard to digest - Just ate walnuts

High fiber foods overwhelmed my gut - Stopped eating for a while Apple cider vinegar burned my stomach- BIG NO!

Probiotics made gas worse - DO NOT TAKE WHILE HEALING EXCEPTS SOME FORM - ASK ME!

Supplements,

Do not take too many supplements together. Start gradually.

Digestive Enzymes, Iron even Heme irritated my stomach

Magnesium Bisglycinate is your friend.

DO NOT TAKE VITAMIN D3 in a oil form, it irritated my stomach badly. Get capsules.

DO NOT TAKE PILLS FOR CONSTIPATION, GO FOR NATURAL FOODS.

Habits,

Do not eat so quickly

Do not lie down after meals

Do not google your symptoms - it made me worse

Do not feel hungry my best friend was banana (Small pieces)

Get a meditation app, and it will be help you a lot - Trust me!

Mental / Emotional Side

Do not expect so fast results - it will take longer and longer

Do not ignore nervous system - Work on it!

Do not believe only food will heal you! Believe in yourself and process!

Do not compare yourself with other healings!

“Clean eating” wasn’t always healing Gut healing is extremely individual.