r/ibs

I used to be a pretty healthy adult guy.

Then I started working in a place with a lot of elderly coworkers, and for some reason a lot of them love talking about their GI issues like it’s normal small talk.

Not weather, not family, not work.

Just stomach problems.

What gave them diarrhea, what food betrayed them, what made them run to the toilet, all that.

One day one of them came up to me and started telling me about how his GI issues affected his life. I didn’t really know what to say, so I just nodded, said “yes sir,” and asked a few questions back so it wouldn’t be awkward.

Then boom, my stomach started acting up.

It kept going for like a week, and later I found out I actually had typhoid. I’ve mostly recovered from that now, but ever since then it feels like my stomach has never been the same. I think it left me with IBS or at least something really similar, because now my gut gets triggered so easily.

I managed to get it a lot better with probiotics and some meds, so I’m not having diarrhea everyday anymore.

But the weirdest part is this:

Whenever someone tells me they had diarrhea, somehow I end up getting diarrhea soon after too.

Like one time my friend ate mango. Mango is usually fine for her, but this time it made her throw up and have diarrhea so bad she had to crawl to the toilet.

And then suddenly my daily vitamin C, which used to be completely fine for me, started giving me diarrhea too.

Another time my gym friend told me he couldn’t perform well that day because he recently had diarrhea.

And then the next day, somehow I got diarrhea too and had to skip gym.

Like what the hell is this.

Why is my stomach so influenceable.

I swear my gut has Bluetooth or something.

At this point it honestly feels like my digestive system hears somebody else’s stomach horror story and goes, “damn that’s crazy... anyway let’s do that tomorrow.”

Has anyone else had this happen, where just hearing about someone else’s stomach issues seems to trigger your own?

I have IBS mixed.

So it is always a juggle trying to deal with one issue without totally swinging to the other issue.

Second time in a month that while taking my dog on a morning walk, I full on pooped in my pants. We are talking about down my leg and today got to my shoe. (Thank god I was wearing yoga pants one day and leggings the other day both black) AHHHHH

I was walking from my gym so I then had to clean up in the BATHROOM since the shower rooms were taken (thank god I had a change of clothes in my car).

Anyone relating to this mess??

I think caffeine is my biggest trigger. I can’t just downgrade to green tea, I need to cut it out entirely.

I am not a morning person AT ALL no matter how much I sleep. I’ve been that way my whole life. I need something!

For those who have cut out caffeine entirely were you able to find any good replacements?

Gets new meds prescribed

Goes to get meds

Insurance blocked it

Says don't need those meds try these cheap generic meds

Linzess has no generic version

Classic insurance bs stopping me from improving :D

While taking a dump sometimes like after waking up in the morning. It doesn't hurt or anything. Just pink, red, etc. when wiping.

I used Heather's Tummy Fiber for years and it was the only thing that's ever helped my IBS-D — but I got so sick of doing the powder twice a day I stopped. And i'm paying for it 😵‍💫

I was reading that psyllium husk actually might be stronger/more effective — and it can come in capsules! This sounds too good to be true. Anyone have experience with this?

My whole life I’ve had gut (intestine) problems, but it used to be on and off, like maybe 1 month per year. But for the past year it’s been nonstop and it just doesn’t get better.

All my exams come back normal. For this whole year, every single day I feel sick, like this constant nausea in my gut, and every week I get really bad pain crises (like 10/10).

The only thing that helped was Cholestyramine. I actually felt normal for like 2 months, but then the “gut nausea” came back again. And now days if i eat a pizza or anything like that i get the 10/10 pain again.

I’ve been to 4 doctors and they basically gave up on me. Now I’m with a doctor that honestly doesn’t seem to care.

The only thing I haven’t tested yet is SIBO/IMO.

I’m not really living, I’m just surviving at this point. I seriously can’t take this anymore, so pls, if anyone has any idea or went through something similar, help me.

hello,

I think I may have IBS, I have a history of anxiety and when I was a teenager I suffered horribly painful colic. In the last few years I have suffered with on and off loose bowels and when I went on holiday last year, I had two days of uncontrollable diarrhea. Three weeks ago for two weeks I ate the food from work and developed a achy feeling in my right middle abdomen which came and went. From that my bowels have been all over the place, I poop as soon as I get up and that is generally loose and then can have a few times of have loose thin poop. Last year I had 2 months where I lost 6kgs and was feeling awful, I really thought I was dying, then I had ham, egg and chips spent the night vomiting and explosive poos and that seemed to reset me. I had an ultrasound to check my gallbladder but that was all fine. I am 41/f

Had some gi bug in november, took amoxicillin a week later for wisdom tooth and then has stomach issues non stop with stuff triggering it randomly like peanuts or foei gras

Anyways fast forward to march and i hopped on bile acid binders and felt fine all the way till around april1 where i had to do a septoplasty and turbinate reduction. Doc gave me IV antibiotics amoxicillin again for a day and no more. Was fine day1-6 post op

And suddenly on day 7 intense urgency and frequent small poops all in the morning with a burning feeling in the sigmoid colon

Its horriblein the morning with intense urgency but after lunch its usually just mild burning in the sigmoid area and no poops till next day morning again

Im pretty sure its a acute flair and my GI said that since its IV antibiotics and i was exposed to it for a day only it should just be a flare and i would be out of the woods soon.

But its day 4 of the flare and although its slightly better im still wondering howlong more this flare will last

Anyone with a similar thing can share howlong did it take for u to leave house in themorning again

Ps the bile acid binders worked amazingly back then and even now during the flare ive not had a single diarhea just looser ish stool and urgency

I am a 50 year old male and for the past couple years I have had gut issues, primarily having to suddenly go poop issues. I have the urgency to go poop after I leave my house, sometimes thats going to the grocery store or even going out for a 20 minute walk. I could be home for 8 hours and dont have to go, but as soon as I step out I have to go. Its been very frustrating but more-so just straight embarrassing. My wife has been supportive but I am just embarrassed. Especially on our most recent vacation. We were traveling with another family around Mexico City and we went to go visit Chapultepec park, but before we left our hotel I took a couple of Immodium-ad, usually that helps me. But this time it did not! Everything was fine for a long time, we were out walking and just enjoying for a good hour or so, then all of a sudden the other family went to go do something else while my family did our own thing, and it just hit! All of a sudden I had the urge to go and it was really bad. I located a bathroom and was 100feet away when all of a sudden I couldnt hold it anymore and I just shit my pants. I was so angry and frustrated and just wanted to die! This wasnt the first time, in the last years this has happened a few times, but on vacation this was the first and the worst.

Im just trying to understand what it could be. That morning before we left I made sure to barely eat anything. Im going to make an appointment with my doctor but just wanted to ask the community if you have had these issues and what you did to resolve it.

I started eating frosted mini wheats for breakfast in the mornings to help me go more often. I started taking TCAs but they caused me to become so constipated. The cereal helped a ton though. For two weeks I felt like I was on the moon, literally no constipation, no sulphur farts, no trapped gas.

However, Desipramine stopped working for me all of a sudden and my doctor told me to switch to Mirtazapine. It’s working really well so far, but there’s two downsides.

I’m sooo hungry and constipated.

Instead of eating one bowl of frosted mini wheats, I’ll eat two to three bowls a day which yes, I know it’s bad but at this point I felt like it wouldn’t be that bad. I looked so bloated but I’m guessing that Mirtazapine is working so well that it’s dulling the gas pains. I guess the fiber is also working too because I can’t stop farting and having loose (not really diarrhea per se) stools.

I’m going to limit myself but I’m starting to think sugary wheat cereal really isn’t a good idea to get my fiber from anymore since it’s addicting to eat on this med.

How are people getting their fiber in? I’m deathly afraid of vegetables, I ate leafy greens and felt terrible the next day.

I was just cleared by colonoscopy for UC and crohns despite being previously diagnosed with non specific colitis. I’ve been struggling with what I think is bile acid malabsorption for a few months, and some B.A.D.

My symptoms feel like there’s more going on than just IBS, because changing my food can’t even quell my symptoms. I eat bland all the time and my symptoms persist. Did anyone also experience this and get an alternative diagnosis? I’m trying to think of what to ask my GI doctor for. SIBO test? Trying bile acid binders?

I know this is TMI but please bare with me😖 Just wanna see if anyone else experiences similar symptoms as me.

Im a 28F 124 pounds. I just wanna know if any of you have the same symptoms as me. My symptoms started around age 20. When im having a flare up, i have discomfort in my abdomen (below my belly button) and some time it gets so overwhelming that I feel like im going to pass out or throw up (I have never passed out or thrown up during a flare though). It usually starts with smooth like stool, then the discomfort intensifies, and then it usually ends with looser stools, and then the discomfort disappears and i feel better. I also feel really hot on the toilet when this is going on. If im not in a flare up, i usually poop every 2-3 days and its more on the “rocky but formed” side with sometimes a small amount of bright red blood when i wipe. Im sorry this post is all over the place but Im just afraid.

i play tennis competitively in the heat and my ibs is ruining it. i can’t last an hour without having severe stomach pains and diharreah. any tips on how to fix this?? would electrolyte packets help?

I used to LOVE them as a kid. Tried one the other day as an adult with IBS and it genuinely put me through the worst pain ever. I will never try one again after that…

Im so done with the pain, I keep pushing and trying to find small moments of joy because at this point I’m basically homebound and can’t do much, but it always comes back. So here’s the thing, what’s the point of it if it’s always going to happen again.

I’m tired of doctors and people dismissing me, I’ve done so many tests and everything is always fine so why can’t I feel fine. If nothing is wrong or need fixing why don’t I feel fine, why do I feel like I’m rotting away.

I’ve been able to manage a somehow okayish state of pain by keeping myself very constipated. It sounds crazy but the pain is manageable when I’m constipated but as soon as the stools gets softer (not even diarrhea, just a bit softer and the endless wiping type) I get this terrible pain. And the problem is, it always comes back because I can’t like keep myself backed up forever either.

I’m just done, I want to enjoy life and be happy but I feel doomed.

I'm curious what people do for exercise to try and manage physical fitness whilst having IBS? When I have a major flare up and experience bloating or abdominal pain, I find that doing cobra pose, walking or core workouts work best for me. I want to know what works for others as I'm interested in experimenting 😊

My whole life I’ve had gut (intestine) problems, but it used to be on and off, like maybe 1 month per year. But for the past year it’s been nonstop and it just doesn’t get better.

All my exams come back normal. For this whole year, every single day I feel sick, like this constant nausea in my gut, and every week I get really bad pain crises (like 10/10).

The only thing that helped was Cholestyramine. I actually felt normal for like 2 months, but then the “gut nausea” came back again. And now days if i eat a pizza or anything like that i get the 10/10 pain again.

I’ve been to 4 doctors and they basically gave up on me. Now I’m with a doctor that honestly doesn’t seem to care.

The only thing I haven’t tested yet is SIBO/IMO.

I’m not really living, I’m just surviving at this point. I seriously can’t take this anymore, so pls, if anyone has any idea or went through something similar, help me.

so i've never had serious issues with constipation until about a year ago when i started taking zofran for my chronic nausea. i now have on and off constipation from taking it and it's the worst!

the past couple of days i've been a bit backed up until today i finally took a decent bowel movement. i haven't ate much all day and was starting to get hungerpains and then ate dinner after the bowel movement. after dinner, i start getting terrible terrible abdominal cramps that go all the way down to my pelvis area/vaginal area as well. it's been radiating all over for hours now and i just don't understand.

this isn't the first time something similar has happened and it's not super common when it does happen, but the times when it does happen, it really hits me.

please advice and personal experiences would help me a lot right now!​​​

Ive been thinking of adding a dietitian to my roster of “maybe this will help” after the week I had.

I’ve been dealing with IBS-D (non-painful, little swelling or gas) for 1.5 years now. Lately I’ve been responding well to amitriptyline, probiotics and a fibre supplement. I’ve also been working with a counsellor who specializes in mind/gut connection. I was down to one or two bathroom visits a day with relatively normal, big bowel movements. I even went to Japan for two weeks and had *zero* problems.

However this week I decided to try and reintroduce yogurt back into my diet and from Monday to Thursday, I went to the bathroom more but it was nowhere near as bad as it has been in the past; smooth but frequent. Then today, I have no clue. We went out for a family member’s birthday and I had to excuse myself multiple times and find a bathroom on the way home too. I even took my emergency Imodium and it seemed to do nothing.

It’s so frustrating that I can often order in food or grab it to bring home and I’m fine but as soon as I’m feeling confident and want to agree to a restaurant experience, it just fully falls apart.

Maybe I was being too overzealous with reintroducing yogurt and thinking I could manage a restaurant meal.