Suffering IBS and fat gain and don't know what to eat as everything triggers the swelling and constipation can anyone help ,body dismorphia

[Worrier29]

Hi so I've been suffering with IBS for years and still don't know what is a trigger and what isn't and also I have suffered a lot of fat gain in stubborn areas that just won't come off and I don't know what the right foods are it has recently given me body dismorphia and I have a restrictive eating disorder to then binge eating on high calorie fatty foods I am suffering with severe stress from it as I can't get my mind off it which is probably not helping me to lose the body fat as I have been told my body may be holding onto it I am suffering deficiencies due to the lack of nutrition and my body is just getting worse and worse I don't know what to do as its affecting me so badly I can't get on with day to day life and causing me physical pain in my legs and making it hard for me to walk and move around I don't want to be like this forever I just want to get back to the way I was before and get a healthy relationship with food again and bring my body back to where it was 6 months ago .

[Worrier29]

Yes I have been officially diagnosed with it by a doctor well everyone says that's what they diagnose you with when they can't find anything else but I've had blood tests and everything to rule other things out and I think partly mine is caused by the restrictive eating as I have deprived myself of most food to not really have them so I could never see If my body would be okay with them if I ate them consistently I am thinking of paying for a nutritionist to be honest and see I don't get the diarrhoea side I get severe stomach bloating like I'm pregnant and I can stay constipated for like 4 to 5 days I'm prescribed laxatives to be able to go cuz I can't go on my own it's so frustrating because I want to be able to eat like everyone else but I can't and now I have gained a load of fat on my body especially thighs I feel even worse because I got abnormally giant thighs and slim waist but with crazy bloating

[Worrier29]

Yeah that is quite annoying I can't even get a dietician through my doctors to help me find out what foods and my triggers if I want to do it I have to pay a lot of money to pay for my own dietician and nutritionist and I don't have the money she thinks it could be bad gut bacteria from restrictive eating for a long time and the fat gain I think Is the every weekend binge eating and not enough steps and physical activity even tho I cycle to work 30 minutes and 30 minutes back I just hot 29 and started gaining all of this fat on the lower half of my body it's horrible because if it was balanced gain everywhere it would be okay but it's because massive amounts have gone to 1 area its impacting me more physically and mentally and no it's really not I miss being able to go to the toilet normally like I used to be able to a few years ago it sucks to have to rely on laxatives now which is not a healthy way to go and my body has become reliant on them now

[Worrier29]

I was going to buy priobotic tablets but unfortunately because I'm On antidepressants I'm not aloud to take probiotic tablets

[Worrier29]

It said in Holland and Barrett when I went to buy them it got searched for me and it said you can't take probiotic tablets when your on anti depressants but I don't know I'm just going off what I've been told

[Activity2004 Administrator]

Hi Worrier29 ,

Have you checked out/joined the IBS group also on HU? Please see: healthunlocked.com/theibsne... then show it to your doctor at your next appointment. Please let us know what you find out soon.

[Orangeskys]

hi ,

I was diagnosed with IBS 40 years ago . I have tried everything without success. However , The FODMAP eating plan has helped a great deal , my son and daughter-in-law are dieticians and have had great success with their patients. Although H&B staff are trained in what they sell, I don’t think you should take their advice full stop. Have you read the patient leaflet supplied with your anti depressant? Or ask your gp. I was a weight loss /bariatric nurse for years , and believe food intake is also a psychological factor. Try your gp again . Good luck

[Nessie87 in reply to Orangeskys]

pre-biopics are also very important as they feed the ‘good bacteria’ ie the probiotics. Inulin is a good PRE-biotic. Lots of vegetables have pre-biotics

[Poppy_the_cat]

Hi 29,

I have not been on this site for a very long while. I understand your position totally including your frustration with not being able to see a dietician.

Recently in hospital where I almost died, getting to see a dietitian was impossible; there was one dietician allocated to the entire huge hospital. Imagine their levels of stress!

Ok. Not being able to go to the loo is a serious matter. A car with an exhaust that doesn't work can't function!

Expensive tablet form 'probiotics' on average take 2 years to reach the shelves from manufacture; by the time they do, they've pretty much dead.

Try brewing your own, water based probiotic. It's non dairy. It's less effective because the probiotic count is less than dairy based, but it's easier and gentler to tolerate. (Search online for live grains. Learn about their benefits).

Working from a process of elimination.

1. Brew tour own coconut water based 'kefir' probiotic.

2. Research the 'prebiotics nutrition ' required to sustain and maintain the friendly gut bacteria you need in your gut to improve your situation. As Dr Mosely says "Pre-biotics can be thought of as the manure needed to make your probiotic bacteria blossom and stay happy!"

3. Could Candida albicans be an issue?

Heavy antibiotic use can alter the balance of the gut biome, allowing Candida (Thrush) to grow out of hand and become a problem.

Do you have vaginal irritation? Can your pubic area itch? Can your arm pits itch? Can you experience an itchy anus? Have you noticed your tongue to be very coated in a white film? Have you ever had oral thrush? Do you have tie nail fungus?

As nasty as it is, because Candida allowed out of check is exactly that (it damages the gut too)... can be a serious problem.

A pessary with cream as treatment for thrush if it's bad enough, doesn't work from my experience. Instead, a daily low dose antifungal for a month's course does do the trick, with of course reducing your sugary intake.

And of course sweet cravings can also be a sign that you are feeding the Candida monster within!

Just as a precaution CUT OUT everything, or as much as everything 'sweet'. Starve it because Candida thrives on sweet things.

4. Be kind to yourself. You cycle!!!!! Well done you 👍🌞 You Star!

Also reward yourself with something gorgeous healthy and satisfying!

A terrific Smoothie! Here's one of mine!

Ingredients:

2 or 3 small bananas, a little ripe is better.

4 or 5 strawberries, depending on taste.

2 or 3" of coconut water (Plenish is organic)

I use a little hand blender (£15, Sainsbury's "Cookworks"....you might find one on eBay too). Make it in the beaker it comes with and you can get a big smoothie glass worth easily.

Yes there will be natural sugars in the Smoothie, but the natural benefits outweigh thd negatives for me.

I drink one in the morning and one in the evening and I have NEVER been constipated since! Now that's almost three months of great success.... combined with a month's antifungal treatment from the doctor.

With your determination and ability to cycle, a tweak in your diet, some gorgeous smoothies to help your digestive transit and possible investigation of Candida, you can turn this situation around yourself. You can do it! Be empowered.

Good luck,

Enjoy those Smoothies, experiment. Look at nutrition yourself and "blend Baby, Blend!" 😉😉😉

Have fun.

Best Wishes

Poppy the 😺

[Poppy_the_cat]

Ps, 29

As your gut biome improves, so will your depression....direct link between the 2. You're on a winning streak if you help your gut biome to redress the balance 😉

[Likejunglebook]

Hi Worrier 29 - two things have helped my husbands ibs …

1: following a fodmap diet including using lactose free milk and

2: psyllium husk , I make him wraps and he has two of these a day , you can freeze them too. I found a recipe from ‘the loopy whisk’ on line , I make them once a week and it takes about 1hour if I make double quantities. You may need to use a hand blender with the psyllium husk when you add the water. these two things have made such a difference . The fodmap diet is restricive but you can reintroduce things slowly and he manages to get in his 5 fruit and veg daily . You can get an app for fodmap from Monash university (it’s Australian) but there is lots on line to help you see what is fodmap .

If you try this I hope it helps you

[Eryl]

There is nothing wrong with high calorie fatty foods unless they are made with refined seed oils. The most likely foods for casing problems are wheat based because the starch metabolises into glucose very easilly and the gluten causes leaky gut which makes the starch quick to absorb. The leaky gut also allows food particles to get lodged in the gut walls and cause irritation.

[Bidgie]

I have bowel problems with constipation as I have got older. Also got diverticular disease which means that the muscle in sections of my gut has lost it's elasticity. I looked into it and it is fine to only have bowels open 2-3 x a week. I find that wheat gives me wind, so eat very little bread( only brown now), pasta, potato. Try to eat a different protein each day- meat, fish, cheese or eggs with just a mixture of veg. I chop up carrot, parsnip. clove of garlic,green beans, kale or cabbage, occ broccoli, mushrooms, coloured pepper, tomato in a microwave dish and cook in spurts of 3-5mins till cooked. Jobs done! Some can be left for next day. Sometimes add frozen peas and broad beans. Have oat based Muesli with seeds for breakfast plus blueberries and greek yogurt.. I have no pattern to my bowel action now which can be a nuiance but I can live with it. Keep positive and live in the moment.

[Instructor57]

Hi, I would strongly suggest having an appointment with a good nutritionist.

And introducing a good organic probiotic into your diet .

Not a tablet but something like kimchi that contains live probiotic cultures !

Not the pasteurised stuff you may find in the local supermarket either as that has literally had all the good bacteria destroyed by the heat process

I won't put the link here as it may be considered advertising.

But you can message me about it if you want !

But here is the info about the company I buy complete organic and un processed kimchi from .

One of their family members suffered from chronic IBS

Hope you find your answer 🤞

⬇️

About Us

Our Story

We’re fermented food and drink fanatics: we love the stuff. That’s why we make it. Life-giving loveliness in a jar (or a bottle).

Loving Foods was started in 2016 by brother and sister, Mendel and Faye who were quickly joined by Faye’s husband, Adam. Mendel is a qualified nutritional therapist with a natural interest in healthy food; Faye acquired her healthy interest in natural food the hard way: as a sufferer of chronic IBS.

Mendel helped his sister and her subsequent lifestyle and diet changes transformed her health in general, and her IBS in particular. As their interest in and advocacy of fermented health grew, Mendel started to prepare his own fermented food which Faye would evangelise to her family and friends.

Loving Foods was a natural progression. Born out of need and fuelled by enthusiasm, we are now driven by a lasting ambition: better well-being for everyone.

[Htims46]

Hi there Worrier29, I'm sorry to hear of your struggles. I am a nervous person as well, have been since being a young child. I too have IBS am very overweight. People reading this I going to say 'any excuse' I eat too much to calm my nerves and I feel happier when Im eating, I have a very sweet tooth so for me it's a lot of chocolate and biscuits, cakes. I have just been told Im pre diabetic. I have noticed that when I eat far too much chocolate my IBS is terrible, so I have cut back on the amount I eat, for the sake of my IBS and I don't want to be diabetic. I allow myself 1 chocolate sweet treat a day, I save it for the evening. My IBS has calmed down a lot, so I think maybe you are consuming far too much fat as I was, and IBS does not like fat. Also I have never liked drinking water but I thought nothing ventured so I now drink three big glasses of water a day plus normal tea and coffee. I no longer suffer with constipation so I do recommend drinking plenty of water every day. It has certainly cured my constipation. As for eating less I am trying to have nothing to eat after 8pm and nothing before 8am Iv lost about 7 lbs in 4-5 weeks. Im really telling you my story, basically saying you are not on your own. I don't know whether I am allowed to say this, I am not advertising have you ever tried Slimming World, it would maybe suit you as certain foods you can eat as much as you like of certain foods, obviously though not fried food. Air fryers are very good because you can cook things like chips using very little oil. I do wish you all the very best at the end of the day it boils down to your mind set. When you feel in a low mood you probably eat to much I know I do, try and divert to doing other things instead and to a certain degree it will take your mind off eating. The first thing to do is too stop eating all that fatty food it's not good for your weight, no good for your IBS or your overall health. Good luck you can do it.

[Jeffjones297]

I've found avoiding heavily processed foods helps, as does a daily probiotic drink and a freshly squeezed lemon in a pint of water, with two tbsp of apple cider vinegar, first thing.Carbonated drinks have been found to cause IBS flair ups.

You need to find your triggers by trial and error and when found, avoid them.