Good Morning All!

Hi there!

I was diagnosed with IBS in April after having several other tests for celiacs.

I'm still learning about the condition and what triggers it for me. It can be rough going sometimes with the symptoms, and the lack of understanding from other people!

I think it's fantastic to have finally found a support network like this!

Thanks for reading! And looking forward to getting my IBS under control!

[runswithdogs]

Welcome. It's a long process to find your triggers but if you can even identify a few of them life will be so much better. I recommend getting an ibs ap for your phone so you can easily record food, stress, activities and symptoms. Good luck and post if you have questions.

[charliema77 in reply to runswithdogs]

Unfortunately it can be a slow process finding your triggers but stuck with it. I was diagnosed several years ago and I have not yet found mine but cutting out gluten and caffeine has helped. I have looked at phone apps but there are lots of them. Are you able to recommend one?

[runswithdogs in reply to charliema77]

I bought one years ago called My IBS diary. It was good enough, you could record food, symptoms and export a CSV so you could open it in excel. I like that feature so you could print it out and take it to your GI doctor. There might be better ones now.

Have you tried the FODMAPS diet yet? It worked pretty good for me (IBS-D), every time I have a bad flare up now I check to see if what I ate had FODMAPS. It's not 100% but a lot better. I know cauliflower, asparagus and, beets are off my list. And corn and corn products, though those are FODMAPS okay....

Caffeine can also bug me, but some brands and restaurants are worse than others. So it's good to keep note of the specifics.

Gluten free or gluten reduced only worked for me with home baked stuff. The prominent brand of gluten free bread in Canada upsets my system terribly. IBS has really made me prepare the bulk of my foods at home.

Sorry this got so long winded!

[Mc89]

Hi BeanZ90, I've had IBS for years but have only given in & seen the doctor about it in the last 2 years as things got worse following surgery. It can be difficult as IBS covers so many symptoms & we are all different but this is a really good place to talk. I keep banging on about cutting out wheat as it's helped me a lot, it's certainly not a cure & may bring more problems as it's early days yet (!) but is worth a try.

Keeping a food diary is a good idea & something to wave at the doctor. My GP hasn't been very helpful I hope yours is better. Let us know how you get on.

Good luck

[Hidden]

Thanks for the replies!

I hadn't thought about looking for an app! That's a fantastic idea!

I use the MyFitnessPal app to track my food intake, well when I remember, I'm considering going back to the old fashioned pen and paper for that part!

As its only been a few months since my diagnosis I know it's going to take a while to build up that list of triggers, but it's great to know that there are other people out there to help and support!

So again thanks! 😊