Fact v fiction

[Sassy70]

I have always been told that IBS is stress related but mine is foud related so how do I control it as I've always been told there is no cure only CBT!

[Hidden]

IBS is often seen as stress related because as a problem it causes stress so therefore it's a continuous cycle . Have you tried the FODMAP diet ? It was developed by Monash University and there is an app for your phone . It is based on a traffic light system and helps you to find out which foods affect your digestive system. So eat only the green highlighted items first for around 4 to 6 weeks then you can add in Amber marked items one at a time to see how the affect you. Good luck with it I found that it was excellent and solved a lot of my problems

[Hidden]

Have you tried your own into,erance tests, like leaving one food group at a time, like dairy, out of your diet for at least 2/3 weeks keeping a foiod and symptom diary to see what changes there might be.

If your symptoms are food related then you will only be able to manage the sympyoms

[gfmum1]

I get quite annoyed when people say IBS is stress-related, as though that's the sole answer for everyone. We're all different, so although for some people I'm sure stress plays a part, for me it has never been a factor. I've had some very stressful times in my life since I started with gut problems but they have never worsened at those times, the problems have stayed constant throughout.

Food is also, for me, the only trigger and as others have said, the FODMAP diet is the place to start. Again, it isn't the answer for everyone but for me it certainly was.

[elwins]

I suffer with colitis and I agree food can play a big part in it, find wheat and corn cause me problems, you just have to keep a diary to find out what triggers an attack. Best of luck.

[5catlover6]

I find mine is food related. Rice, aubergines, onions, wheat, courgettes all trigger an attack. I have a friend and his is totally stress related.

[Hidden]

Hi mine is stress/food.

I have had it since I was 23 and am 57 now and I dont know of any cure.

You can keep a diary of food and that way could find out what foods to avoid.

try to keep stress to a minimum-i have never been able to do this has I had 2 very prem babies and just like anyone else had upsets and shocks/surprises/hardships.

mine started off with stress and my sister has it too and there is bowel cancer in family.

Mine went to IBD and is still IBD; as is my sisters and she is 67 now.

My sister and I both have a fast transit time eg-the yellow corn test was out the next morn after having it in the evening meal.

We have a lot of allergies too and I get rhinitis a lot and have recently had a burst blood vessel in my nose courterised.

everything I get takes forever to get better and heal.

I believe in God and its my faith that keeps me going !

Blessings S x

[Hidden in reply to Hidden]

I was interested to read that you take ages to heal, me too. I am a ‘young’ 72 and have suffered with colitis/IBS since my 20’s and like many others, stress is a factor but not the cause. I just wonder if the slow healing is common with sufferers.

[Hidden in reply to Hidden]

I recently got told by my GP that I may have IBS. I am 18 years old and have been cutting foods out of my diet to see if it is triggered at the moment cheese and greasy foods such as burgers are a trigger. Although I do suffer with slow healing such as a small burn taking about a month too heal. I also suffer from headaches on a daily basis and started to believe this was from my IBS and wanted to know if anyone else experiences bad headaches nearly/almost everyday?

[Hidden in reply to Hidden]

Its absoloutly stress with me-consulants(3) of them have confirmed !

My GP sais I get an upset and its like it smacks me in the guts( has with most people thier BP would go through the roof instead ) have been on the floor are on edge of settee when ambulance came-not able to move at all !

When the runs start its never ending burns me bum; makes me sick and I flake-out on bathroom floor. cant keep up with heart rate.

I have had 5 major shocks/upsets in my life and one of them I will never get over-my little daoughter was mollested by my exs father !

Blessings S x

[Hidden]

Hi Alicekellie, I was about your age when I first started suffering IBS symptoms although it was unheard of in my day. I had infectious hepatitis (water borne I believe, schools had dozens of kids off with it) and spent 3 weeks in hospital followed by months of recuperation. I truly believe my problem started from then but you were very much on your own dealing with it. Have you been checked out for any of the inflammatory diseases i.e. coeliacs, colitis, crohns? Sadly, I didn’t get diagnosed for many many years and even then although a colonoscopy showed mild non specific colitis and diverticulitis my current Consultant is calling it IBS. I’m sure if I had ‘pestered’ my GP many years earlier I may have had a lot more support and help but please get yourself properly diagnosed.

[Hidden in reply to Hidden]

I have been checked for Coeliac disease as well as if I have diabetes. Everything came back fine I also had a blood test and my inflammatory markers and platelet count were high although they have always been high so they believe it is my normal range. I'm generally quite well although suffer from many colds on and off and this may be due to me being underweight; I haven't spoke to my GP since although it depends on the food I eat; it is also bad when I get stressed and unfortunately I get stressed very easily (I've never been any different). I had a day last week where I went to the toilet around 7 times before 1:00pm; although it hasn't been that bad since.

[patientj]

After several years getting to grips with my IBS I have found the following. My IBS is almost certainly related to anxiety and depression. Looking back, I have suffered from anxiety, in one shape or another, for much of my life, but it really started getting the better of me after university when I lost the comfort and routine of education and entered the real world. However, if you'd have asked me at the time, I would never have said it was stress-related. I loved the buzz of work, and even when it was stressful rarely felt it and my IBS fluctuated throughout. However, it took the breakdown of a relationship to make me look at my anxiety in closer detail and discover that all the symptoms I associated with the buzz of work were actually symptoms of anxiety. I have spent over a year in therapy and have used both CBT and mindfulness to help me get to grips with my anxiety and depression, and become more aware of how I'm feeling so I can learn to cope and manage. My IBS hasn't disappeared yet, but I now know that when I have a flare up, I can relate it to something and when I have done something to address that problem my IBS goes away.

However, that's not to say diet hasn't had a part to play as well. I am now on a modified low FODMAP diet, where I can eat more FODMAPs more regularly than previously, although I still am cautious about too many fructans. However, when I was stressed and anxious (and hadn't realised it) I did find that altering my diet made a significant (albeit incomplete) difference. In short, my experience has been that food intolerances were a feature of the IBS caused by my anxiety and depression.

However, that's not to say that all cases of IBS are related to diet or stress. Ten percent of cases follow a gastrointestinal infection which are believed to cause physiological changes to the gut and/or alterations to the ecology of the gut. Either of these could cause the symptoms of IBS. In other cases, conditions such as SIBO may be the cause of the IBS symptoms, and diet can be a factor here as well. Then there are a whole host of other neurological, microbiological, genetic and physiological causes to consider too.

[sandramack27]

I find I cant eat green veg cabbage , etc