Just wondering has anyone else's symptoms worsened since Covid ? mine certainly have and I have noticed that a lot of people on here are saying that they are feeling worse in the last one to two years,
I am just reeling from my latest bout and it's been gradually worsening over the last 18 months or so to the point I sunk into depression towards the end of last year and anxiety is preventing me from venturing too far from my "safe" place, in between bouts I feel good, energy recovers but sometimes it's only for a couple of days, but this time I was lucky enough to have a couple of weeks of relative "peace"
Having tried everything over the years I am now going to see if I can learn to live as well with it as I can, but acceptance is not always easy!
Written by
buggins55
To view profiles and participate in discussions please or .
I think you are probably right, although I also think my IBS, the symptoms and sensations I experience are constantly changing. I am also experiencing different types of anxiety that I never used to experience which are unpleasant at times.
Having a life long illness such as IBS, 'acceptance' is never easy when you are feeling low everyday…but I am sure you are trying to make the best of things.
Since the new year, I have started to focus/be mindful and listen to my body more. I know that if I eat certain foods or drink more than one glass of wine, then the chances are my IBS will flare up and my anxiety will increase.
I also make sure that every day I do something that I really enjoy such as playing snooker, go for a walk in nature or playing chess. Since being diagnosed IBS, I got to a stage that I thought I wouldn't experience such things as happiness, joy or confidence in my life but on the odd I do experience these things from time to time. I am currently working on waking up and 'feeling on top of the world' but haven't got there yet. Perhaps I am trying too hard!!
Sometimes I forget how lucky I am in being able to do the thing I can doand that I should be moregrateful. For example, I am grateful that there is this forum that I can read and contribute to a group of 'like minded' and know that I am not alone. I am grateful that I can just jump in the car and go to the shops whenever I like and can be back home in an hour. There are people out there I see a struggling with being able to walk properly and they probably do their shopping either by bus or have to walk and it is a 'day event' for them. In some ways I am grateful that I have IBS as it makes me eat healthier, I spend more time in nature and the outdoors and there other benefits too.
Your are not alone in the challenges of living with IBS. We will all get through this together.
Agreed over the years the IBS symptoms change as does the anxiety and i also have been making inroads towards being mindful and appreciating the small things in life and like you waking up in the morning and facing the day in a more positive way, I know i'm lucky in many ways but sometimes forget that on a bad day, By the way I am taking the colpermin you suggested with some positive results (hence the two good weeks)
I had the earliest Covid strain at the beginning of April 2020. I was completely baffled by Covid. I recovered OK, but what I mean was baffling is...I am not sure if my IBS was connected with it, or whether Covid actually gave me one of the longest remissions from it!!
When I caught Covid, I'd had some IBS symptoms intermittently but they hadn't been prolonged (One bout in 2018 for a week, then nothing until one very very slight upset in September that year, then nothing again)
But in early March 2020 I started with it again and it was up and down for just under a month before I came down with Covid.
When I had raging Covid, my gut was 100% okay! That was great because I could eat garlic, and lentil soups and onions, and fruit like grapes and oranges, etc...all my favourite things when I was sick with colds, flu and the like.
I recovered well but was weak for a while after recovering and needed a convalescence time, even though I felt so well in other ways. I quite enjoyed the way I felt, and my gut was perfect. I actually thought Covid had cured me.
It was a good 6-8 weeks later the IBS came back again and since then it has been more or less on-going though I have had remissions from it, for days or even weeks since. But it has never gone completely away. So did Covid make it worse? Or did Covid help me with it briefly? I have no idea.
That's interesting some people seem to have had similar responses it certainly seems to have affected everyone in different ways, it's the randomness of IBS that is so unsettling you just never know what's going to happen and when!
Yes I know IBS is so random. I think that is what scares people. Something can come and hit you literally out of the blue any time. I have given up with keeping a food diary even, because nothing makes sense or has a pattern.
I developed ibs since having covid. They called it long covid ibs. Until I had covid, which I had in February 2020 (but they didn’t call it covid then) as my son was hospitalised with what they thought was sepsis but was likely covid, then again in jan and June 2021….symptoms started in feb/March 2021 afterwards and was diagnosed finally last year. I think there has been some studies on the long term effects of covid on the gut
Definitely! There are a lot of foods that I could once eat that now cause me problems - leeks, sprouts, cabbage, beans, white bread etc. Admittedly these are all classic trigger foods for IBS but while I used to be able to eat these in moderation they are now completely off the table for me since Covid - no pun intended!
I was quite happily vegetarian and had been for more than 25 years. I also loved vegan foods (recipes with lentils, beans, nuts etc) On March 6th 2020 I had a lovely vegetarian stew. IBS really hit me the next morning (only I didn't know what it was then) Ever since that day my diet had to change, and the ONLY time I was able to eat any of those foods again was during Covid, and during recovery from Covid.
Since about June 2020 I have had to mostly eat a fairly low fibre diet except for some vegetables which I tolerate OK, and occasionally a few nuts or peanut butter. Where I used to always eat "brown" or "wholegrain" everything, now my best hope of a calmer gut is to generally eat "white" everything!
I've had ibs c for around 30 yeas. Then out of the blue in 2020 during the UK first lockdown I suddenly found I had an issue with dairy and I would have diarrhea flares, not something I've ever had issues with and also acid reflux. Too much of a coincidence. Since then I've had tummy bugs, uti and colds. Never felt as ill since 2020. There doesn't seem to be an end to it.
sorry you're having a difficult time I had covid twice and a mystery illness that had me knocked out for two months in 2022 (possibly long covid) and been struggling ever since
I've had covid twice last year. I worked as a support worker in 2021. The 2 ladies I supported both had covid. I supported them throughout along with the rest of team. I was fine. I retired later in 2021 I've not been right since. I do think there is a connection with covid and any illness we may already have , as with ibs. I believe it messes up your whole system. Then there is the stress that comes with covid. I worked all through the lockdown it was stressful. I have all fingers crossed we all get through this.
Yes definitely. I had Covid August 2021 & one of my main symptoms was diarrhoea. Suffered with IBS for over 30 years but it seems worse since Covid. I also can no longer drink alcohol as I get griping pains in my stomach & nausea,
I had covid in September 2020. It took a good 6 months for my stomach to improve. I had to eat plain foods and if I didn't, my IBS was really bad. It was quite soul destroying but it did improve.
yes definitely, I spoke to my GP about a link with Covid and IBS, I was sent for chest X-ray then nothing after just told it’s to early to know for sure whether Covid could affect IBS
Yes! I’ve had IBS flares for years but since a rough bout of COVID that landed me in the hospital, my IBS has been a mess! I have a couple days remission here and there but it seems like each week things keep getting a little worse. I’m sure my heightened anxiety over my declining health is now helping.
Could be coincidence but into my third 'flare' since Covid, and half my life is now in flare and all bets are off, all plans provisional and with escape options, would love to get the rest of my life back. But I have good days and do stuff so I live in the moment and try to do as much as possible, and on bad days, it's just one day and the next day it can be and probably will be better. It's changing all the time.
I so empathise that's exactly how i feel I've been getting a flare up every few days (definitely worse since covid) so have decided this year like you to do stuff on good days and take it moment by moment , yes all plans are provisional so i'm trying to stop feeling guilty with every cancellation it is what it is!
Most definitely. I have never had so many problems with allergies, ear infections, sinus infections.
It probably all starts with the gut.
My IBS has improved generally but after a Covid episode a couple of weeks ago it’s back to giving me trouble.
Trying to improve my diet , went to an alternative health practitioner who basically said i had to avoid so many foods. It was so impractical especially as a vegetarian. So I’m going to follow some of the recommendations. I think sugar doesn’t agree with me so I’m trying to cut that right down and lay off alcohol for a while and see if there’s any improvement.
Content on HealthUnlocked does not replace the relationship between you and doctors or other healthcare professionals nor the advice you receive from them.
Never delay seeking advice or dialling emergency services because of something that you have read on HealthUnlocked.
IBS aged 84
Still ibs?
IBS or not? 
IBS and occupational health?
IBS-D
