IBS - seldom the topic of conversation

Irritable Bowel Syndrome - IBS.
Apparently my doc never gave me that diagnosis. But he's sent me to a gastroenterologist. (And I spelled that right on my first try!)

But all the tests didn't show anything. Which might be good, but it just meant paying for a specialist who prefers to do surgery on people (to help them of course) or at least to take pictures of their intestines.

And as I complained to a nurse on the way out, (saying I still was having symptoms) she gave me a handout about the Low FODMAP diet...this was over 8 years ago. Anyway it was pretty confusing, but I happened to look in our local used book store and found this book, which included menus as well as details of how it works.

So I tried doing the restrictive diet for the several weeks as recommended...then would add just one of the possible types of food that I was "allergic to." The allergy in this case would then cause my symptoms.

If they didn't return, I could add that food gradually back to my diet, and if they did return...no way.

So by the end of this time, I could only eat small amounts of milk products, small amounts of things like broccoli, and no legumes. Skip all beans, including soy products! But I could still have some nuts.

I should mention that I'm not recommending this as a treatment for anyone else.  Work with your physician for whatever is troubling you!

I tried living with a restricted diet following my Low-FODMAP personal tests for about 6 months, including visiting relatives and telling them I wasn't eating certain things, and that they could go ahead and fix foods they eat and I'd just pick things out that I couldn't. Of course because they loved me, they cooked only what I could eat.

I discovered part of my problem was frequently having antibiotics (for other life-threatening conditions) which kill all the friendly bacteria in my gut. That's when I discovered pro-biotics. (Ask your pharmacist, they know a LOT about side effects of drugs we take.) I found they (pro-biotics) were helpful, not only when taking the antibiotics, but afterward also.  But I didn't take them all the time...as I figured after a while the billions had probably made a home in my intestines. I know other folks that take them all the time.

And then I started a daily dose of Benefiber...which is a bit of fiber that can be stirred into almost any liquid, and it disappears in my coffee each morning.

 I am no longer avoiding legumes, or sodas, or even milk products. But I just have yogurt or creamer. And only one legume for every couple of days. I have a soda as a treat. I'm even trying to be vegetarian! And I still have flareups. My doc put me on dicylomine which diminishes the cramping that I still get...but not as constantly.

But as I am using my mental capacity as well as my dietary needs, I've followed the ideas from John O'Donahue by my own extension of naming my various illnesses and treating them as companions, if not friends.

So my IBS is now "Aunty Dia-Maria and her millions of microbes."