Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS-C)

I was 'diagnosed' with IBS when I was in my early 20's, which was about 20 years ago. I say diagnosed loosely, since back then IBS wasn't as well known, and my doctor didn't really do any tests. She mainly talked to me about my bathroom habits, how I felt, and things like that. She did check to make sure it wasn't other things, but no real IBS test. She then non-chilantly said, "Well you probably have IBS. I can either put you on some medication to help with constipation, or you can try and take care of it naturally with what you eat." And that was about the extent of her help, and that was the beginning of my IBS journey.

I didn't do much with my new knowledge of what I was dealing with, though it was something I had been dealing with since I could remember. I didn't really know what being 'regular' meant, or what normal bathroom habits were. So though I dealt with IBS-C I didn't realize that I was dealing with chronic constipation. I know it sounds weird, but I really didn't have a clue that my bathroom habits weren't what they should be.

After I was married I realized that my IBS was not going away, that my bathroom habits where not normal, and that I needed to do something about it. I did try a few things, never with much consistency. But over the months & years I tried adding more fiber to my diet and learning to drink more water. I eventually cut out coffee & pop, and started seeing some patterns with what I ate and what I felt. It was a slow process, and I tried not to change too much at once. There's two problems with making drastic changes at once. One, if you add too much fiber to your diet quickly, that can add more stomach problems. Two, if you change a whole bunch of things at once you won't really know what helped you the most.

So through the years of being a new wife, new mother and new homeschool mom, I began to learn more and more about myself, IBS and how my body worked.

Irritable bowel syndrome is a gastrointestinal disorder, as I said before. It is usually characterized by mucus in the stool, abdominal pains, bloating and irregular bowel habits. Though the person suffering from IBS does have chronic discomfort at times, it usually does not lead to any serious organ problems. Obviously if you think you have IBS I would highly recommend seeing your doctor about it. Even though she never did any tests for IBS, she did confirm that it wasn't any other illnesses. Which I wouldn't have known if I hadn't gone to the doctor.

I personally deal with nausea and cramps. Whether you have IBS-C or IBS-D, treatment is usually helping to ease the symptoms through diet & life changes. Increasing your fiber intake, and decreasing caffeine, sugar & dairy products are usually where people start. Plus adding exercise, learning to relax more and some people do take medication for it.

I have never taken medication for my IBS-C, so these lenses won't be suggesting what the best medication is. I will be writing about steps I took through diet change, exercise and other life style changes.

My IBS journey is one I continue on to this day. I have good days and bad days, but overall I have found what works for me. One of the things I have found out is that not everything works the same for every person. I've had to try different things, change things around, and I'm sure I'll try new things in the future. I've read forums where a group of people used one product and their symptoms were gone, and that product did nothing for me. It's real easy to spend a lot of money on the one thing you think you can take to make IBS go away. Personally, I've never found one product to do that. I've found diet changes are better, though they are not a cure all. All you can do is take it day by day and continue to learn what works for you body.

I will be going into more detail in future lenses, but what has worked the best for me is increasing my water intake, adding an organic Apple Cider Vinegar drink and flaxseed to my diet. I also try to exercise regularly, and I do certain stretches from the Wii Fit Plus that help with your intestines. I've read about accu-pressure helping, and I've always wanted to try that, but haven't. I've also heard that going gluten free helps with IBS, but again, that's a step I have not taken, and don't know if I will.

Portion size is a huge issue for me too. I really need to watch my portion size when I eat. I tend to want to eat like my husband does which is wrong. He is a man, who has a physically active job, so of course his appetite is bigger than mine. Plus, I enjoy food. I'm really trying to learn how to eat smaller portions throughout the day instead of 3 big meals. It's a process I'm still learning to implement and not an easy one for me. I find if I don't let myself get too hungry then I can do ok with not over eating. Also, if I let my stomach go empty for a too long period of time, the nauseousness really seems to hit. It is truly a balancing act, and one I am still learning. As I said before, I have some good days some bad. But I'm trying to make the good days out weigh the bad.

I do better with less processed food, and wheat bread is better for me than white. I've switched over to whole wheat hot dog & hamburger buns, beside bread. If I make my own bread it can be white, unbleached flour and that doesn't seem to bother me as much. Probably because it's home made. An over abundance of sugars can send my stomach into a tail spin. And just the other day I think I had a reaction to red dye in a candy I ate. I'm not 100% sure about that, but it was the only thing that had changed in my diet that could have triggered the reaction I had.

I hope that as you follow me through this journey you will maybe find one or two things that you haven't tried that may help you. And if you have something you have tried, that I haven't listed, please share, I would love to hear from you.