How have your IBS symptoms changed over time?

Over time my symptoms have improved. Changing my diet was the biggest change I did that made me feel better.

Eating less processed foods. Understanding the health benefits of food and eating foods that improved my gut flora.

Concentrating on veggies, fruit, organic protein and fermented foods was huge. Taking probiotics but also eating foods that encouraged the good bacteria in my gut to multiply. Fermented foods are at the top of the list for that.


Over time, I have just gotten smarter about my diet and understanding that for my personal journey with IBS, my diet is everything.


-Elizabeth (team member)

My symptoms have improved.my gastro doctor suggested keeping a journal which helped with showing what worked or what to avoid.. I do not eat of a new food and see overnightight if and how my body does and bowels.did i have stomach upset. Digestive problems run on my mom's side of the family.i started IBS-M then switched to IBS-C. one bowel every two to three days unless laxative or a lot of fruit. I still need to change diet or medication. Change things to prevent having to plunge the toilet multiple times i week. Medications to be regular is helped with a gastro doctor which i highly recommend.

My symptoms have improved. I do still get symptoms but they are not as bad, mostly over the past year, and I haven't had a real bad flare up for a while (fingers crossed!!) I still can't eat all the foods I used to, prior to IBS starting a few years ago, but I am doing OK with pretty healthy meals.
I am very grateful for some improvement.
I took Homeopathic remedies, with the guidance of a practitioner who was very careful and sensitive. I have stopped taking them now, as I was feeling much more "normal" in many ways. If things go south again, I will contact my practitioner. But I am not too bad generally, though sometimes with ups and downs that don't seem to last very long (more or less one day)and are easily remedied by a quick tweak in my diet.
I can now eat more foods than before, and do feel generally better in myself. One sign of that is I can think of other things besides what my guts are up to ! Sometimes I can even almost "forget" I have IBS ! So that's pretty good.

I used to struggle to get out a big one about once every week or two. Lately it's usually a few tiny pebbles more than once a day.

Lactose without lactase can lead to extreme pain and vomiting and/or diarrhea. Anxiety can lead to less extreme diarrhea, although sometimes it comes on pretty fast if i think about blood, which can also lead to fainting or feeling faint and sometimes vomiting. Trying to start a new job or school semester is more likely to lead to relatively mild diarrhea that lasts a few days.

I used to start each me stream period feeling constipated and that would get worse until so e time between the middle amd the end of the week or more of bleeding and cramps, I would suddenly lying switch to urgency and have at least one large, partly soft BM. That was less extreme with hormone pills and if I take my current medication it as almost not a problem at all. I cankeep taking the medicine for about 1 more year, and menopause might happen naturally some time around then.

After I participated in a drug trial for IBS I took a cue from their "rescue medicine" and gave myself permission to use drugs to manage symptoms. That might be one reason for the change in habits. I also learned recently that I have at least one stricture or stenosis in my colon. I went for my first colonoscopy attempt, and they were only able to get 25 cms in because of the partial obstruction. So far about all I know is that the biopsy from 25 cms in showed "post inflammatory changes" and no cancer.

My gynecologist hopes it's from endometriosis so that it isn't something worse.

I think more testing or imaging is in my future. I have been gaining weight and trying to eat frequent small meals with a lot of liquid.

Along with the less frequent smaller but still usually hard stools, I have had more pain and gas, and reflux.