New here, looking for some things that work for you
Hi, I am new to this. I have had stress related IBS on/off for 8 years, never more than a week. Then I started on a new med that upset my stomach in early June, it triggered IBS. Stopped the med, the IBS continued. Got very bad, dehydrated, awful cramping.....went for a catscan, all the poop tests, blood work, they discovered I had norovirus. The IBS continued & 2 gastro Drs told me that post viral IBS is very difficult to control.
I was on Xifaxan for 12 days, it was not covered at all by my insurance & thankfully my gastro Dr found 12 days of samples. That didn't do much for me, but it slowed me down to 3-4x/day.
Hyoscyamine really helped with the spasms, I was on that 3x/day to start when I was in the bathroom 10x/day. I take as needed now.
As soon as I stopped the Xifaxan, things got crazy again! They put me on Cholestryamine, it is a powder that is a cholesterol drug that causes constipation & is being used for IBS. It had been working but when I stopped, I was in trouble again. Then I went on 2x/day for 10 days & weaned down to 1 packet, but something I ate (since I felt well) triggered me again, so I am back up to 2 packets. Hoping this info helps somebody else & will be reading on here trying to find any things I can try for myself.
I have been avoiding coffee, alcohol, milk products. Tried Fodmop diet basically, but the Cholestryamine powder seems to be a partial answer.
They told me to start to experiment with trigger drinks/foods, but after being woken up in the middle of the night again & being a mess this morning, I am going back to restricting myself.
My niece is getting married in Italy & I am petrified about having to deal with this while travelling from US. I have 40 days to get this under control & of course my gastro tells me I will be ok & not to stress as that isn't good for the IBS.
Hi
, I'm so sorry that you're dealing with this. It always takes me so long to recover from any stomach virus, too. What I personally do is stick to only very safe foods for as long as necessary, and then slowly re-introduce other foods in small quantities only when I feel like my body can handle it.
The last time I had something like this, I tried adding turmeric and oregano to my white rice (not together, that tastes awful) because they're supposed to be anti-inflammatory and I had them sitting in my kitchen anyway. I also drank yarrow infusions (again, because I already had it and yarrow is supposed to have antiviral properties). Basically, I had just looked up any herbs that could help getting rid of the virus and inflammation and kept taking them. I feel like all of that helped quite a lot.
As for the stress, I did EFT tapping videos on YouTube, there was one titled something like "fear of never getting better" and I did that a lot to stop my anxiety from spiraling.
Since you're already on medication, I would just focus on being as gentle as possible with your gut and yourself and give yourself time to recover. I would personally stay on a more restricted diet for the time being and wait for the wedding to be over before trying to eat normally again and stop the medication, but that just me. My IBS always gets triggered by events coming up and the symptoms usually improve on their own once it's over.
I hope you'll start feeling better very soon. Wishing you all the best, Karina (team member)Hi Karina I hear you pain. Yes Norovirus can certainly trigger IBS. Just wondering if you had had a SIBO test?
My final healing came about through mindset change. Initially with hypnotherapy then using the work and meditation of Dr Joe Dispenza using his book 'Breaking the Habit of Being Yourself. Wishing you all the best.I personally haven't had a SIBO test. Thank you so much for sharing what worked for you and the book recommendation! I can definitely relate to that, as anxiety is my worst trigger...
Karina (team member)
I know the feeling. One drug after another. I don’t t have a gallbladder and I take cholestipol for bili Rubin. I’m always stomach sick. Just take something for anxiety. Bring your meds and try to have fun!
I am trying to toss my fears aside....I will have a great trip, I will be able to enjoy, I will not let this defeat me....my mantra this week! Thank you~ That's a great mindset to have. Repeating positive affirmations like that can help a lot, at least in my experience. I personally use it to keep my anxiety about events and situations at bay, since anxiety is my biggest trigger.
I'm wishing you a wonderful trip with minimal symptoms!
Karina (team member)
Holosync, Centerpointe, Learning Strategies, Brainshots, 30 min on elliptical trainer w music, time away from spouse, after 34 yrs still my biggest challenge.
Thanks for sharing your strategies with other community members, we really appreciate that! Karina (team member)
34 years with IBS? 🙁
