Anyone run with IBS? (Read 1557 times)

i don't. however, if the grocery store next door has the answer, which it does, yes, i expect the docs to know it.. if they do not, they do not deserve even one penny on renumeration.

Glad you found what you needed at the grocery store. I do not know anything about your doctors. I do know about my doctors. Sometimes they don't know the answer. When they don't, I don't recommend shooting them. Although I have switched doctors. Ok bye. Bleach does not come out of your water tap.

Greggar, you still seem irritated. Perhaps your cure was not as effective as you would have us believe! [joke]

finally! somebody with a sense of humor.

. to whit, here is the list of diagnoses i have received in my lifetime .

Who's Whit?

IBS is a little different for everyone. I either have REALLY bad IBS-D, or Ulcerative Colitis (I don't get it officially diagnosed because I'd lose the ability to get health insurance ... I'm self-insured). Honestly, the biggest thing for me is to make sure to go to the bathroom before I leave, and only run where I know there are bathrooms. Usually I don't have to stop, but there's nothing more stressful than squatting in someone's side yard or in the woods (unfortunately I've done both).

You are showing all the signs of celiac disease. There is now a blood test for celiac disease. Get tested - it's worth it! IBS is a symptom of something, not a condition. I was sick for 12 years before I was correctly diagnosed. It used to take me 3 days to recover from a 3 mile run. I was horribly depressed and thought I would never feel good again. I know what it's like - trust me. Something is wrong with your insides. Fix it! I am only telling you this because I wish someone told me 12 years ago! It is worth whatever it costs. Step 1: keep a food diary. Step 2: get tested for celiac. Most doctors don't know this stuff. You need to be proactive. I cannot stress this enough. 1 in 150 people in North America have Celiac Disease. Most people don't know they have it. You can feel better!!!

I might have celiac, but I've been 100% gluten free for 5 years and that doesn't really help much (1 blood test came back positive, 1 negative, biopsy negative). It runs in my family and we have a gluten-free household, so I know how to be very strict (the only place we eat out is Outback since they have a gluten free menu, and that is VERY rare). I WISH it was celiac, since then I could completely control my issues with diet. Instead, I can get about 90% of the way there by cutting out ALL carbs, which kind of stinks. The highest carb food I regularly eat is red peppers, and that is rare. I spent thousands of dollars on dozens of doctors visits and tests in 2004, all of which came back as being negative or inconclusive. Reports were like "signs of Ulcerative Colitis, no definite diagnosis", "Signs of Celiac, no definite diagnosis", "Signs of IBS-D, no definite diagnosis". The only thing I ever received was lots of medications that did nothing.

Lindy, my wife could have written that post, almost word for word! I know exactly what you're saying. My son has it, too, BTW. And yes, Outback is almost the ONLY place we ever eat out at. They have a full understanding of GF, and we have thanked their managers over and over. Sushigirl, I'm very sorry your thread kind of blew up into a lot of unnecessary jabs. I hope you were able to get some good ideas from all sides. You mentioned that your hubby noticed a difference when he went gluten-free. That may not be the whole problem, but it sounds like it might be a start. IMO, I think it would be worth the time and effort to go strict GF for a few weeks. It won't really cost anything but time and some research. Good luck to everyone on here with this problem!

Greggar, you and I have had some posts back and forth that reeked of animosity. I would like to apologize for any disrespect and move this to a level discussion because I think that you and I, and all those reading may benefit from it. Truce? If so, read on. If not, feel free to read on.

the answer was on the shelf at the grocery store next door?

then i found the cure at whole foods.

because one of my best friends is coming here on the 15th to have me put her through the same cleanse/probiotic protocol that saved me. why is this ironic? she's an internal med doc.

What then is this cure, one that comes on the grocery shelf, that you could buy and apply. I am curious, because you say you could just buy it, and yet your educated internal medicine doc can't seem to be able to replicate in the same way such that she needs your help? You said you wanted to help people who suffer as you have; share your knowledge.

yes, it did help me get better. make no mistake, my recovery was in part motivated by spiting the incompetent people who were paid good money to fail. no doubt, i wanted to prove them wrong... because i knew they were wrong all along.

If your cure was in part the result of stoking your anger, how will you inspire that in the internal medicine doc who you wish to treat? For real.

the healers aren't to be blamed for failing to heal the sick? that's like saying the passengers on the bus caused the bus to crash, not the driver.

Well, not exactly. I don't see this as an apt metaphor, and even if you do apply it, there are problems. For example: First, are all bus crashes the fault of the bus driver? Could the crash have been due to the other driver on the road, the fact that the stop light was broken, the fact that a storm suddenly moved in, the fact that the bridge failed, etc? Second, were all the passengers actually doing their part by wearing their seat belts? Even in this incorrect metaphor, the problem is more complex than you portrayed. In your own case, I suspect that your docs are not incompetent and successfully treat the majority of their patients. In your own case, and with all due respect and no intended disrespect, I wonder about whether your GI issues had anything to do with your weight. The human body is neither evolved nor designed to carry 235 lbs on its frame and that kind of weight itself predisposes to all sorts of medical problems, including GI issues. I look forward to your responses and hope that you can avoid expressing your anger towards me.

I might have celiac, but I've been 100% gluten free for 5 years and that doesn't really help much (1 blood test came back positive, 1 negative, biopsy negative). It runs in my family and we have a gluten-free household, so I know how to be very strict (the only place we eat out is Outback since they have a gluten free menu, and that is VERY rare). I WISH it was celiac, since then I could completely control my issues with diet. Instead, I can get about 90% of the way there by cutting out ALL carbs, which kind of stinks. The highest carb food I regularly eat is red peppers, and that is rare.

Three thoughts from the peanut gallery: 1. Were you eating mostly gf when you were tested? This will often cause a false negative. 2. Someone else touched on this- many celiacs develop sensitivities. Most common are lactose, casein and soy. 3. Outback is great, but there are some other options if you are interested. There's a good online guide to gluten free dining out (which led me to safe pizza and asian in manhattan, ks) as well as a great book. Carrabas, unos and pf changs/pei wei also are very good about their gluten free menu. On the topic of doctors: no one will agree on this thread. But keep the jokes coming- this was a fun read while trapped on the tarmack in chicago. I have been in a practice with overworked docs that ignored patients, and I eventually found my current doc, who is awesome and does tend to go alternative medicine routes rather than than pills. If you don't like your doc, change. Ask others for recommendations, interview them, do whatever it takes to have a good match. ::crawls back into hiding::