I have a health problem and I'm looking for a kindred spirit. It's not life threatening and I consider myself blessed that it could be worse and it's not. I have
IBS (Irritable Bowel Syndrome). I believe I've had it for many years, but it was just a minor inconvenience. About seven years ago, I had to have my gall bladder removed. Then it started causing me problems. I just couldn't tolerate certain foods anymore, but still it didn't alter my life a whole lot. Last November, I turned 50 and the problem became much worse. I started having flare-ups that would last a few days. Then a couple of weeks could go by with not too many problems before another flare.
The flares are getting worse and lasting longer. They are becoming intrusive in my daily life. I become nauseated and the pain becomes fairly severe. Along with the other problems, there have been several days when I just cannot venture away from home. Although towards late afternoon and evening I seem to get a reprieve and then at night I begin to feel it again. I have read and read and read more, so I know about food triggers and stress triggers. I know some of the foods to avoid. When I'm having a flare, it doesn't matter what I eat...you would think I would lose weight. :(
A few months ago, I started looking for a job. I've put it on the back burner for now since our business is so busy, but I plan to start looking again soon. And I wonder...how can I work on days (or several in a row) with one of these flares? What do I do? What do you do if you have IBS?
It's really embarrassing to talk about, but I'm looking for someone else who also has the problem. I finally talked to my doctor about it, which is one of the reasons he sent me to have a colonoscopy. At the time, I knew that it was getting worse, but I was going to try to deal with it by making lifestyle changes. If you have it, how do you deal with it? What helps? What do you do during a flare? Do you take any prescriptions to help? What do you do?
