IBS. Any suggestions for instant relief

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

Could it be something different this time?

Have you tried Buscopan?
It's available over the counter, and it helps with stomach cramps and spasms caused by IBS.

Hi sillygrandma. Fortunately not the runs type. Think that would be more embarrassing to live with. But (so so so sorry to say this!) I do have smelly wind. When I am at home I can blame it on the old cat who has recently decided to live here, who does actually have a wind problem. Awkward when I am at work though.???

Try a hot bath for wind

Yes, it'll be like having a Jacuzzi.

Buscopan and Co codamol right at the beginning of symptoms for me. Keep a food diary too, certain foods can trigger it. Of course stress is also a massive factor.

Have you tried cutting out gluten from your diet, Lizbeth. It's easy to do and when I did it four years ago my IBS symptoms disappeared within a few days.

It may not work for you but might be worth a try.

MissAdventure

Try Fodmap then reintroduce the foods you miss. Worth it.

Peppermint oil warm water and not too much bread

For a bad flare up, I drink a mug of peppermint tea. It has usually settled it. However, like a previous poster I went gluten-free due to another condition about 2 years ago. Have never looked back, saw the difference within about 4 days. Avoiding dairy may help, but I have never went back to eating gluten. My life no longer revolves around finding toilets!

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

I have IBS(C) too and I cannot recommend a low fodmap diet enough and it is now becoming the prescribed treatment. I don't know about you but at the end of a flare, it can seem to turn into IBS(D) which is also a problem but one I used to be almost grateful for.

I know two people who went from IBS to irritable bowel diseases, one of whom found it meant they ended up with a colostomy. I am not trying to scare you but it is worth going to your doctors and asking if low fodmap is suitable for you. You do want it on your notes even though you are unlikely (as should be the case) to be put under a dietician. You may well have to go it alone but there are several people on here who will support you, me for one.

Your initial weeks, because it is an elimination diet, take what seems like half the choices you have been used to out but you can add back in slowly, finding out what is and isn't something you are sensitive to or cannot tolerate. Those foods are not being digested but fermenting in your gut.

I know you say you do not want to do it but what other diseases would you refuse the treatment for? Your description of your flare has brought back awful memories. If I have one these days it will last a day at worst and the painful part is often only a couple of hours. I have actually learned to use the foods, that probably an IBS(D) sufferer would avoid, to manage these times.

My DD suffered for years with pain. Other possibilities being ruled out, the doctor told her it was IBS and offered no solution. However, in desperation she tried going gluten free which has worked a treat. It is so easy to follow these days with many 'free from' foods available, perhaps it would be worth giving it a try as I see that a few posters have also found it helpful.

My SiL suffers from this. She is now taking more care with what she eats and drinks and finds this helps.

As you are reluctant to go Fodmap, I would just cut out wheat products for a trial, and monitor the results.
If you continue suffering, the link below allows fully informed choices regarding foods to avoid and foods that should not irritate.

www.healthline.com/nutrition/fodmaps-101#high-fodmap-foods

I found that I did not need to go completely down the FODMAP route. But by cutting out wheat totally, and restricting dairy slightly, my symptoms were much improved and at a level I could cope with.

It is, I'm afraid, a matter of trial and error until you find what your personal gut can cope with.

As we don't seem to think that following the research is worth following (I think you are mad as I enjoy being well) you do need to understand that it is food that is heavy in natural sugars which inflate you.

Yes, start with no wheat - it's not about being gluten-free but that is an easy way to cut out wheat. Wheat is not in itself high in fodmaps but we eat so much of it that it is high in the quantity we are trying to digest.

Lactose-free is also a good idea but that is lactose-free not a milk substitute as some of those can be equally indigestible and some are okay.

The other two high on the list would be garlic - a very high concentration of the avoidable sugars, in this case, fructans and the same for onions - very high in fructans.

I wonder if you feel very tired at times? And do you put on weight? These are two things that turned themselves around for me by becoming knowledgable about what my gut can tolerate.

I improved a lot when I was put on Calcium and Vit D for another problem I suppose the chalk is binding but I did wonder if not being short of Vitamin D helped in some way ?

I improved a lot when I was put on Calcium and V
it D for another problem I suppose the chalk is binding but I did wonder if not being short of Vitamin D helped in some way ?

Thanks for all your help and advice. I am very fortunate in that IBS is not a constant problem. My poor mum struggled with IBS (D) for many years so I know how dreadful it can be. I only have a few attacks a year. They are, I suspect, brought on by stress and anxiety. I also suffer from terrifying health anxiety so I immediately presume it is something worse than IBS which makes the IBS worse, if you get my drift! But when I do get an attack the bloating and pain are really bad. Last night while Googling (dangerous I know) I came across something called Kolanticon which is a medicine. Has anyone tried this?

It sounds as if you don't actually have IBS then Lizbethann. Psychological problems like anxiety don't cause digestive disorders although they can undoubtedly make any pain feel worse.

Perhaps your mind would be set at rest if you went through a check-up and the series of tests that exclude anything else.

When a friend of mine had his third kidney transplant he was surprised they had offered him one. His first, in his thirties, had lasted 20 years. The second was rejected, so in spite of all attempts to sort it out it had to be removed. When he expressed his surprise at being offered one now he was older and retired his consultant said they tend offer them to people who they know will stick to the awful drugs routine that goes with a transplant. Many don't.

If you are not prepared to go to the doctor and, if advised to alter your diet will not do so, you have lost my sympathy and may lose the doctors willingness to treat when their time could be used for someone who will apply themselves to the rigorous regime require to stay healthy.