I've suffered from IBS now for at least 12 years - my symptoms have been daily diarrhea and intense cramping before every bowel movement. It had lately become debilitating as it would always affect me after lunch at work and I don't have the type of job where I can run to the loo. I'd had to start skipping lunch altogether because eating a meal would be the trigger for the pain to start. In the past I'd been prescribed buscopan which had done nothing for my symptoms.
I'm due to start a new job in August and couldn't bare the thought of this continuing to affect me. I spoke to my doctor who prescribed Mebeverine which apparently works differently to Buscopan. A week after starting the pills, I'd had minimal relief and was considering sacking them off and then all of a sudden I realised I'd gotten through a day at work without the usual pain. I thought at first it was a fluke but more and more days passed without any pains. Granted, my stools were still looser than what I'd consider to be regular - but the diarrhea isn't really the issue, it has always been the pain that has impacted me most.
It's now 4 weeks since I started the course and three weeks since I had any bowel pain. There have been no side effects and the diarrhea seems to be calming down also (I was actually slightly constipated yesterday for the first time since my teenage years - most likely due to a lack of fluid consumed through the day as it has since resolved itself).
Anyway, this post isn't so much a 'help me' post but more a sharing of my experience. IBS crippled me for years and I didn't realise that there were other medications out there. Hopefully someone will read this and find the same relief!
I survive now on Qestran a fibre drink it comes in powder form can mix with skimmed milk Apple juice or water. Im now back on it due to consultant Foolishly I stopped it for 6 months then had a really bad flare up of derverticulitus I also have what they call bile dumping because had my gallbladder out in 1992 but now my bile going into my stomach causing diarrhoea I have to have another endiscopy and also their going to do a gastro tube down my osephagos this week Im a complicated case as now looking for cyst my bile ducts or left over stones. Although my calprotectin levels my stools now less but showed up some ulcerative colitus. So far I have been clear off diarrhoea for over 10 days so not looking. forward too taking that stuff. clear my bowel that makes you go loo endlessly for 4 days before procedures . Maybe you should have pushed for meds that would help you rather than have 12 years of pain . Seems doctors put labels as. "Oh" IBS or IBD and personnaly you should been refered to a consultant instead putting up with 12 years of s**t Excuse the pun as Diarrhoea very bad and you should taken Dyrolite after a bad bout diarrhoea as replaces enzymes other stop getting dehydrated. For me Questran is my miracle life saver.
For me, I was the exact opposite. Mebeverine really irritated my stomach within minutes of swallowing the first tablet which felt like I had swallowed a pebble. Doctors are not suppposed to give this medication if you have IBS C which I have because Mebeverine can really constipate you. It is more designed for IBS D. My doctor knew I had constipation but still prescribed them! So along with severe constipation, I developed loss of appetite, constant nausea and severe indigestion. I could feel my foid digesting for an hour. I suffer from GERD and these tablets made that far worse. I had only taken them for four days. I stopped them and my new symptoms went away. I tried them again to see if the same thing happened and it did. I threw them out and tried Buscopsn which actually relieved my pain greatly with no side effects.
A lot of people can’t tolerate Mebeverine but a small number have no problems. Thankfully, you are one of the lucky ones!