I couldn’t agree more ! I was shocked to find out that whole grains made me sooo I’ll... I couldn’t even tolerate porridge. I also got very ill from eating Uncle Bens Rice. I finally found out why after I read a book about this subject re all sorts of different fermentable and hard to digest fibres. I was surprised to read that there are different types of rice. Uncle Bens and Basmati rice are 14 times more fermentable than Jasmine and sticky Sushi Rice. For decades we have been brainwashed into believing the more whole grains the better. It certainly helped me to drop the high fibre aspect of my diet. DId you find events and groups to distract you ? Are you also in the UK?
I've found groups and events unrelated to my IBS problems, like an 'Introduction to Sewing' (really enjoyable), and am also planning to go to a meetup for introverts (meetup.com) when I'm free I just went on facebook, clicked on events, then discover, and then I selected my area. Yes I'm in the UK too I'd recommend meetup.com for finding groups that interest you. I hope we both get some help for our symptoms though...I'm so underweight that it's scary.
I don’t have any specific reason to be stressed except that my stomach causes so many problems that I worry whether this will ever stop . Whenever I have a reasonable day with my stomach and I can eat something, the stress or worry about the stomach is instantly gone! When I wake up in a horrible way with stomach pain and nausea : instantly the worry is back and I get palpitations and dizziness. I wonder whether this will ever ever stop.
Stress and worry about your symptoms is reason enough to cause a flare up. You can control or stop your symptoms with antispasmodics such as Buscopan or Nurofen, try the Low Fodmap diet or a food diary. This can all help with the pain. You can also distract yourself from your stomach worries by concentrating on other things like your hobbies or try light exercise such as swimming or walking.
When the antispasmodics and distraction techniques start to work, you won’t feel the pain and you won’t have to worry about whether your pain will stop. If I get a flare up, I take Buscopan and sometimes nurofen on top and I tell myself that within fifteen minutes, my pain will start to die down and then stop completely and it does. Fifteen minutes is the length of time it takes for Buscopan to work. The trick is to take your pain medication as soon as your flare up starts and the quicker you will start to feel better. Try not to concentrate on whether the pain will ever stop. With IBS, your emotions are strongly linked to the nerves in your abdomen which are very sensitive to stress of any kind.
I’ve been on the low Fodmap Diet for more than 2 years and it didn’t stop me from getting ill again. I can see why the pain stops when you’re taking Buscopan and Ibuprofen: Ibuprofen is a NSAID which is chemically similar to Aspirin. Ibuprofen is a painkiller and will stop the pain. I would love to take Aspirin or Ibuprofen but the problem is that I have Gastritis and you’re not allowed to take any NSAIDs like Ibuprofen, Aspirin etc .... because the theory is that they damage the stomach lining .... and Paracetamol is allowed but it doesn’t help very much. The theory is that 80% of stomach ulcers are caused by Helicobacter and 20% are caused by NSAIDs like Ibuprofen etc. Do I believe this ?? It’s the general view amongst doctors. Do I believe it ? I’m not sure any longer
Nurofen is very strong and can be bad for your stomach lining especially if you have gastritis. However, if you are only taking it once in a blue moon; that’s better. It’s the constant use of them that can be bad for you. Taking them with food or milk is better than taking them with plain water on an empty stomach.
I don’t know how true these percentages are that doctors give because one size doesn’t fit all; everyone is different. If paracetemol doesn’t work well, I would discuss this with your doctor
Alprazolam really helped calm me down and I only use it in public places where I may have a panic attack or anxiety this causing bathroom trips - I know the feelings- it’s hard to enjoy life when you are terrified of leaving the house