IBS and pregnancy.. Anyone else dealing with it?

[OkiMom]

I was diagnosed with IBS almost 4 years ago and except for a short time where I tried meds (they didn't work, made me really sick, Id rather deal with the IBS) Ive been dealing with it by regulating my diet. I found out what made it worse and stayed away from those even though some of them were my preferred foods (like wheat bread, love it but instant problems when I eat it).

Ive gone through two pregnancies where I was totally blessed not to have an increased of problems like the doctors were expecting. This time however Im around 8 weeks and its getting bad. I know part of it is Im not paying close enough attention to my diet (like tonight I used something with MSG in it without even realizing it was in it, I just plan was to sick to deal with it) since morning sickness has been horrible. Also, with morning sickness Ive found it near impossible to stay hydrated. I throw up at least 6 times a day, yuck!

Anyone else dealing with this? Any ideas, suggestions or just understanding. No one I know even knows what IBS is and when I tell them about it they give me a weird look and tell me that they thought only old people got it. Nope, I was diagnosed at 23, def not old in any way.

[lillymonster]

I had it diagnosed when I was a little over 20. I was diagnosed with gastric ulcers at 18, I have no idea if I got sick from something and it was all related. Most of it was milk, but other things would set it off. In the past 3 years, I went on a diary/soy/egg free diet because I was nursing a daughter with food allergies and had no issues during those 3 years, so it was something I was eating, but I don't know exactly. I tried a bunch of drugs, mostly towards the end it was anti-depressants and strong muscle relaxants, which I didn't want to do.

When I was pregnant the first time, milk didn't bother me at all. In fact I just had severe constipation because of the zofran I was on. This times for some reason I am taking more zofran daily and I am going back and forth from bad painful diarrhea to painful constipation. I am back on my "normal' (and bad) diet because my daughter stopped nursing and I am slave to my cravings. This past week was bad.

I did start on probiotics hoping that might relieve some of the problems I am having. Only been on them a week so I haven't seen anything consistent yet.

I think my daughter might have issues too, she is 3, I have no idea what is going on with her, but she is starting to exhibit some traits I noticed in myself, so I am going to try probiotics on her too.

[Quaggy99]

Pregnancy safe ideas to help your IBS

I fully understand what you’re going through. My IBS got worse when I was pregnant. My midwife told me about Peppermint Oil. I also changed the type of fiber supplement I was using. I now use Acacia Fiber exclusively! Definitely be diligent on the pro-biotics. I can tell when I miss my dose. Also, look into Ginger tea. It’ll not only help your IBS, but also the morning sickness. Don’t worry with boxed teas, just buy some Ginger from the grocery store, slice off a piece and seep it in some hot water w/honey.

To recap – Peppermint Oil Supplements, Acacia Fiber, Pro-Biotics, and Ginger Tea.

These are the things that kept me sane during pregnancy and after!

[MaerynPearl]

Ive had it since I was 12 but was not actually diagnosed until I was 25... crazy to spend so long not knowing why you are in incredible pain almost every day, huh?

I will say one thing though, the IBS pain definitely helped ready me for labor. Compared to some of my IBS attacks, labor is NOTHING.

Put myself on a pretty strict (and horrible at first! LOL) diet last year... no soda, no ice cream, very little dairy (but def. no milk), avoid spicy foods too often, etc.

It worked so well... until I got pregnant! Now I have been trying EVERYTHING but it looks like I have to go back to what I was doing before I put myself on that diet... just try to eat right and if I get constipated... use one of my diarrhea trigger foods to fix it. Its painful and probably not good for me but I develop a reliance on laxatives if I have to take them.

I do take benefiber every day... thankful that there really is a fiber supplement out there that does not taste icky.

[Weevil]

Sorry you're dealing with this

I don't have IBS but I do have ulcerative colitis. I was well controlled when I got pregnant, and then at about 4.5 weeks I started flaring. It was the worst flare I ever had and I ended up on prednisone because of it.

I need to be very careful about my diet as well, I definitely have triggers as well (coffee, soy, popcorn, raw hard-to-digest veggies, etc). It makes things interesting because I'm a soy free vegan who can't eat salad

I don't know how pregnancy affects IBS, but I know it can trigger flares for people with UC (I think it's hormone related because my UC was always a bit worse around the beginning of my periods too). For some women it has the opposite effect and they have wonderful, symptom-free pregnancies. From what I've been reading, it seems to be worse in the first trimester, so I'm crossing my fingers that everything will be ok by the time I taper off the prednisone in the next few weeks.

[paintedfire]

I have IBS and I'm almost 14 weeks along. I also have many other health issues (lupus, fibromyalgia, hypertension, hyperthyroidism, and so on).

I've been dealing the the IBS since I was about 6. Yes, you read that right - 6-years-old. I'm turning 30 in six weeks. It's a battle, a battle that pregnancy isn't making it any easier but I just keep reminding myself that when I hold my baby in my arms it will all be worth. Sometimes it works and sometimes it doesn't.

Originally Posted by MaerynPearl

just try to eat right and if I get constipated... use one of my diarrhea trigger foods to fix it. Its painful and probably not good for me but I develop a reliance on laxatives if I have to take them.

This is what I have to do. It's extremely unpleasant, but it gets the job done.

Originally Posted by MaerynPearl

I do take benefiber every day... thankful that there really is a fiber supplement out there that does not taste icky.

I gave up on fiber supplements when I was a teenager - they were all so awful - so I've never tried BeneFiber. Is it actually tasteless and helpful? I'd love to hear that, but all my empirical evidence is telling me otherwise, you know?

[MaerynPearl]

Originally Posted by paintedfire

I gave up on fiber supplements when I was a teenager - they were all so awful - so I've never tried BeneFiber. Is it actually tasteless and helpful? I'd love to hear that, but all my empirical evidence is telling me otherwise, you know?

Its sort of amazing but yeah... my FP told me to start it and I was sort of iffy... like you the fact that it seriously dissolves in my water and I can neither taste it nor see it afterward? yeah, didn't believe THAT

but its TRUE

and it WORKS!

[paintedfire]

Originally Posted by MaerynPearl

Its sort of amazing but yeah... my FP told me to start it and I was sort of iffy... like you the fact that it seriously dissolves in my water and I can neither taste it nor see it afterward? yeah, didn't believe THAT

but its TRUE

and it WORKS!

Okay! I'm heading to the drugstore right now. Excuse me, ladies.

[HeatherB]

Does Slippery Elm Bark help at all? In both of my last two pregnancies I've had major issues which, at one time by one doctor who is NOT an expert on the subject, was called IBS. I know it's not anything like what you're experiencing as far as being chronic, though. (I have my own list of chronic health problems!) When I asked my MW if it was a pregnancy thing, she suggested I take slippery elm bark. It has helped SO much when I've had issues with intestinal inflammation.