Hi, I've suffered from IBS for the 8 years now.
It was definately brought on by stress and if I am stressed or have a poor diet then it rears its ugly head. I have now found a regime that works for me and have the IBS under control.
Reguarding Diet:
I cut out dairy produce, chocolate, certain wheat product such as bread, fizzy drinks, sweets, coffee, nicotine, alcohol. Also I too found that garlic was an irritant so I cut down on that too, yeast products.
Now WTF did I eat you may ask!!!
Fruit, vegetables, Brown Rice, Meat, Fish, a little probiotic natural yoghurt if you can tolerate it (Yeo Valley is good), Salad, Nuts, seeds etc Yep the healthy stuff (think Gillian McKeith, in fact I would check her website for ideas), pulses, chickpeas oh and if you like something quick for dinner then Tesco do these Tuna Snack pots with beans in them, Sugar free muesli is good too (£1.15 a box at Tesco...prob even cheaper at Asda).
Drink loads of water this will really help with the constipation and flush your system, Peppermint tea is excellent for soothing bellies as is chamomile (twinings do a Chamomile, honey and vanilla that's very nice), If you need to sweeten do so with a teaspoon of honey.
Make sure you have regular meal times, this was my biggest downfall, I would skip meals then eat crap of course I felt like uttter sh**e!
If you don't eat breakfast then make up a fruit smoothie with Banana, Oats (you can get 100% scottish Oats at suppermarket here in UK, you ony need a palm full), some berries and I like to use Rice milk. Snack on some nuts on the way to work.
Check out Holland and Barratt for a multi-vitamin and I have also found that Aloe Vera capsules help as do Peppermint capsules, Accidophilus (this is a must! it is in a white bottle with red writing and I think costs about £6), take one of these every day, it will help with the bloating and is far more effective than natural yoghurt.
As you mainly suffer constipation I also recoment Aloe Vera Colon Cleanse from Holland & Barrett....they really do work and gently too. Just take one before you go bed and I can garrentee you will be regular the next day.
Vitamin E oil capsules should also keep everything moving so to speak.
I know the no alcohol is a pain, especially over here in the UK where a night out with mates equals a p*ss up, I find it helps to be designated driver, I have just learnt its not worth feeling awful for days afterwards.
Stress is the biggest factor, I relax with a warm Lavender bath, regular massage (this works wonders, I forgo a manicure), I get the massure to focus on my stomach, abdoman and lower back......even better get the other half to do it!
It is worth going to the doctor and getting refered to a specialist, I underwent a colonopscopy to check the IBS had not done any lasting damage to insides, not pleasant but painless and worthwhile for pease of mind.
A possitive is I went from a size 14 to a a size 8/10......LOVE my new figure, my skin, hair, nails are just amazing and I look better now in my late 20 s than I did in my teens. Everyone is always amazed I am older than 22!!
Hope this helps and PM me for any questions, I'm in the UK so can help with any more recomendations of vitamins, teas etc on a budget
