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Menstruation causing IBS probs?!?

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Irritable Bowel Syndrome
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blondie15
Regular Member
Joined : Aug 2005
Posts : 185
Posted 11/25/2005 4:08 PM (GMT -7)
Hey guys!

(for people who read my other post, we found out that eliminating sorbitol from my diet has helped soooo much!! thanks for suggesting that!! eliminating milk also helped alot!)

But now I have another question...does anyone get a bout of diarrhea on the last day/day after their period ends? I ended mine last night/this morning, and tonight I had a bout. I also have introduced milk back into my diet (drank it last night and tonight)....hoping its not the milk!!

 

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7Lil
Veteran Member
Joined : Apr 2005
Posts : 3269
Posted 11/25/2005 9:03 PM (GMT -7)
Hi blondie,
I hate to burst your bubble but I wouldn't think it is your period that is giving you D. Me, and most every woman I know gets D the 1st day or 2 of their period. I don't know anyone who gets it after or on its last day. I would guess it is the milk that is causing you problems. Sorry.... Hopefully I'm wrong.
Take care.
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katydid1994
Veteran Member
Joined : Oct 2004
Posts : 504
Posted 11/26/2005 6:44 AM (GMT -7)
I agree, my D gets very bad right before my period starts and the first couple days.

You should keep a diary of what you eat and how you feel and look for patterns.

If milk is affecting you and you can't give it up, you should try the Lactaid supplements, to see if that helps.  They have tablets you take 30 min before eating dairy to help you digest the lactose.  Then, there is also Lactaid milk, but I always found it to be too sweet tasting.  I wish that I could use the Lactaid tablets, but it seems that they aren't enough to help me, I still suffer with them.

Good luck!

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blondie15
Regular Member
Joined : Aug 2005
Posts : 185
Posted 11/26/2005 12:01 PM (GMT -7)
Thanks guys. Im pretty sure it is the milk. :( oh well. i can handle giving it up. Thanks for all your help! :)
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pb4
Elite Member
Joined : Feb 2004
Posts : 20577
Posted 11/26/2005 10:30 PM (GMT -7)
You don't have to give up milk, just buy lactaid milk or lactaid pills to take before having any milk or other dairy.

:)
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sheryl=jk
Veteran Member
Joined : Oct 2004
Posts : 4083
Posted 11/27/2005 5:30 AM (GMT -7)
Or maybe an enzyme like lactaid would that help??? I m new to al lthis to., probably not new to IBS, but recently founf out that I may have it, I now most healthy people who have to much dairy will stop them up, well for me its the D, as you are all putting it, workd me, I cant spell or type worth a darn. I dont eat too much dairy as I know how it effects me, but if I want to, would lactaid help, anyone know???, oh sorry just pb4 post right above mine, just answered my question, I am a little slow LOL!!! I will give it a try my slef a post back what happens, becasue I like no fat yougurt icecream, and want to be able to eat it, adn an ocassional peice of new york sharp cheddare cheese YUM!!! And I am not evn form New York LOL!! Other than that I dont like milk unless I am eating something spicey, and of course with IBS and IC (interstital cystits)., I am not allowed to eat spicy, any on eknow if beano really works, is anyone able to get around the spicy issues, it upsets my husband terribly that i wont eat his spicy cooking, he doesnt get it, says you used too??! , Well now I cant, its causing great pain, sigh, oh well!!
Blondie, I have D before during and after my period, so dnt knwo if that helps you any or not with that info???
A funny story, this is how much i like very sharp cheddar cheese, when I was 6 and visiting my dad, this was 30 years ago, I snuck up in the middle of the night, apparently he loved hte xtra sharp cheese as much as I do!!ANyway tiptoed to the fridge found the block of cheese and ate the whole thing, had the owrse stomach I ever had after that, sevrd me right!! LOL, most people this would have stopped them up for a week, not me, the opposite. As i got older my childhood doc when i was a teen daid you got to give up the cheese honey its killing you, ( iwas having horrible migraines and he said the cheese was part of it. So reluctantly I have slowed quite a bit down the cheese, sigh!! Hope all has a good Sunday..Love..Sheryl
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sheryl=jk
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Joined : Oct 2004
Posts : 4083
Posted 11/27/2005 5:33 AM (GMT -7)
I just reread Blonidies post about the soribitol up top, now isnt that in stuff like sugar free candies and stuff, what else might one find sorbital in, so I can try to avoid...thanks for info.....
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katydid1994
Veteran Member
Joined : Oct 2004
Posts : 504
Posted 11/27/2005 4:16 PM (GMT -7)
Sorbitol  is a sugar alcohol that is sweet like sucrose but with less calories.

If you are trying to avoid it, you should read the ingredient labels on the items and see if it's in there.

If sorbitol bothers you, so may Aspartame and Nutrasweet.

I have found that any artificial sweetner in a large amount will cause a laxative effect.  I have also seen warnings on sugar free candies that warn of it.

It's all individually based as to what a person can tolerate, and unfortuanately it's trial and error to get your own personal limits.

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sheryl=jk
Veteran Member
Joined : Oct 2004
Posts : 4083
Posted 11/27/2005 4:44 PM (GMT -7)
OH ok, well I do eat alot of that kind of stuff, will see if I see an improvement without it, thanks for the info, will pso and let know if i see a differernce...
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dbab
Veteran Member
Joined : Jan 2004
Posts : 4151
Posted 11/27/2005 7:10 PM (GMT -7)
I know how you feel Sheryl... cheese has always been a weakness of mine. That's the first thing I go for when I am feeling like I want to cheat but I always pay the price. I don't think its because I'm lactose intolerant because I don't have that problem with other dairy products. I'm not sure what it is.
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sheryl=jk
Veteran Member
Joined : Oct 2004
Posts : 4083
Posted 11/28/2005 3:27 AM (GMT -7)
Hmm I wonder what it is then, really stinks doesn't it, cant eat food we like sigh!! OH well, I am sure there much else out there we can eat, I hope anyway!! LOL!!
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Keriamon
Veteran Member
Joined : Jun 2005
Posts : 2976
Posted 11/28/2005 1:30 PM (GMT -7)
All sugar alcohols end in "itol," such as Xylitol and Sorbitol and Mannitol. They all produce a "laxative effect." 1 gram kills me.

If it's labeled sugar free, it's evil! I once bought popcicles that said "made with Splenda!" on the front. Yeah, that and sorbitol! That messed me up for a day or more. Made me so mad that they put darn sugar alcohols in something that would have been perfectly okay with just Splenda in it.

The thing that most people get caught on are the sugar-free mints and gums. There's usually a half gram to whole gram of xylitol per piece. I have also found sorbitol listed in mouthwash, but since I don't swallow that, I guess I'm safe. I haven't see sugar alcohols in anything consumable, though, that wasn't labeled "sugar free."
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sheryl=jk
Veteran Member
Joined : Oct 2004
Posts : 4083
Posted 11/28/2005 4:50 PM (GMT -7)
Thanks for the info Keriamon, as I use alot of those products, so splenda alone may be ok?....
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Keriamon
Veteran Member
Joined : Jun 2005
Posts : 2976
Posted 11/29/2005 10:01 AM (GMT -7)
I've never noticed a problem with Splenda, Sweet N' Low or Equal, but I know of some people who don't have IBS but who are allergic to aspartame or sacchrain.  There's also a product in health food stores/herbal shops called Stevia.  Someone on the board here--pb4, I think--uses it without problems.  It's from the leaves of a plant, and so isn't a chemical or chemical mutation of sugar like the other products.  Personally, I switched from fake sugar to real sugar just because I figured fake sugar had to be worse from a health standpoint (not necessarily an IBS standpoint) than real sugar.  Now I'm working on eliminating a lot of sugar from my diet all together. 

I read one article on children and overconsumtion of sugar that quoted a pediatric G.I. as saying he felt that sugar consumption was linked to the rising amount of IBS and other digestive disorders he was seeing in children.  Not a scientific study by any means, but something to think about.  After all, we don't need sugar to live.  In fact, it didn't appear in the Western diet until the Renaissance.  Before the New World--and its sugar cane--was re-discovered, people sweetened things with honey or did without.  By the Elizabethan period, sugar was all the rage and marzipan was invented and sculpting subtleties was the big crowd-pleaser at feasts (I went to a reenactment that had a period-correct life-size bust of Shakespeare done in marzipan).  Oddly enough, people's teeth suddenly became very bad.  Prior to cane sugar people in the middle ages actually had good teeth that became worn down over time, not rotted out.  Honey happens to be an antiseptic and was used for a long time on wounds (still can be used on them if you're in a bind for medical supplies); I daresay honey helps the mouth by killing bad bacteria and germs in it.  If you eat honey from a local source somewhat regularly, it can reduce your allergic reaction to air-born pollens. 

I had a point here before I got into the history of sugar and honey.... Oh, never eat sugar alcohols and opt for real sugar rather than fake if you can and try and substitute honey for real sugar where possible because it's better for you (such as it goes). I have really found that the less sugar you eat, the less you want of it.  I don't crave candy anything like I used to.  Mind you, I ate some cake on Thanksgiving and for a couple of days afterwards I wished I had another piece or some chocolate or something, but now that I'm off it again, I'm back to not giving it much thought. 

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sportsfanatic girl
Regular Member
Joined : Sep 2005
Posts : 47
Posted 12/2/2005 11:38 AM (GMT -7)
I USUALLY GET DIARRHEA AROUND THE BEGINNING OF MY PERIOD AND THEN AT THE END OF IT I USUALLY FEEL THE SAME WAY I DO IN THE BEGINNING.

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sheryl=jk
Veteran Member
Joined : Oct 2004
Posts : 4083
Posted 12/3/2005 5:07 AM (GMT -7)
I have it 24/7!! I think anxiety has much to do with it!!!!
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dbab
Veteran Member
Joined : Jan 2004
Posts : 4151
Posted 12/3/2005 9:46 AM (GMT -7)
You are right Sheryl... emotional stress usually makes our symptoms worse. You would be amazed on how complex our guts really are. I have AP (anxiety/panic) disorder as well and my IBS calms down a bit when I take my anxiety medication.
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sheryl=jk
Veteran Member
Joined : Oct 2004
Posts : 4083
Posted 12/3/2005 10:15 AM (GMT -7)
Yeah I figured so, so i guess when I can get in anxiety med that actually works for me, then hopefully will subside, any one out there try donnatal? I had it when I was sevetenn due to ulcers, but it knocks me out, so would have to be bed time thing. Butit helpes the stomach spasms, it helped just about anyhting!!! But I cannot be taking that while working to sedating. Anyone at there have any luck with xanax extended release, i cant afford, but if I stich my my zoloft back to prozac, that will save me lots of money so maybe I can swing the extended xanax, as thats the only xanax he will presribe sais the other to short lived. Prozac helped, when I took kit four years ago but made me so tired, but I always took in morning like they told me, so whatif I took in late afternooon, when i really need it the most, and with the tired effect it would help me sleep??? Any thoughts?????
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dbab
Veteran Member
Joined : Jan 2004
Posts : 4151
Posted 12/3/2005 10:30 AM (GMT -7)
Sheryl,
I take one a day xanax xr (the extended release). It works very well for me. I don't have the highs and lows that you get with regular xanax. It doesn't knock me down like the regular one either because its a slow steady release. I don't know if it works to well with panic because of that reason but my problem is mostly a high anxiety feeling (not so much panic - although occasionally but this helps me float through the panic attacks when I do get them definitely taking the edge off).
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sheryl=jk
Veteran Member
Joined : Oct 2004
Posts : 4083
Posted 12/3/2005 1:13 PM (GMT -7)
Yes Dbab, thats me mianly severe anxiety, although I have had panic attacts a numebr of times in may life dating back to sixteen years old, have had enough that cannot not count on may hands, but not a daily things as the anxiety. I do remeber my first panic attack, thought I was going to die, just taking my normal daily walk some 20 years ago, and bam it hit me like a lead brick I really thought I was going to die, I felt numb, I felt like spiders were crawling all over me,a nd that i was leaving my body, I had a mile to go to get home, I thought I was going to die right there on the side walk, I felt like I couldnt breathe, I prayed and talked my self thru all the way home told my mother and she explained to me what is was, so now I elast aiknwo what it is but still scares the living you know what out of you!! I will now call a friend she talks me down, or learned from from my mom to rub my eyed closed of course, and it helps some, but Ihave had a full blown painc attack in a about 6 months, so thats good, hope I m not due!! so will ask about some samples, and will let you know what he says next thursday.. thanks for the help...
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dbab
Veteran Member
Joined : Jan 2004
Posts : 4151
Posted 12/3/2005 5:17 PM (GMT -7)
Good Luck to you Sheryl... will be looking forward to your update :)
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sheryl=jk
Veteran Member
Joined : Oct 2004
Posts : 4083
Posted 12/3/2005 8:56 PM (GMT -7)
Thanks dbab!!
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4jake
Regular Member
Joined : Oct 2005
Posts : 50
Posted 12/4/2005 8:43 PM (GMT -7)
I found this site for my son and ran accrossed this forum. I have Ibs problems. It is worse during my cycle. Mine is caused by endometrosis. I also have developed over active bladder because of it also. Not saying this is the cause of your ibs but it is worth checking into.
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sheryl=jk
Veteran Member
Joined : Oct 2004
Posts : 4083
Posted 12/5/2005 2:34 AM (GMT -7)
Oh yeah 4jake you are so right, my gyno uro for my IC = bladder problems pretty sure I have IBS, My seems latley worse after my cylce, but yeah the bladder is most defiantly a culprit too. I have mild endo, I least Ithink its til mild been sine 89 since checked so I really dont know. Latley and I was goign to post this anyway sinc ewe are n this thread it seemed to fit, latley last two cycles I have started early out of nowhere, no warning no nothing, no breast tendernss, no more irratable then usall, it was very heavy, thats very un uaull, I am the persoh know excaltly when they are going to start I am pretty regular, and I may be a day or two late maybe early, but never a whole wek early two montha ina row. Last day I was a weeek early was in 2002, thats how unusall it is for me, I am usally stting and wondering wheere is it, get her now, but he weird part is now that I am over my early heavy period, now I am getting the breast tenderness, extra iiratablitly, cramps, face breaking out, alll the symptoms i usally get before I start are all happeing after I finish??? Anyone experince this????
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