First step in figuring out what upsets my digestion?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Could it be depression? Or perimenopause? I suspect those are inflammatory conditions that can add to gut dysfunction.

OP here , you know, it could! Def perimen - I’m 47. I recently started Zoloft, too, to help with all the emotions of hormones and the all being stuck at home 24/7.

I appreciate all the suggestions. Yeah, I also experience the explosives within minutes or an hour of certain foods. I have also always had a sensitive stomach, but it had gotten much better. I actually found it to be pretty good mid-30s to early 40s when I was taking a prenatal all the time. Mine had ginger and something else to soothe digestion. I needed to stop taking it bc my body was holding in to too much of some vitamins. But yes, since perimenapause, I have more emotional rollercoaster and maybe that is all impacting digestion.

Thanks again for all these em suggestions of where to start. I have not tried an elimination diet, but thought that and journaling would be starting points.

Did it get worse with the Zoloft? I know some SSRIs have gastric side effects.

Are you taking ginger since it helped in the past?

Hmmm, I don’t think it got worse with Zoloft. But maybe it is a bit more frequent. I think the turning point may have been almost two years ago I had a bad sinus infection and had lots of meds and one of the antibiotics KILLED my stomach (like I had to throw out some clothing ) and I feel like it has been bad since then.
I should add I do take a probiotic. And when I have the explosive poo I usually end up with burning at my anus. I actually keep diaper cream for it. I don’t take ginger regularly, but that is a good idea. Sometimes I put fresh ginger in hot water when I am feeling yucky and it does calm my stomach.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Could it be depression? Or perimenopause? I suspect those are inflammatory conditions that can add to gut dysfunction.

OP here , you know, it could! Def perimen - I’m 47. I recently started Zoloft, too, to help with all the emotions of hormones and the all being stuck at home 24/7.

I appreciate all the suggestions. Yeah, I also experience the explosives within minutes or an hour of certain foods. I have also always had a sensitive stomach, but it had gotten much better. I actually found it to be pretty good mid-30s to early 40s when I was taking a prenatal all the time. Mine had ginger and something else to soothe digestion. I needed to stop taking it bc my body was holding in to too much of some vitamins. But yes, since perimenapause, I have more emotional rollercoaster and maybe that is all impacting digestion.

Thanks again for all these em suggestions of where to start. I have not tried an elimination diet, but thought that and journaling would be starting points.

Did you happen to have an upper endoscopy as well? Before I was Diagnosed with celiac disease, I’d be in the bathroom within an hour of eating gluten. You may want to have a celiac blood panel done (but make sure you continue to eat glutenful foods), and having a good Gastroenterologist would be the first thing I’d do.

[Anonymous]

Please look into SIBO- it’s one of the most common, yet undiagnosed sources of all GI trouble. Depending on the severity of the case, a course of the antibiotic rifaximin should resolve the diarrhea. Best to see a GI... until recently it wasn’t really a recognized disease but not most GI’s know about it and will treat it.

[Anonymous]

Agree with the low fodmap diet - it's an elimination diet that can help you figure out the foods that are causing the issues. Interestingly IBS often happens after infection, so the infection might have precipitated your IBS like symptoms. https://casadesante.com/blogs/wellness/post-infectious-ibs-pi-ibs

[Anonymous]

Seconding the recommendation to ask about bloodwork for celiac *before* eliminating gluten (wheat, barley, rye, any oats that aren't marked GF) from your diet. If you eliminate gluten first, then any subsequent testing will be unreliable unless/until you're back on it for several weeks.

Celiac is widely underdiagnosed in the US, probably because doctors used to be taught that it was rare (it's not - it's about 1% of the population) and were only taught the "classic" symptoms; in reality, it can present with no symptoms or any combo of ~200. Sometimes it'll send you to the bathroom within an hour, like the PP; other times, you won't know until you have a migraine/backache/weird poop/super irritability/bloating/random rash the next day, and then it's CSI: Gluten Edition time. (Two of my family members are celiac and their presentations are quite different.)
More info:
- celiac.org
- beyondcelliac.org

(IBS posters - just curious: did your doctors test you to rule out celiac before deciding it was IBS?)

Hope you're able to get a solution and feel better soon!

[Anonymous]

Raw cabbage will ferment? What? Yes, it might cause some flatulence and a bit of a bloated tummy, but I have never heard of it fermenting in your stomach.
How come we eat fermented cabbage then?
Plus cabbage is great for your digestive system.

[Anonymous]

It is likely the dairy. How much dairy are you eating?