r/digestiveissues

I been thinking about adding a fiber supplement for my kid since there are definitely days when meals aren't the most balanced, like some weeks they eat plenty of fruits and vegetables, and other weeks its a struggle to get much fiber in at all. For parents who use fiber supplements, is it something you give every day as part of their routine, or do you only use it when you notice they're not getting enough?

Id love to hear how you've approached it and whether you found it helpful in the long run.

Hi, I've been reading a lot of posts in this subreddit, and thought I'd post my journey so far to seek advice, and to just share my situation - maybe someone is going through a similar case.

To give some background, I've always had GI issues. It started when I developed lactose intolerance in high school. I would be dying from abdominal pain 2x a week at school, and quickly realized that it was gas pain caused from lactose. It's genetic, my dad and his side of the family are the same. Also, I've always been the constipated friend, my family kinda brushed it off because, once again, it runs in the family. My dad and I are "intolerant" to the same items of food. I'm saying "intolerant" because we've never gotten a formal diagnosis, but our farts are just abnormally smelly lol. My mom loves saying that I'm the exact same as my dad when it comes to my farts lmao. sorry, tmi. Whatever, I just accepted this and went on with my constipated life.

Fast forward to 2 years ago, I kept getting recurrent mild UTIs, which were all treated with antibiotics. Turns out I was passing a kidney stone. But I basically used 5-6 rounds of antibiotics in a very short period of time. That is the point where I realized that although I ate very healthily, walked around a lot, and worked out consistently - basically nothing in my routine changed - I gained 4 kgs.

I thought it was nothing, and that I just gained weight naturally. I didn't really care.

I went through 2 rounds of getting my eggs frozen (once that summer, and then this past December). And then after that point, the constipation got worse. I got into a cycle of being constipated for 3-4 days, and then getting diarrhea. I ended up gaining 2 more kgs, and I got an INSANE amount of acne on my cheeks and chin. Although I got acne as a teenager (bumps on forehead), I never got acne on my cheeks. And it didn't go away. They kept on coming. I didn't think the acne was related to my constipation.

I started dieting. At this point, I gained 7 kgs from my base weight, but I thought it was because I got older, and with time I just gained weight. So, I did the whole meal prep - clean eating, cook at home thing. I didn't even lose 1 kg. It would be 0.5 kgs, and then I would eat out once, and then +2 kgs the next day. I gave up after realizing I just wasn't losing weight. And I really don't want to hear the "oh maybe you counted wrong". No, this was abnormal. I already ate very healthy before, I just cut out my snacking etc.

And then eventually I thought enough is enough, I better get a formal diagnosis on what the hell is going on. I go to the doctor. I get diagnosed with IBS-c. Gives me the SIBO breath test. Bam. My baseline is 70 ppm for methane. hydrogen is fine. I really don't know what caused my methane levels to be this high, at this point, it's a chicken-egg situation. I've been through a lot that could have contributed an ibs flare-up / elevated methane levels.

So, we've come to now. My doctor prescribed me magnesium citrate, and miralax since magnesium citrate wasn't enough. I kind of like magnesium citrate better. I asked about antibiotics, since that has been the standard protocol, but she said the elevated methane levels were probably due to my constipation and that we would need to fix that first. My bowel movement is still not on a daily basis. Still have the bloating, abdominal cramps after eating sometimes, constipation (obvi). I am seeing my doctor soon, so I can update if anyone is interested.

I am reading that people have taken prokinetics, and then have treated their methane overgrowth. I'm wondering, what did you do? what protocol did your doctor/health practitioner give you?

Did anyone else have similar symptoms, especially the acne and difficulty to lose weight? I read that these are common prolonged side effects. I felt like I had brain fog and was depressed, but honestly I just thought that was just due to being in winter.

For success stories, did your acne get better? did you lose the weight? What did the timeline look like?

I (23M) can't since 5 days ago. I feel so constipated

Where do i start? I been having gut issues for awhile, I always feel constipated and bloated, I am gassy all the time. I have this pain in my stomach all day. I am also always feeling nauseas. it never goes away. I got a ct scan recently as i went to the ER for my stomach pain. They said it was all clear. Now waiting to see my primary and hope to get a referral to GI doctor. I can't figure this out. This is draining and super stressful. I have no idea where to go from here.

I struggle with being bloated almost every day, even tho i dont eat that much. Can you guys tell me how to treat this? This is my 2nd biggest insecurity.

My mom has been battling the urge to go to a doc she has been constipated for a year and it got real worse to the point where she feels blocked tiny specks of stool +headache +horrible bloating all around please does anyone know what possibly can it be according to ur info?

30F, non-smoker, ~125lbs 5’5”, recently returned from Mexico after a yoga teacher training. I was fed 3 square meals a day there and truly have never felt so well-fed in my life — however, my digestion has felt “off” after returning but I was still able to travel again and felt okay energy-wise over the weekend, including long road trip drives. Over the last 2 days, my diarrhea has worsened and is now watery (3–5 episodes/day). Yesterday I had mild nausea, a metallic taste in my mouth, and felt warm but don’t have a thermometer — I took the entire day to rest and woke up this morning feeling better energy-wise, but my diarrhea has worsened. No blood in my stool, no significant abdominal pain, no vomiting, and I’m still urinating normally. I didn’t knowingly drink untreated water. I recently lost my health insurance and am trying to decide whether this is something that needs urgent evaluation or whether I can continue supportive care at home. What would you recommend?

I had hysterectomy and unilateral oophorectomy and DIE excision on 15th April. From this month, I was facing diarrhea. My doctor prescribed me tiniba 500 twice a day after food for 5 days. From the day I started taking I faced extreme gas issues. I was taking pan 40 for that. It has been 6 days since I have stopped the medicine but I am still facing gas issues. I took flatuna for 2 days (2 tablets thrice a day).

Today, after having my breakfast, I started feeling mild pressure on my chest area and back while mild pain in back. It was gas. I took flatuna, it didn't do anything,then I took digene which finally helped with this. Anyone please help.

Currently I am on three supplements - A to Z, Supracal 1000, MgD3. I take lipaglyn 4 for triglycerides (it's in normal range now) and tryptomer 10 for anxiety. Does any of this cause this issue or is it that antibiotic that messed up my gut? Any help will be appreciated.

I have had problems with digestion for decades - constipation, incomplete bowel movements (or feeling like an incomplete bowel movement), grogginess during the day etc.

And one day I stumbled upon this asian grocery store and saw roasted salted dry seaweed and bought it - tried it and liked the taste so i started having more.

And after like 3 or 4 days i had the most fantabulous bowel movement i had in my life - it was solid, no pushing required, over in few seconds and i have never felt the emptiness of bowels as much. Wow - i thought this is what healthy people feel like everyday.

Now I consume like 3-4 sheets a day and boy my life has changed.

Must try !

https://preview.redd.it/8t2k2ilgc6ah1.png?width=1220&format=png&auto=webp&s=653ceb13bd2044256224e04b1de6e7f8784a3000

I'm 29F and looking for thoughts from anyone who's had a similar experience (I know Reddit isn't a substitute for medical advice).

A few weeks ago I had a strange episode. On Sunday I felt "off," then that night I vomited twice (normal stomach contents, no blood or bile). The next day I developed pain directly under my breastbone that radiated to my back. The pain lasted about 2 hours and then completely resolved. It has never come back. My bowel movements have always been regular and even were regular on this day.

For context, I'm a triathlete. Since then I've returned to intense training, long hikes, swimming, biking, running, a normal diet, and even alcohol without any recurrence of symptoms. The only thing I wonder about is that I barely ate for about 3 days because I felt sick before the pain started, but none of the doctors thought that was significant. Of note I do not have an obstruction.

My first CT no contrast showed:

"Grossly unremarkable appearance of the stomach. There appears to be congenital intestinal malrotation, with the colon located predominantly on the left side of the abdomen and the small bowel predominantly on the right side. There are clustered small bowel loops in the left upper quadrant with adjacent "whirlpool sign" of swirling mesenteric vessels concerning for internal hernia. No evidence of associated bowel obstruction or inflammation. Appendix is not clearly seen."

A repeat CT w/contrast a few hours later showed:

"Unremarkable appearance of the stomach. No evidence of mechanical bowel obstruction or significant ileus. Clustered small bowel loops previously seen lateral to the colon in the left abdomen are no longer seen. There is a subtle "whirlpool sign" of swirling mesenteric vessels in the central abdomen, similar to that seen previously in the left upper quadrant, with mild surrounding mesenteric edema. No small or large bowel wall thickening appreciated. Appendix not clearly seen."

The radiologist favored malrotation, but the surgeon disagreed and felt my colon crossed the midline, making true malrotation less likely. He cleared me for unrestricted activity, travel, and a regular diet.

The current plan is an upper GI study, and they said an EGD only if symptoms return. They also suggested a barium enema (I will not be doing this) to better define my anatomy, but after everything I went through (including a rectal exam) and because I'm feeling completely normal, I don't really want to pursue more testing.

I've also had CT scans in the past, and no one has ever mentioned malrotation or abnormal anatomy.

After reading about the Ladd procedure, I'm honestly reluctant to pursue surgery. I do not have an obstruction and have never had any digestive/stomach issues previously. Given my activity level and plans for pregnancy in the future, I'm worried about the risk of adhesions, bowel obstruction, or other complications from an operation if this ends up being an incidental finding.

Has anyone had an isolated episode like this with a possible whirlpool sign or suspected malrotation that ultimately turned out to be nothing? Or did you continue with additional testing even after your symptoms completely resolved? I'd love to hear others' experiences.

Hello! I apologize if this isn’t the correct place to be posting/asking these questions but I’m terrible with my phone and social media in general and I might forget to post this if I don’t post now 😅.

My daughter is 8 and verbal, however language is a major deficit for her so unfortunately we cannot communicate to solve the following questions.

1. Her scalp/hair is a sensory nightmare for her. I was able to learn recently that the shower is too loud so that’s helpful information and I may try the foam earplugs for the shower. She told me she doesn’t want to have short hair so we are just slowly working on hair care. Brushing/washing/conditioning her hair is a big struggle though.

Side note: her ears are also sensitive to the touch…

Any advice here in general on how I can help her to be more comfortable would be greatly appreciated! She does really well with adjusting her life if it’s more comfortable for her body.

2. I’m not sure if I’m observing this correctly or not, but it seems that she gets constipated when she’s stressed/tense. The constipation turns into agitation and aggression which becomes a cycle. On days like today (summer and I had to work) she was on her iPad all day and it seems like her body relaxed and she pooped so much. So my question is: am I observing this correctly? Or do am I seeing a pattern I want to see?

Any advice on pooping daily is welcomed too! We try to reduce stressors for all of us as much as possible, believe me!!! But life be stressful for everyone 😂

Thank you!!

Hello, I am a journalist writing an article on “fibre-maxxing”. I am wondering if any of you have ever had a “scare” from eating too much fibre? Or even almost overdosed? If you have digestive issues, does fibre makes it better or worse for you? Please share your experiences! 😄

I am not looking for a diagnosis or medical advice, just for people who have coeliac to give me some logical 2 cents on what I am experiencing.

I am feeling hopeless. I have had alternating loose-ish chunky pale ish diarrea for years now. Sometimes it gets stuck behind a poop wall of constipation and then eventually all comes out. This happens mostly if I eat a lot of fat or sodium, I think??? I have pooped an average 5-6 times a day every day for 3 years. Every day starts with 3 hours of pooping. And then theres also poops throughout the day. Often pure mucus poops. Every doctor has told me ibs. Finally had a doctor take me more seriously, refer me to a gastroenterologist, and then the gastroenterologist told me ibs and "see a dietitian". All on the basis my calprotectin and crp was low and celiac bloods coming back negative. As if I havent tried. Low fodmap did nothing.I get nausea and stomach pain after every meal. I have immense brain fog. This is literally ruining my life. I am a university student and this all started after starting university and it has affected my studies immensely. I literally dont know what to do. I am 22 and this is ruining my life. I miss so much class because I have to goddamn stay home to poop or because I am in pain and constipated or because I am just SO TIRED. If anyone has advice please give it. I live in Australia.

My sister has endoscopy affirmed celiac and I was tested and confirmed to have the genes when she was diagnosed.

I havent had a menstrual cycle since I was 17 (when this all started), I look underdeveloped for my age too, for example, my breasts have not developed beyond the weird teenage phase they go through for women. I consistently get low in iron, despite no menstruation and a balanced diet.

I literally dont know what to do. Does it sound like I could be celiac despite the bloodwork? I still eat gluten and bread daily.

Hello Guys anyone noticed if you drink a lot of water during the day consistently the IBS symptoms might become very minimal!? Anybody experienced something like that?