For sufferers of Irritable Bowel Syndrome, what methods help you cope?

Drink that disgusting Metamucil every single day; it seems to help more than anything.

I don't know... It depends =P

-Cookie

immodium and some type of anti-acid. i dont have it as bad as most but my sister has it baadd. my big thing is bloating which i dont have a coping method or yet.

get IBS medicine.... or just **** all the time... watch eating spicy foods.... go to IBS.com and see what they have to say

Not eating certain foods seems to slow things down. If you know that fatty foods upset more than say a salad, eat a salad. Up your exercise routine and try to keep your body healthy. Really try to eat mostly fruits and vegetables. Natural foods tend to do better for me than others. I am a cheese lover and lord knows I am going to eat cheese. Just be prepared for the consequences of foods that cause reactions. They have pills you can taks as well. Just talk to your doctor about it.

No single type of treatment for irritable bowel syndrome works best for everyone. You and your health professional will need to work together to determine what may be triggering your symptoms. It will be necessary for you to adapt your lifestyle to best deal with your symptoms and still carry on with your daily activities. Let your health professional know if parts of your treatment are not helping your symptoms.

For some people who have IBS, certain foods may trigger symptoms. The following suggestions may help prevent or relieve some IBS symptoms:

Avoid caffeine.
Limit your intake of fatty foods. Fats increase gut sensations, which can make abdominal pain seem worse.
If diarrhea is your main symptom, limit dairy products, fruit, or the artificial sweetener sorbitol.
Increasing fiber in your diet may help relieve constipation.
Avoiding foods such as beans, cabbage, or uncooked cauliflower or broccoli can help relieve bloating or gas.
Controlling irritable bowel syndrome with diet
Getting regular, vigorous exercise (such as swimming, jogging, or brisk walking) may help reduce tension and make your bowels more regular.

Medications such as loperamide (Imodium) for diarrhea, tegaserod (Zelnorm) for constipation, or antianxiety agents such as paroxetine (Paxil) may be used along with lifestyle changes to manage symptoms of IBS.

If stress triggers your symptoms, some form of psychological therapy or stress management may help you deal more positively with stress and help prevent or reduce stress-related IBS episodes.

Should I have testing done for irritable bowel syndrome?
Ongoing treatment
Treatment for irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) usually involves long-term management of your symptoms. It is important that you have a good working relationship with your health professional to monitor your symptoms and identify changes in your diet and lifestyle that can help relieve the symptoms. Keeping a journal of your symptoms can help you identify triggers that make symptoms worse.

Be especially aware of significant changes in symptoms, such as the appearance of blood in your stools, increased pain, severe fever, or unexplained weight loss. If any of these occur, your health professional may want to conduct additional tests to determine whether there is another cause for your IBS.

In treating chronic IBS, it is important that you maintain the changes to lifestyle and diet that relieve symptoms. Quitting smoking, avoiding caffeine and foods that make symptoms worse, and getting regular exercise should all be permanent parts of your daily routine.

Controlling irritable bowel syndrome with diet
You will likely continue to take medications to treat your symptoms.

Because IBS often results from a combination of physical and stress-related factors, a treatment approach that addresses both these causes will be most successful. In addition to treating constipation or diarrhea with medications and changes to diet and lifestyle, stress management or other psychological therapy should be a major part of your treatment plan.

Treatment if the condition gets worse
If your symptoms get worse, your health professional will likely conduct more tests to determine whether there is another cause for your symptoms. Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) does not lead to more serious conditions, such as cancer or inflammatory bowel disease, but a person with IBS may also have one of these illnesses.

Your health professional may also want you to try different medications, or different dosages of your current medications, if your symptoms are not responding to treatment.

Controlling irritable bowel syndrome with diet

Stay away from any foods that can cause gas or bloating or stick to the lining of your intestines. Heavy foods like a stack of pancakes hurt too. And did you know that sugar actually irritates the intestinal lining? Cut down on sugar. Also, Lettuce, rice, beans, extremely spicy foods, etc. I cut out milk, and changed to soy (vanilla flavored), no dairy at all actually, and have spinach salad instead, and take Beano and Lactaid. It's no fun, and requires discipline, and makes you feel like you can't eat anything at all, at first, but you will find that you can eat a lot more than you think. Eat in smaller portions too, as it doesn't cause the bowels to work so hard to digest large portions of food at one time.
I started eating whole foods, and cut out processed foods. No more fast food or sodas...(i cheat and have a burger or pizza sometimes). I lost weight, I feel better, and don't take any medications. Just vitamin supplements. You can go into you nearest vitamin store, and ask which vitamins will help you personally with you symptoms, and they can guide you in the right direction.
Most of the time, your diet is the key to everything. Check it out on the Internet to learn what triggers the "irritability"; that's where I started, and that was about 11 yrs ago.