IBS question

Well, if the heat tends to bother you and wear you out, then there could be a connection. Since stress has a direct connection to my IBS symptoms and summer is my least favorite time of year, yes I have IBS flares. I'm in the midst of one right now. Everything is different in the summer, from our family's calendar schedule, to the weather, to the meals we are eating or I am tempted to eat (all the delicious fresh produce available right now). I do so much better when it's cold out, I'm eating comfort type meals again and it's dark by dinner time. Sometimes I just cringe when my husband says - hey, let's grill out! And meanwhile, I'm missing roast chicken, mashed potatoes, or pot roast. But who wants to overheat their kitchen by using their oven for a few hours a day? Maybe I should move north although I do live in Ohio. Until yesterday, the heat and humidity were really starting to get to me.

Marsky/Mary

Post Edited (Marsky) : 7/23/2008 1:18:04 PM (GMT-6)

YES!!! The heat KILLS me!! It only takes a little while and if I can't cool off, I'm all lower abdominal cramps, pain, and queasy. I usually try to cool myself off ASAP when this happens by putting coldness (be it cold water, touching something cold, ice, sticking my hand out the window of a moving car - ANYTHING) on the pressure points on the insides of my wrists and on the back of my neck. My brother calls it "super-cooling" because I often get the chills as a result. Once I get the chills and my teeth start chattering I'm usually about five minutes away from some relief (although not always COMPLETE relief, but you take what you can get, right?).

Also, I've found that essential peppermint oil mixed with unscented lotion rubbed on the bottoms of my feet will cool me off REALLY fast!! I highly recommend Young Living Oils for the peppermint - it's a little pricier than other oils, but it's also the purest I've ever found and it works the best for me. Just mix about two drop in the palm of your hand with some unscented lubriderm and slather it all over the soles of your feet. Cools you off right snappy!! It also works if you rub it clockwise on your belly - but sometimes the smell gets to me when I'm feeling queasy, so I tend to stick to the soles of the feet. The mint natually cools your body down and helps lower your temperature, as well as aids in digestion and acts as a muscle relaxer. It's pretty awesome stuff, and the oil won't effect any reflux because you're not ingesting it. :)

Wow...every time I start to think I'm alone in something, I find another post up here from someone else who goes through the EXACT same thing!! Nice to know it's really NOT all in my head! ;)

Yes! If I plan on going outside in the pool or anything on a hot day, I had better not eat before I go out, or I get painful bloating, gas, cramps and will be in the bathroom off and on the rest of the day.

So I try to wait a while if I've eaten before going out.