I have gotten my IBS under control through a variety of ways, but perhaps my first realization of this was around 15 years ago. I had not received much help from my doctor or gastroenterologist, and back then, gastroenterologists did not like to approach IBS at all, because it’s a tricky syndrome and their training at the time didn’t have much to offer.
At some point, I noticed that it was a two way street between anxiety my IBS. If I was having anxiety, then I’d often start having digestive problems. If I started having digestive problems, I’d also have increased anxiety. This was first apparent to me around traveling, because all of the hustle and bustle of getting through airports was an anxiety trigger, and I w was simultaneously disrupting my diet, causing an IBS flair every time I went somewhere.
Back then, I had been reading about the potential positive effects of cognitive behavioral therapy for IBS. So I began to practice awareness and some simple CBT, anticipated by knowing I’d be anxious about traveling.
Much to my surprise, it helped immensely in that particular scenario. It’s hard to have that level of emotional awareness all the time though.
In case it helps anyone, I’ve tried a ton of things over the years. The things that have helped me most are - probiotics (histamine degrading), soluble fiber supplementation (acacia root) and low histamine diet.