I have ulcerative colitis diagnosed in late dec 06. I am having a problem with bowel movements. I usually have gas with a hardly any stool and the stool that does go through is usually a small amount and really broken up and watery, no blood. I can have 2 to 3 movements like this a day.
Some mornings however, I have a big proper bowel movement.
What diet should I go on to releve this? The gas and bloatting?
Is this considered diarreah or constipation?
I am taking natren, mucosaheal, georges aloe vera juice
plus supplements.
Thank you

I'm no expert and only know my own body, but it sounds like you should be doing something for inflammation, like using fish oil which I highly recommend. Fish oil is only Omega 3, omega 6 which flax oil also has in it can be irritating so I'm avoiding that for awhile. What kind of foods are you eating? I was having the same kinds of bowel movements after a major inflammatory event that knocked me down for a whole month, water stools and gas then a regular movement in the mornings. I don't know what George's aloe is supposed to do, Jeni says take it but have yet to find an explanation of what effect it really has which I'd like to know. But it sounds like you need to look at anti-inflamatory supplements and fish oil is a real good one. I have had to eat mostly steamed vegetables and white rice, couscous and anything with too much roughage really makes me miserable. I think its all a matter of going easy with foods and taking time to heal. Wish it was happening faster for me, I've had to really test different foods to find what makes me feel awful and what doesn't....

Thank you possum, much apprecaited, can Nicole or Jini comment on this problem I am having as well?

Hi, starfire.

Would you write back with what you eat and all the supplements and medications you're taking (if you're taking any pharmaceuticals)? For any supplements that aren't already "vetted" by Jini, include the ingredients list, if you would. That will help me give a better answer.

Nicole

Hi Nicole,
I am eating, 3 eggs (omlets) 3-4 times a week, cooked salmon, halibut, chicken, steamed veges, rice milk, canned tuna, rice bread, rice crackers, hummus, yogurt, cooked tempeh and tufu, mushrooms, chocolate usually dark at least once a day, meal replacement - living fuel RX.
Supplements:
Natren 1 & 2, L glutamine with N acetyl D., aloe vera juice, fish oil, flax seed oil, co enz q 10, vitamin c, multi vitamin, bio flavonoids, deg licorice

drugs - Salofalk - 5 amino salicylic acid 500 mgs/pill 2 pills - 4 x day.

I have eaten some rice milk ice cream about 2 weeks ago as well as
some muffins made with jini's recipe with almond flour which may not have helped.
Plse help.

Hi, Starfire.

I'm responding with a proviso. You do need to understand that ultimately, we all have to test foods to figure out their effect on our own, individual bodies. If I were to tell you that I could definitely pinpoint trigger foods for another person, well, I really wouldn't be telling the truth and ultimately, wouldn't be helping.

So to that end, I am putting a link to a post wherein I share some of the food testing I've done on myself. I hope reading about the process I went through will shed some light on how you can do the same thing yourself. So here it is: http://www.jinipatelthompson.com/bb2/viewtopic.php?t=70

Have you already read Jini's instructions on how to dialog with your gut? What this can help you to do is really cut down on the time spent testing, because while your conscious mind may not be able to tell you what foods help and which foods don't, your gut can. This doesn't mean you don't need to test things....you still do....but it does mean you can very likely pinpoint the likely culprits which need to be tested rather than testing everything across the board.

Barring that, you might try cutting out the eggs, the chocolate and the soy foods for a couple of weeks and then try adding them back in one at a time (a few days apart) to see what reaction there is, if any. These are somewhat common as food sensitivities go.

You may well find, too, that the pattern of your bowel movements change as you get closer to healing. I also remember going through a period of time where my bowel movements were much as you describe. I went from diarrhea to small stools that were mostly gas and mucus with an occasional normal-looking stool to normal stools on a daily basis. So this may just be part of your progression toward healing.

I'd do some food-tolerance testing and continue with the probiotics (keep increasing your dosage until you're taking one teaspoon each of the three Natren probiotics three times per day) and other supplements.

You can also consider following Jini's Wild Oregano Protocol if you feel that will be beneficial to you.

Definitely use EFT or another mind/body healing modality to address any disturbing emotions as you travel on your healing journey. For instance, I can tell you're nervous about what you're going through. The questions I imagine are, "Is this normal? Am I going to get better? Should I be worried?" These can circulate round and round in your mind and ultimately your body, because it's all connected. So using EFT (or another like therapy that appeals to you) can free up this energy and help to move it in the direction of healing.

Lastly, a word about the meal replacement. I did a little bit of research on the Internet, but there are several products on the Living Fuel Rx website. If the product you are using contains xylitol, I'd suggest not using it on a daily basis. Xylitol tends to hinder bacteria from adhering to mucus membranes. This can have useful applications. However, if you're trying to get beneficial bacteria successfully colonized, you don't want to be taking something regularly that will hinder their doing so.

Don't hesitate to write if any other questions come up.

Nicole

I've yet to find a commercially available MRP, with the possible exception of the Ultimate Meal and VegLife Supreme Meal, that doesn't have sugar, preservatives, soy, or other undesirable ingredients for those of us with compromised digestive systems.

IMHO, you're much better off making your own. How you do this will of course depend on what foods you tolerate. If you need some ideas, let me know.

Best,
Chris

Dear Nicole,
Thank you so much for the detailed & informative reply. You are
correct that I am a nervous type and especially now about the colitis.
I will take your advice and I will stop the eggs/soy/chocolate for awhile and then try back one by one. I am in the process of setting up an appointment for a practioner who does EFT with hypnosis. I am going for accupuncture once a week and that seems to free up my bowel movements right after for about 1 day.
I will try to dialog with my gut and see what it says.
The living fuel RX mixture I have does have xylitol, thks for the tip.
I will read up on the site you provided, you have assisted me and calmed me greatly!
Can you suggest what breakfeast foods I can eat that are easy on the gut as my menu is not too varied for the A.M. ( I know eggs/tofu/toast..). Should I go just with a liquid meal replacement like Jini's for now?
Thank you

Hi, starfire.

Well, you could certainly use AbsorbPlus or a shake or your own making for breakfast. If you don't like AbsorbPlus, definitely talk to Chris, the moderator of the IBD Remission Diet forum. He's a first-class researcher and a great resource on companies you can turn to for really good quality ingredients for customizing your own shake mix.

He turned me on to pumpkin seed butter, which I'd never thought of trying before and my body seems to love it. (Maybe all the magnesium and zinc.)

Strange as it sounds, another idea is to have a dinner-type meal, only smaller. Sometimes I make my own sausage, sans casing, and my kids are absolutely crazy for it. That makes a nice breakfast with some sauteed veggies.

Or a stir fry. That type of thing.

Or, if you tolerate nuts, you might have a nice ripe banana or some apple wedges with some almond butter. (Delicious.)

It takes a bit of time to get your mind around eating differently than you always have, but once you get past that, there are lots of tasty options.

Hope this helps.

Nicole

Nicole,
Thank you very much for the info/ideas and I will also get in touch with Chris.
Rgds

Chris,
I notice you replied to my post. .
Are you the same Chris that Nicole has recommended?
If so can you give me some ideas of food replacements and shakes?
Is pumpkin seed butter better than almond butter?
Where can I source the shake products you recommend?
Thank you

The IBS Audio Program 100 is probably your best bet for hypnosis if you can afford the price tag. I got it, its a 100 day hypnosis CD set by the UK's expert medical hypnosis guy for IBS and anything related. This guy has specialized in this area and works out of a medical center so its not some new agey fluff feel good product. But in between the lines you can tell he is very aware of "energy" and I attribute this program for planting seeds in my conscousness that has led me to Jeni's work and EFT.

EFT is really good at knocking down energy issues, I bought the first course DVD set and if you don't have a practitioner near you, its well worth the $60. I am having some good luck with it and its a very enjoyable program, very in depth with tons of examples to give you ideas and to prompt your intuitions. I am the nervous type and having been home for over two months not feeling good, just practicing the EFT tapping with no goal in mind balanced my energy system so I was able to go grocery shopping with my wife without any nervousness or panic feelings. Amazing stuff. I'll pst more of my experiences with it so far on my thread about EFT in a couple days.....

Hey these are some really great replies! I'm so glad I set up this Forum when I see this kind of help and information being exchanged.

Everything everyone has written here so far is good.

I would also add that Xylitol (and other sugar alcohols) can also cause diarrhea.

And Salazopyrin makes the pH of the gut alkaline, so it's very difficult for good bacteria to live (if not impossible). Until you can wean off this drug, your progress may be slow.

take care,
Jini

Oh, and another breakfast that I really enjoyed (got into it whilst living in Tokyo) is you take a steaming hot bowl of rice and crack an organic egg on top of it - the heat from the rice cooks the egg a fair amount. Eat this with a bowl of miso soup - buy fresh fermented miso paste (not powdered) to make your miso. This is also a nutritionally good and usually well tolerated breakfast.

Jini

Jini,
Thank you for the info on the breakfeast food & other advice.
I have my first EFT/hypnosis appt tomorrow AM, as well, I sent away
for the 1st EFT DVD set. It sounds incredible.
I am trying to slow down the intake of the Salofalk.
Rgds
Bill