Jessie Wong 00:00:00 Welcome to the IBS Nutrition Podcast, your go to source for navigating the complex diagnosis of irritable bowel syndrome. Here, we dive deep into IBS and discover the power of diet and lifestyle to find freedom from your IBS symptoms. I’m your host, Jesse Wong, Fodmap dietitian and a gut expert. For years, I suffered from debilitating gut symptoms that kept me out of work, feeling constant discomfort in my body and anxious around food. Today, I’m in control of my IBS. Able to eat the food I love again, travel whenever I want and spend quality time with loved ones. It is my mission to help you do the same and transform the way you live with IBS. Let’s get started. Hi everybody! Welcome to another episode of IBS Nutrition Podcast. Today we have a very special guest with me and Brooke here. And this is one of our past clients, Mercedes and Mercedes is here with us to share her IBS freedom journey and how her story started, what is happening now and how everything is so welcome.

Jessie Wong 00:01:03 Mercedes, thank you so much for joining us.

Mercedes 00:01:06 Thank you. I’m very happy to be here.

Jessie Wong 00:01:08 And of course, with us today is Brooke Keenan, my amazing partner in crime who helps me with all of our IBS clients.

Brooke Keenan 00:01:17 Hello.

Jessie Wong 00:01:18 All right, well, let’s go ahead and jump into our questions. So, Mercedes, do you mind, introducing yourself a little bit? Who are you? What was your life like before having IBS?

Mercedes 00:01:29 Sure. I had a very active life. had always worked full time until the last five years I retired, in addition to having a very active life, traveling and such, I always ate everything and a lot of everything. So, dealing with something that had triggers related to what I was eating was a big issue for me. but yeah, I had dealt with this for about 2 or 3 years before I found you guys.

Jessie Wong 00:02:07 Okay. Can you tell us a bit more what symptoms you were struggling with when it comes to IBS?

Mercedes 00:02:13 Sure. I started having, a pain in my left abdomen.

Mercedes 00:02:20 and also, I was having very frequent bowel movements. I drink a lot of water, so every time, basically, I went to urinate, I would have a bowel movement. Not large, but I would have one. then I was also having, I would eat and there were times after I would eat, whether it was dinner or breakfast or lunch or whatever, I would have to run to the bathroom. and if I didn’t have to run to the bathroom, then I was getting really gassy. and I couldn’t figure out what any of it was. Of course, you know, I continued to have the pain in my left abdomen off and on. It was it wasn’t debilitating. I could continue things, but it would hurt. And, you know, my husband would notice that I was touching my side. So I eventually went to a GI doctor, and the GI doctor, said, well, we need to do a couple of things. Let’s start with an endoscopy. And so they did an endoscopy and everything looked fine until I got a call a few days later and I was diagnosed with H.

Mercedes 00:03:31 Pylori, which I’d never heard of. And the doctor said he was surprised that I was diagnosed with H. Pylori, but so they put me on the treatment with all the antibiotics and all of that stuff. So I did that, and for about a month after that, my symptoms seemed to have gotten better. But then they came back. So I went back for my follow up with the doctor, and he said, well, we need to do a colonoscopy. So they did a colonoscopy and everything was normal. There was nothing there. four weeks later I went back for another follow up. I still had the pain in my abdomen. I was still having the very frequent bowel movements. they did a CT and abdomen CT and followed by an abdomen MRI. So, they did, you know, all of this stuff that could identify something serious is, you know, how I took it. so all of that was okay. And the doctor finally said to me, I, I’ve done everything.

Mercedes 00:04:37 I there’s nothing else I can do, but I’m going to give you I’ll have my nurse give you a flyer on something called the Fodmap plan, or so I said. I’m open to anything. I’ll try anything. So, the nurse did give me that, and I took it home, and I read it, and I looked up stuff online, and, I started, you know, going through and trying to follow it on my own. and my symptoms seemed to get better until the time came for introducing, things into, you know, my, food plan. And then it would all fall apart and I would be back to square one. So I did this numerous times. I went back to the doctor and thanked him for, you know, leading me to the Fodmap diet. and he was shocked that I even read this stuff or that I followed it. He said, you don’t know how many times we’ve given that out. No one ever comes back and says, I’ve tried to do this.

Mercedes 00:05:42 I said, well, I’ve tried and this is what happened. And, he said, well, I can’t do anything else for you. you know, maybe, nutritionist or a dietitian or somebody could help you, but he didn’t have any resources that he pointed me to. during that time, we relocated right after that. He was the most thorough of the physicians. And so when we relocated, I went to one GI doctor that said, come back in three months and let me know how you’re doing. And I went with a, you know, with a pile of paper of all of my test results and everything. And so I was having this pain in my side still, and that was it. I went to another doctor, that ended up losing all of my test results and. Right. And wanted to prescribe and, an antidepressant that would, deal with some IBS related symptoms. And he was the first one that actually said to me, you have IBS and there’s nothing we could do for it.

Mercedes 00:06:52 You just have to deal with it. And, you know, you could take this pill. And so I looked up the pill and it was an antidepressant. And I’m like, well, I don’t know that I need to take that. So I went back again and they had, his pa saw me and she said, yeah, maybe a nutritionist or dietician would be best for you, but again, no direction on where to go. So at that point I was just in my wits and it was two and a half, almost three years since I had started this journey, and I went online and started looking up IBS related things. I mean, when I first heard IBS, I was just torn apart. I thought that was something that really old people got. And when you had IBS, you were never going to leave the house again. You had to sit next to the bathroom all the time, because you never know when you would have to have a bowel movement. So I started looking up everything and, luckily I found you all, and your reviews and your methodology and frankly, all of the, resources you offered online were so vast that, you know, I thought, this is where I need to start.

Mercedes 00:08:14 and thank goodness that I did find you because, originally one of the doctors had told me that I had diarrhea. That was my problem. And, in a short period of time, you all were able to identify that I had constipation, which is different. And the doctors were telling me I had diarrhea because I was going often, but I wasn’t going a lot and I was never fully evacuating. But in a very short period of time, you all were able to identify that I had constipation and we started working on that together. And as soon as that was cleared up, I noticed a huge difference, right away. And after that, it was a matter of identifying my triggers, what they were. And, you know, how to reintroduce things in a proper method, which I had, you know, failed at miserably by myself. And the weekly calls with you all help me stay on target. On goal. I was hesitant at the beginning about the calls because I thought, you know, it’s these strange people, and I’m talking about something really personal.

Mercedes 00:09:32 And, you know, I really wasn’t sure how that would go, but it was from the very first call I was made to feel very comfortable. Everyone was very open. there was no judgement and also no putting anyone in a box. You know, I didn’t feel like everybody that was on, you know, the call had exactly the same issue or necessarily had to go through the very same steps. I really felt like an individual, like, you know, someone was listening to me and really placing a lot of emphasis on what I was saying and trying to come up with a resolution based upon me and what I was going through. so I learned a lot on this calls. I miss them, because I’m like, you know, maybe there’s something out there that I could still try or learn from. so I looked forward to them, and I learned a lot. And I found out that it’s not an issue that is with older people or older women, or younger women or middle aged women or, because, you know, I’m over 60 and being in that age group, I thought, this is just one of those old things, you know, it’s you get old and things happen and everything starts to fall apart.

Mercedes 00:10:51 But it’s not, you know, necessarily that it could happen to to people of all ages. And in fact, one of my nephews has his wife is starting to go through some things now, similar, but not exactly the same as me and of course, a lot younger. so all of those things were very comforting to me, from a standpoint of I didn’t have a rare disease that I was going to die of number one, which is what I thought in the beginning. and two, it wasn’t something that I just had to accept and deal with, and I think because of the pain that I had in my side was not debilitating. you know, it’s just dismissed. Just, you know, figure it out, take something for it, you know, do whatever you can. I had tried probiotics by myself at the beginning. different ones, because they doctors did say, take probiotics, take fiber, take, you know, but no one helped me to put all of those things together like you all did.

Mercedes 00:11:56 So it wasn’t I guess it was probably a month into, being with you that I had the relief from all the, the constipation that I had, and I started being able to eat and enjoy it and not having to worry where I was when I was eating, because I didn’t have to run to the bathroom all the time or or have the gas tests and things. so it was, really life changing for me and being able to feel that level of control over my body again. because that’s what it was. I had just I felt like I had lost control, and I couldn’t get it back. so it made a huge difference. And I learned a ton, a lot of things about our bodies that we don’t learn over time. unless we have to. but things that are natural, I, you know, can’t say enough about you, Jesse or you, Brooke. It’s just it was a great experience and continues to be an excellent resource for me. I feel now that even if I, you know, have a day, a bad day.

Mercedes 00:13:09 and usually it’s because I have gone out of my safe zone. And, you know, Brooke laughs. Because I will say, well, I’m cured. I can do anything now. I can eat anything now. So I will jump off the wagon and then, you know, it comes back. But I know that I could reach you all if I, if I need to and, you know, get back on track. but you’ve given me excellent resources from which to continue to thrive and continue to get better because I, I’ve been doing, you know, very well since, you know, my last call. And, and, you know, my husband says, you know, I told you you should have done it because at the beginning, I wasn’t sure I should have done it. Or. And he said, no, just just do it. Do it for you. It’s important. It’s been bothering you for a while. So, you know, we women don’t always do that.

Mercedes 00:14:01 And we we do for others, but we don’t do for ourselves. so I can’t express my appreciation enough for for both of you and for what you’ve put together that is accessible to people. and that, you know, addresses the issues that they have.

Jessie Wong 00:14:20 Thank you for sharing your journey. Yes. And and thank you for your compliments. We are just so glad you are at a much better place. And I think this is very helpful for everybody else listening to this, to that. When you are struggling with IBS, you are not the only person, but this is something we don’t talk enough about. And of course, there’s a lot of stigma or gaslighting that comes with it as well. And you’ve been struggling with it for so long by yourself. I’m just so sorry about that.

Mercedes 00:14:48 Yeah, I know it’s it’s just, you know, and it isn’t like I wouldn’t talk about it. Even my primary physician, I mean, I went to see a guy, so my primary physician was, oh, the guy will take care of it, you know? But it wasn’t until I’m on my third GI where I’m at now, and that’s the first place that I’ve actually seen the pictures of the bowel movements.

Mercedes 00:15:15 was in his office. So that’s GI number four, and it’s the first time that it was even, you know, introduced or brought up. Yeah. I don’t know why guys don’t have a link to people like you, you know, on a regular basis. Because, you know, I understand that they deal with, life and death issues and those are probably foremost in their mind. And, you know, I’m an example that they looked at that and, you know, checked off those things and realized that I would be okay. and I was, but I wasn’t, from a quality standpoint, quality of life standpoint. So, yeah, it would have been, you know, it could have skipped. I could have skipped a lot of steps and, saved a lot of time and and aggravation. And my insurance company would have saved a lot of money.

Brooke Keenan 00:16:10 What Mercedes is really good at is being a really good self-advocate with physicians and not really taking their necessarily not necessarily a no, but, you know, pushing to get more testing.

Brooke Keenan 00:16:25 And I use her as an example. for you, it’s usually younger women that aren’t being such great self-advocates when the doctor says, oh, you’re fine. And they just kind of go home, I’m like, I had a client and she really didn’t take no for an answer, and she would push until she got the testing that really was needed to figure out what was going on, even though it was, you know, there’s nothing drastically wrong. You still need to rule out all of those things and not be dismissed. So that was a really good, example in your group. And I, you know, obviously without saying your name, but I use your example a lot, just that you need to be a self-advocate and don’t necessarily take no and say, my dietitian will encourage me to get this test or that test just to make sure everything is okay. And it is just not just, but is IBS and not something, you know, that might be a little bit more serious for sure.

Mercedes 00:17:23 Yeah, the whole IBS thing too. You know, I was surprised that it was so far down the road that I b s was even mentioned. You know, the first doctor that did you know he was by far the most thorough and and listen to me and did the endoscopy, the colonoscopy, all the scans and the MRIs and introduced me to Fodmap. Never mentioned IBS. You know, after all of that, he never mentioned it. it was GI number three that mentioned IBS. and so I it made it even worse because it was like, is it so bad that nobody else wanted to to mention it to me? They were keeping it from me. Was there you know, something there? So, Yeah. So that was pretty surprising to me.

Jessie Wong 00:18:14 Yeah. On average, it takes about six and a half years to get an IBS diagnosis. Wow. That was a research that was published a few years ago. I don’t know what the new stats are, but it is pretty surprising.

Jessie Wong 00:18:26 And of course, IBS is not life threatening, but it’s extremely debilitating. So and so that people were willing to lose. Was it 10 to 15 years of their life for an instant cure, which speaks a lot about how devastating the condition is. And and sometimes I think we are, we really need to speak up, but then also find the right provider that will listen to us. Now, Mercedes talking about being a self advocate, will you share some tips with us? What you did to push for the test that we asked for or to to advocate for yourself?

Mercedes 00:19:03 Yeah, I, I’ve always been a data collector, so I would keep, you know, when I would have the pain, I would try to keep track of when it was and how often it was in those types of things. And I would go in with that information, not that I just had a pain, but that it’s it’s consistent. And this is when it’s happening. And and so that it wasn’t just something that was fleeing, that it was here today, gone tomorrow, you know, kind of thing to show the consistency.

Mercedes 00:19:32 I also tried to educate myself on, what are some of the things that should be done. And that’s that a very tough kind of road to go down, because you don’t want to tell a doctor or health care professional what they should do, because I’m certainly not one of them. And what you get online is not always accurate. And so but it’s kind of, you know, just bringing up. Well, you know, I read that it might be this or it might be that or, or do you think this would help, type of situation? and speaking about my symptoms, just very, non-emotional, because that’s the other thing that I think sometimes is as females, as women, you know, they think we’re a little, you know, overly dramatic about things and, you know, try to teach it, to treat it more as a kind of business case. This is what’s going on. This is what it’s keeping me from doing, you know? So what’s the next step? And I was always very willing to do whatever they wanted me to do, you know, on an interesting front.

Mercedes 00:20:49 And, I’m more skeptical on taking medications because I would prefer not to and, you know, taking medications that would mask whatever the pain is. They were trying to give me things just to so that I it wouldn’t bother me, but it wasn’t to keep it from coming. It was still there. So that was always, you know, kind of a touchy area. But, you know, the other thing is, you know, all of the health professionals, as you all are very busy, I mean, there’s a lot of people vying for your services, so it’s a matter of staying on top of it, calling for follow up. that is I think that’s number one. I mean, sometimes I couldn’t get in for an appointment when I wanted to get in, and I would say, give me whatever you have, and they would give it to me. And then I would ask, is it okay that I called back to see if there’s been any cancellations? And I would call back every day until, you know, I would get I would end up getting the appointment that I wanted because people cancel.

Mercedes 00:21:50 But, you know, we can’t expect the health professionals to have staff that are going to be calling people when somebody else cancels. I mean, you know, because then they go through ten people and nobody can come in. So it’s it’s really dedicating time to something that is very important to you. And, you know, we all can do it when we need to. And it’s it’s dedicating that time and not putting it, being yourself on the back burner.

Jessie Wong 00:22:18 I love that and I want to specify something you are saying that is really, really important. And we had an episode. I think our first episode of IBS nutrition podcast is about tracking your symptoms. What are common IBS symptoms? What are uncommon IBS symptoms? So if you’re listening, go back to listen or watch our first episode. We also have a free resources on Poop pedia.org/resources. It’s a free symptom tracker. It is really important for us to track our symptoms so that you know exactly what is going on and can present it to your physicians correctly, so that they know what has to order for you and what to do and maybe, you know, have a better treatment plan.

Jessie Wong 00:23:01 That is, I think, with GI conditions, especially a lot of the times in the beginning of me having my practice, I will ask my clients to where is your bloating ads? And they will look at me blank. I don’t know, I just bloat. So for patients to have that knowledge before going into a provider, that can be really, really helpful and also helpful for the providers to take you seriously as well. I think sometimes that is the challenge too, because they can’t get enough information from you and they don’t know what to do, and often patients will feel like they’re being written off or it’s just not a productive session. yes. And IBS is. It takes a long time to diagnose, can take a lot more sessions, to diagnose. But don’t give up if you are struggling. Well, Mercedes, do you have any advice for people who might be struggling right now?

Mercedes 00:23:52 to find a resource to help you and, you know, yes, a GI doctor is is foremost and very important.

Mercedes 00:24:01 But, you know, beyond that, what you and Brooke do, Jesse, is, you know, frankly, just as important from a quality of life standpoint to be able to, move forward after all of the critical stuff has been ruled out or to get additional testing that somebody may not even know about, that you all know about and can point the person in the right direction. so I would say, you know, don’t give up on yourself. Don’t think that this is something that you have to live with, which is, you know what I was told? It’s just IBS. You just have to live with it. yeah, I may never, you know, it doesn’t ever go away completely, but you can certainly have a better quality of life if you know how to manage, what is triggering your symptoms? And it’s different for everybody. which is another thing. You know, you could read a lot of stuff online and you think, oh, oh, that’s what I need to do.

Mercedes 00:24:57 And it may not be what you need to do. You’re, you know, we’re not all little robots, fortunately or unfortunately. And that’s why we’re all different. So we have to try something different on each person. but yeah, that’s I would say, you know, make yourself number one. You can’t take care of everybody else if you don’t take care of yourself. And by making yourself number one, you make you put make the time, put the time in to get identify the resources that you need and then go through it. you know, I like I said, I was hesitant with the group calls. It’s I’ve told everyone that I’ve talked to about it. It was like one of the best parts of the whole process, because you learn so much more in a short period of time, because you hear from different individuals. so be open to trying some, you know, different things and, you know, and don’t be so shy or reserved about some things which are private, like bowel movements.

Mercedes 00:26:04 And, you know, because some people don’t like to talk about them. They don’t. And, you know, I had a friend who said she didn’t tell her doctor that she was having frequent bowel movements. And it’s like, why not? Oh, you know, I don’t want to talk about that. And, well, it’s, you know, it’s how your body functions. So it’s, you know, part of the, the whole process. So yeah, open yourself up to some new things and, and, and you know, consider the fact that all of these things impact the way that your body operates and runs and processes, etc., and how any one of those pieces that you’re leaving out of the puzzle can make a big difference.

Jessie Wong 00:26:48 Yeah. Thank you. Definitely. Now let’s talk about your process a little bit. What we did was identifying your food triggers. When we work through the lifestyle challenges did you identify any lifestyle triggers as well that you want to share about?

Mercedes 00:27:02 yes.

Mercedes 00:27:03 sleeping has made a big difference. you know, getting enough. I noticed the difference in my symptoms. If I slept five hours a night versus if I slept 7 or 8 hours a night. and again, when I was young, I slept four hours a night, so it was like, why would I need more? Well, as your body changes, you need more. so, yeah, sleeping was, one of the other triggers. I was already exercising on a regular basis and drinking quite a bit of water. the other one was the fiber intake. Made a big difference. I really wasn’t educated on, you know, what had fiber and what didn’t. And, you know, I ate fruits and vegetables. but not the emphasis that it had that I have on it now, because I’m, I did find that fiber also made a big difference in my symptoms. and not just any fiber. You know, several doctors told me to get some of these over-the-counter fiber things, and some of them made it worse.

Mercedes 00:28:15 not better. So, yeah, those two things, the fiber and the sleeping, made a difference in my triggers to. Yes, I am, and I’m able to tolerate most of them. The quantity makes it difference. which I always thought that, you know, no matter how much or how little I had, if I had a symptom, that was it, it was out. But I found through the reintroduction phase and going through, you know, different quantities each day that there’s a lot of things that I could have at certain quantities, which was great because I had ruled some of those out, and I was very happy that I could introduce them back into my diet.

Jessie Wong 00:29:35 I’m so happy for you too. Then it opens up more food and more options.

Mercedes 00:29:39 Absolutely.

Jessie Wong 00:29:40 Okay. Yes. Well, can you tell us how it’s your life now after the program compared to before working together?

Mercedes 00:29:48 It is.

Mercedes 00:29:50 Like I said, I’ve gotten control back. I don’t have to worry about where I’m going versus what I’m going to eat and versus where the nearest restroom is.

Mercedes 00:30:01 And as a result, it’s, you know, it’s it’s a freer lifestyle than I had before. And that has made a big difference. The other thing is adding things back into my diet. You know, the foods that I can now eat. I had eliminated a lot of things just out of fear, and not being able to, you know, figure out how to reintroduce them. so it’s it’s broadened, what I could eat and it’s also broadened what I, what I do, you know, there really is no limitation really as to, you know, where we go when we go, you know, etc. I can, you know, pretty much figure out how my body’s going to react before it happens.

Jessie Wong 00:30:45 That’s great. That’s great. I’m so glad our program can help you. And thank you so much for sharing your story. Your story will inspire a lot of people to seek the help they need. And the first thing, of course, is going to your PCP or going to your gastroenterologist and rule out all other conditions first.

Jessie Wong 00:31:02 And if you have IBS or if you’ve ruled out other conditions, then you can work with a dietician like me and Brock to identify your food or lifestyle trigger. And we know, per research, dietary management and lifestyle management actually works better than medications when it comes to managing IBS. Like what Mercedes was saying, some of the medications out there could be masking the symptoms. but sometimes medications works alongside diet and lifestyle changes. And that’s something we always encourage people to try as well. But yes, the important message here is do not give up. Alrighty. Well, thank you so much for joining us today and sharing your story. And, we wish you all the best.

Mercedes 00:31:43 And thank you. Thank you both very much. And really the other participants that you’ve had on, you know, the program when I went through it, it’s been great and I hope I don’t need you in the future, but if I do, I know where you are, which gives me a great deal of comfort. So, and the fact that, you know, it’s not okay, you’re cured.

Mercedes 00:32:07 Goodbye. We’ll never see you again. But the fact that. That you’re there and that you’re always researching and learning new things to which you know, we know that that’s it’s an ongoing process of, you know, things that, are discovered and brought up and, and researched and what research shows that that makes a big difference. So I very much appreciate you both.

Jessie Wong 00:32:31 Thank you. Thank you for tuning into the IBS nutrition Nutrition podcast. We hope today’s episode has brought you closer to understanding and managing IBS. Remember, you are not alone on this journey and finding freedom is possible. For more on IBS, make sure to follow us on your favorite podcast platforms and please leave us a five star review! We would really appreciate that you can access links mentioned in this episode in the show notes, to learn more about your type of IPS and how to identify your own food or lifestyle triggers, Register for our free IPS Masterclass. Three steps to IBS relief for our proven, holistic, three steps approach to managing IPS once and for all, head to IBS dietician.

Jessie Wong 00:33:16 Com forward slash masterclass to register. Until next time, take good care of your gut and here’s to your health and happiness.