(TMI) Lots of POOP!? From Probiotic??? Advice please!

[jessica.leigh]

Hi all,

I have been diagnosed IBS-D (mostly, although sometimes I think it's combo) that is very directly affected by food, particularly greens and dairy. I've pretty much completely cut out dairy this past week after some bad IBS symptoms after consuming too much dairy the previous week (LOTS of cheese!)...anyway, in addition, I've started drinking a cup of "GoodBelly" brand probiotic drink every day. Overall my IBS symptoms seem to be pretty under control for the past week, but I have been using the bathroom A LOT and the quantity has been WAY more than usual. I've had a very full BM almost every day this past week and today had literally 3, one very full, and 2 smaller ones. The weird thing is the size of the smaller ones is how much I would normally go in one day and I would only go like 3-4x per week...I'm confused because I'm honestly just not sure where all this waste is coming from!! I have a very small appetite and while I eat each day, I'm probably only consuming 1,000 calories or so per day. A normal day's food would be a cereal bar or toast in the morning with a banana (and the probiotic drink), a snack in the afternoon like a piece of fruit or some beef jerky, and then some chicken or fish with a small serving of veggies in the evening...I drink lots of water, do yoga a few times per week for exercise, and drink maybe like 2 glasses of wine per week.

Have any of you experienced this phenomenon after starting a probiotic for IBS?? I even took some pepto bismol tonight after going 3x because I honestly just want to go to sleep and not go again...

THANKS FOR READING!

[Afdpt]

My guess is that your GI system is getting into a more normal habit which is a GOOD thing. If you were eating very little before and only going a few times per week you probably were dealing with some degree of constipation where things were not passing through your body as they should have. Now that you're taking better care of yourself things are just moving along better. This is a sign of a healthy GI system so it's a good thing.

When my phobia was bad and I would eat so little during the week I would experience a repetitive cycle of going days without a BM and then sometimes go like 4 times in one day. When you're not eating regularly and taking care of your gut then it doesn't work regularly. That's my guess of what you're dealing with.