POTS and IBS

As some of you may know, or not know, one of the things that tends to go hand in hand with POTS is IBS, or Irritable Bowel Syndrome, a disorder of the gastrointestial tract that causes abdominal pain, cramping, bloating, constipation and diarrhea. It's annoying, but not necessarily life threatening. It's usually managed by diet. Both POTS and IBS are related to the autonomic nervous system, so it makes sense that they tend to go hand in hand. I've never been formally diagnosed with IBS, but I wouldn't be surprised if I have it considering that I fit most of the diagnosis criteria. I've never gone through the trouble of getting it diagnosed because there aren't really many medicines out there to treat it and to me the abdominal discomfort and bloating and constipation have become background noise to my life. I've learned to ignore it. Although this is helpful with coping, it's bad as well because I tend to forget what foods will set symptoms off. Even now, because I always push it to the back of my mind, I'm having difficulty remembering what foods set me off. So in that spirit, if I encounter a food that sets me off, I'm going to write it down here, starting with today's experiences and what I remember

Pretzels
Red Onions
Caffeine
Alcohol (the morning after)

I've also noticed that yogurt really helps, so I've been incorporating that into my diet.