Chronic-Diarrhea Books

Although I am still on my search for a cure -- not just treating the symptoms, this book reminded me that I'm not alone. It also re-enforces the need to get to the heart and cause of this curse. Twenty percent of the total population is entirely too many souls to ignore.

Lots of information and real life stories - nothing you wouldn't get from the www.ibsgroup.org website. The website is easier to navigate for specific issues.

During one of my recent visits to the IBS Self-Help & Support Group, I noticed a promotional ad for IBS Chat. Beneath the image of the book cover, the tagline read, "Your essential guide to IBS Relief." A bold statement, if ever there was one - especially when you consider that there are literally dozens of IBS self-treatment books in print that claim to have "the" cure for IBS. However, having read this book from cover to cover, I can honestly say that Jeff Roberts and Barbara Bradley-Bolen have definitely created a top-notch, unparalleled (and, yes, essential) resource that every IBS sufferer should read.

In my opinion, one of this book's greatest strength (and what sets it apart from so many other IBS self-help books) is that the authors recognize and emphatically acknowledge that IBS is not a one-size-fits-all condition, but rather a complex disorder that so often affects different people in very different and individualized ways. And not surprisingly, there is still no single treatment or cure that works for all sufferers or all symptoms. So it is only fitting that the book gives readers insight into a broad range of treatment options to consider or discuss with their doctors. As anybody with IBS can tell you, getting an official medical diagnosis is rarely the end of your journey. To the contrary, it is often only the beginning of a long, frustrating quest to find which specific treatments will work best for your particular set of symptoms and triggers - a process of elimination, if you will.

And that brings me to what really makes IBS Chat so unique and helpful. While it may have the look, feel, organizational structure, and (at over 500 pages) weight of a volume of the Encyclopedia Britannica, the beauty of this book is that its advice comes from actual, real-life IBS sufferers who have chosen to share their personal stories so that other people can benefit from their experiences. Take it from somebody who made the mistake of battling IBS all by myself for far too long - we need all the help and support we can get! And thankfully, that's exactly what IBS Chat delivers.

- Tim Phelan, Author of Romance, Riches, and Restrooms: A Cautionary Tale of Ambitious Dreams and Irritable Bowels

This is truly a wonderful book! Being relatively new to both IBS and to the IBS Bulletin Board, I have found it to be an extremely valuable source of information and comfort.

At first glance one may wonder why one needs to read this book when the Bulletin Board (ibsgroup.org) is already right there. However -- as soon as I read into the first chapter, I immediately realized that it can be an indispensable companion to navigating the enormous repertoire of collective knowledge and wisdom accumulated throughout the years on this site.

Like many newcomers I was timid about posting my questions at first. And when I did post, I often found later on that there were already a number of previous posts asking the same question -- even now, it is still a little difficult for me to find the most relevant information on this huge website where so many members are posting multiple messages on a daily basis. This book has organized the selected postings in a very thoughtful way and answered so many of my questions and concerns.

It covers a wide range of topics, from if it is indeed IBS, to how to treat and live with IBS, to how to deal with related health and social problems. It has chosen and presented the best of the best. The invaluable experiences of, coping strategies by, and advice from fellow sufferers have been such a wealth of resource and enlightenment.

My personal favorite is the chapter on Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) and Hypnotherapy. I was especially touched by the conversations in the CBT section where irrational thoughts were confronted with numerous helpful thoughts. So many of those irrational ideas are mine, too. And I really appreciate those who posted alternative and better ways of thinking.

I am also truly appreciative of the great sense of emotional support that I found from reading this book. There are so many times when I feel such empathy with those who have shared their experiences and such strong connections to their real life stories. These heartfelt posts have given me so much courage and hope. They have also represented us as living, feeling, and thinking fellow human beings who are much more than merely the sum of the lists of our symptoms.

In addition, I also find the signatures at the end of the book irresistible -- they remind me of the honor of meeting with so many amazing people on this site from all over the world.

Thank you so, so much for putting this book together -- and --

Blessed is the influence of so many true, loving human souls on so many others...

I wish I had found this book 15 years ago. My husband has suffered
from IBS and it has had a very negative impact on our social life. He is
also the type who would never read a book to get help. IBS Chat has been a lifesaver! The chapters are broken up in such a way that I could
easily point to the sections that would be most helpful to him. The
easy-to-read style and the fact that these were real people offering advice made him open up to try new ways of dealing with his IBS. He and I have been struggling with this on our own for so long, it is great to feel that we can finally make some progress.