Give Yourself Time to Prepare if You Have IBS
To reduce your own potential economic loss, Roberts suggests giving yourself time to prepare for work. He has IBS, and gives himself at least two hours to get ready in the morning. Once at work, he does the best he can to deal with IBS symptoms.
“I roll with the punches,” says Roberts. “My IBS is quite severe. I deal with it with some medications, but I also deal with it by realizing that I’m going to have some bad times, and I’m going to have some good times.”
Once IBS symptoms do flare up at work, little can be done except to bear through the discomfort and pain. Deep breathing and walking around may help during episodes of pain.
But experts say the best way to deal with IBS at work is to try to prevent symptoms.
Your doctor may prescribe medicine to prevent IBS symptoms. Some drugs may take a few weeks to take full effect.
Other strategies that may help prevent flare-ups of IBS symptoms at work include:
Changes in your diet
Stress management
Acupuncture and other alternative therapies
Talk with a doctor about which IBS prevention and treatment strategies may work best for you.