After 14 months with AF, 13 months on diltiazem, and one failed Botox, I've reached the conclusion that I'll never heal unless I can reduce BMs. I have always been a 2-3x a day person, sometimes 4. Those "4" days are painful! The CRS says I'm not miserable enough for him to recommend LIS at this point, which I appreciate. I always seem to see him when the AF is doing OK rather than when I'm in bad shape.

So the question is, how to get the body to release everything in just one or two BMs instead of 3 or 4. I eat only about 1600 calories a day and am fairly thin, so it's frustrating that I poop more than an NFL lineman. It seems like all the treatments for AF are directed to those who are constipated, when my problem is the opposite.

I take two servings of psyllium (Konsyl or metamucil) morning and night with meals. This works pretty well. Everything is soft. (I used to take all the psylllium at dinner but that produced massive BMs that I think annoyed the AF even more.) I have tried reducing and increasing the amount with no success. I've tried low-residue eating with lower amounts of insoluble fiber in the diet. The AF does not like that, either -- the stools are less "organized" and take longer to get out. My normal diet I would say is medium fiber, not counting the psyllium. Sometimes I do have stretches of a week going "only" 2x per day, and it really loves that. But then, inevitably, I get a 4x day and any progress disappears. Thank God for heating pads.

I found a study out of Korea in which they analyzed the stools of people who went infrequently versus those who went 2+ times per day, and they found more diversity in the microbiome of the infrequent stooolers. So I will try probiotics to see if diversifying the biome has an impact. Another thing I might try is eliminating the psyllium supplements and just eating a lot of fiber naturally. I have investigated fasting but that does not seem recommended either.

So, does anyone have any anecdotal success? Just going to 2x a day would probably heal me. Thanks!

Have you seen your family doctor about a diagnosis of, and treatment for, IBS? You may have a bowel issue that can be resolved with medication, or other means, and maybe you can be put on a path to just having daily movements. Or perhaps he or she can have you do a stool test, to see if something is amiss there? I've tried probiotics twice, and both times had horrible side-effects (that's my personal experience, but unfortunately, not success).

Hello,

me too is a "3 to 4" person. The only times my BM would stabilize is after I take antybiotics therapy for Helycobacter Pilory (HP for short). I did 10 gastroscopies (GP for short) in my lifetime and each time they found HP.

The problem is my doctor wouldn't accept any other HP test apart from GP so I can't use breathing or blood test.