I realized I put one post up about starting a low FODMAP diet and haven’t done any follow-up since. I’m happy to say that I made it through the initial 6-week phase which is very restrictive AND that I have seen great improvements in my health. I have a lot fewer IBS symptoms and they occur less often. Purely coincidentally or not, I have also seen a reduction in some of my depression symptoms. I have more energy, I feel more optimistic, and have fewer down days.

All that said, I am not 100% healthy. I tried reintroducing some foods in the second phase of the FODMAP diet. I thought I was okay with some fruits and vegetables. I started eating some of them on a regular basis again like avocado, zucchini, beets, and berries. I was trying to get as many food trials in before I left on a trip. But somewhere between my gluten trial and accidentally eating red grapes, thinking they were on the same list as the berries, my IBS symptoms came back and I still have not been able to get them to go away. So, I have cut everything back again to just the first phase of foods. Unfortunately, I am still having symptoms.

I should say that my depression is not 100% cleared up either. I still have some anhedonia, days when I am not motivated to do much of anything. Days when I stay in bed for up to 3-4 hours past when I wanted to get up. (No more entire days in bed though…small victories, yay!) My depression is very situational based on my occupation status: employed = good, unemployed = bad. So, I didn’t expect a full recovery based on my diet. But I really didn’t expect any improvement on this front from my diet either so overall it is a win.

I suspect my IBS woes are due to my imperfect regulation of the fiber supplements and daily laxative I take. I think you can see what a delicate teeter-totter that is. Too much fiber backs me up and too much laxative … My dietitian suggested I use chia seeds as my fiber supplement instead of the pills I was taking. I haven’t been able to implement that full-time yet. Mostly because I forget to take them in the evening and end up taking the pills instead.

Now, I am going on my trip. Wish me luck!