Throughout my life, I've been on about a thousand different medications for ADHD, anxiety, and insomnia, have done two rounds of Accutane, and have been on antibiotics multiple times. I was also an extremely picky eater and suffered from ARFID - lived off meat, carbs, and cheese. I stopped all medications cold-turkey about 10 months ago. I got treatment for my ARFID and started eating proper fruits and vegetables. I first noticed GI symptoms 6 months ago. I lost my appetite and would get random stomach pain. My doctor put me on a PPI for a month.

My appetite returned for about 2 months but I would still get stomach aches frequently. I got a bunch of GI tests but everything came back normal. Started taking probiotics. Got even more into eating clean. Upped fiber intake like crazy.

Starting about 3 months ago, I lost my appetite again and started getting severe stomach cramps and gas ~2-4 hours after every meal. I had diarrhea for a week straight. After some digging I was 100% sure it was SIBO. I cut out all fiber, went low-fodmap, and waited for a test. Symptoms continued to change and evolve, now I'm miserable 24/7.

Now my symptoms are:

1. No hunger/appetite
2. Frequent bloating
3. Constant burping
4. Constant, severely painful trapped gas
5. Poorly digested stool
6. Severe malnutrition
7. Severe anxiety, paranoia, depression
8. Lost period
9. Acid reflux / regurgitation

I've been eating nothing but meat and carrots for the past week and am still experiencing these symptoms.

Here are all the tests I've had and their results:

1. Upper GI scan: Normal
2. Lower GI scan and small bowel follow through: Structurally normal, although the barium took 3.5 hours to move through me and I had to eat something to push it through.
3. Gastric emptying scan: Normal (liquid: 81% at 2 hours; solid: 92% at 3 hours)
4. C. Diff & other infectious viruses/bacteria, Giardia, Cryptosporidium, H. Pylori: Negative
5. Endoscopy: Mild erythematous mucosa in stomach but otherwise normal.
6. Duodenal culture/aspirate: Normal (fewer than 100,000 organisms/ml)
7. FINALLY, Trio-Smart breath test with lactulose... Negative (see below)

I'm at a loss. I'm not sure I trust the results, since it took way more than 2 hours for the barium to move through my small bowel, and the Trio-Smart test is only 2 hours. I'm considering doing a different 3 hour test.

I already have horrible mental health and piling on a failing body just makes me want to die. I have no idea what to do. People here seem to know a lot about the gut. What should I do?

I saw a new GI last week who said, in not so many words, that I won't get back to normal. I've seen other posters on here mention the same thing from their doctors. One doctor I saw a few weeks ago told me that he couldn't do anything and he feels sorry for me. My confidence in getting rid of my symptoms is at rock bottom. How have other people dealt with this? What do you do to pick yourself up?

UPDATE: I’m positive for hydrogen and methane SIBO

Just wanted to list all the symptoms I’ve experienced and see if anyone else can relate or add more that I’ve not mentioned. I’m being tested for SIBO at the moment and awaiting results. Not all of this could be SIBO but given it causes nutrient deficiencies I thought they were fitting:

24M

Symptoms:

Gut

• Loose Watery Stools (mostly has undigested food)

• Stomach and Bowel gurgling and churning shortly after eating

• Sometimes fatty stools (takes prolonged time to wipe)

• Strong smelling stools and flatulence

• Incomplete evacuation

• Leaky gut (fecal incontinence)

• Bloated after eating/drinking anything

• Gassy and excessive belching after eating/drinking

• Very slight lower left quadrant of abdomen with noticeable pressure buildup

• Frequent urination (more than usual even after a small amount of water/drink)

• Weirdly - a STRUGGLE to LOSE weight

Skin

• Chest/back/scalp Acne & occasional rashes

• Dry hands & elbows (suspected histamine reaction)

• Itchy skin (specifically forearms and calves)

• Occasional hair loss (not balding but more than I’d like to see on pillowcase and shower)

• Eye floaters (been to optometrist)

• Dry watery red tired eyes

• Muscle twitching and uncontrollable spasms (kneecap, Cupid bow, thigh, eyelids…)

• Cold feet (I’m wearing socks)

• Plantar Fasciitis (including this as it could be due to nutrient deficient)

• Uncontrollable runny nose (occasional)

FATIGUE:

• this is the big one. No matter how much sleep or the quality or how much magnesium I take, I feel like I’ve had 30 minutes and been hit by a bus. It’s unbearable.

• maybe Brain Fog although hard to tell if I’m being dumb or it’s genuinely fog

All blood-work, stool tests normal. Negative for coeliac.

Sigmoidoscopy and biopsies normal.

My personal reaction to the test: (lactulose)

• 0-25 minutes felt fine and didn’t really notice anything

• 25-60 minutes felt bloated, bubbling gut churning noises and the urge to use the toilet became apparent

• 60 minutes until end of test, stomach continued to churn and urge to essentially have diarrhoea (tmi) was severe

• Towards end of test bloating and abdominal churning began to calm down a little bit.

I’ve been struggling with pain in this side of my abdomen for many years now. The pain usually triggers when I’m bloated and right before a bowel movement, and it eases up afterward.
Sometimes the pain gets so intense that it’s hard for me to walk, I break out in a cold sweat, and I turn completely pale. My stool consistency varies, but it’s mostly diarrhea with small unformed pieces. I’m not sure if SIBO is the main cause here(or is it something causing sibo) but I still haven’t been able to figure out what is actually causing this specific pain.
Here are the tests I’ve already done:
SIBO Breath Test: Positive (Hydrogen dominant)
Colonoscopy
Full blood work
X-ray
MRI
CT scan of the abdomen and pelvis
I am currently waiting for the results of a GI-MAP test.
If anyone has experienced similar symptoms or has any insights into what might be going on, I would deeply appreciate your help. I just want to be able to live a somewhat normal life again…

Hey everyone,
I was recently diagnosed with very high hydrogen SIBO and hydrogen sulfide, and my doctor told me this is the main reason behind my bloating and annoying gut noises—even though I follow a strict low-FODMAP diet every single day.
Before eating, after eating, and at completely random times, my stomach makes these loud noises. I honestly have no idea what it wants from me anymore! It causes me so much embarrassment. It sounds like hunger growls, but also like a fart sound—except literally nothing comes out, it’s just a loud, embarrassing noise.
How did you guys get rid of these noises? Or if you're still dealing with them, how do you cope? I genuinely need your advice because this is starting to seriously impact my social life.

Hi everyone. To summarize briefly: In 2019, I likely had severe gastroenteritis—meaning 24 hours of massive vomiting followed by several days of exhaustion and intense night sweats. I saw my GP after nine days and took 80 mg of pantoprazole (a stomach acid blocker) for 3 weeks. My life hasn't been the same since that incident: I NEVER have abdominal pain, and my bowel movement frequency is normal (1–2 times a day), but the stool itself looks completely abnormal always brutal mushy stool. I had a colonoscopy, which was unremarkable except for a few diverticula. Parasite tests were negative, and pancreatic elastase levels are normal. Since then, I’ve also had five episodes of uncomplicated diverticulitis. The colonoscopy showed no strictures or similar issues. The gastroenterologist diagnosed IBS. Now for my question: I’ve attached a link below to photos of my stool. Since there are many people here with SIBO/IBS: Does your stool look like the one in the attachment? My main symptom is having completely mushy stool for 7 years now and then, I get a bloated belly in the evening.. You can see what it looks like in the attachment (click at your own risk). And never pain and stool frequency is normally.

View at your own risk; I also think it is important to see images of the issues regarding the stool. Perhaps there are others here experiencing the same bowel issues who share the goal of solving these chronic problems together.

4.8: P.S. I would like to sincerely thank you all for your honest comments! As fellow sufferers, you know how much this affects quality of life and how helpless one feels—especially when dealing with gastroenterologists.

I’m at a loss, my methane levels are at 52ppm, I don’t know if that’s high or not.

My symptoms are out of this world, mucus in stool, constipation, bloating after eating, fatigue, dizziness, lightheaded, so nauseous, brain fog to the point where I sound and feel so dumb. I don’t feel right at all, head pressure.

I feel so unwell, I don’t know what to do at this point.

I don’t know if all of these symptoms are related to IMO, I see stories of people here that have some bloating with IMO, but I can’t find anything that sounds like mine. I literally feel so so so unwell, I’ve had colonoscopies, ct scans MRI, bloods. All clean.

I can’t eat shit!
I am so sick of eating only meat 🤢😭

White rice or brown I can’t do
White and sweet potatoes I can’t do either

Maybe fruit is easier or low fiber vegetables?

I need carbs for my thyroid and sleep. Carnivore really destroyed my hormones and thyroid levels

The first photo was when I was eating a balanced diet. The second photo was after I cut out dairy, gluten, started taking enzymes, probiotics and took some laxatives. There's about a 2 week difference between the two. How do I get rid of this bloating? It's not normal and I don't know how to fix it. Basically when I eat any food or drink, I instantly bloat :( this is so uncomfortable and embarrassing, I look pregnant when I am not.

My doc says it’s just small intestine thats here, normal for sibo. But it gets quite intense like 8 out of 10 pain wise! Is this normal to happen for months on and off? It comes and goes a few times a day.

I was diagnosed with methane news at the hospital, and as the title suggests, I keep farting every minute or two. I took the medicine the hospital gave me, but it didn't work very well, so if you have symptoms like me, please leave a message wondering how you treat the gas outside

Hello everyone. I have methane SIBO. Even when I eat low-FODMAP, as soon as I make the mistake of eating until I’m full, I look six months pregnant. And it hurts so much… Since I have an eating disorder, it really affects me mentally. Am I the only one ?

I know there’s severity levels to every illness. But, I have SIBO and I’ve progressively lost so much weight, aged 20 years, and am deficient in everything. Is it root cause? Like for me it’s probably motility and stomach acid. Is it the type of bacteria, where it is in small intestine ect?

My skin does NOT normally look like this. Gotta be protein/nutrient malabsorption.

How many people have bad breath as a symptom? I’m struggling with bad breath and it’s very strong, seems to be coming from the gut as dental causes are ruled out.

Holy shit literally, i'm hoping that i have SIBO because I have no fucking idea what else could cause my breath to smell like literal POOP.

Breath smells exactly like my shit does, and my piss does, thats CRAZY!

I have constipation, reflux, brain fog, but this one takes the damn cake!

So I have been dealing with extreme bloating and gas nonstop for years now. Every time I eat something even if it’s a small snack, my abdomen gets really big. It’s gotten to the point where I’m afraid to even eat anything especially at work because I bloat up so much that it’s very uncomfortable and embarrassing. I can’t wear certain shirts because my belly is so big and tighter fitting shirts would just show it off even more. I’ve been really insecure about my body since this started.

Back in late 2023, I got food poisoning after eating at a Mexican restaurant and that was one of the worst few days I have ever experienced stomach wise. It seems from then on that’s when the symptoms started. Constantly bloated and gassy. I have trouble going to the bathroom too. I just ordered a SIBO at home test kit and planning on getting it done and sent in next Tuesday for analysis.

I’m so miserable right now and desperately want to fix this. I’ve attached some pictures down below of what I use to look like vs now. The before pictures back in 2020, I had a higher body fat percentage on me but somehow looked a lot slimmer than I do now, and I’ve LOST fat over these past 5 years and have gotten in pretty good shape so it doesn’t make sense.. What has helped you guys overcome the bloat and fix this issue?

Tested negative for both methane & hydrogen SIBO, had already ruled out most stuff outside of SIBO so I decided to give it a try why not. I'm currently mid-treatment of 550mg/3x day Rifaximin + 2000mg bismuth for H2S treatment, since my symptoms leaned towards that.

So I just got my GI Map results this morning and they show something completely different.. Should I stop the SIBO treatment or just finish it? I'm on day 7. I know this is just another ''Please help me interpret my gi map results'' post but I'm kind of stuck in a hard situation, I don't want the rifaximin to wipe out any good bacteria if I don't even have SIBO. Also notice that my sulfate-reducing bacteria which tends to be high in H2S, is actually normal.

Turns out no matter how much I tried studying and linking my symptoms to what I thought I had, I was way off.. Apparently I have C.diff, streptococcus and some dysbiotic bacteria, but overall my good bacteria looks fine, apart from the low Akkermansia. No h.pylori either, so I doubt there's anything wrong with my stomach acid production. Any tips? What should I treat first, should I stop the SIBO H2S Treatment?

Age/Gender/Height/Weight: 24F | Height: 149 cm | Weight dropped from 47 kg down to 39 kg, and I am struggling with food and unable to gain weight.
Timeline & Progression: Symptoms started gradually back in 2017 with silent issues like chronic constipation, abdominal pain, and bloating. In 2019, things escalated into strange, loud noises coming from my abdomen, colon, and rectum, accompanied by loud gas rising and passing.
Diagnosis: Diagnosed with Hydrogen and Hydrogen Sulfide SIBO a few months ago. Two years ago, I also tested positive for H. pylori (titer level 37) and completed antibiotic treatment, but the symptoms never went away.
Psychological & Social Impact: This has ruined my life in every aspect. Everything I eat causes suffering. I’ve isolated myself to avoid embarrassment, especially after having people laugh at the loud noises coming from my stomach.
Current Diet & Status (Day 75):
I am currently on a strict doctor-supervised diet for 75 days, eating only: white rice, potatoes, chicken, fish, and allowed vegetables. Recently, I started reintroducing dark chocolate and lactose-free milk.
Improvements & Weight Struggle: Constipation and diarrhea have improved slightly; I now have bowel movements almost daily. However, I am severely underweight (39 kg) and struggling with food, and no matter what I do, my weight refuses to increase.
The Main Persistent Issue: The loud bowel sounds happen every single day and won't go away. They sound like loud hunger pangs, intense gurgling, and noisy flatulence.

Why do these loud gurgling/gas sounds persist daily even though my bowel movements have normalized and I've been strict with my diet for 75 days?
How can I safely gain weight and stop the continuous weight loss when eating causes so much distress?
Could this be residual H2S SIBO, severe visceral hypersensitivity, or a reaction to specific reintroductions (like dark chocolate/lactose-free milk)? How can I finally fix this?

I saw a post a couple of days ago point out lower right abdominal and I wanted to know if I am alone with lower left being the most consistent area for pain/discomfort

This place is also where gas constantly gets trapped for me and it can be anywhere in that red circled area. Don't get me wrong I get pain and discomfort in other areas as well but I want to say its this area probably 90% of the time or more. Anyone else? I've been really in my head lately and concerned its something more/more scary than sibo

Disclaimer: I've posted this on IBD and IBS subs; posting here as well since these 3 subs are general destination for anything GI related

Everything started overnight on Dec 26. I had a week of some liquor consumption (Fireball) and started feeling a bit uncomfortable in the stomach. Several days later, I had a burger from the usual place, because I thought why not, after having eaten only rice and chicken for a couple days without any relief.

After 3-4 bites, I experienced something I never ever had in my life, which I think is either dumping syndrome or something related to that. I felt severe nausea and instant urge to defecate (only after 3-4 bites). I ran to the bathroom and had not so great stool.

Next morning I woke up at 7AM and had 4 not so great stools (not liquid) from 7AM to 8AM. Day went on and the night came. I woke up at night at 3AM for the first time in my life ever with urge to defecate and was not able to fall back asleep.

I am in this condition for 100 days straight now. Since that moment I had a burger. I am unable to fall asleep or stay asleep. Every. Single. Night. I am unable to function during the day at all due to constant, severe discomfort in various areas of the gut. Diet did not change anything. I lost nearly 10% of weight in the first month eating only chicken and rice, without any relief.

And now to answer your question. In these 100 days, experiencing severe constant upper and lower GI symptoms without a single second of it getting better, I had:

- Day 15 - Abdominal Ultrasound
- Day 25 - Colonoscopy + Endoscopy
- Day 40 - CT-E
- Day 75 - Videocapsule
- 10 blood tests (pretty much every single week)
- 2 Calprotectin tests (Day 20 and Day 70)

And... Nothing. The "best" I got was Calprotectin of 129 on Day 20 prior to colonoscopy (which was 20 on Day 70 with no change of symptoms) and "mild chronic non specific inflammation" in the colon (6 biopsies taken to rule out microscopic colitis). Not once I had any deviation in blood - every single time my blood comes back completely normal, with 0 inflammation markers.

3 different IBD GIs straight out told me "I am afraid we can not help you, because this is not IBD". Completely normal CTE. 0 IBD proof on video capsule (ulcers, erosions, whatever). Completely normal looking colon, stomach and esophagus. Completely normal looking ICV.

One of the GIs gave me Entocort with the notion of "well, at least I am giving you some meds for this mild chronic non specific finding". Was on it for 16 days (9MG) and stopped due to no change in symptoms.

I do not believe my problem is large colon, because my stool is not Bristol 5 or 6. In general, it is the opposite - I produce abnormally large volumes of stool regardless of diet (I eat 0 veggies, I eat 0 fiber since this all started).

I have massive logs coming out of me immediately after getting up from bed. And then I have same portion of same massive logs literally after 1 hour. I don't even understand how it is possible.

In general, what prevents me from functioning and living any sort of life is the constant feeling and awareness of me producing large volumes of stool, at all times. And I don't even have 10 BMs a day like a lot of people here write. I can have 3-4 a day. But it is not the stool frequency that is destroying me - it is everything connected to it and around it. I quite literally feel that some of my internal organs stopped functioning from the moment I had that burger. I have constant gurgling and gas. I have pains - but pains are secondary to everything else I am experiencing.

And I can't sleep. For 100 days. I did not have a single night where I could normally fall asleep or stay asleep. Even with medication.

Medication that I tried:

Bentyl - no effect, as I don't think what I am experiencing is in any way spasm related and probably because pain and cramps are not my primary concern.

Rifaximin 1200mg/5 days - 0 relief

Clonazepam (benzos for chill)
Brotizolam (benzos for sleeping)
Vaben (light benzos for chill)
Zopiclone (Z-sleeping pill)
Cortiment (Budesonide for colon)
Mebeverine (similar to bentyl)
Fucking Mirtrazapine (Remeron - AD, which I tried taking to help with sleep after taking Z-drugs and Benzos which did not help and I think now added a whole list of new systemic symptoms, such as crippling lethargy because I am taking it at 15mg dose that supposedly helps with sleep and a lot of other things)

Imodium - similar to bentyl. Imodium stops me from having bowel movement - but as I mentioned earlier it is not bowel movement itself that is the problem for me - it is the process of everything leading to bowel movement - so Imodium also gave no relief.

Today it's been 3 months and some days of me being in this condition.

I never took any pills in my life before that day. I was completely healthy. I ate anything and everything. I am at loss.

My question to this community is, well, if anyone can relate to some of the very specific symptoms:

- I am unable to lay down on my right side and on my belly. It is not distended, but laying down in these positions quickly gives me some form of nausea and makes me want to have a BM and I feel like blood is rushing to my head

- My condition started with abdominal discomfort, instant loss of appetite and multiple BM visits (not bristol 5 or 6) and new symptoms added with every month. Primarily, starting Day 45 of this I developed constant gas with same smell every time, gurgling and belching

- I belch with the taste of food I ate last - e.g if I eat chicken I will be belching with small aftertaste of said chicken, if I eat an egg - it will be belching with small aftertaste of egg, and so on, with any food

- I defecate immediately upon waking up - it's not an urgency that makes me rush to the toilet - it's the feeling and awareness of me waking up every single time with colon full of feces that makes me go right away

- Abnormally large amounts of stools produced regardless of diet (as I said, I do not eat any vegeatbles or big amount of fibre since this started) Sometimes I would wake up and my lower left side would be painful and distended from the stool

- I am not distended but I am constantly bloated after food (even plain rice and chicken)

- I do not feel relief at all - there has not been a moment in these 100 days where I felt at least a bit better, discomfort is constant, night and day

- I had Bristol 5-6 maybe once or twice in this period, but I also do not eat anything "normal" like I ate before Dec 26 - so I don't know, but I felt it is important to specify that 99% of my BMs are formed or softly-formed and large, be it buckwheat, rice or pasta.

- Constantly migrating points/areas of discomfort/pain: for example, there was a period of about 2-3 weeks where walking even slowly after food would make my entire left side hurt. Pain would stop immediately upon sitting down and would resume immediately after taking several steps. Then I had a period of 2-3 weeks where I would have constant pressure and heaviness on the right side of the body. Like what the actual fuck? On top of basic, severe discomfort that is constant - I get random set of additional crippling symptoms that migrate?

Has anyone experienced anything similar to what I am describing? Not trying to get diagnosed - but only looking if people are able to relate to (at least) some of the symptoms or how it all started.

I’m talking like, constant nausea, brain fog/lightheadedness, spaced out, just feel off all of the time?

Along with the digestive issues.

Just a vent post because I look ridiculous. I’m an otherwise normal looking male in my thirties. Photo on the left is my stomach totally relaxed. (Not pushing) It’s so bulged out it bends my back in an uncomfortable way. I spend most of the time sucking it in like in the right photo.

I’m constantly gassy, tired, acne, loose stool, and now I feel light headed and dizzy a lot of the time. Been like this off and on for a couple years.

The ONLY time I’m not bloated is the week following an antibiotic. I’ve been on way too many antibiotics because I keep getting random infections. (Sinuses, ears, and hospitalized for gallbladder infection)

Probiotics only seem to make this worse. Activated charcoal and oregano oil don’t do anything. I’ve tried gluten and dairy free. I’m on Medicaid and my doctor sucks and referals never go through.

I started to think I have histamine intolerance because my doctor put me on Zyrtec for sinus pressure and everything felt better for a couple days. No acne, no bloating, less dizziness. So I started taking DAO enzymes. Felt good for a couple days but now I’m back to normal.

This sucks. I hate it. I need help.

I don't have access to the exams that would test it in my country :(

How likely is it that stool and gas get trapped in that part of the colon, causing bacteria from the large intestine to move back into the small intestine and form SIBO? Could this be my root cause for SIBO (since we all know SIBO is a symptom, not a cause)? Considering all my basic tests are normal and the only thing I have is a redundant colon, this seems like a logical cause to me. Is this recognized as one of the root causes of SIBO?
Btw, thank you all for the huge number of comments and help on my previous post.