People with IBS experience abdominal pain that is miserable. You can manage this non-ulcerous abdominal pain with lifestyle changes.
Managing IBS pain or cramp
This functional abdominal pain may be due to presence of excess gas or intestinal irritation, thus changing the lifestyle can help lower your pain.
- Avoid taking painkillers such as aspirin or NSAIDs. They can affect your intestinal tract negatively. If you must take them, take it with food. Painkillers temporarily remove pain; however, it actually increases the intestinal irritation and worsen IBS.
- Drink a glass of warm water, relaxes the intestinal tract and thus help relieve abdominal pain or cramp.
- You can relieve abdominal pain or cramp by placing hot or cold pack on the abdomen. Place a hot water bottle, microwave-heated bag, or heated wheat hulls in a cloth bag on your abdomen. This heat or cold can provide some relief from pain.
- Get relieved from stomach pain by gently massaging the abdomen in a circular motion.
- Short distance walking can relieve abdominal cramp when it is due to excess of intestinal gas. Physical activity support easy flow of gas and this lead to more burb or fart and relieves abdominal pain/cramp.
- Even an empty stomach can sometimes produce stomach gas and pain. Try eating a small snack, such as a cracker to avoid pain due to an empty stomach.
- Stay away from heavy spicy foods especially for dinner. They can irritate the intestinal lining causing abdominal pain.
- Be concern about your sitting and lying posture. Try maintaining healthy body posture, bad posture by arcing your spine specifically after food, block intestinal gas flow causing abdominal pain and cramp.
- Lemon water can help relive stomach pain, when the cramp or pain is due to indigestion. Lemon stimulates stomach acid production to a healthy level to properly breakdown food and facilitate total absorption.