RESOURCES
International Foundation for Gastrointestinal Disorders’ advice on finding a doctor, communicating effectively with your doctor, links to various U.S-based directories of physicians, dietitians and psychologists. Please use these directories only as a starting point, checking any listed professional for your own specific needs.
Rome Foundation Psychogastroenterology Group
Founded and maintained by Laurie Keefer, PhD, of Icahn Mount Sinai, New York and Sarah Kinsinger, PhD, Loyola University Chicago , both leading U.S. GI health psychologists, to encourage and educate on the use of psychological therapies for IBS and other gastrointestinal disorders, such as hypnotherapy and cognitive behavioral therapy. Website includes a private listserve for psychogastroenterology professionals, media coverage of psychological therapies for IBS, and a public directory of member professionals that can be accessed by people with IBS, families or other health care professionals searching for a provider.
Educational Videos on IBS, Functional GI Disorders and Effective Doctor-Patient Communications
(some for people with IBS and others for health care professionals)
From the Drossman Center, Durham, North Carolina, founded by Douglas Drossman, MD, MACG. Also founder and co-director emeritus of the University of North Carolina Center for Functional GI and Motility Disorders, as well as founder and president of the Rome Foundation, and numerous other clinical, research and academic roles in the international functional GI field over the past 40+ years.
International Foundation for Gastrointestinal Disorders, Inc. (IFFGD)
Mount Pleasant, South Carolina and Milwaukee, Wisconsin, USA
About IBS website and resources
Association of Gastrointestinal Motility Disorders (Lexington, Massachusetts, USA)
Resources for people with gastrointestinal motility disorders, including IBS, of all ages and their families, including in-person support groups in its local area, telephone and online support for people in other areas or who are unable to leave home, and educational speakers, networking opportunities with other members
American Neurogastroenterology and Motility Society (Belleville, Michigan, USA)
This is a professional organization for researchers and clinicians in the brain-gut and motility fields. However, its officers, all leading researchers in the field, occasionally make themselves available for public Facebook or X (formerly Twitter) chats of interest to people with IBS and related disorders or their families. These are announced on ANMS’s social media.
Canadian Resources from the GI Society
including dietitian resources, and physician, pharmacy and health links for each province. Some may not be IBS or functional GI specific.
http://www.badgut.org/information-centre/links/
United Kingdom Resources from the IBS Network
IBS Network local self-help (support) groups
http://www.theibsnetwork.org/useful-links/
including mental health professional directories May not be IBS or functional GI specific.
Australian Resources
Monash University, Australia Low-FODMAP Diet Research and Resources
Monash researchers were the first to develop the low FODMAP diet, which, to date, is the only diet with evidence-based research as useful specifically for some people with IBS. Over the years, international interest and resources have increased, but Monash remains the definitive information source on which all other material is based.
IBS.mindovergut.com (formerly IBSclinic.org.au, which is now an unrelated site.)
Site maintained by Dr. Simon Knowles, Swinburne University of Technology in cooperation with Royal Melbourne Hospital and St. Vincent’s Hospital. Provides information on IBS, diagnosis, treatment, coping advice, many relevant IBS and mental health links in Australia and internationally, free, downloadable, research-validated online programs based on psychological techniques helpful for IBS.
New Zealand Resources
Founded by Alana Scott, a person with IBS, coeliac disease and food allergies, who comes from a restaurant family. She provides evidence-based information on IBS, the low-FODMAP diet, low-FODMAP recipes reviewed by FODMAP-trained dietitians in New Zealand, Australia, the United Kingdom and the United States, and most recently, paid custom meal-planning services.
Hypnotherapy Resources
IBS Audio 100 (home clinical hypnotherapy recordings from Michael Mahoney, Clinical Hypnotherapist, UK)
http://www.healthyaudiohypnosis.com (Gut/IBS specific)
IBS Hypnosis links, evidence based research and directory of Palsson-protocol-trained providers. Website created and maintained by Olafur Palsson, PsyD, Professor of Medicine at the University of North Carolina, Center for Functional GI and Motility Disorders, Chapel Hill, North Carolina.
http://www.ibshypnosis.com (Gut/IBS specific)
Hypnotherapy Directory, UK
http://www.hypnotherapy-directory.org.uk (May not be IBS-specific. Ask providers about their training and experience with IBS.)
https://try.nervaibs.com/ Nerva gut-directed hypnotherapy app developed with the assistance of Simone Peters, PhD-Med, clinical hypnotherapist, Australia.
Other Articles, Blog Posts and Resources of Interest
Good news for U.S. military service members and veterans: As of August 15, 2011, IBS and other functional gastrointestinal disorders are considered presumptive service-connected disabilities for the purposes of VA disability compensation if you served in the Southwest Asia/Persian Gulf region at any time since August 2, 1990. Click here for a post on the IBS Impact blog for details and information on IFFGD’s advocacy for FGID-affected service members and veterans.
Read about “Ally’s Law” in several U.S. states or other resources and “can’t wait” cards in the U.S., U.K. and Australia. Be sure to click on update links in the post as well, for more recent information.
http://ibsimpact.wordpress.com/2012/02/21/public-restroom-access-and-irritable-bowel-syndrome-ibs/
Read about employment and educational accommodations and resources in the U.S. under the Americans with Disabilities Act and/or Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act, as well as Social Security disability issues.Originally written in 2011 especially for IBS Impact by Mike V. from the U.S., who has IBS and other disabilities. Revised periodically by IBS Impact in 2015-2019 to replace some outdated links.
Work, School and Disability Benefits and IBS
Read a guest post written especially for the IBS Impact blog in May 2014 on personal experiences of navigating employment with IBS and other disabilities. Marcy Epstein, PhD lives in Ann Arbor, Michigan.
Guest Post: I Know Why People Can’t Tell I Have IBS: Becoming More Present at Work
Read a guest post written especially for the IBS Impact blog in April 2013 on research on stigma and IBS, and concrete things we can each do to increase awareness and reduce stigma. The author is Tiffany Taft, PsyD of Oak Park Behavioral Medicine, LLC and Northwestern University in Chicago, Illinois.
Guest Post for IBS Awareness Month: Stigma and Chronic Illness
Read a guest post written especially for the IBS Impact blog in April 2016 on how people with IBS, doctors and institutions/systems can all improve treatment for IBS. Jon S. has a degree in biochemistry and works in the tech sector. He has IBS and lives in the United Kingdom.
Guest Post: Let’s Work Together to Manage IBS.
Read a guest post written especially for the IBS Impact blog in April 2018 on what people with IBS in the United Kingdom who may have IBS or are diagnosed with IBS can expect in accessing care through the National Health Service. The author, Julie Thompson, RD, is a Registered Dietitian and advisor to the IBS Network, the U.K’s national charity for irritable bowel syndrome.
Guest Post: Navigating the U.K National Health Service for Irritable Bowel Syndrome
Read a guest post written especially for the IBS Impact blog in April 2022 on dealing with unsupportive family and friends. Megan S. lives in the United States with her husband. She is currently a PhD candidate in sociology and working towards the completion of her dissertation. When not focused on her research, teaching college courses, or finding camaraderie in the IBS Support (Official) Facebook group, she enjoys cooking with her husband, and camping and hiking with him and their energetic pet dog. Read a recent post by Megan’s husband here.
IBS Impact blog post 15 Common Misconceptions That Shouldn’t Exist About Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS)
Last update to Resources page and all links verified March 2024