I was running to the toilet up to 15 times a day for 14 years. Taking postbiotics changed my life.

• Rhiannon Norris, 25, suffered from chronic IBS symptoms that left her house-bound.
• At one point, she was going to the bathroom up to 15 times a day.
• After her years of debilitating symptoms, a postbiotic supplement proved a game changer.

This as-told-to essay is based on a conversation with Rhiannon Norris. It has been edited for length and clarity.

I've had irritable bowel syndrome for as long as I can remember. I used to be lucky if I managed to sit through a meal without having to run to the toilet. It made making friends and getting into relationships hard because I would be really embarrassed about it. Things were bad.

When I was 11, I was trying new foods during a holiday when I started feeling poorly and could hardly leave the hotel.

At 14, I had intense stomach pain, which left me doubled up and blacking out. No doctor could tell me what was wrong — they just kept saying it was my IBS. I got rushed to the doctor and had an ultrasound, and it turned out that my gallbladder was about to burst. I had to go in for emergency surgery.

The gallbladder regulates the fats in the body and produces the acid that helps break them down. When I had it removed, my IBS got 10 times worse.

Throughout my teens and 20s, I struggled to go to restaurants or on trips away because I couldn't leave the house, as I'd be going to the toilet 10 to 15 times a day. I had stomach pains, cramps, and I got really bloated — it wasn't a nice way to live. 

Anything can trigger my IBS

Caffeine, dairy, and bread can cause it, but it could be anything, even something I eat every day. 

I felt ashamed. When I was in my late teens and early 20s, people used to find it disgusting or get embarrassed, so I didn't feel I could talk to anyone about it.

When I was pregnant at 19, I had a viral infection throughout my gestation, which made me pass out and throw up a lot, so the IBS was on the back burner. After I had my little boy by emergency C-section, my IBS got worse. If I ate certain things, I literally couldn't move and started throwing up. 

I especially struggled when he was a toddler because he needed constant looking after. I wouldn't eat all day until my partner came home because I was scared I would be stuck on the toilet and my son would be on his own. 

When my husband did come home, I'd eat as much as I could because I was so hungry, then I'd spend the rest of the evening on the toilet. 

I tried different things, but only postbiotics helped

Doctors offered me medication but said it could affect my mental health, and I was already in quite a bad mental state. They also said it could decrease sex drive, and it was not something I wanted to go on at that age. 

I tried herbal remedies, including tea that was supposed to help with weight loss, bloating, and stomach cramps, but it made everything worse. 

Eventually, while scrolling through social media looking for people going through the same thing as me, I found a postbiotic supplement that people said really helped, so I decided to try it. It comes in a little liquid sachet and tastes pleasant, like a Capri Sun. I just have one in the morning. It helps digestion and shields your gut from undesirable bacteria, helping your own microbiome to improve gut health and immunity.

Within two weeks, I could pretty much eat whatever I wanted — spicy noodles, coffee, white bread, and dairy. I can drink tea again without getting incredibly ill, and I'm not having diarrhea constantly. I go to the toilet only two to three times a day now, like a regular person.

It's a massive game changer. I can leave the house and go places with my son and not have to worry whether I'm by a toilet. I'm more present in the home, my partner gets to spend more time with me, and we can actually go on date nights to restaurants. It's changed my life.