The usual advice is to avoid NSAIDs like ibuprofen. They can irritate the gut and cause ulcerations, particularly with chronic use. In the short term they will reduce inflammation, and I do take one (Celebrex) once or twice a week. Perhaps you can strike a balance, but it’s best to stay alert to the risk.

I was surprised to read that you found the effects of psyllium to wear off fairly quickly. Psyllium works purely mechanically, so unless the gut changes its behavior to completely undo the effect it should continue to work (I’ve been using it for about 19 years with good results). Lomotil and Imodium similarly don’t generally report diminished effect over time, and I use Lomotil at bedtime to help me sleep though the night. The antibiotics do have a tendency to have reduced efficacy over time for many people, though I’ve had very good luck in that department over the years.

You can experiment with ibuprofen, with the understanding that it may cause GI inflammation and/or bleeding, in addition to other effects such as liver inflammation and heart damage.

In my case, I took high dose ibuprofen for years post pouch to help with inflammatory arthritis. It was great at first, but then I developed liver inflammation and that ended it. I did develop chronic pouchitis but that was many years after stopping the NSAIDs.

Jan

I have been told by my GI doctor not to use NSAIDs and only use Tylenol (acetaminophen)  for pain relief, this for reasons mentioned by Scott and Jan. Interestingly I had a tooth extracted this morning and the novacaine has worn off, but I am not feeling any pain so far. I have some extra strength Tylenol in reserve, just in case.

I read that Tylenol is a NSAID, isn't that correct? I am desperately looking for painkillers for acute pains in my hip due to arthritis. My GI told me ro avoid all NSAIDs which makes it pretty impossible.

Tylenol is not an NSAID. It is a pain reliever but not an anti-inflammatory. There's no pouch-related reason to avoid Tylenol.

LoveLife: Tylenol is not an NSAID. It is an analgesic, which means it alleviates pain. You can do a search to confirm this fact.

Paul: Be very careful if you choose to use NSAIDS. I was using oral NSAIDS for migraines and they caused bleeding ulcers. Years later, was also given IV NSAIDS by mistake by medical professional and got bleeding ulcers again, this time requiring blood transfusions. You might not be as sensitive to them as I.

Thank you for the clarification