I ve had post infectious IBS for the past 5 months..now on the 6th, but I can tell I m getting close to end of this nightmare now. It was caused by a virus and my two neighbor girlfriends had it at the same time..only they didn t get post ibs that lasted this long..only I did. Within the month they were both better. I have no idea why I got post infectious syndrome and they didn t. Could I have swallowed more of the virus? I m not sure..but I want to know how I can avoid getting this again. I know I should do everything to avoid the stomach flu in the first place...but am I bound to get IBS so bad every time I get a stomach virus now? I hope not...but do cleanses help? Should I do a few colonics? I really was out of commission for 3 or 4 months of this..but I can t be out of commission that long every time I get a stomach bug. What can I do? I ve eaten a lot of meat throughout the years. Could this possibly have anything to do with anything? As bowel movements return to normal form and regularity, I m continuing to improve. i m so thankful because I felt like I was never going to get better. But if this happens again, I don t know what I would do or how I would cope. I ve been so depressed. I m not as depressed now that I m getting better, but I do feel traumatized. I just hope i never have to go through this again.