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bentyl
Bentyl (dicyclomine) is an anti-spasmodic drug which relaxes the muscle in the wall of the gut. It can reduce the intestinal contractions of an irritable bowel and therefore reduce pain and diarrhea. It is usually taken in table form, but a syrup form is also available.
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REVIEWS OF BENTYL
Review by Sandra 
The doctor finally tried giving me Bentyl. I take two at bedtime and it works on the stomach pain/urgency of my IBS-D and my insomnia. So far so good...it has really helped. I have even taken it when I had ongoing symptoms during the day and it has not failed me yet, which was a huge switch from not being able to leave the house until I knew my stomach would settle down (which wasn't very often). I also started taking Align almost two months ago and I think that has helped me also.
Review by Rita
I have had what is now called IBS for over 40 years. In the beginning I took a pill called Combid. It worked great, but medicine being what it is they soon quit making it or the doctors quit prescribing it. Now I use Bentyl, and let me tell you it sure makes my life easier.
I can drink water and eat plain soda crackers and wind up with cramps. Thanks to Bentyl I can now eat more of a regular diet. True it tends to leave you with a dry mouth, but I drink some extra water, like my doc recommends, or eat sugar-free hard candy and that problem is solved.
As for the sleep effect, it works for me as I have insomnia so Bentyl is a win/win in my book. If you are a first time user of Bentyl, give yourself at least a month before you decide it isn't for you. You may just find you actually have a full active life waiting thanks to Bentyl.
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Review by Diane
Until this past February our lives were a mess. My husband had been in and out of hospitals and ERs for the last year years with pains in his stomach that he never was able to handle. We had no life. No-one could figure it out and after many bad experiences with doctors and nurses, one great doctor had the intelligence to suggest and write a script for Bentyl after a painful visit to the ER. He said David had IBS. After all the years of diagnosis of pancreatitis, gastritis and diverticulitis (I never believed any of them) finally someone cared enough to go the extra step. His life has now changed. It's been two solid months of no pain! Nothing! Bentyl was the amazing drug we had prayed for.
Review by Teresa
Bentyl is an amazing drug! I have suffered for years with IBS and my problem is almost always constipation. I used to get such terrible stomach pains and nothing would ease them except going to bed, and then as soon as I'd get up the stomach pains would return. My doctor gave me Bentyl about 15 years ago. I only take it when the pain comes on now and it always takes the pain away before I have to go to bed. What a Godsend! Amazing drug!
Review by Amira
I've had bouts of IBS for years. I feel I can't eat anything most days and had a horrible fear of traveling anywhere. This past summer I started taking a probiotic with two Bentyls daily and it really has changed my life! The Bentyl calms my stomach and the probiotic seems to help the diarrhea part.
Review by Jafafa 
I was prescribed Bentyl a few years ago by my PCP, who said it was for diarrhea, though a subsequent PCP said it's really just for cramps. I have taken it for cramps and diarrhea, and I have to say I have never noticed any effect whatsoever, nor any side effects. Seems totally useless...I still take it when I remember to thinking that perhaps it made those particular attacks less severe than they would have been otherwise, but overall I have seen no noticeable effect.
Review by Joe
This medicine does not work for me. In fact my IBS symptoms have not gone away at all, and I'm still running to the bathroom all the time. All I'm feeling is the side effects, and not the relief I should be feeling.
Review by Jennifer 
Bentyl seems to help my stomach but it has bad side effects. I have problems trying to sleep and eat and I'm always thirsty. My pupils get really big also. I still take it because it's better than being sick to my stomach all the time. I used to take Levbid and it works great but the company stopped making the product.
Review by Erin
Amazing! I couldn't thank my doctor enough for putting me on Bentyl. It has given me immense relief from the stomach cramping that was leaving me unable to do so many things. Being a mom and military wife, I cannot be down and out due to my IBS...Bentyl has made it possible for me to go back to the family activities I had been forced to give up on. I can go to my kids' baseball and soccer games again without fear and anguish!
Review by Brandy
I have on/off bouts of what is diagnosed as IBS (stomach cramping and aches and indigestion with either constipation or diarrhea). The urgent care doc gave me a script for Bentyl and said it would help move things along. The good thing is, it stops the aching that makes you want to roll up in a ball. I switch between this and Levsin for relief. It does dry you out and make you pretty tired, but sometimes it's worth the side effects to feel better.
Review by Amber
I think Bentyl is the best medicine ever made! My life was a mess before - I even ended up in the hospital. I would get such severe attacks of diarrhea that I couldn't handle it. I couldn't even go out to eat anymore. Now I just take Bentyl half an hour before I eat, usually twice a day, and I'm fine. Before I could never have eaten at a buffet, or at a restaurant more than five minutes from home. If I forget to take it, look out - there better be a bathroom close by. Bentyl has been a lifesaver for me. I can't believe how much of a difference it has made. Thanks Bentyl.
Review by Barbara
I've been on Bentyl now for several years. It has really helped reduce the number of painful stomach attacks. I take two capsules twice a day, but when I feel the stomach pain coming on I increase the dosage and it usually seems to work. Before, I could look forward to full-blown stomach attacks several times a year, but now they are very rare. It also seems to lessen the severity of the attacks that I do still get.
Review by Jennifer 
Bentyl has really helped my IBS. I take it four times a day and it's made the tummy pain much easier to handle. I do find that when I miss a dose I can tell within two hours as the pain is back full force. It does seem to make the bathroom trips a little less frequent....instead of going five times an hour, I'm down to three or so an hour. I've had IBS for 10 years and I'll take any help I can get!
Review by Julie
Bentyl definitely helps with the terrible pain associated with attacks. It relaxes your tummy so you don't have the stabbing, aching pain quite so bad. But it doesn't prevent attacks or make the IBS symptoms go away, it just helps once they have gotten out of control. Also, if you take it before a meal, I have noticed that it helps keep me from getting a stomach ache from eating.
For me, the drawback of taking Bentyl is the side effects. It makes me really sleepy, dizzy, and feel really weird! I can't take it when I go to work, when I drive, or when I go out. I only take it when I am going to be at home. I had tried Levsin but that did nothing for me.
Do you suffer from IBS? Have you tried Bentyl? Please contact Sophie to send in your review.