I just got back from an amazing 10 day trip in Japan. I’ve been to Japan once before (17 years ago) and it remains one of my favorite countries I’ve ever visited. I’ve had IBS-d for over 10 years, and have mostly ignored it until a couple years ago when I got checked out by a doctor. Even after being diagnosed, it didn’t affect my life too much until about 7 months ago. I developed severe anxiety around being outside my home. I would panic anytime I was in a car or place where I didn’t know where a bathroom was. So I stopped going out anywhere besides to work. My life became extremely isolated and restricted. I think the term for my fear is agoraphobia.
However, I’m into r/awardtravel. I was able to score 2 first class seats on ANA with points. I’ve been planning to go to Japan this year since they reopened. I did not want to let my fear stop me from going. So I started therapy as well as anything and everything to try and get my IBS under control. I started a low fodmap diet and that is the only thing that’s worked for me. Before going, I asked the low fodmap subreddit for Japanese food suggestions I could eat while over there. Someone suggested tempura and tonkatsu. So I tried those things before going on my trip. They absolutely destroyed me. So I started my trip not really knowing what I could eat besides plain rice… I had gotten other suggestions of sushi with no sauces and shio yakitori.
I had read that there are bathrooms in all the train stations. I didn’t it believe it, though. Most places I have traveled don’t have frequent public bathrooms. When I got into the first subway car, I began to panic badly. I hate enclosed, crowded spaces that I can’t get out of. The journey to our hotel from Haneda airport was rough. But I did start to notice that there did seem to actually be bathrooms in every train station. Also, the time between stops was usually a minute or two. If I needed to get out, I could. So that anxiety subsided for the rest of the trip.
We spent 6 days in Tokyo, 2 in Kyoto, and 2 in Osaka. Our hotel in Tokyo was on the outskirts of Ginza in a business district next to the Sumida river. Picking a hotel in not so central location ended up being somewhat of a detriment. There weren’t really any restaurants close by. My diet is already limited, so that made it worse. There were a couple of nights where my dinner was a rice ball from 7/11 because I couldn’t find anything else. My IBS usually flares up after eating a meal. So I always wanted to be close to the hotel after eating something more than a rice ball.
For breakfast and lunch, I would have a rice ball from 7/11 since that was a safe food for me. I was so sick of rice balls by the end of the trip. I was worried I’d have a flare up and then I’d not want to leave the hotel room. So keeping eating to a minimum until dinner time was important. My partner and I were out walking tons everyday. As others on here have said, you will walk a lot! We were averaging 30k steps a day. I didn’t bring the best shoes, so my feet hurt badly every night. I’m a mail carrier, so I’m used to walking a lot. But walking as much as this was a bit painful, especially in sandals.
Our hotel in Kyoto was in a slightly better area. It was residential, but there were some restaurants close by. Shio yakitori and sushi were one of the few things I could eat. So we ended up going to a couple of good yakitori shops. One was a very tiny shop with just one guy working. It was really cool to see. We walked a ton in Kyoto and hit some of the popular shrines and temples.
It seemed the bus system was the way of transport in Kyoto more than the subway system. This has probably already been talked about here, but it was very unclear to us how the bus system worked. You need to go to the front of the bus to pay. So that means pushing past people in the aisle. The first time we took the bus, we tried to get out the back doors and got berated.
In Osaka, we stayed at Cross Hotel which is very centrally located. Location-wise, it was the best hotel. We had any and every food option around us. Since our stay there was so short, we never left the Namba area. There was so much to see and do in Namba. I badly wanted to have ramen while in Japan, but knew it would cause a flare up. We found a ramen shop that was a 2 minute walk from our hotel. We ate there both nights and it was amazing. Some of the best ramen I’ve ever had! Since we were right next to the hotel, it wasn’t a big deal for my IBS.
My advice is if you have a food allergy, make sure to book a hotel in a central location with lots of food options around. Otherwise, you may be like me and be left with nothing to eat besides 7/11 food. Next time I go to Tokyo, I want to book a hotel in a better location. I picked a hotel I stayed at with my dad when I had visited 17 years ago. The rooms were large and the views were stunning. Our room had a view of Tokyo tower.
I went into this trip with extreme anxiety that my IBS would derail anything and everything we wanted to do. But by sticking to rice balls, I made it through with only a few flare ups. I believe Japan was one of the best places I could travel. A number of food options fit my limited diet. There also were a ton of public restrooms everywhere. I was also able to overcome my anxiety around being in public places, especially public transit. I’ve only been back in the US for a couple of days, but since being back, I’m no longer anxious to go in the car. That’s really huge for me since that was limiting my life a lot! I’m really hoping this trip fixed or at least significantly helped my agoraphobia.
Overall, it was an amazing trip. I can’t wait to go back to Japan!
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Where did you look for public restrooms if you were not near a train station?
I’m so glad you were able to overcome the anxiety and had a wonderful trip. 👍😊
This is so helpful! I am going to Japan by the end of the summer and I also have IBS, but mine fluctuates between D and C. I usually have it bad whenever I try new food, so it’s helpful to see your experience. Thanks.
> Someone suggested tempura and tonkatsu
Were they fucking with you? While it tastes good, it’s rich deep fried food.
Sounds like a great trip and great outcome!
Japan toilets are really good and clean pretty much everywhere. I stoped by a service station in the middle of nowhere once and was expecting some gross toilet, instead I was greeted with a sparkling clean toilet and they even had free toiletries to use (ear cleaners and stuff).
Just as an FYI: for buses, the general rule is that you enter through the rear doors and exit through the front doors. You pay as you leave. Some buses are flat rate, so you only tap on the way out. Some are distance rate, so you tap when you enter (or get a ticket when you enter) and again when you leave. You were probably scolded because it looked like you were going out the wrong door, causing disruption for those getting onto the bus, and leaving without paying.
While I don’t have a diagnosis of IBS, I have had times where my intestine could decide it wanted to get rid of everything on a moment’s notice. It didn’t happen often, but when it did, I would be out of commission for half a day and I would need a toilet extremely close by.
Last year, I went on a solo trip to Warsaw. I was having lunch in a small cafe, and suddenly I knew what was about to happen. Luckily they had a toilet, but it was just one toilet for the entire cafe. I tried to make it to a nearby metro station, but after 10 meters, I knew I couldn’t make it. I sprinted back to the cafe and thank goodness the toilet was unoccupied. After a few hours I felt a bit better and spent the rest of the day at my hotel.
I am so impressed that you decided to just go for it! I think it was definitely the right thing to do, but also quite scary. I’m so glad you had a great time there!
How did u get points for ANA? I’m a member of ANA mileage program and I’ve been twice since 2015..and I have no points at all lol I think I messed up somewhere along the way I have pretty bad anxiety too so I haven’t really looked onto what I did wrong.
Are you able to eat yogurt? I can tolerate Japanese yogurt drinks better than American. I have one everyday and my stomach stays calm. Glad you had a good time.
Eating less and visiting Japan is an amazing weight loss plan.
Japan is the number one place to travel if you need a toilet. There are toilets in every train station, almost every convenience store, of course every office tower and department store. Most public parks have toilets as well.
Almost all of these are clean and even have amenities like heated toilet seats and bidets and are free.
Traveling around Europe, I had to remember to carry a bunch of change in my pocket when I could find a public toilet. In America they often lock them up so homeless people can’t camp inside, so you often have to ask for a key
Man, the Bidets in Japan are lifesavers! Glad you enjoyed your trip man.
Carnivore diet can be amazing for IBS, completely solved the issues my friend had.
Easy enough when travelling as well. Sashimi, eggs, steak or Korean/Japanese BBQ. Meat only, no extras. Whoever gave you the previous food advice is a moron.
Japan is all pickles and grease, perhaps one of the worst first world places on earth for and IBS-D sufferer.
I have also been diagnosed with IBS-D!
I was honestly sad to leave Japan, I had no issues/flare-ups from anything I ate!
I also stuck close to things I thought had a good chance of settling well as I also had some anxiety about the bathroom situation. We went for our honeymoon so I was really anxious about being miserable due to a flare-up, but it all worked out really well!!
I’m glad you had a great trip!
Japan is a toilet paradise. Always available and clean.
The “cleanest” low-FODMAP food in Japan (and massively widespread) is sushi. Straight rice and lean protein, no oil, no to low gluten, perfect for the diet. I’m US based on a similar not so strict low fodmap diet and Japanese food is fantastic because you can get such clean meals. Stay away from fried foods and pork/fat heavy meals and you’ll be golden.
You might find support from a therapist beneficial for the anxiety and agoraphobia. I’m glad you were able to enjoy your trip!
I literally cannot think of a better country to be in than Japan if you have bathroom anxiety.
Subway station bathrooms are nice
I have to deal with IBS too, really bad during trips. It helped me a lot realizing that the worst thing it could happen is shitting myself. Would be embarassing but not deadly.
As a fellow IBS-d sufferer who is far less sensible than you at avoiding risky foods, it’s absolutely the best country I’ve visited. Anxiety about being away from a restroom actually makes it a lot worse for me so that (and a lack of spicy food) definitely made my recent trip really enjoyable.
Only downside was the lack of soap in a lot of public toilets, but personal hand sanitizer is cheap!
Thank you so much for sharing! We are in a little bit of a different situation, but my son has anxiety and also sensory issues that make eating pretty difficult. I’m trying to stick to really central areas but still quite nervous. Rice balls!!!! That we can do!!!!!! I’m glad you found something that worked for you and you went ahead and did the trip! That’s so cool and I appreciate you sharing your experience.