Bowel Conditions...

[Vix]

Hi guys,

I was wondering if any of you are able to share any advice with me on what I'm finding to be a problematic issue...

Since Christmas I have been suffering from LOTS of symptoms:

Loss of appetite / weight loss
Stomach pains
Very altered bowel movements
Urgently needing to go to the toilet within 20 mins of eating
Blood in stools
And so on...

Anyway, I've been having this checked out for a while now, and have had a series of exploratory procedures (none of which have been very nice!) and am now awaiting my final results. I've been told it's likely to be IBS, or it could be Crohns or Colitis... They seem to be leaving it at the door of IBS however and when I'm asking how his can be managed, it's looking very sketchy. I'm told I'll be able to pain medicate to work on my cramps, but that my other symptoms will pretty much continue. I've asked if I need to alter my diet, but again have been told that there will pretty much be nothing I can do in this area to help. My main concern with this and the future, is how it's impacting on my every day life. I'm cautious of when I eat because I need to make sure I'm near a bathroom, and it's really getting me down.

I was just wondering if anyone has any idea as to how I can move forward if/when they say it's defo IBS.

Any thoughts will be greatly appreciated.

Thanks,

Vix X

[bunnie]

Hi vix, maybe they are just withholding on the information until they are certain on the diagnosis? Not much point going into detail, or giving information if you don't have that particular problem.
Here's a few links although I'm sure you will have read them already.
True what you say about the tests, simply awful! and I'm sincerely sorry you have had to endure them. The positive side of course is, that it can only help in getting appropiate treatment, and that you are not just sitting worrying that it may be something sinister.
http://www.cmaj.ca/cgi/content/full/161/2/154
http://digestive.niddk.nih.gov/ddiseases/pubs/ibs/
http://familydoctor.org/online/famdocen/home/common/digestive/disorders/112.html
regards Bunnie

[itchychick]

Hi Vix,

So sorry to hear of this discomfort! that the results from the doc can give you more information about how to handle it.

I can't say I know much about these conditions, but a good friend of mine suffers from Crohn's and she has definately found that excluding certain things from her diet to be helpful to her, so there well might be some connection for you, too...  it is probably a matter of trial and error to see if anything worsens your symptoms.

Good luck!

[anthropositor]

Leaving aside the still missing information, and doctors waiting until they are sure before giving you solid information or advice, there is still much you can do that would be helpful for most of the possible conditions.

Often stress, long standing emotional difficulties, or serious, long standing defects in diet can be playing a major role.

Before just automatically taking whatever nostrum "might help" I would be giving this a lot of thought.

If, for example, you have had frequent regimes of oral antibiotics, and were not well informed of the things you could do to repopulate the natural flora and fauna of the intestinal tract, this could have been a part of the genesis of your difficulties.

Unfortunately, a difficulty with a "trial and error" approach, particularly with such an intractable problem, is that the errors are often not just additive, but multiplicative.  That is to say, if you do not have a really good feel about what you are doing, using just a "shotgun" approach, the results can be as serious or even life-threatening as a shotgun blast.

If you have major stressors in your life that you can do something about, that is the place to start.  If you tend to "stew" about things in your life rather than actually constructively changing them,  that is not going to change until you recognize what is happening and do something about it.

Start with adequate rest.  (At least eight hours of sleep, minimum).  If your waking life is stressful, you must do what you can to get some control of it.  If I were you, I would be looking at the entire panorama of your life for clues as to what is happening to you.

Good luck.

 

[CazAngel]

Hello. I am sorry about this struggle, I have lots of stomach problems too. This could be a number of conditions ranging from Crohn's to an ulcer to a few other things. Have you been to the doctor, a doctor may be able to give you more info on what it could be and how to manage it. Please let us know how things are and if you are doing better. Take care.