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Irritable Bowel Syndrome
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Posted 7/21/2006 2:19 PM (GMT -8)

I am so glad to find this forum.  I have been suffering off and on for 25 years with diarrhea with horrible pain.  Tried to figure out just what upset everything from what I was eating, but it was not consistently the same thing.  Stress played an important part and when my time of the month happened sometimes it was worse.  I now know immediately when I feel that awful gas cramp that I have to get some immodium in me or I will end up on the floor with pain.  The pain has been so bad that I have passed out on the toilet onto to the floor.  The immodium has always helped tremendously, sometimes needing a couple.  I do not go anywhere without it.  In the past year, I have passed mucous only, not knowing what that was.  Also have had severe pain in rectum only lasting about 10 minutes at a time.  Two times in the last 4 months, I have been out to dinner and thinking I had gas, watery diarrhea came flooding out - no pain at all - just dark water all over.  Thank goodness it was relatively dark and I rushed to the restroom and actually washed out my skirt.  I covered up with a sweater wrapped around my waist and went home.  Happened twice without warning.  I am guessing fecal incontinence.  Now I am paranoid about going out.  I have not been to a doctor about this because it was not happening on a regular basis.  Now I think I need a gastro doc because I have gotten so frightened about going out.  My husband keeps telling me it is my gall bladder, but I think it is IBS.

Posted 7/21/2006 2:51 PM (GMT -8)
Welcome to Healingwell.  I am relatively new myself.  While your symptoms are consistent with   IBS, the issue is the symptoms of lots of other things (such as gall bladder issues) are very similar, if not the same sometimes as IBS. Please follow up with your Primary Care MD and a GI MD as well to rule out everything.  I had so many workups (neurological, allergist, GI, gyno), I was beginning to feel ridiculous.  I am currently seeing a urologist but not for IBS symptoms- my body decided to throw another curveball.  Bummer.  My insurance is probably getting ready to kick me off!  I'm sure they're thrilled.  But have your workups.  No need to suffer needlessly.  I'm sorry you're going through this- please try to work on your anxiety about going out (which, by the way, is TOTALLY understandable)  Two of my closest friends (one has IBS, the other has UC which has nearly done her in) carry what they call 'crap kits'.  (hope I can type that word) - included are diaper wipes, alcohol hand wipes, one carires that camping toilet paper that disintegrates somehow, a change of pants, underwear, etc.  One had a terrible bathroom accident while stuck in traffic and ended up in trouble as most of you prob. have at one point.  Hence, the 'crap kit' was born so she wouldn't be as nervous.  It works.  I completely understand this, but so many people (myself included for periods of time) are so afraid to go out- it compounds the problem by making us feel restricted.  Anyway, I hope that came out the right way.  But start asking for referrals, so you can finally figure out what exactly this is and start choosing your treatment options. Good luck.

Posted 7/21/2006 5:19 PM (GMT -8)
Thank you for responding. The "crap kit" is a wonderful idea. My friends really understand when this happens and they are always willing to help when it happens, but I am still embarrassed. They all say that is why I am so thin, which doesn't help with the problem at hand. I will definitely seek a gastro guy as soon as possible. I am best friends with the wives of a DO and a MD so I will get some referrals. The more I think about this the more I am convinced that a lot of this is stress related. Too bad I handle stress in my intestines!

Thank you again.
Posted 7/24/2006 6:13 AM (GMT -8)
Actually, you do sound more like you have genuine IBS than gall bladder. Gall bladder pain is either along the right side or up in the top of the abdomen, like across the diaphram. Sometimes it is up in the right shoulder and arm too. I never hurt down low or in the rectum. Diarrhea from a bad gall bladder tends to be shades of yellow (up to daffodil-bright) and burning, not dark (although sometimes bile may appear to be green). And I can't say that I have heard of incontinence with it either. I always felt the sick feeling building up long before anything came out. And as far as I know, stress doesn't make it better or worse, but fatty and greasy foods will make it worse.

But you definitely need to get looked at because a lot of things can cause bowel problems and pain, like a bad appendix, fibromyalgia, fybroid tumors in the uterus, and even ovarian cysts. You need to get everything checked out first, then, if you do have "just IBS", then you may want to try the calcium supplements we're talking about all the time on here and see if that won't help your diarrhea.
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