Getting desperate
#243985 - 02/03/06 03:35 PM
|
|
|
|
|
|
I am at my wit's end w/ doctors lately. For the few of you who have helped me w/ specific questions, I greatly appreciate it.
I need to know if this sounds like what anyone else goes through. Six months ago I started noticing diarrhea (watery to just loose). Nothing painful at first. Over the next few months it got much worse. I now experience near constant pain about two inches above my navel. It is not relieved by having a bowel movement in anyway. I also have a lot of gas and bloating.
I had a normal colonoscopy. All of my bloodwork has came back normal. No parasites. I had an endoscopy done, where the doc. found some "flattening" of the villi in my small intestine. But my biopsy was inconclusive so she said I have IBS.
I have tried Heather's diet in the past, albeit not for an extended period of time, and shown absolutely no improvement. The longest I ever made it was when I got to the point where I was eating cream of rice three meals a day because it seemed like anything else made me sick.
The only relief I have found is with Librax. I'm on 4 tab. a day. Nulev,and Bentyl didn't even touch the pain. It even still hurt quite a bit when I took a Tylenol #3.
It seems to be aggravated by alcohol. Once pork sent me in a spin, a couple of days later I tried it again and was fine. Got really sick one day after French onion soup w/o cheese. I've even gotten worse from applesauce and fat free saltines.
Any ideas would be appreciated to no end.
Print
Remind Me
Notify Moderator
|
|
|
i can't speak to the accuracy of your diagnosis, but if you're going to try heather's diet, you need to give it a good long chance to work - the break-the-cycle diet for 3 days tops, and then slowly, safely incorporating IF and protein. and an SFS, of course. it can take a long time to stabilize, so you have to give it a shot, and while you're trying to get stable, really not cheat.
of course, if the diagnosis is wrong, the diet won't help. to that i'd say get another doctor.
--------------------
jaime
ibs-a (mostly d) // vegetarian
Print
Remind Me
Notify Moderator
|
|
|
I suffered and still do sometimes with the same thing almost. I don't get D or even C that much but boy I sure suffer with upper ab gas and bloating. went through a spell where i was so sick I couldnt even eat rice. Well I kinda got better a bit then had the endoscopy done, had a hiatal hernia, had the colonoscopy done that is good. This is all just in the past yr. Well I got so sick I layed on the couch for 2 wks. Now, I have been staying to STRICTLY IBS foods, I cut out coffee, everything u name it. I have been on Nexium now for almost 4 days, I am starting to feel better. I find that if I sneak off from the safe foods it comes to haunt me. No gastro doc could explain the other problems (pain in upper ab) but I feel like I am stabalizing a bit now. Just hang in there oh yea I am back on the fennel tea fulltime.
--------------------
if God brought you to it. He will bring you through it.
Print
Remind Me
Notify Moderator
|
|
|
By good long while are we talking 3 months, 6, a year? Just curious because I don't want to stay on the Librax any longer than I have to.
How well do the peppermint caps work for most people? I tried the tea but I can't handle it (flavor). I actually don't like tea to begin w/ so any other ideas? I ordered the Accia so we'll see how that goes.
Print
Remind Me
Notify Moderator
|
|
|
I have read some posts where people have said 1 or 2 years. Definately more than just 3 - 6 months.
Print
Remind Me
Notify Moderator
|
|
|
Relief enough not to rely on an addictive medication is really the answer I'm looking for. I know it could take a long time maybe never for it to just get better or go away, but I would like the pain to be managable w/o a problematic drug.
Print
Remind Me
Notify Moderator
|
|
|
Have you tried using a probiotic before? Along with SFS it has given me relief of pain, D, and gas.
Print
Remind Me
Notify Moderator
|
|
|
Yes, I got the one that had 7 different types of flora.
Did anyone feel like they just didn't have IBS? I can't help but follow my gut (sorry no pun intended) and feel like it isn't something else. I guess it's probably because I've heard horror stories of doctors missing something because they made an IBS diagnosis w/o really paying attention to all of the symptoms.
Print
Remind Me
Notify Moderator
|
|
|
If you've has all the tests to check for something else and they came back negative, it's probably IBS.
Btw, probiotics usually takes 2-3 months to notice a difference.
Print
Remind Me
Notify Moderator
|
|
|
Did you Dr run blood tests for celiac disease?? Usually flattening of the villi in the small intestine is evidence of that.
--------------------
Kim
Print
Remind Me
Notify Moderator
|
Posts
