Irritable Bowel Syndrome Message Boards | What is going on with my body!? (Long)

Is IBS suppose to get worse? I was diagnosed with IBS-C in December, went on Zelnorm (which didn't work), and found this Web site. I follow the diet and use the fiber, fennel tea, and sometimes peppermint tea. Although I'm never regular, sometimes things are okay. However, over the last few months, I've had to eliminate more and more food from diet (even safe food) because I get terrible bloating and gas pains. I sometimes avoid food when I already feel "full" or bloated just to avoid furthering the discomfort. Lately, I've started to feel extremely dehydrated, even though I drink more than 64-ounces of water a day. This last weekend was horrible. I hadn't had a BM for more than a week, so on Friday I took a laxative. I woke up in the middle of the night with extreme chest pain. I had a small BM in the morning and spent the rest of the day in gut-wretching, cramping pain. I drank a lot of water, ran 6 miles, just hoping to relieve the pain that I thought was still constipation to no avail. (Yes, running sometimes helps me, believe it or not.) Despite the amount of water I kept drinking (and it was A LOT) nothing was coming out and I literally felt like my intenstines were filling up with water. This morning, the only thing coming out was water, and (this is extremely embarrassing) I experienced fecal incontinence for the first time in my life.

Did I damage myself by taking a laxative? Has anyone else every gone through this?

Every time I see my doctor, she just wants to prescribe Zelnorm and I don't want to make a gastroenterologist appointment if this is just another IBS symptom. Please, please, please offer advice.

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