Thank you for your encouragement - its nice to know that someone else is also going through this at a young age and understands what it can do to your social life, etc. My birthdays also in October hehe! When's yours? I agree that this whole thing is very stressful, which is a vicious cycle because the worrying causes stress, which causes the ibs to get worse...lol, its crazy! I also agree about family - it is good that they are here for me even though they dont always get it. Thanks so much!