Irritable Bowel Syndrome Message Boards | I REALLY need all of your help, I can't handle this anymore...

About 1 year and a half ago my IBS symptoms started. I would mostly alternate between C and D, but always experienced bloating and pain. My D usually happened after eating bad foods or eating out. After awhile, I became so afraid of eating out that I would avoid all types of social interaction (i.e. restaurants, parties, etc.) in which food was involved or just would not eat during the outings/events. I took Bentyl for a while, but that stopped helping. Then it became worse and I eventually stopped eating during the day due to my fear that an attack would happen at work (because my job requires that I sit in meetings and/or court for most of the day). I started taking Acidophilus and exercising and that really seemed to help in the evenings, but I continued to avoid eating out and during the day. Some of my health problems started to worsen. I began having increased heart rate, high blood pressure, muscle aches/pains, urinary problems, etc. I was referred to numerous specialists (but never a GI).

After switching to a new PCP(a male, go figure) in April, I was finally referred to a GI. About 6 weeks ago, I had a colonoscopy and EGD which revealed a hyperplastic polyp on the stomach lining and inflammation of the duodenum. The GI informed me that the polyp was not cancerous and that the inflammation was minor and told me to see him in 6 weeks.
After that appt, I decided to stop my birth control, Yasmin, because after re-reading the pamphlet and looking at all of my side effects (i.e. stomach problems, muscle pains, headaches, mood swings, urinary problems, etc.), I thought there may have been a connection. Since stopping the birth control, I have noticed a slight improvement with my stomach and have not had a single case of diarrhea since (for approx 7 weeks now). However, I have been having other horrible symptoms since stopping my bcp (i.e. HAIR LOSS, skin problems, depression, etc.). My hair loss has become so severe since stopping I am losing 200 plus hairs a day which has caused anxiety and ONCE AGAIN stomach problems.

I saw the GI two days ago and he told me that he is leaning towards an IBS diagnosis. He told me that all he was willing to prescribe was Elavil, however, because it is an Anti-Dep. I was concerned about the additional hair loss. I asked about Librax (or some other med with an anti-anxiety component), but he refused. I saw my GYN yesterday to tell her about my problems since I stopped Yasmin. Becuase I was on the BCP for 3 years and stopped 2 months ago, I was not sure if my recent problems (i.e. anxiety, depression, HAIR LOSS, and still NO PERIOD, etc.)were due to the hormonal changes. She said that all of my problems are due to anxiety and have nothing to do with the birth control. However, since being off yasmin, my blood pressure, cholesterol and heart rate had decreased significantly. Again, she said I just have anxiety. After a lot of persuasion, she agreed to run hormone tests to check my testosterone and DHEA. But she said that if they were normal, then nothing was wrong and I should "just see a therapist." I cried for almost an hour after my appt and couldn't return to work. Am I really just crazy??? Is this just all in my head? If it is anxiety, wouldn't something like Librax be more appropriate for my IBS and anxiety? PLEASE HELP! No one believes me. This is ruining my life- my job, my relationships with my b/f, friends and family. I don't know what to do...

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