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Please help!! Ibs or something else?

Posted , 7 users are following.

charlotte96197
charlotte96197

Hey guys!

I have recently been diagnosed with ibs by my doctor.

Sometimes the pain gets so bad, I find it hard to believe that it is just ibs that I'm suffering with or if it's something more serious!

I have a really bloated tummy - looks like I'm about 6 months pregnant some days (which is really embarrassing!), I also get this really bad pain between my rib cage that sometimes radiates to my chest (which makes me worry about my heart), I get pain under my ribs too, especially the left side, find it really uncomfortable to eat and feel full really easily. 

Are these all really symptoms of ibs? Like I say, I am worried about my heart (doctors say my heart is nothing to worry about as I am only 23 so they won't do any tests on me). I sometimes find it hard to breath as the fullness makes it painful.

If this is just ibs, can any sufferers recommend any medication that can help with this?

I also suffer from anxiety (or so the doctor says!) so obviously this is going to make it worse?

Thank you, Charlotte x

0 likes, 14 replies

14 Replies

  • kerry02122
    kerry02122 charlotte96197

    Posted

    Hi Charlotte, 

    I have to say despite not wanting you to be feeling like you do i am so relieved to read this post, I have recently had the worst rib cage and chest pains, After many many tests and originally being treated for a hiatial hernia i never had, I have now been told i have a kidney stone (which isnt causing me too much hassle) but i have also been diagnosed with IBS. I get severe bloating too to the point where people think i am pregnant, i have severe stomach pain which radiates up between my left rib cage and chest area and i am also convinced its heart related. but i have been to the doctors so many times ive lost count and the hospital too and they keep telling me i am ok despite feeling like i do. They have recently recommended i try amitriptyline one to help me rest but two they say its good for IBS sufferers, its not done much so far but its only been a couple of days, there is also Buscopan which weirdly you can buy in the shops without prescription despite the leaflet advising you to only take it if prescribed.

    I hope this helps just to know you are not alone, i hope someone else has suggestions for you and myself on what medication may be good,

    Kerry x

    • charlotte96197
      charlotte96197 kerry02122

      Posted

      Thank you for your reply Kerry!

      It's kind of comforting knowing that someone else is going through the same thing. I'm the same - been to the doctors so many times that I've lost count! Do you suffer from anxiety too? I know anxiety can make things feel much worse than it actually is which then of course causes more worry. I try to convince my self all the time that the doctors are right and that it is just ibs, it never works though!!! 

      Thank you for the advice, I will speak to my doctor (again!) and see if he can prescribe me some. 

      I find it so irritating that it just comes on out of the blue and lasts for ages. Do you find certain foods help? I've tried changing my diet a little but hasn't made a difference! x

    • kerry02122
      kerry02122 charlotte96197

      Posted

      Thanks for replying back, it is a relief to find someone who seems to be going through exactly the same things. I do suffer from anxiety but just find it too hard to reason with myself that its just anxiety/ibs as the pain feels so strong and real. 

      I tried to keep a food diary but it varied day to day, the bloating can happen even from having just a cup of tea, i've tried to start eating healthier as i dont admittedly have the best diet in the world, But it hasn't changed anything! 

      Is there anything you find helps? it keeps me up in the night too and lack of sleep doesn't help x

    • charlotte96197
      charlotte96197 kerry02122

      Posted

      I'm the same, I'm convinced it's something else! I find it so strange that it can cause chest pain etc, you would think it would just be tummy!  

      Nothing seems to help really, weather I eat really healthy or eat rubbish it's still the same. One thing my doctor did recommend was laxatives - he said it would clear my bowel out and help the bloating. Just don't like the thought of taking them! X

    • kerry02122
      kerry02122 charlotte96197

      Posted

      i know yeah, i can't get my head round IBS causing the chest and rib pain but i don't know if its all because of the anxiety. i get so scared its heart related problems. i'm 27 and it just feels neverending, i would just like a day where i can eat what i would normally without any pain or worryy.

      Ohhh ok, no i don't think i would feel overly keen on laxatives, Buscopan apparently relieves the bloating / stomach pains so i think i may speak to my doctor about that. 

      I feel silly for keep going back to the doctors so regularly but i am in so much pain all the time you just think there must be something they can do x

    • charlotte96197
      charlotte96197 kerry02122

      Posted

      Well I'm only 23 but still worry about my heart! I wish I could demand tests! I feel like each time I go to the doctors, I say the same thing and they say the same thing so I never actually get anywhere. Like you say, you would think they could do something about it. I've been upset so many times cos I feel like I'm not getting anywhere and if doctors don't help then who can?! It's just a nightmare!! x
    • kerry02122
      kerry02122 charlotte96197

      Posted

      I know you feel like you go round in circles! I ended up going to A&E because I was so scared. They were really good but the trouble is they referred me for more tests which then got passed back to my doctor so I am back to square one. I'd like to think the pains and horrible feelings will get better in time as having years of this would just be hurrendous!

      I hope something gets sorted for you! X

    • charlotte96197
      charlotte96197 kerry02122

      Posted

      I did the same not so long back - I had a scan on my lower abdomen (that's where it hurt at the time) and everything came back fine. They then refered me back to gp and that's when they decided I had ibs!!

      Hope things get sorted for you too - I shall let you know if I find some magic relif!! 

      Take care x

    • kerry02122
      kerry02122 charlotte96197

      Posted

      Its mad! And they cant give anything for it yet dont advise what to do to help either!

      Please do and keep me updated with how things are going. I'm so relieved to have been able to talk to someone having the same problems.

      Thank you, you too x

    • brummiebabe
      brummiebabe charlotte96197

      Posted

      Hi Charlotte - I too uffer all the things u say eg bloating and hard to breathe at times. As Kerry has said it is comforting to know other people feel the same. I have tried everything I know of and still have the problem. So fed up of it as it governs my life, as im sure it does yours. Sorry cant suggest anything but take care x
    • charlotte96197
      charlotte96197 brummiebabe

      Posted

      Thank you for your reply!

      Like you say, it is just nice to know there are other people suffering.

      Hopefully we will get this problem sorted x

  • rowenasurio1
    rowenasurio1 charlotte96197

    Posted

    Hi Charlotte,

    All the symptoms you describe are what I have and have refused for 3 years to believe it was IBS but doctors convince me it is not cancer or something that it feels like more of.

    i am so sorry you are suffering and that no doctor has prescribed you anything for the unbearable chest type pains. If it is like me, it is "a bit of dyspepsia" which really annoys me as it does feel like a heart attack or something. Ask them to prescribe you omeprazole which should help relieve this.

    i have struggled with IBS symptoms since I was 4. Yet now I am 23 and have only really been officially diagnosed with it in the last few years. There are 2 types of ibs: IBS-C (constipation) and IBS-D (diahorrea).

    after seeing a specialist he put me on the FODMAP diet. Google it as it will explain better than I can. It's basically a diet that show you foods which trigger ibs symptoms, like wheat, dairy, and certain fruits and vegetables. Doctors rarely ever mention this because many don't know about it. There's more research to show that it is more effective for IBS-D sufferers however it can benefit the other sufferers.

    promise you are not alone. I understand the feeling of frustration in that all this grief and discomfort and sometimes excruciating pain is just "ibs" as I feel it is so downplayed. I also refuse to believe still that absolutely nothing will help me after trying various antidepressants, pills, laxatives, therapy, holistic treatment... Everything!

    to settle your own piece of mind, if you haven't already, ask for blood tests and stool tests just to relieve your mind that it isnt anything chronic.

    i really think you should try FODMAP as that was what was recommended to me by a gastroenterologist. Unfortunately for me it worked at first for about 5 months but then slowly dwindled, however I am a C sufferer and it is less effective. 

    Please be assured that I'm sure it is IBS; ibs is heavily anxiety and stress induced so worrying that it is something deathly is going to make it worse. So sorry you are  a bad sufferer.

  • farmerswife
    farmerswife charlotte96197

    Posted

    I want to tell you what seems to be working for me. I do not have the severe symptoms some of you on this thread have, but have had IBS symptoms for a few weeks. Every time I ate, within 10 minutes, had pain and diarreah, ect. Everything I'd been able to eat before caused an attack. I desperation, I found a thread where people were doing a 5/2 day fast (two days they ate 500 calories or less) and then tried introducing one thing at a time to see what their triggers were. I decided that since my system was so out of whack, I'd give my digestive tract a break and eat baby food for the 500 calorie days. Immediately, I no longer had the bloating, rumbling intestines and the diarreah stopped. I'm now on my 3rd day of no symptoms and have started to reintroduce regular food, via very small amounts. I'm also taking probiotics (30 billion) and drink a variety of teas that have ginger, probiotics, peppermint, green tea. I  know this may not work on anyone else, but wanted to share . Maybe some variant of this might help. Giving your system a rest, (not much digestion needed with baby food) and then introducing one food at a time to learn which triggers to avoid, may help. Incidentally, I think what threw me into IBS was a reaction to sugar/artificial sweetner in a product I didn't realize it was in. Taking that product on an empty stomach for days on end pushed me over the edge. 
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