Very anxious

Thank you for replying. No I'm eating terribly, lost so much weight obviously and also from my anxiety. I have just started to take sertraline. Can you get ibs at this age.

Thanks Emily, I just can't get it out my head that excess mucous is a big red flag for colon cancer. I think my anxiety is obviously not helping. I have my follow up appointment with my consultant in a couple of weeks, hopefully he can put my mind at rest at last.

I have been diagnosed with IBS, Anxiety and Haemorrhoids, along with Fibromyalgia and CFS, after having many, many tests done to investigate my symptoms, and I get exactly the same symptoms as you. Gurgling, churning bowels, loose stools that are slimy and mucousy and I bleed every now and again. I also feel generally unwell most days, with varying degrees of severity, mostly mild illness but now and again I can feel really unwell. I think I’ve been going through an IBS flare the last couple of days, as I’ve felt more ill that normal and most stomach and bowels will not stop churning, it’s like my abdomen is doing the conga!

Pretty sure you’re suffering with IBS, especially since all your test results came back fine, it can hit people hard and make them very ill, it certainly knocks me for six every now and again and brings on a whole host of other symptoms when it does.

I hope that helps, do take care and all the best.

Hi Paul, Yes I think you're right. I have an awful fear now of going to the toilet, which is making matters worse. I've been thinking about trying fybogel. The anxiety this has caused is crippling. Thank you so much for replying.

All the best

The anxiety I get rules my life Tracy, I can hardly go out without worrying and panicking about my symptoms flaring up, so usually I don't bother. I've been told I can have counselling but what good is that when I can hardly step outside, especially with the way I feel right now going through this latest flare up.

I eat a lot of nuts, particularly walnuts and macadamia nuts, not only has the fibre content bound my stools together to make them more formed than they were, but they also provide a lot of essential nutrients that I'm lacking due to the food intolerances / sensitivities that my conditions cause. I have IBS-C, and have about 2 bowel movements a week if that, and I've found nuts make it easier to pass stools, which have in turn reduced the amount my haemorrhoids bleed. As long as I don't strain to pass a stool, I'm gentle when I wipe and keep using wet wipes instead of dry toilet tissue then I hardly ever bleed now. Unfortunately I don't think there is a product or food that will reduce the mucous production, that is a part of having IBS that is extremely hard to avoid.

Take care and wishing you all the best.

Hi Paul,

Ibs is all new to me. What exactly happens when you say you have a flare up. Sorry for being a bit thick, only the Dr. has mentioned that my symptoms could be due to ibs but I wasn't convinced as they all seem to diagnose this when they seem to be at a loss. As I've said my anxiety is through the roof, just started to take sertraline. I can't get my head around the fact that they've missed something even though colonoscopy was clear. My bowels are on my mind from the minute I go to sleep, I can't concentrate on anything else. It's selfish really but I can't stop.

All the best

When I have a flare up I notice my stomach and bowels churn and gurgle more than normal, plus my random abdominal pains get worse and I feel more bloated than normal. I also suffer with bouts of nausea plus I can feel quite lightheaded and feel like I'm 'on a boat'. I also get this weird left eye twitching thing going on, only happens during flare ups. Some will experience increased urgency and frequency of needing to go to the toilet to pass stools.

The reason your doctors are at a loss and are thinking you have IBS is because all tests done have shown no other reason for the causes of your symptoms. Believe me, I've had extensive testing done and seen numerous specialists and had a few doctors opinions and they are all adamant that IBS is the cause of my symptoms. I think the only thing I haven't had done is a small bowel MRI, but doctors seem to think that with my more than pleasing endoscopy and colonoscopy results, the fact I'm not loosing weight, the fact there is no blood in my stool then they really see no point in doing the MRI, unless my condition gets worse, which it hasn't in 3 years to date, so unlikely to in the future.

It's very easy to get wrapped up in what might be causing your problems and whether anything has been missed, the only advice I can give you is that time helps you come to terms with your diagnosis. As I said I've been like this for 3 to 4 years now, and I've learnt to come to terms and accept my diagnosis more, but when I have really bad days, there's always those thoughts and feelings of doubt that creep in, it's a natural thing that you'll never get rid of, just learn to deal with it better.

Give it time and patience and I'm sure you'll learn to accept your conditions more as time goes by. All the best for the future!

All the best x

Thank you for replying. I have had calprocterin stool test which was under 20. The other stool sample was for bacteria etc, don't know whether that would include parasites. I will certainly ask the Dr. about c. diff.

You’re welcome! I’m recovering from c diff currently and it has been awful. Not saying that is what you have at all. But, definitely worth getting tested for. When the dr gave me my order sheet for labs. It said stool cultures, Ova & parasites, c diff.