View Full Version : Googled change in BM colour and now very worried.Help please
Hello, Ive done something I thought I'd stopped myself doing -looked obsessively at Google- and now I'm really worried. For a few weeks I have had yellow stools. I wasn't worried at first because I have recently been diagnosed with intersticial cysistitus and have changed my diet and have been on and off meds to see if they caused the flare ups so I thought this was causing the change in colour. I had no idea it could be a sign of something serious (which is unusual as I normally think the slightest thing is a sign) and I looked on Google to see if it was a side effect any of the meds or supplements I have been on but all it came up with was serious conditions and 'see the doctor right away'. I know I will have to see the doctor and I have an appointment early next week anyway but I wondered if anyone had anything reassuring to say as everything I saw on the internet was frightening and there was nothing that I could tell myself 'oh it might just be that'. I havent taken any tablets for a week so it can't be them. I'm really worried and it's ironic as this is the one time Ive googled something that I wasn't worried about, I wouldnt have looked if I was.
I've just got to the bottom of having constant cystitus and have had surgery for adhesions and Im so tired of having things wrong with me and I can't face worrying about something else. Thanks for reading.
Never never use Dr Google! It's a road to ruin and worry!
Sorry to read about the IC diagnosis.
You need to ask your doctor for a view on the stool colour. All I know from being on this site for a year now is that you cannot self diagnose and you need medical advice to help with anxiety about your health.
Stools can change colour according to diet ( I was told this last year as I had gallstones and was constantly asked about poo and colour!).
Please try not to fret and ask your doctor when you see them.
Yellow stools are unusual, they can be a sign of malabsorbtion at one end of the scale to pancreatic, liver issues at the other end. The way forward is to discuss your issues with your doctor. If you don't feel unwell or are not bloated or jaundiced then I would not overly concern yourself but you do need to seek advice if the stool color continues.
nomorepanic
03-11-11, 18:02
I totally disagree with Ronski on this
I have Crohn's disease and asked my consultant many times about yellow stools and he keeps telling me it is normal and they can be all sorts of colour.
I get them a lot and I do not have any of the issues Ronski mentions above.
Worried_Male
03-11-11, 18:38
I totally disagree with Ronski on this
I have Crohn's disease and asked my consultant many times about yellow stools and he keeps telling me it is normal and they can be all sorts of colour.
I get them a lot and I do not have any of the issues Ronski mentions above.
Yeah he came in another thread making floating stools sound like a serious condition.
For really paranoid people and worriers he is the last thing they need.
I don't exactly poo rainbows although i wish I did, but don't worry if you are not having any other symptoms. Of course have a word with the doctor too, but if it was something serious you would know from other reasons apart from poo colour ie. pain :)
Yes I don't think people should diagnose like this Ronski on threads as you just can't without seeing the person and we don't know if you have a trained medical background. This site is to reassure the anxious, not diagnose and aggrivate!
Thank you for the reassuring replies, I feel a lot less anxious now but I have to say that if Ronski's had been the last one I would have been more worried than I was before. i wiil of course go to the doctor but now I've got some positive things to make myself think of instead of what I foolishly read on Google.
I have IBS and quite bad HA. I have had every conceivable change in stooll colour (apart from black thankfully!) from very pale to normal to yellow to dark brown. I have been to the doctor's about this more times than I'd like to remember and have had lots of tests (that I demanded, not because my doc was worried). She said that the only stool colour to worry about was black, that almost everything else is caused by dietary changes, how long matter is staying in your gut (if it comes through very quickly because you're running to the loo or stays for a long time because you are constipated) and harmless bacteria in your gut. None of which you need to be concerned about.
As I have HA and I KNOW how you're feeling right now, I'd go to the docs just so you can hear that for yourself but please believe me, you'll be totally fine. I am a google victim too, but you have to try to stay off it, it can never diagnose you. It's just matching the words you've typed in to randomly distributed words it has found in random articles. Leave it alone!
x
There are many issues here that need addressing and the main one is that I am not diagnosing and never intend to, I just give some facts and always with the advice to see your doctor if you are concerned. What is so important is to never put everything down to anxiety as that is clearly a very unsafe path to use.Yes anxiety clearly affects us all in so many different ways but patting each other on the back and saying don't worry hun is as stupid as putting everything down to a terminal disease. I feel if that's the case then Nicola should close down the health anxieties section as you are talking about health issues.
The other thing that is old hat is that Doctors are experts in all aspects of medicine and health, nurses, physiotherapist, clinical psychologists have all important roles and do diagnose conditions in their own right with the appropriate training. In my role as a healthcare professional I helped train doctors as did other disciplines within the healthcare system. I also attended medical courses such as advanced life support and took the same exams so that's my case that in gaining information there are many professionals that can give you that but for a diagnosis you need that from a medically trained doctor.
Ronski- no one is telling this person not to see a doctor if they have symptoms that are causing them concern. No one. I get that you have medical training and that you are trying to offer advice on medical issues being raised. However, you HAVE to remember that people on this forum have health anxiety which is as debilitating as any of the illnesses that they fear they have. Your contributions, whilst they may be well-intended, are extremely insensitive to the way that people are feeling when the post on this site. If they are here, it is because they are distressed and need to be reassured that whilst they are experiencing things that cause them to worry, cancer or chronic illness are not the only or the likeliest outcome.
Your medical knowledge could be used for good, if used appropriately. You could give some sensitive and balanced advice, acknowledging that some symptoms might need checking to be on the safe side but that there are more than likely to be some very benign causes for their symptoms. Your comments feed people's worst fears. They know they can go to the doctor. They know they can look online and see what the possible serious illnesses their symptoms can be linked to. They aren't here for purely medical advice. That's everywhere and when you have HA, you know where to find it. This, in many cases, is people's only place to turn for reassurance. It's invaluable and we all should make sure that this stays a place that people know they can depend on at their lowest points.
From personal experience, I know that when I can't think rationally about things I might be experiencing, this is one of the only places I can come that will make me feel calmer and that can be the only thing that gets me a night's sleep or a productive day at work. I have to be honest, your responses would take that away from me. So please, do be helpful, but do be sensitive.
Button 1 reassurance is a two edged sword. You can reassure with information that is true and factual or reassure with mumbo jumbo. If you go to your doctor you would want him to explore every possibility and not just appease with kind words and a pat on the back. My comments were balanced in that malabsorbtion is a benign condition probably as a result of intestinal hurry because of anxiety. Liver issues could also be related to gall bladder concerns again another benign condition but very painful condition if calculi is the presenting feature.
If as you say all people know they can go to their doctor or see Dr Google then this subsection of the forum has no real useful purpose as experience has no purpose because you just might say the wrong thing or offend somebody by intimating that their symptoms are somatic and not a sign of something that needs attention. I can certainly see why medical professionals do not give their time to forums like this as straight and truthful facts are taken the wrong way. I have health anxieties and do you know why? Because the doctors when they were investigating my chest pain told me to go home as it was all somatic, I collapsed at work in front of two consultants who saw my condition in a different light and insisted I was investigated properly. This resulted in a correct diagnosis of oesophageal ulceration, I had bleeding and erosion so a bit longer pontificating and I might have died from oesophageal bleeding if I had erosion of a major vessel. In that time I had many false diagnoses of angina, Somatiform, and then these would be changed everytime I had an admission with severe chest pain. So to me getting the correct diagnosis is paramount in getting better so knowledge is power and if your doctor knows you take your health seriously and you have a level of understanding he will respect you more and overtime a correct diagnosis will be made.
Do you know that doctors as patients are rarely given the diagnosis of Somatiform because there diagnosing doctors have huge respect for their knowledge base so they start of from a very different position to us on the road to diagnosis.
As a healthcare professional who worked in the NHS for over 33 years with Surgeons and Anaesthetists that the way to approach doctors is to have a reasonable knowledge base regarding your concerns. If you go to your doctor and give a list of symptoms then you will get the usual wait and see response in a majority of cases unless they are clearly red flag symptoms that indicate serious pathology.. If you go with a list of symptoms and a knowledge base of possible causes and you say that you wish to rule out the more serious issues to allow peace of mind you will get an entirely different response in that straight away respect will be in the equation and that means a lot in patient doctor relationship and I tell you it works both ways.
But I have decided that from now on I will continue to visit this site but only comment on anxiety issues and I will not give out anymore information regarding health anxieties. What you must understand that as a previous healthcare professional I look at issues differently, we tend to deal with facts not conjecture so I apologise for maybe my blunt statement of facts but that is life and after 33 years I cannot see myself seeing things from a vastly different perspective.
Yesterday evening after reading the reassuring replies for the first time in days I felt good and positive and stopped worrying all consumingly and went out instead of staying home and obsessing.
This morning after reading Ronski's reply I have almost gone back to square 1 as I am thinking 'he must know what he's talking about and it must be serious' only Button 1's mail has stopped me from being sick with anxiety again.(Thanks Button 1). I said in my first post Ronski that I HAVE a doctor's appointment in a few days, I was writing to this forum for some support /rational possibilities from people who understand what its like when you can't be objective and control your thoughts to get me through those few days. I suspect that like many with HA if I read 9 positive things and 1 negative I latch onto the 1 negative so I dont think I can read this thread again, as like Google you have just fuelled my worries. I am going to make myself concentrate on the positive things people have thoughtfully said if I can until my appointment.
Well Gailgwl you have answered your own question the one of negativity. That is your issues not the yellow stools and as you rightly say that is one of the main reasons for health anxiety. Yes concentrate on the positive replies, go and see your doctor and then put the issue to rest. The other main reason for health anxiety is the concerns created by abnormal beliefs and that is my issue not negativity. My chest pain was crippling with extreme exercise intolerance and to be told it was somatic when I knew it was not has given me a lack of faith in some aspects of medical care but that is my issue not yours. I did not mean to alarm you but in some respects it is your analysis of what I said. I did not intimate any major concerns or conditions and this is where these threads are like e mails in that you can offend because there is no personal involvement like talking. But as I have stated I will not be giving anymore information so as far as I am concerned you can all reassure each other with nice sentimental and meaningful statements that will allow you hopefully to make the correct decisions for your health and future recovery from this very debilitating of conditions.
Veronica H
05-11-11, 22:42
I would just like to say a huge thank you to my recovery buddy Ronski who has helped me no end with my anxiety issues, and his knowledge about panic anxiety is second to none. He has been told off by me in the past for taking a hammer to crack a nut due to his vast medical knowledge, but he remains one of the kindest and caring people I have ever met. Please be aware that he also has health anxiety and imagine how that must impact someone whose whole life has revolved around the medical profession. Please stay around buddy and give your advice in the panic/anxiety forum. :bighug1:Vx
countrygirl
05-11-11, 22:56
Just wanted to add to Veronicas post that although I can understand people being rattled by ronskis posts for me they are great as he has the knowledge to explain things, I personally do not want "there there it will be okay" replies I want knowledge and facts so that when I go to my Dr I can say I have xxx symptoms and I am worried that they may be caused by xxxx.
On the subject of this initial posting about yellow stools, I would have said that its most likely caused by food etc but I would have also shared my knowledge that if your stools become very pale almost porridge coloured this can be sign of gallbladder or liver problems - not because I want to scare anyone but its useful info to know for the future, maybe I am wrong to do this in my reply to posts:shrug:.
If someone only wants reassuring then please as others have done make this clear in your first post, some peopel say "I don't want to hear anything that will worry me" and if they put that then my reply will reflect this but otherwise I will at times pass on any specific info that I have from also working in the medical field but not being medically qualified.
To stop the argy bargy maybe eveyone could adopt the above and say if they don't want to know any info and just want reassurance.
Thank you Veronica and Countrygirl for your kind words of support and that leaves me with a catch 22. The last thing I wish to do is to create more mental anguish to people who are already in the wringer.
I have been having a long think about what health anxiety is and how it appears to me when it rears its ugly head with me. These are my thoughts!
Anxiety by itself unlike depression is not an illness but a behavioural disorder. This then gives a reason why the medical profession as a whole do not have a great understanding of the condition. There input is down to book learning, personal experience and of course their medical Training. I believe I am right when I state that anxiety and related nervous system disorders are at the bottom of the list if at all on their training schedule. Also I believe in some cases and not all it is looked at as a major character flaw which is extremely unhelpful.
Now if you are met with total disregard regarding your symptoms by your doctor then that is the first step in getting the condition. You are given the diagnosis of Somatiform due to anxiety without any further explanation of how the nervous system imbalance can affect all bodily systems. Your symptoms continue and your mind looks for answers. Now the illness starts to evolve as the stress hormones are released by thoughts that imagine serious pathology. So in reality health anxiety is a battle between abnormal belief symptoms and a mind that knows in reality you are being stupid thinking the way you do. And all because at some point a doctor did not take the time to explain the mysteries of the nervous system or maybe he didn't really understand it himself and that my friends is the key. Doctors do not really understand the intricies of the complex nervous system and that telling somebody to snap out of it is so unhelpful. Knowledge is power and I firmly believe that to get over the condition you have to go to your doctor with your concern and thrash it out so there is no room for disbelief. Tell him/her your concerns and ask those questions you secretly are embarrassed about in case you look stupid. Once you get the reassurance then you must put it to bed and get on with your life. If you do not get the answers go to a doctor who will explain things in an appropriate way to your personal needs. What doctors do not understand but clinical psychologists do is that if you really believe that you have a serious illness then the anxiety is normal so your body is acting appropiately. We can never rid ourselves of anxiety as it is intrinsic withing us and essential for our well being, all we can ever do is lower the response.
The owner of this thread has written about yellow stools and in her mind she really knows that it will turn out to be nothing serious but her mind is telling her that just maybe it won't be that simple. This results in tension and stress that causes the release of stress hormones. This is how knowledge can work to combat that thinking.
Normal faecal colour is a result of the breakdown of biliary salts ( in other words bile that is stored in the gallbladder and is released to breakdown dietary fat ) now if you have yellow stools then that indicates that the biliary salts are either diluted somewhat due to intestinal hurry in other words malabsorbtion due to anxiety or a slow or minimal release from the bile duct. Any serious pathology would give other clearly defined symptoms that would leave you in no doubt that a trip to the doctors would be needed, but if you are in two minds because you have yellow stools and that is your only symptom then dosent that answer the question that yes if they stay yellow over a period of time and not occasional then it's just common sense to get some closure on your concern.
Now I said all that in a concise way and it caused offence to so many people but for her to get better she needs to stop the negativity and that is to say stop stop stop when your mind starts that process of negativity. That is the way forward along with knowledge and of course a compassionate and emphatic GP.
countrygirl
06-11-11, 12:11
Perfect explanation of health anxiety for most people. Personally the trigger for me was not a dr but the illness and death experience I had at age 4 of my grandmother ( acting as mother at the time) that wired into my brain that illness equals death. Everyone has a different trigger but the end result if always the same.
I totally agree that most Drs really do not know how to handle anyone with health anxiety, I have a good GP who I can discuss my fears with and he will give me explanations for every question I have. Most Drs hate being questioned as they feel that you are questioning their judgement so I find it mostly helps if I explain I have ha and so need to ask questions that most patients wouldn't.
Once again I would reiterate that if someone does not want to be given any information on their post then make that very clear in your post otherwise ronski and myself are going to get slapped wrists rather alot!
Obviously this site is not for me. I have to explain my anxiety issues to my husband, friends,work mates, doctors and it becomes very wearing i didnt think i needed to underline the fact that i didnt want to hear any more serious possibilities. Im not stupid I go to the doctor, i knew i have symptoms that are potentially serious but was looking for a friendly word and maybe possible simple explanations as i had said that i had read what the serious possibilities could be. I could understand being given frank advice if i had said i didnt know the possibilities and wasnt going to a dr.I thought that anyone who understood HA would appreciate that. I have previously been told by Nicola that this site is not for diagnosing. I did not expect to be patronised aMnd my need for non medical support belittled as some of Ronskis later remarks did . I have to hide my fears continually in my everyday life and thought it was ok to let go here.
nomorepanic
06-11-11, 15:13
Gail
Don't leave please.
I don't think anyone should have to make disclaimers in their posts on here about what they do and don't want to hear.
I appreciate that all you wanted to know was is is normal to have the stool colours changing and I replied as I have been told it was.
If my Chron's consultant isn't worried then I am not worried and he knows more about bowel movements than anyone else I would think seeing as he specialises in it.
I am sure you are fully aware that if it continues then you would see a doc but you don't need to be told that either :winks:
countrygirl
06-11-11, 15:43
Sorry I got it wrong.
nomorepanic
06-11-11, 16:48
Sorry I got it wrong.
Not at all. You are entitled to your opinion like anyone else on here.
I agree Nicola that everybody is entitled to have their opinion and your information regarding stool colour should have been reassuring enough to have put Gail's mind to rest regardless what she thought about my posting. Regardless of who you are though it's the negativity that must be addressed or you will never improve, and just jump from one crisis to another regarding your health. My Health anxieties are massively improved and it was through the Stop Stop Stop technique every time I could feel the thoughts start to escalate. Also use distraction such as light music or a hobby that you can lose yourself in. I know it's hard but it's the only way.
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