Toilet troubles making me miserable

[betty72]

Hi yet another problem has come my way and I'm fed up and need some friendly advice.

First it was 10 months of PVC's, then its irregular periods and spotting, and now its regular bowel movements! This is going to sound a bit gross but I suppose nothing's left to the imagination on here lol. Basically in the toilet department I'm normally regular (once a day or so) and rarely suffer with constipation or diahorrea. The last 3-4 days I've been regular as in getting the urge to go to the toilet 4+ times a day. And I've had very bad wind but that has calmed down because I don't think there's anything left!

I don't get that feeling when you have diahorrea but just the urge and it feels my tummy is constantly getting ready for the next trip to the toilet. Its normal consistency and now I've got slight soreness in my lower tummy because its been so active. Is this a bug, IBS or worse? I've never had this before and I have read that it can be connected with pre-menopause (I'm 38 and my nan went through menopause same age) and thyroid. Because I've had irregular bleeding (I'm not having proper periods mostly spotting last 3 months) I'm due to have a pelvic scan in a couple of weeks and blood tests to detect for all kinds of things (including thyroid and menopause) but I'm just wondering if this is common and what can I take to help the symptoms. Part of me is suspecting hormones but the panicking side of me says ovarian cancer because of the link with the irregular periods/spotting and the excess gas. Help! I'm going away for 5 nights on Saturday and need someone to put my mind at rest. Thanks. :wacko:

[Going home]

Hi betty, well if you're in your 40s or 50s you could be suffering with a hormone imbalance which is common on the run up to the menopause. Its something called the peri-menopause and can start anything from 10 years before you have your last period, though that can be extreme. In alot of ways the symptoms you experience during this time can be worse than the actual menopause, which is only really when the periods stop altogether. Hormone imbalance can wreak havoc on our system in loads of ways, the irregular periods being only a part of it...tension and anxiety can be bad and can affect anything and everything, digestion, bowel movements, bladder infections, palpitations, aches and pains...you name it and you feel it.

But I agree that its always best to have some tests done to rule out certain other causes such as thyroid problems etc, although to be honest, during the peri-menopause (for me it lasted from age 44 to 48 when my periods stopped) I had many blood tests because i was always at the doctors, convinced there had to be some other reason for my symptoms, but the teats for thyroid etc always came back negative. I suffered also with PVC's alot during this time...still do from time to time, and you'll find alot of the ladies who have hormonal problems or suffer with PMT have them regularly too. I know its easy to be scared by the thought of ovarian cancer since we read so much about it these days and although its good that the symptoms are being talked about much more than they were, its still quite rare.

Hope this helps
Anna xxx