So worried again :(

[tashbarnes87]

HI all, i have been having a few bowel problems lately. For the past 6 weeks i have had very very loose soft poo's after months of constipation. I get really windy & crampy 1st thing then i go to the toilet & i feel better for a while. Last week i stopped eating my after dinner yoghurt & after a few days things felt like they were getting back to normal & i was going once every other day & TMI it was a normal poo. Today i have woken up with the wind pains & just gone to the toilet & its runny again. Im just so very worried about it & i have lost loads of weight recently & im panic ing i have cancer :(

[Horse]

I think the first thing that would spring to my mind is IBS.

Perhaps a trip to the GP would put your mind at rest. I know we always think the worst first of all and we are never logical in our thinking.

You may find that diet could possibly help you with the symptoms.

Horse.

[Taffy]

Sounds very much like its a combination of IBS and anxiety. I've been having a rough time lately and my bowel movements haven't been the best...mainly very lose stools (TMI!)

As I had a colonoscopy / Endoscopy last year and because of this I'm fairly confident its all down to my increased anxiety levels. I suspect its the same in your case as is the weight loss so please try not to worry.

Maybe a trip to the GP would help put your mind at ease.

[kirsty74]

just going to repeat what the others have said. Sounds like IBS. This is usually worse in the morning and dairy products are a very common cause of it. I can only very rarely eat a yogurt or cheese as I too have IBS. See your GP to get it confirmed and there are some good books you can get to help manage it.

[tashbarnes87]

hi all, thanks for the replys just got back from the doctors as i was in a state & he has referred me to the hospital for a colonoscopy. I cannot think straight as my head is just telling me he is looking for cancer :(

[Taffy]

Tash...

I had the same last year...they are not looking for Cancer, they are probably doing the only thing that will put your mind at rest. I was the same for me...until someone could catgorically look inside my Colon and say "yeh its clean as whistle" I wouldn't allow myself to believe it.

If you read my reply to Googlenomore's thread you will see what I went through. They are so many other symptoms with this type of Cancer that you don't mention such as blood in the stools.

From my experinence I would say its all down to anxiety and IBS.

[Princess Sparkle]

Hi Tash!

This does sound like it could be IBS-related and IBS is probably the most likely cause too (and we should always assume the most likely cause for something unless we have reason to believe otherwise, right?). Have you read the IBS article here at No More Panic? You'll probably find that a lot of your symptoms match up with IBS problems. And, of course, IBS is related to stress and anxiety, so if you're worrying about what's wrong, you're probably making it worse or at least stopping your bowel movements from getting back to normal.

I'm suffering from something quite similar at the moment - mine's been going on for three weeks now - and I don't think anything too bad it wrong. In fact, I'm sure it's IBS related. But I also know that the doctors cannot diagnose IBS without checking things out first, just to be on the safe side. So the reason your doctor has sent you for a colonoscopy is not because he thinks there's anything horrible wrong, but to prove that there isn't anything horrible wrong (both to put your mind and ease and so he can then prescribe the right medication to help you get back to normal).

It certainly doesn't sound like there's anything to worry about here and I'm sure the tests are just precaution but, if you're still worried (and I know how hard it is not to worry about these things), I would suggest that you pop back to see your doctor, just to get him to confirm why he has asked for the colonoscopy. I'm sure he'll tell you the same thing - it's just so he can rule things out and then find the right course of treatment for you (he wouldn't be doing his job if he just jumped to conclusions without checking things out first).

I do hope this helps in some way and I hope you find some peace of mind while you wait.

:hugs:

[tashbarnes87]

Thanks so much for your replies!! Princess thank you so much!! I had a really bad day on sat with stomach pain & that horrible feeling of urgency then nothing yest at all, i didnt even go to the toilet once? Is that a good thing? I have started to keep a food diary to see if i can notice anything. x

[blueangel]

One thing that might help you with your worries is that don't forget, bowel cancer is really, really rare in people under 50, and most of the cases are found in people over 60 years old.