Hello! New Health Anxiety sufferer here, looking for some fellow advice! 💓

[*anxious_mari*]

Hello all! I’ve been a lurker here for a while, you can see my introduction post if you’d like that explains my reasoning for finally joining. But I’ll also touch base a bit here. My current health anxiety revolves around gastro issues. This is something that I’ve dealt with for the past year on and off (some days I manage, some days I don’t). The main reason I decided to join, was to finally get some more insight from others who have possibly gone through what I’m going through and to also gain some insight into how to approach my doctor on these issues. As of now, I haven’t been diagnosed with anything, as I haven’t brought it to anyone’s attention. Just been trying to grasp what I’ve been dealing with, wanted to find the right wording, because with annual comprehensive exams you are only given a short time with your doctor. So, I would like to be able to present the symptoms in a way that doesn’t overpower them and also in a way that they are able to be address and be heard (if that makes sense).

So I guess I’ll start by listing my symptoms that I’ve dealt with. Just want to put out there that I’ve always had some type of stomach issues growing up just never thought anything of them. It wasn’t until my health anxiety kicked in that I became very observant of them.

I should say that my health anxiety started after my grandmother was diagnosed out of the blue with breast cancer in Jan 2020, thankfully it was stage 1, low grade, and she’s in remission (god bless mammograms). But it was a couple months after taking care of her and being around cancer talks and oncology appointments with her that I started to fear cancer in general (at first the worry was do the women in our family need to fear breast cancer) turns out we don’t, it’s not genetic in our case. But it was then that my bowel issues started to become prevalent to me. I had my first scare after my morning bowel movement when I found blood after wiping (it was so small I thought I cut myself possibly). I was a bit concerned so I googled (I know, this is so bad). I was getting some scary results, obviously, so I made an appointment with my practitioner. I told her that I googled and I’m afraid of colon cancer and she told me “yeah umm don’t do that” and we both had a quick laugh. She did a quick external rectal exam, quickly saw the small hemorrhoid, and she said it was what she expected with the small amount of blood presented ( I took a pic of the blood on my toilet paper to show her). She sent me home with a lot of resources & handouts on how to treat it, I did that, and it went away in like one day. I was fine. But for some reason, the health anxiety lingered and stayed. I then became very hyper vigilant of my bowel movements and digestive health in general. So here is a list of things I’ve observed over the past year. Mind you, all of these symptoms are not constant or consistent, they come and go in waves. So majority I am fine, but when I get the symptoms I really take note and that’s when my health anxiety is at it’s worst.

Symptoms:
-Gurgling stomach noises (heard from stomach all the way to lower intestines)
-Flatulence that is usually associated with those noises (this one is highly associated with food/diet)
-Gas pains usually in lower intestine area (relieved with bowel movements/flatulence)
-I have normal bowel movement patterns as I have 1-3 of them in the mornings.
-Its rare if I get diarrhea, I can probably count on my hand how many times I’ve had legit diarrhea.
-My stool consistency if I’m normal is Bristol chart 3-5. If I’m having an off day, it’s Bristol 2 or 6. This obviously fluctuates for me.
-I’ve had flat stools, loose stools, really long snake stools (snake stools is when I know my bowels are happy)
-Stool color ranges from yellow to brown (sometimes a combo of both, sometimes one more color than the other, sometimes a gradient of each shade)
-Undigested food in stool (this one is confusing to me if it’s normal or not)
-Hemmorhoid (this one appeared again end of last year but felt more like a tear, so not sure if it’s back)
-hunger pangs occasionally (usually in the mornings)
-Bloating isn’t much of a problem for me (I’ve maybe been bloated twice in the past year, minus around my period)
-Acid reflux (but honestly, this only happens when I eat spicy foods or homemade Mexican foods)

Current flares:
Today I’ve had the stomach noises & had a bout of diarrhea today that was normal brown color but did have some floating pieces with bubbles around it. This of-course has concerned me, since floating types of stools is a concern. What confused me is this morning my normal bowel movements were Bristol 4, and normal colored, but then randomly in the evening I had that bout.. A real odd thing.

Still trying to figure out what caused the bout of diarrhea since I don’t normally have that. The only thing I can think of is I had homemade bean burritos last night (beans are not my friends, ever, yet I still eat them). We make them refried which I know is possibly a trigger. Is it common to have diarrhea with that type of appearance, I don’t really know since I usually don’t have it often?

I have popped some Pepto bismuth, drank some ginger tea with probiotics, and sitting with a heating blanket. Seems to help.

“Diagnosis” that I’ve feared over the year:
-Colon Cancer
-Pancreatic cancer
-Anal cancer

Thanks for reading all of this if you’ve made it this far, would like some insight into possible conditions I may be dealing with, and also how to approach my doctor about all these symptoms.

Would also be helpful to have some natural ways to sort out my digestive issues in the meantime. I currently take probiotics and fiber supplements, eating more fiber and drinking kombucha every day.

[Tindra]

Reading through your symptoms, I can't really spot anything that sounds alarming or necessarily even abnormal (not a doctor, but I'm taking from personal experience).
As for the undigested food in stool, I'm pretty sure that isn't too alarming assuming there isn't super big chunks or anything. For example, stuff like tomato peel/skin often tends to go all the way through for me without completely getting digested.
Stool colour can be affected by what you eat, and if it's been affected by IBS/anxiety/stress it can get pretty crazy with colours.
A lot of your symptoms are most likely explained by the beans you mentioned, especially if your stomach doesn't like them. Stuff like beans tend to cause excess gas very easily. Spicy food might also have something to do with it.

Overall, I'd say you don't have anything to worry about. Of course, asking a medical professional is generally the best way to make sure you don't have anything, but I couldn't really see anything that sounds all that alarming, especially since you've already been examined.

Edit: It's also worth noting that the digestive system tends to be among the first to react to anxiety and stress.

Anxiety sucks, hang in there, you'll get through it!

[*anxious_mari*]

Reading through your symptoms, I can't really spot anything that sounds alarming or necessarily even abnormal (not a doctor, but I'm taking from personal experience).
As for the undigested food in stool, I'm pretty sure that isn't too alarming assuming there isn't super big chunks or anything. For example, stuff like tomato peel/skin often tends to go all the way through for me without completely getting digested.
Stool colour can be affected by what you eat, and if it's been affected by IBS/anxiety/stress it can get pretty crazy with colours.
A lot of your symptoms are most likely explained by the beans you mentioned, especially if your stomach doesn't like them. Stuff like beans tend to cause excess gas very easily. Spicy food might also have something to do with it.

Overall, I'd say you don't have anything to worry about. Of course, asking a medical professional is generally the best way to make sure you don't have anything, but I couldn't really see anything that sounds all that alarming, especially since you've already been examined.

Edit: It's also worth noting that the digestive system tends to be among the first to react to anxiety and stress.

Anxiety sucks, hang in there, you'll get through it!

Hello, thank you for replying and your insight!

Yes, so, the undigested food is pretty much more of the fiber/vegetable foods and it usually appears as skins, seeds, grains, sometimes bits of peanuts if I eat them.

Stool color was never a concern to me ( I also never observed my stool before this past year). This eventually led me down the pancreatic cancer rabbit hole at one point. So it’s good to know that colors can change, often.

I should probably clarify that I haven’t yet been examined for these digestive issues, aside from the small bleed I had. Do you have any advice of how to present these symptoms to my doctor? At this moment I have them written down on a paper, was planning on bringing it with me for my yearly exam. Just wasn’t sure if that would be too much. Should I highlight only certain symptoms over the others?

also, any advice for how to treat the stomach noises when they appear? I am still having them this morning. Though the diarrhea stopped thankfully.

im currently taking CBD oil to help with sleeping, anyone have tried this and it seemed to help with digestive issues?

Edit: I also forgot to add to my symptoms that I get white mucus sometimes that seems to hang onto the stool almost looks like it’s shredding from the stool itself. It happens occasionally, mainly with the more “dried” out stools.

[Tindra]

Hello, thank you for replying and your insight!

Yes, so, the undigested food is pretty much more of the fiber/vegetable foods and it usually appears as skins, seeds, grains, sometimes bits of peanuts if I eat them.

Stool color was never a concern to me ( I also never observed my stool before this past year). This eventually led me down the pancreatic cancer rabbit hole at one point. So it’s good to know that colors can change, often.

I should probably clarify that I haven’t yet been examined for these digestive issues, aside from the small bleed I had. Do you have any advice of how to present these symptoms to my doctor? At this moment I have them written down on a paper, was planning on bringing it with me for my yearly exam. Just wasn’t sure if that would be too much. Should I highlight only certain symptoms over the others?

also, any advice for how to treat the stomach noises when they appear? I am still having them this morning. Though the diarrhea stopped thankfully.

im currently taking CBD oil to help with sleeping, anyone have tried this and it seemed to help with digestive issues?

Edit: I also forgot to add to my symptoms that I get white mucus sometimes that seems to hang onto the stool almost looks like it’s shredding from the stool itself. It happens occasionally, mainly with the more “dried” out stools.

I'm always glad to try and give advice where I can. ^^

Yeah, that definitely sounds like the type of food that might not completely get digested.

Writing them down is a good idea! I'm not sure if you really need to highlight anything, but if there's anything that feels more severe/you feel the most worried about, you could maybe bring up that you're most worried about those.
Honestly, just bring up that you have a list of symptoms you're concerned about at the start of your check up and go through them with your doctor.

I don't really have any advice for the stomach noises, I don't really get those that often myself, and when I do they don't really bother me. All I can say is wait for them to pass.

I don't have experience with CBD oils, so can't say much for that, but if it helps you, that's great. Certain foods can help out as well!

I can't really say much for the mucus, but maybe add to the list and bring it up with you doc. I doubt it's anything serious, but it's always good to get new stuff checked. ^^

[*anxious_mari*]

I'm always glad to try and give advice where I can. ^^

Yeah, that definitely sounds like the type of food that might not completely get digested.

Writing them down is a good idea! I'm not sure if you really need to highlight anything, but if there's anything that feels more severe/you feel the most worried about, you could maybe bring up that you're most worried about those.
Honestly, just bring up that you have a list of symptoms you're concerned about at the start of your check up and go through them with your doctor.

I don't really have any advice for the stomach noises, I don't really get those that often myself, and when I do they don't really bother me. All I can say is wait for them to pass.

I don't have experience with CBD oils, so can't say much for that, but if it helps you, that's great. Certain foods can help out as well!

I can't really say much for the mucus, but maybe add to the list and bring it up with you doc. I doubt it's anything serious, but it's always good to get new stuff checked. ^^

Do you personally have list of foods that help?

again thank you for this advice!

Open question for anyone else: Still looking for some tips on how to help with those weird stomach noises, it doesn’t cause pain but kind of more like a general upset stomach feeling. Maybe it’ll pass, as mentioned, but in the meantime would like to try and treat them. Pepto bismuth only temporarily helped, I’ve been eating smaller meals so far today, drinking ginger tea, and heating blanket.

[Fishmanpa]

Do you personally have list of foods that help?

Look at the FODMAP diet.

Positive thoughts

[*anxious_mari*]

Look at the FODMAP diet.

Positive thoughts

thank you for this list!

Wow, had no idea of what foods are possible triggers. Also, really sad that avocado is on the trigger list. Guacamole is life, and avocado toast has become a staple in my diet lately. So sad. I never noticed if it causes me problems or not. 🤔

is it possible that some of these foods are triggers and some may not cause problems? Or is this a diet that strictly needs to be followed?

[Tindra]

Do you personally have list of foods that help?

again thank you for this advice!

-snip-

For diarrhea/general upset stomach, yoghurt (although only really unsweetened natural yoghurt), meat-based broths, soups and chicken. Blueberries (in any form, honestly) as well as are generally really good for the stomach! Apparently strawberries, black currants and pineapple are good as well, but I haven't tested those myself. Stuff like blueberries can colour your stool, so if you do eat them and get dark/black stools, you don't need to be alarmed, it's most likely just the berries (Pepto bismuth can also cause that, thought I'd mention since you mentioned taking it)!

Also, once when I had a stomach bug of some kind, a nurse gave me a recipe that should help you get all the stuff you need, even with bad diarrhea (Not neccesarily helpful in this case, but just good to know): 50% orangejuice, 50% water (preferably boiled or bottled) and half a teaspoon of tablesalt per liter of liquid.

It's also recommended to avoid stuff with lot's of spice, alcohol, caffeine, fatty stuff, lot's of sugar, processed foods, beans, onion and raisins, among others, since a lot of that stuff can cause excess gas or general stomach upset.

[*anxious_mari*]

For diarrhea/general upset stomach, yoghurt (although only really unsweetened natural yoghurt), meat-based broths, soups and chicken. Blueberries (in any form, honestly) as well as are generally really good for the stomach! Apparently strawberries, black currants and pineapple are good as well, but I haven't tested those myself. Stuff like blueberries can colour your stool, so if you do eat them and get dark/black stools, you don't need to be alarmed, it's most likely just the berries (Pepto bismuth can also cause that, thought I'd mention since you mentioned taking it)!

Also, once when I had a stomach bug of some kind, a nurse gave me a recipe that should help you get all the stuff you need, even with bad diarrhea (Not neccesarily helpful in this case, but just good to know): 50% orangejuice, 50% water (preferably boiled or bottled) and half a teaspoon of tablesalt per liter of liquid.

It's also recommended to avoid stuff with lot's of spice, alcohol, caffeine, fatty stuff, lot's of sugar, processed foods, beans, onion and raisins, among others, since a lot of that stuff can cause excess gas or general stomach upset.

thank you for the stool color warning! Luckily, I read the back of the Pepto bismuth bottle to see that warning, and was prepared when my stool has been black for the past two days. I think it can also color your tongue too, as that happened to my brother in the past when we were kids 🤣

I woke up feeling better this morning. I’ve also been having an appetite as well. Just not sure if i should rush into my normal diet or not. I will try what you mention!

Also, really interesting with the orange juice idea, I’m assuming that’s for electrolytes.

[Fishmanpa]

Do you personally have list of foods that help?

Check THIS out.

Positive thoughts