IBS/IBD lasting a long time

[trappedwind]

I’ve been having digestion problems for the past three and a half months.

They originally started in Mid-September when I had some intense pain and diarrhoea after an undercooked birthday meal, which lasted a few hours before going away.

Then over the next six weeks, I had an occasional bout of trapped wind, coupled with a tendency to go to the toilet multiple times in a day – and I ignored them.

However, two months ago in late October they started to turn into abdominal pains and regular trapped wind, alternating between my left side, and my centre. My GP diagnosed a gastric infection and sent me off for a battery of blood and stool tests.

Three weeks ago ago they came back negative, liver, pancreas, thyroid all apparently fine, no amenia or blood in stools. The only problem was a mild folic acid deficiency, and he prescribed a folic acid
supplement, as well as suggesting I take a probiotic (to “clear out the bad bacteria in my gut”).

Since mid-December, I’ve been taking the folic supplement along with two tablets of Bio-Kult Muti-Strain as well as two tablets of Bio-Kult S.Boulardii (Align isn’t available in the UK) once a day.

It doesn’t seem to be doing much good. I’ve still got trapped wind, pains are now in my chest, the lower right side of my tummy, my right flank and my back.

As well as a horrible OCD attack, where I had vivid fears that tumours were growing on my liver, followed by worries that my intense ruminations were turning my body cancerous, which lasted for a day (which still worries me, but at least I can sleep at night), I’m more generally depressed (and worried) about the lack of response.

1. Is it normal for IBS/IBD attacks to last more than 3 months?
2. Is it normal for probiotics to take more than a fortnight to start working?
3. Is it normal for the abdominal pain to shift from left to right?
4. Any advice for other things that I could do to improve my health

I’m supposed to go back to him in a month if there’s no improvement, but dreading the prospect of having to undergo a colonoscopy (as well as the prospect that the tests were wrong and I do have cancer).

[ankietyjoe]

1. Is it normal for IBS/IBD attacks to last more than 3 months?
2. Is it normal for probiotics to take more than a fortnight to start working?
3. Is it normal for the abdominal pain to shift from left to right?
4. Any advice for other things that I could do to improve my health

1. It can last a lifetime depending on what's causing it and what you do about it.
2. Probiotics don't 'work'. They're not a magic pill. They 'can' assist in rebalancing your gut microbiome, they do not 'clear out' anything that's already there.
3. Yup.
4. ...........

Were you given any antibiotics to clear your infection? What's your normal diet like? Are you under a lot of stress? IBS is often a symptom of something else, not a direct cause of issues.

[CrohnsWarrior]

I’ve been having digestion problems for the past three and a half months.

They originally started in Mid-September when I had some intense pain and diarrhoea after an undercooked birthday meal, which lasted a few hours before going away.

Then over the next six weeks, I had an occasional bout of trapped wind, coupled with a tendency to go to the toilet multiple times in a day – and I ignored them.

However, two months ago in late October they started to turn into abdominal pains and regular trapped wind, alternating between my left side, and my centre. My GP diagnosed a gastric infection and sent me off for a battery of blood and stool tests.

Three weeks ago ago they came back negative, liver, pancreas, thyroid all apparently fine, no amenia or blood in stools. The only problem was a mild folic acid deficiency, and he prescribed a folic acid
supplement, as well as suggesting I take a probiotic (to “clear out the bad bacteria in my gut”).

Since mid-December, I’ve been taking the folic supplement along with two tablets of Bio-Kult Muti-Strain as well as two tablets of Bio-Kult S.Boulardii (Align isn’t available in the UK) once a day.

It doesn’t seem to be doing much good. I’ve still got trapped wind, pains are now in my chest, the lower right side of my tummy, my right flank and my back.

As well as a horrible OCD attack, where I had vivid fears that tumours were growing on my liver, followed by worries that my intense ruminations were turning my body cancerous, which lasted for a day (which still worries me, but at least I can sleep at night), I’m more generally depressed (and worried) about the lack of response.

1. Is it normal for IBS/IBD attacks to last more than 3 months?
2. Is it normal for probiotics to take more than a fortnight to start working?
3. Is it normal for the abdominal pain to shift from left to right?
4. Any advice for other things that I could do to improve my health

I’m supposed to go back to him in a month if there’s no improvement, but dreading the prospect of having to undergo a colonoscopy (as well as the prospect that the tests were wrong and I do have cancer).

Hi
I have been diagnosed with IBD, Crohn’s disease of the small intestine and I also have something called BAM (bile acid malabsorption) this is caused for me because I had a large chunk of my bowel removed with surgery….. but BAM can happen to anyone who has suffered a bad bout of the runs,. It is when your body isn’t reabsorbing the bile acids in your gut, it gets into your large intestine and causes watery stool so it can be mild, moderate or sever (mine is sever) I also have low folic acid and low vitamin B12 which again is caused due to my operation but can also result from BAM where your guts not absorbing things correctly.
There’s more chance it’s IBS that’s causing your problems other than cancer or IBD, especially if you have had a normal poop sample
I know it’s scary having all the invasive tests done but let me tell you from experience, not having the tests done will cause more damage in the long run should it be something like IBD.
My diagnosis only happened after suffering with bowel issues for well over 20 years and not having the tests, this is what caused me to need surgery and the surgery has left me worse off now as my body doesn’t re absorb vitamins now and I have the runs daily and don’t leave the house.
My latest crohns flare has lasted 4 years so far with no relief from symptoms in this time.

I always try to tell anyone who is worried to have the tests done as not having them is potentially worse in the long run. Untreated IBD or cancer for that matter can cause sever damage to your guts and can be potentially life threatening
IBD causes scaring and ulcers on the lining of your bowel, which over time after inflaming and healing repeatedly creates scar tissue that never goes away unless you have surgery. This can potentially cause a bowel perforation as your bowel becomes narrow and stops poop coming out.

Please go for the test, it’s not nice I know but it’s 30 mins of discomfort for peace of mind xxxxx

[CrohnsWarrior]

And you get the results on the day of the test (any biopsies take a few weeks for results)
Any bowel polyps will be removed during the test and this you cannot feel at all

If your worried about a colonoscopy ask the docs can you have a small bowel MRI instead.
Believe it or not but my colonoscopy always comes back pretty normal but when I have an MRI I have ulcers and active inflammation, my bloods and poop are always normal as well (apart from low vitamins)

Diagnosing IBD can be a long process and can take years sometimes.

[CrohnsWarrior]

Oh as well lol ……
Wind pain can be shocking on its own and BAM can cause wind.
Try taking laporomide (Imodium) if you are getting loose stools or try taking some peppermint tea

I always find painkillers and hot water bottle helps

Try a low residue diet for a couple of weeks, this helps to rest your bowel. A low residue diet is basically a low fiber diet. Fiber is great for you unless you have gut problems then it can become your worst nightmare lol

Things like
White pasta, white bread
Veg with NO skins on them and cooked very well
There’s loads of information online about low residue diets
Also try to eat low fat as well

Hope this all helps xxx

[trappedwind]

Thanks for the feedback.

I'm contacting my GP next week, as he suggested, though with the NHS as it is, it may be some time. Obviously, if he suggests a colonoscopy then I'll have it no matter how much I may worry about it.

Initially my symptoms did improve, but a period of stress about work and life in general over the past week has sent me back to square one.

Just to clarify, my stools are pretty solid. However, I get days when I'm not able to go to the toilet at all, and I sometimes get the urge to go to the toilet, only for nothing to come out.

[trappedwind]

One final question - could simply being around garlic trigger IBS symptoms?

Two days ago I was volunteering at my local park and I spent around 45 minutes pulling up wild garlic plants. While I was wearing gloves, I ended up stinking of garlic and very stupidly had a sandwich without washing my hands. For the past two days I've really had a bad bout of symptoms with two days of constipation, pain in my belly button and constant wind.

[emmjay]

Hi, I have suffered with IBS for years ...

1. Is it normal for IBS/IBD attacks to last more than 3 months? - IBS can be an on-going situation. So it's not necessarily an attack. It can be a vicious cycle. The IBS makes you anxious and stressed, then that in turn causes the IBS to continue. Or it could be that you need to cut something from your diet. (like wheat or garlic for instance). Have you tried keeping a food diary to see if you are worse on the days (or days after) you eat certain things?
2. Is it normal for probiotics to take more than a fortnight to start working? - yes, they are a constant work on progress.
3. Is it normal for the abdominal pain to shift from left to right? - yes - gas/wind pains move about a lot.

I hope that helps a bit

[trappedwind]

Do you think it would be worth me doing a home test for HPylori?

It's just that when my GP originally spoke to me he said he though that I had some sort of gastric infection. I don't know whether he tested it, but its stood out that some of the symptoms are very close to IBS/IBD and obviously over time it can turn into something really nasty like stomach cancer (which honestly I'm starting to get a bit worried about). It would also fit in with him talking about 'bad bacteria' after the test results.

I was also thinking that the first signs of wind and not feeling quite right occurred after I had a really undercooked plate of squid, on my birthday in September - the next day I had awful cramping, intense pain and diarrhoea.

[trappedwind]

I've booked a face to face appointment with my GP - in 3 weeks time which is the earliest that I could get.

But I'm still very worried. I've got aches and pains, constipation (though when I do go the stools look normal) and I'm feeling extremely tired and depressed all of a sudden, after a couple of weeks in which I had been doing really well. I know stress can trigger problems and I know I maybe have been a bit too rigorous in trying to cut out sweets, gluten and most other things from my diet to the point where I've lost weight.

I also know that the FIIT is pretty good (97%) at ruling out colorectal cancer and can even indicate a reduced risk of other cancers. I also know that not being anemic (at least 2 months ago when the tests were taken) is another big positive. I also know that my mother has struggled with indigestion and stomach pains for the past 35 years, and my grandmother (who lived to 98) also had indigestion for most of her adult life.

But I'm just scared that I've got stomach or even liver cancer (despite my LFT being normal).