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Anyone with alternate constipation and diarrhea?

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Crohn's Disease
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Posted 11/16/2017 1:51 AM (GMT 0)
During the past year or so, I experienced infrequent bowel movements and lots of gas, then all of a sudden a bad diarrhea (which seems to "clear" everything). The process would then repeat itself.

My suspicion is the strictures in my small bowel, which caused slow transit, which in turn caused bacteria overgrowth and gas (SIBO). The excess bacteria would then led to diarrhea. Diarrhea is the body's natural reaction to get rid of excess bacteria in the bowels.

I am reluctant of self-diagnosis. But does this theory sound reasonable? Thanks
Posted 11/16/2017 2:08 AM (GMT 0)
Yes, that's a reasonable hypothesis, but you can also have straight up IBS, or another infection or Crohn's inflammation, all which would cause the same symptoms. Without testing it's impossible to know what's really going on.
Posted 11/16/2017 2:27 AM (GMT 0)
Hi, gumby44, I doubt it is Crohn's inflammation or infection: (a) when I started my Crohn's over 20 years ago, it was purely persistent diarrhea coupled with moderate pain. Diarrhea was my overwhelming trouble.
That's typically caused by inflammation, I guess; (b) Infection usually would not last more than a year. I do not have other complications other than strictures. Again, I am not a doctor. So I could be wrong. My guess is strictures (more likely) or IBS (less likely).
Posted 11/16/2017 2:56 AM (GMT 0)
I've gone through phases like that - constipated a few days, then several BMs going from solid to D, then back to constipated for a few days, then...repeat. No strictures, no infection.
Posted 11/16/2017 5:47 PM (GMT 0)
I seem to do this when I'm flaring, I do have a stricture, or that's what they think is causing the alternating between the constipation (which for me only lasts like a day) and then switches to loose stools multiple times a day. The resident I saw thought i was dealing with IBS but because I have a history of a stricture developing and I have moderate-severe abdominal pain, my GI thinks stricture.
Posted 11/16/2017 6:09 PM (GMT 0)
If you have known strictures, I suspect your theory is probably right tbh. When I first developed Crohn's, diarrhoea was my prominent symptom for years too. Paradoxically I only started becoming constipated when my Crohn's got worse. At first the bouts of constipation were few and far in between, but they got more and more common. At one point I was taking Movicol every day to try to keep things soft and moving. I started developing more painful partial obstruction episodes too. A stricture was eventually found in 2011.

I'm in a sort of similar boat right now, but have no idea whether I have a stricture or not. I'm going less often than I was, but have more bloating, cramping, gurgles and pain than before - it's miserable. I honestly would take the diarrhoea of the old days back in a heartbeat over this.
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