Advice needed before doctor appt.

Hi bpchick, I just edited your post to include a title on it :) My name is Sarah and I'm the moderator for the IBS site.

I'm sorry that you have to join the bowel party, as fun-loving a group as we are...I am glad you are seeing a GI specialist and I hope he/she has some answers for you. Undoubtedly, you will have more tests, including the oh-most-pleasurable colonoscopy. This board is teeming with people who have had very similar experiences, and you are not alone!

As far as a diagnosis goes, the diagnostic rollercoaster can be maddening. Your symptoms are very consistent with IBS - the "hallmarks" are abdominal pain, constipation or diarrhea or both, bloating and distention. There is a ton of research going into IBS and there are lots of ways you might attempt to help relieve your symptoms, but an IBS diagnosis is a "diagnosis of exclusion," meaning your other tests do not indicate inflammatory bowel disease, etc. So, you are pursuing just the right avenues by undergoing this testing.

It might help you to prepare for your doctor's appointment by keeping a food and symptom journal for several days before your appointment. Everything you eat, including times you ate and the amounts you ate, should be recorded; your symptoms for that day should also be recorded (i.e. "I was completely constipated today and had a lot of pain in my lower abdomen" or "I had diarrhea 10 times and it was the consistency of water"). The goal is to try to get a pattern established that might lead to some clues about your bowel dysfunction. Also, note any international travel, stressful events, any triggers you can possibly think of - write 'em all down!

Hang in there, we'll be here for you...and trust me, you'll get lots of suggestions from this wild bunch :) I trust them more than I trust myself!