Fed up

I am just so frustrated by my IBS - I have now nick-named it Irate Bowel Syndrome...which is how I feel when I cannot sleep for three days straight and am doubled over with pain all day at work but have to be cheerful. My doctor will not give me anything for it "do some yoga or meditation" is the advice I get. I can't relax when I'm in pain! How do you get through these bad patches without tearing your hair out?

Sorry to vent, it's just this pain is overwhelming me and I need some sleep. Any advice would be really appreciated.

Meg

Hey Meg, yeah, it might be time for another stroll around the doctor mall if this dude is not taking you seriously. What is the pain like? Have you tried the anticholinergic drugs like hyoscyamine or dicyclomine? Those work by relaxing the gut nerves, to put it simply. It does sound like you need some drugs. And then maybe you'll be able to supplement with some relaxation techniques or even something like biofeedback.

LadyFrog, you crack me up. Gremlins in golf shoes. I love it.

Arggh! I saw my doctor and he told me it was my fault I have IBS. I am too anxious it seems and have to mend my ways. He prescribed me  Endep. An tri-cyclic anti-dep ???? No way! He even lied and told me that it wasn't an anti-dep (he knows I can't take the side effects). I am so angry.

I have to wait at least two months on a wait list to see another doc unless I go into ER. Why do they do this?

Frustrated, sleepless and in pain.

Meg

One the IBS is NOT your fault. How can someone say that's it's your fault when the medical community has no clue in hades what causes it in the first place! I swear your doc needs to be trapped in the bathroom with me after I cave and eat some ice cream. No air fresheners or stinky candles allowed!! No clothes pins either. I know that sometimes they don't come right out and say things. I got the impression that my first doc was brushing me off because he just told me to take fiber pills and relax. That relaxing would help control the symptoms and eventually I'd be fine. Easy for those to say who have never dealt with this. Your not alone in not being able to not handle the side effects of anti depressants. I have a notation in my medical records that I am not supposed to ever be given drugs that can be considered mood altering. I went on anti-depressants for a whopping week and I turned into a completely different person. And not in a good way. If I had continued to take them like my doctor originally wanted I know for a fact that I would have lost my husband. Not only did my guts go haywire, but I become violent and neurotic. And that was on the lowest dose of Prozac.

I have learned to meditate in the bathroom. The fan provides some nice white noise and a scented candle gives you something to focus on. Sometimes I like to imagine the pain floating away with the smoke. Mom has bowel problems too because of a surgery years ago. But they started before the surgery( she had a tumor in her stomach and when it would ulcerate she's get vicious D and pain) and she had her own little coping tricks since they were convinced it was in her head. She's place a cool washcloth on the back of her neck and imagine something nice. Mom's something nice was a beach in Spain with guys in speedos. I've tried it and it works to a point with me. My favorite place to let my mind wander is is the library( yes I am a huge bookworm). This library is filled with every book I can imagine. All in translated into English. But as much as drugs due help and are needed sometimes, non-drug coping methods will always be needed too. Try a hot bath. The heat should help the pain and some scented oils or a nice sugar body scrub can help relax. Yep, after a bad flare-up I'd crawl into the tub since my tummy was so sore I couldn't stand up to take a shower. It would relax me enough that I could walk upright to bed and then collapse in a mentally and physically drained heap.

Hey Nervy - here is just a bit of perspective from a crohnie. While you DO NOT cause your IBS, your anxiety disorder may exacerbate it. I know stress and panic does not cause my crohns. Actually crohns and IBS caused my panic. But, when I feel perfectly fine and get into a situation where I get anxious my diarrhea comes in triple time. Its kind of the chicken and the egg game. I got pissed whenever someone suggested that if I dealt with my stress and anxiety my crohns would get better. Then I got prescribed xanax for fear of flying and the days I took it the crohns was so much better. So now I take it when I know I will be panicky (long car ride w/ no bathroom, etc.) Is it possible that your doc just poorly worded his point that your anxiety disorder is making it worse. Oops, I just realized I assume you have a disorder... as the co-mod of a/p I am assuming you have some anxiety/panic issue. So anyway, even though you have IBS seperate from your other issues, they really may be making it a lot worse. Please don't discard that. Is your a/p well treated? Do you find your stomach gets worse when you are experiencing a/p?

about the anti-depressant. He should not have lied to you. But, when I was first diagnosed with IBS (which I later found out was crohns) I was precribed a low dose of prozac for pain. I was told that having more serotonin would dull my pain receptors (as a non depressed person with normal serotonin levels to start with). While it was no miracle cure, it did help the pain for about 6 months. I wasn't originally told it was prozac but rather was told the generic name. My doc said that when they prescribe it as a pain med (for IBS, or chronic back pain etc.) they either call it the generic name or a third name but never prozac because people automatically get offended and defensive and yell "im not depressed, Im in pain, etc." They have a hard time believing such a stigmatized drug could be an effective pain killer. While it is scary to be deceptive (if someone has a true allergy or something) I understand the hesitance in full disclosure. Technically allergies or adverse reactions are in ones file and if a drug is prescribed under multiple names they really aren't lying right?

I hope you do find some relief soon!