Jason,
Welcome to the wonderful world of Irritable Bowel and the many splendors that accompany it. I actually have Ulcerative Colitis which is IBD-Irritable Bowel Disease. But, I started out just having IBS. It's good that your colonoscopy didn't show IBD though, consider yourself lucky. I started having symptoms in 1996, when I was 16. I all of a sudden developed a milk allergy and intolerance, and also developed a wheat and oat intolerance. I used to sit in class with the worst gas pains ever. I felt like my stomach was being twisted and split apart. I later realized it was the bowl of Honey Nut Cheerios I was eating each morning. I was having bloody bowel movements for months when I finally had my mom take me to the emergency room. They wanted me to do stool samples and me, being 16 thought, gross, no way. So I didn't. Now I wish I could go back and kick myself in the butt cause I would have been diagnosed with colitis 8 years sooner and started treatment. Now, two colonoscopies, one bad flare, and nine pills a day for it later, I am in somewhat of a remission. I used to do the same stuff, worrying about passing gas in front of people, holding it in, stressing. I would get so worried about having a stomachache in a store, that I would give myself one. It's a hugely psychological condition. You can cause anything to happen to your body and bowels. The only thing I cannot sympathize with is constipation. I've never been constipated a day in my life. It's tough with the foods cause one IBS sufferer could be able to eat very different things than any other. Most people with IBS/IBD are told to eat fiber to stay regular. Not me. I cannot eat any kind of fiber. No wheat, oat, grains, etc. I cannot eat bananas. Apples seem to be fine but, apple juice bothers me because of the sorbitol they add. They tell you to drink that when you are constipated cause the sorbitol loosens bowels. I'm not supposed to eat dairy due to allergy and intolerances. I still do though, bad bad. I use Lactaid pills to eat milk. I also use vanilla soy milk. I don't drink it straight but, use it for cereal and tea. Lactaid milk doesn't work for me cause it's still real milk that they just added the lactase enzyme to. My intolerance is so bad, it doesn't work. I literally have to read labels for casein, whey, lactic acid, anything milk based. You'd be surprised what has milk. Most salt and vinegar chips have milk product in them. It's the processed foods that usually do. I have to take pills even to eat a slice of white bread. I go through a lot of money buying those pills I'll tell you. I wanted to ask, do you go into the bathroom to try and go even when you don't feel the urge? That was the impression I got from the times you were stating, waking up every so often to try. Never go and just try and push something out. You can really damage yourself straining like that. Hemorrhoids and anal fissures will start this way. I work in nursing and trust you me, after the procedure I assisted on, hemorrhoid removal, you don't want to go through that. A grown man having to spread eagle in stirrups, two nurses on either side holding his butt cheeks apart while the doctor injects his anus with extremely painful Lidocaine. Pray that never happens to you. I have done quite a bit of research on IBD and gastroenterology. Any questions I can answer I'd be more than happy to.