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Irritable Bowel Syndrome
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Posted 7/25/2007 9:20 PM (GMT 0)

I am a new user of this forum, and skimmed through many postings before deciding to ask for help. I didn't find any postings that answered my questions or that I could completely identify with, thought it seems that the symptoms of IBS are so diverse that it would be hard to find someone with the exact same symptoms.

I am feeling very frustrated. I have had IBS since I was 19 or 20, about 7 or 8 years ago. It used to be so bad that I would panic anytime I had to go or be anywhere where there was not a bathroom nearby, since I knew that at any minute I could get stressed or anxious for a number of reasons and my body's immediate response would be telling me I was going to have diarrhea. It was not a fun way to live. In the past couple of years, I have gotten better (probably because I am more aware of what I eat and what causes me to have problems, i.e. I can't drink coffee, eat rich fatty foods, etc, eat ice cream or drink milk, etc.) but I still have symptoms depending on my diet and anxiety/stress level, and the symptoms were severe enough that I sought help from a general practicioner.

about a year and a half ago this doctor put me on a low dose of amitriptyline, a old anti-depressant that is also supposed to help re-direct the nerves in your stomach (or something like that!). It seemed to help with day to day symptoms, although I still take Immodium once or twice every one to two weeks when I know I will be in a situation where bathrooms are not readily available. However, in the past year I have had three "attacks" at random times that I am not sure whether or not they are related to my IBS or not. The first attack started at about 3 in the afternoon. All I could do for the rest of that day and the next was lie in bed, doubled over in excrutiating pain (in my lower middle abdomen, right underneath my belly button). The only thing that helped was a heating pad. I also had vomiting and diarhhea. The second time was similar. The third time was just a couple days ago, it wasn't as bad as the first two times and I only had slight diarhhea but violent vomiting. It went away in one day and I was fine. Also, for the past three weeks I have felt mildy nauseous on most days, which is a new symptom. My doctor said that vomiting is not a symptom of IBS and she referred me to a gastronologist. I have an appt in 3 weeks and supposedly they will do an endoscopy, but I don't have much hope that they will find anything that will help figure out what is going on, and I really don't want to go through the procedure if it will be pointless. Has anyone else experienced anything like this, does anyone have any recommendations or suggestions? Would anyone recommend going through with the endoscopy? Also, does anyone know if nausea is a symptom of IBS? Thanks so much for your help, I feel very alone, scared, and frustrated!

Posted 7/26/2007 3:34 AM (GMT 0)
Hi jessicaelizabeth... Welcome :-)

Nausea and vomiting is not a common symptom of IBS but it can be a symptom. I know I have my days of that stuff. On the toilet, garbage can in front of you. YEP!! It mostly comes on though just from the pain like my whole stomach/abdomen had been kicked. I would definitely suggest the endoscopy though because the only way to know for sure is to be tested. Did you notice if you were vomiting blood (usually black)? If so, you could have an ulcer. You also may want to ask your doc about your gallbladder too. Vomiting is a common symptom of gallbladder disease.

Hope you can get some answers soon.

Take Care
Posted 7/26/2007 5:32 AM (GMT 0)

I've said this before, but I'm believing it even more these days...I think spontaneous vomiting usually has a fairly definite cause.  Some people, however, do get chronic nausea with IBS and a cause may not be pinpointed easily, but attacks of vomiting, in my opinion, warrant a few tests: endoscopy (which you are getting in 3 weeks, that's good), abdominal ultrasound, and possibly an abdominal CT (to check for inflammation in the small and large intestine) and a HIDA scan (which checks the gallbladder's ejection fraction).

Vomiting is miserable.  I hope the tests yield some results for you.  Keep us updated or let us know if you have more questions.

Posted 8/24/2007 2:00 PM (GMT 0)
Sarita, can you address the spontaneous vomiting issue a little more for me? Here's a quick recap of where I am: gallbladder removed 12-05 after much negative testing (HIDA scans, ultrasounds, etc) - D ensued, which I attributed to the surgery - for a while - but it worsened and developed other symptoms over the past 18 months. I was to the point of having accidents and being afraid to leave home, when a CFNP diagnosed IBS and gave me Robinol (sp?) - After a few months of taking it, my symptoms changed, as far as frequency - I would have some C, and when an attack hit, it was an all-day process - same chaos was going on inside w/ the unbearable cramps and bowel sounds, it just couldn't get out! So during this process, after 10-12 trips to the potty, it finally begins to move and becomes progressively looser until finally water - BUT during this literally gut-wrenching episode, while sitting there crying, sweating, etc., I SPONTANEOUSLY vomit. No preceeding nausea, just "oh my gosh, I'm gonna throw up" - this has happened about six times in the last couple of months. I have been doing a lot of reading on IBS and on Crohn's (I have a brother who had UC and a colostomy/ileostomy at 22); went to the gastro dr Monday of this week, had colonoscopy and EGD yesterday. He said all that looked fine w/ the exception of some gastritis; but he has ordered a small bowel follow through for next week, mainly because of the vomiting and the family history. I have read in several posts (and he also said) that vomiting is NOT associated with IBS; but I have also read posts that contradict that - you stated above that spontaneous vomiting usually has a fairly definite cause, so I was wondering what your experience with this is. The "spontaneous" part seems so unusual to me - as I said, no preeceding nausea - and it's just once or twice, usually yellow and burns (like bile?). That is the symptom that sent me to the Dr. - before that I was just trying to "deal" with it, but this really concerns me. I have also learned in my reading that I have several other symptoms that point to Crohns, but I also believe that we can "read" ourselves into having most anything if we aren't careful - I just can't help but be worried about it. Any info on the throwing up, or anything else I've rambled about, I'd greatly appreciate it. Thanks........
Posted 8/24/2007 3:44 PM (GMT 0)
Have you been to a gyno, Jessica? Intense pain low down like that could be an ovarian cyst, and I have known people that vomit because the pain is so bad. Female troubles can also cause your intestines to go haywire. Endometreosis and fybroid tumors in the uterus can also cause pain and ongoing bowel problems, but ovarian cysts are noted for causing sudden, intesnse pain that lasts for hours--that happens when one ruptures.
Posted 8/24/2007 9:02 PM (GMT 0)

Hi Mississippi,

When I was talking about spontaneous vomiting, I meant sudden attacks that are not attributable to something, say, like an enteric bacterial infection (which I'd guess causes most episodes of vomiting, at least in the general public - most people call it a "stomach flu," although technically it's gastroenteritis caused by a number of different of viruses, and they usually just go away on their own).  I worry about people who have severe vomiting that comes and goes in spurts because that sounds like more than "just" gastroenteritis. 

If you've had a negative upper and lower scope, a small-bowel follow-through is a good idea, and an abdominal CT scan and possibly a capsule endoscopy (where you swallow a pill-sized camera and it takes pictures as it travels through the digestive tract) might be warranted.  If you have inflammatory bowel disease in the family, that's all the more reason to get a more thorough work-up, especially since you also experience diarrhea.  Have you had any blood work done recently?

I have been through a lot of testing in the past because of severe, intractable diarrhea, so a lot of my info is anecdotal, but I'm also a medical student.  My knowledge is still pretty limited, though, so don't take my word for anything :-)

Posted 8/26/2007 3:53 AM (GMT 0)
Thank you, Sarita - my doc actually did mention that the capsule endo- might be our next step, depending upon the results of the small bowel test - as far as blood work, they drew some at my appt. this past Mon, and then some at the hospital following my scopes, but I don't know what precisely they were testing for, and don't have the results yet. He mentioned some kind of blood test that may reveal Crohn's?? That is why they drew more blood after the scope, I'm guessing. I appreciate all input/advice, and am so glad to have found these boards (I've been asking a million questions on both IBS and Crohn's boards - members are going to get sick of me!) Thanks again.......MS girl
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