Hello all,
First off I want to say that I am unsure of whether I have IBD or not. My issues started in November when I got, what I thought was (or might have been), the dreaded stomach flu. It lasted only a day, and at the end of the day I was eating yogurt and soup with no problem. The next day I woke up feeling great, but my stomach was really shaky for a few weeks. It didn't help that that weekend I had signed up to go to the Food and Wine Festival with my boyfriend. Well, the alcohol and plethora of food = tummy issues. An OTC dose of prevacid cleared it up. At the same time my flu started, I also stopped six months of taking the antibiotic keflex for acne. I started to think that maybe I was sick because my gut flora had been wiped out.
I have had stomach issues most of my life, generally stress related. I have generalized anxiety disorder, and can have wicked panic attacks when I am not monitoring my stress. I can be in remission of either of these symptoms for years, and then it can rear its ugly head one day. For the past three years I have been dealing with more stress. Probably because I am out in the working world, out of my safety-net of school, and now I am doing sales. (See a pattern? I know, I'm working on it).
Anyway... In the past I have been treated for GERD and mild IBS from periods of stress. In November I had a week or so of blah, but then I was fine, for almost a month. Then around Christmas I remember something unusual. I was eating dinner with my family, and felt fine, if not a little too full. Then around dessert, (it was also my birthday), I had some cinnamon tea and a big slice of cake with ice cream. That night I was in discomfort, I had trouble sleeping. I swore it was just acid reflux, I probably over did it... AGAIN. I took Mylanta and hoped it would go away. But it didn't, not really... I spent over week on the bland non-gluten diet, as recommended with my friend who has been in UC remission for years. It seemed to help, I slowly got better.
Finally, it was the middle of January and I got to go on vacation. My boyfriend and I were careful with what I ate. However, since I had been feeling better I ventured out slowly to try new foods to test the intolerance theory. My first day, pineapple and eggs. I felt like I had won the lotto, how awesome that I could eat that? The following day, a chicken sandwich with regular bread, SCORE! The third day, pot roast with mash potatoes, green beans, and a diet coke, NORMALCY! My stools had been generally softer before this point, never watery. Finally they were getting back to normal, they were still soft-ish but not as bad.
And then... I got THE head cold. Yes, the head cold of doom in the middle of my vacation at Disney World. I probably picked it up from a little kid, always figures... So my main staple was tea, tea, tea, AND more tea. Followed by anything bready to soak up my stomach issues, thanks to post-nasal drip and decongestants which already tweak out an anxiety-prone person. So I thought, well, my tummy probably reverted cause I am sick. It happens.
I come back to work, and the first day back I have a tuna salad sandwich, hard boiled egg, and this amazing hibiscus tea. I still have to stay away from carbonation, but I could live with this diet. I had zero issues and felt normal, besides a bit of sniffles. That night my mom and I went out to dinner, where I had a grilled tilapia taco with a bit of this spicy sauce on it. DANGER WILL ROBINSON, WE HAVE A PROBLEM. I hugged the toilet and was belching and started having a panic attack praying for it to end. It did, but my nerves have been on fire since then which has not helped my stomach recovery at all. To be fair, my mother also got a bit sick the next morning. She had eaten something different, but suspected we might have picked up a bug. To make it worse, my friend says she is a sensitive and told me flatly, "you are going to have a colonoscopy, and they are going to find crohn's". Bad idea, you never tell a borderline hypochondriac that. She knows most of my symptoms and tells me it is Crohn's. The naive part of me wants to believe her, the other part of me says... "No, no, no, wait for the doctor."
I have seen my GP twice. The first time they suspected gallbladder issues, but my blood work came back normal. My cholesterol was a bit high, that was about it. They also tested me for h. pylori. All negatory, all clear, clean bill of health.
Well a few weeks later I still had problems. So this last Friday I went back to my GP. I was fine until I finally broke down due to general stress, and the stress of not knowing why I was feeling so crummy. Mild fatigue, loose stools (not watery), lack of appetite, mild abdominal pain ranging from my lower left quadrant, up to my breast bone, up to my lower right quadrant. It never hits all at once. If I eat something bad it feels like slight burning feeling, but usually it's just a pressure feeling, like gas. They felt my gallbladder, liver, thyroid, and did an external examination of my stomach. They also ordered a stool culture for ova parasites, c. diff, etc. I don't have the results yet, I hope I do soon.
Next week I go to a GI. I guess I will feel a bit ridiculous if this turns out to be stress related, however, the initial onset was during a period when I was not stressed at all. I feel like nerves are definitely worsening my tummy, and when I get anxious I typically get GERD, looser stools, and lack of appetite. I've dropped a few pounds unintentially, which sort of scares me.
Symptoms:
*Gas and bloating, usually mild
*Cramping pain around my lower abdomen at times
*Burnining sensations around lower left abdomen when I eat something bad
*Loose stools, typically regular or greenish in color. Only one instance of watery like stool after eating some Bevita crackers. (I later ate popcorn without issue, go figure??)
*Spicy foods and carbonation are a death sentence - aka, sensitivity
*Weight loss - stress related or otherwise?
*Anxiety and depression - anxiety is in full gear, thank you GAD.
*Stools are typically thinner
*Loss of appetite, tends to improve when I am less stressed
Current DX, may be non-related:
*Generalized anxiety disorder, prone to panic attacks
*GERD
*hemmorhoids, and one anal fissure - had a few episodes of OMG WTF, but the doctor did an examination and told me it was the above. I have not had any bleeding since. Although the first time there was a lot. They have given me suppositories since and I have not had a reoccurence.
So I guess this is a place for me to somewhat vent, but also have support and feedback from those who have had odd symptoms as well. I really hope I do not have IBD. If I already have GAD and periods of panic, I feel that my quality of life would be very tough at times. Is IBD managable? What are your thoughts.
Yes, I know I need to take a chill pill. Unfortunately, I'm wired at super sonic speed.
First off I want to say that I am unsure of whether I have IBD or not. My issues started in November when I got, what I thought was (or might have been), the dreaded stomach flu. It lasted only a day, and at the end of the day I was eating yogurt and soup with no problem. The next day I woke up feeling great, but my stomach was really shaky for a few weeks. It didn't help that that weekend I had signed up to go to the Food and Wine Festival with my boyfriend. Well, the alcohol and plethora of food = tummy issues. An OTC dose of prevacid cleared it up. At the same time my flu started, I also stopped six months of taking the antibiotic keflex for acne. I started to think that maybe I was sick because my gut flora had been wiped out.
I have had stomach issues most of my life, generally stress related. I have generalized anxiety disorder, and can have wicked panic attacks when I am not monitoring my stress. I can be in remission of either of these symptoms for years, and then it can rear its ugly head one day. For the past three years I have been dealing with more stress. Probably because I am out in the working world, out of my safety-net of school, and now I am doing sales. (See a pattern? I know, I'm working on it).
Anyway... In the past I have been treated for GERD and mild IBS from periods of stress. In November I had a week or so of blah, but then I was fine, for almost a month. Then around Christmas I remember something unusual. I was eating dinner with my family, and felt fine, if not a little too full. Then around dessert, (it was also my birthday), I had some cinnamon tea and a big slice of cake with ice cream. That night I was in discomfort, I had trouble sleeping. I swore it was just acid reflux, I probably over did it... AGAIN. I took Mylanta and hoped it would go away. But it didn't, not really... I spent over week on the bland non-gluten diet, as recommended with my friend who has been in UC remission for years. It seemed to help, I slowly got better.
Finally, it was the middle of January and I got to go on vacation. My boyfriend and I were careful with what I ate. However, since I had been feeling better I ventured out slowly to try new foods to test the intolerance theory. My first day, pineapple and eggs. I felt like I had won the lotto, how awesome that I could eat that? The following day, a chicken sandwich with regular bread, SCORE! The third day, pot roast with mash potatoes, green beans, and a diet coke, NORMALCY! My stools had been generally softer before this point, never watery. Finally they were getting back to normal, they were still soft-ish but not as bad.
And then... I got THE head cold. Yes, the head cold of doom in the middle of my vacation at Disney World. I probably picked it up from a little kid, always figures... So my main staple was tea, tea, tea, AND more tea. Followed by anything bready to soak up my stomach issues, thanks to post-nasal drip and decongestants which already tweak out an anxiety-prone person. So I thought, well, my tummy probably reverted cause I am sick. It happens.
I come back to work, and the first day back I have a tuna salad sandwich, hard boiled egg, and this amazing hibiscus tea. I still have to stay away from carbonation, but I could live with this diet. I had zero issues and felt normal, besides a bit of sniffles. That night my mom and I went out to dinner, where I had a grilled tilapia taco with a bit of this spicy sauce on it. DANGER WILL ROBINSON, WE HAVE A PROBLEM. I hugged the toilet and was belching and started having a panic attack praying for it to end. It did, but my nerves have been on fire since then which has not helped my stomach recovery at all. To be fair, my mother also got a bit sick the next morning. She had eaten something different, but suspected we might have picked up a bug. To make it worse, my friend says she is a sensitive and told me flatly, "you are going to have a colonoscopy, and they are going to find crohn's". Bad idea, you never tell a borderline hypochondriac that. She knows most of my symptoms and tells me it is Crohn's. The naive part of me wants to believe her, the other part of me says... "No, no, no, wait for the doctor."
I have seen my GP twice. The first time they suspected gallbladder issues, but my blood work came back normal. My cholesterol was a bit high, that was about it. They also tested me for h. pylori. All negatory, all clear, clean bill of health.
Well a few weeks later I still had problems. So this last Friday I went back to my GP. I was fine until I finally broke down due to general stress, and the stress of not knowing why I was feeling so crummy. Mild fatigue, loose stools (not watery), lack of appetite, mild abdominal pain ranging from my lower left quadrant, up to my breast bone, up to my lower right quadrant. It never hits all at once. If I eat something bad it feels like slight burning feeling, but usually it's just a pressure feeling, like gas. They felt my gallbladder, liver, thyroid, and did an external examination of my stomach. They also ordered a stool culture for ova parasites, c. diff, etc. I don't have the results yet, I hope I do soon.
Next week I go to a GI. I guess I will feel a bit ridiculous if this turns out to be stress related, however, the initial onset was during a period when I was not stressed at all. I feel like nerves are definitely worsening my tummy, and when I get anxious I typically get GERD, looser stools, and lack of appetite. I've dropped a few pounds unintentially, which sort of scares me.
Symptoms:
*Gas and bloating, usually mild
*Cramping pain around my lower abdomen at times
*Burnining sensations around lower left abdomen when I eat something bad
*Loose stools, typically regular or greenish in color. Only one instance of watery like stool after eating some Bevita crackers. (I later ate popcorn without issue, go figure??)
*Spicy foods and carbonation are a death sentence - aka, sensitivity
*Weight loss - stress related or otherwise?
*Anxiety and depression - anxiety is in full gear, thank you GAD.
*Stools are typically thinner
*Loss of appetite, tends to improve when I am less stressed
Current DX, may be non-related:
*Generalized anxiety disorder, prone to panic attacks
*GERD
*hemmorhoids, and one anal fissure - had a few episodes of OMG WTF, but the doctor did an examination and told me it was the above. I have not had any bleeding since. Although the first time there was a lot. They have given me suppositories since and I have not had a reoccurence.
So I guess this is a place for me to somewhat vent, but also have support and feedback from those who have had odd symptoms as well. I really hope I do not have IBD. If I already have GAD and periods of panic, I feel that my quality of life would be very tough at times. Is IBD managable? What are your thoughts.
Yes, I know I need to take a chill pill. Unfortunately, I'm wired at super sonic speed.
