I’m 18 years old and in about the past year I’ve developed IBS. I can go three – four days just forcing down a bit of breakfast and then I feel full/sick and bloated for the rest of the day. I think that I’m hungry but because of abdominal discomfort, my body can’t sense it. It can go away for about three days and then it comes back.

It’s really getting me down. Is there anything that will help me. I can’t go on living my life in such discomfort.

Response

Oh dear, this sounds very difficult for you. Are you losing weight? Was this brought on by trying to lose weight?

Just think back, what was going on a year ago at around the time or just before your symptoms started? These symptoms could well have been initiated by stress which remains unresolved.

You might have a little gastric inflammation (gastritis), which might respond to acid blockers such as lanzoprazole or omeprazole, but just give me a bit more detail about the context of your symptoms and I may be able to be more helpful.

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I’m hoping you can give me some clarity on this issue. I have been suffering with gastro problems for about 4 years now. The started after prolonged usage of ibuprofen because I always suffered with headaches. This caused a bout of gastritis. Lansoprazole cleared the problem and I was fine for a while. Since then I have had re-occuring bouts of gastro problems. These start with mild discomfort and nausea. Then I start to feel full all the time and very sick. Then when my stomach is empty I have severe pain. Diet doesn’t seem to affect it. I also get belching, I have a horrible taste in my mouth regurgitation, and a lot of upper abdominal that goes through to my back. When my symptoms are bad, I can’t bear to be touched. I have had a gastroscopy 3 years ago and blood tests. All were negative.

I have taken a variety of drugs. Motilium helped for a bit but the symptoms started to creep back and eventually I was in severe pain. I went on omeprazole, which helped. I have been off these for a month and the symptoms are slowly creeping back.

I was diagnosed about a year ago with IBS. I feel the doctors have diagnosed this because they can’t identify anything else. I do not have diarrhoea or constipation. I’m not ruling out IBS completely if someone can explain to me why my symptoms are all upper gut, and can give me advice on what to do to manage the symptoms. I’ve read that symptoms of IBS tend to come and go, But my symptoms never go away; they just lessen in severity then creep back. I would be grateful for your opinion.

Response

You are right that some doctors tend to diagnose IBS when there is no definite signs of gastrintestinal pathology, though in your case, you had gastritis caused by NSAIDS. So now you tend to have recurrent bouts of gastritis type symptoms, which respond to treatment with acid blockers and motilium but then come creeping back. So if you wanted a more accurate diagnosis, this might be recurrent non ulcer dyspepsia or recurrent gastritis.

I suspect the symptoms of gastritis have become recruited to express emotional tension. The severity and variety of your symptoms, the fact that you don’t want to be touched might suggest an emotional resistance. We showed this some years ago that people who developed persistent diarrhoea following an attack of gastroenteritis has much more anxiety, depression and stress at the time of the original infection than those whose symptoms cleared up. The same would apply to symptoms of gastritis, symptoms of flu, back injury, surgical trauma and so on. Stress causes symptoms to recur and persist. You might think of it as a symptom memory.

So as well as finding a drug, like omeprazole, that will clear your recurrent symptoms, you might need to address any ongoing or previous stress in your life. Getting to the root of the problem could get rid of your symptoms completely.

I do hope this helps.

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I have recently been diagnosed with IBS and take spamonal to try and control it although I do still suffer. My partner and I have decided that we would like to have another child but woundered what effect the IBS and pregnancy would have. Also would it be a problem trying to get pregnant?

Response

Having IBS should not affect you getting pregnant or your pregnancy, but bear in mind that IBS is often associated with emotional tension and it is important that you take plenty of time to rest and relax during pregnancy and you are also happy and peaceful when you try to conceive.

So look after yourself, get your partner to pamper you, try relaxation, medication, take it easy. Pregnancy often causes a feeling of relaxation which should help your IBS.

As far as I am aware, there is no contraindication to taking spasmanol during pregnancy but do check with you doctor or pharmacist.

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I am a 54 year old male. When I was a child, I used to have a lot of problems emptying my bowels. Doctors & specialists alike could find nothing wrong with me. However when I was about 18 I went back to my G.P. & he suggested eating two carrots a day & taking Dulcolax and this seemed to help my symptoms enormously. I still used to get the odd day approximately every three to six weeks where I would have a call to the loo that would be poor although still difficult to ignore & consequently I would not be able to empty my bowels but other than that I was fine.

I wasn’t even taking any laxatives. Then in February last year, I had such a day just seemed to lose virtually all sensation for about a week and had to take something for it. Apart from two periods in May (for about three weeks) when I was fine again and about nine weeks from the end of September when I was reasonably okay, I really haven’t ever been right since.

My symptoms have changed somewhat. Often I can go to the loo normally albeit about 4.00 to 5.00 a.m. (used to go after breakfast) but after about an hour I get a dull ache across the groin and after about an hour I feel like I haven’t been at all. Sometimes I would go after breakfast again. I can start to feel uncomfortable after I have eaten my main meal of the day. I don’t have diarrhoea.

I have had various tests. I went for a Barium Enema last year & blood tests but all were negative. I have also tried accupuncture & visitied a Nutritionist but all have proved fruitless. I have tried Hypnosis & Councelling with no real success. I’m currently undergoing Cognitive Behavioural Therapy.

This situation is causing me a lot of distress although I recognise that this probably doesn’t help. I do try to keep a sensible diet but nothing seems to work. Please can you offer me some advice.

Response

What happened last year? What was your childhood like? During childhood, your bowels were very obstinate and resistant, but they improved when you were 18 and were OK until recently. My experience in talking to people with constipation is that it tends to express a resistance, a need to keep safe and in control. This implies there might be things going on that are worrying or impulses that need reining in.

My intuition is that something happened in the last year or so that may have recreated the same kind of situation that may have occurred in childhood or reminded you of what happened then. Perhaps a parent died. Perhaps you were having problems with a relationship either at home or work. Perhaps it has something to with retirement. I’m guessing, of course, but in order to gain insight into what is happening and what your symptoms mean, do reflect on whether anything was going on last year and what was happening when your symptoms improved and got worse again.

Cognitive behavioural therapy may help, but I think it would so much more effective if it was complemented by some insight into the personal meaning of your symptoms and the purpose they might fulfil.

With best wishes.

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