I hate the diagnosis IBS, I have discussed it and had heated discussions with doctors, surgeons and specialists about this "so called disease", it is a sham, it is a name they give a group of symptoms, and when they do the colonoscopy or endoscopy and everything INSIDE looks fine, they say well then you have IBS!! That is the crock of "Bull ****" my general surgeon gave me last year..... guess what Shali? When I had my recent surgery they found my bowel so caught up in adhesions it took FIVE & A HALF hours JUST to clear the right side of my body & bowel of adhesions, unlooped my bowel that was wrapped around the top of my vaginal vault, which on scans gave everyone the impression that I had an ovarian remnant cyst, which kept filling with fluid causing me unbelievable pain.
I had surgery because I declined so much in hospital and after doing every humiliating test they could on me, my sweet wonderful doctor sat down and said it was time. He knew very well that I was determined to go down the pain management path, but my body simply couldn't deal with the pain any more.
I still have three and a half hours of surgery ahead of me to finish clearing the adhesions they couldn't get to this time around. I suddenly have a bowel that works! OK, there are a few places that it is a bit touchy because there are still adhesions causing problems. Shali, don't accept everything every doctor tells you....seek answers for yourself, I have been teaching myself to listen to my body. I close my eyes and I focus on the area where I have pain and I just feel it, listen to it...and that is how I know that it is REAL and not some paranoia that I have picked up after a few stressful, life-threatening surgeries.
Yes Shali I am on my soap box, and I apologise for sounding aggressive, it isn't directed at you, this aggression...it is directed at the frustration I have with doctors who think if they give a patient a name of an illness, they will leave their office happy, because *sigh* at least you know it isn't all in your head!
Experiment with your diet, strip it down to the bare basics and slowly add a new food each week.... note any changes to your bowel movements, level of nausea etc... and soon you will have a pretty clear picture of what foods you can tolerate. Because of the adhesions messing with my bowel so much, I have grade three esophagitis and now require medication for that too! IF nothing is found wrong INDSIDE your bowel, then outside the bowel is probably where the problem lies….. and in my case that is exactly what was found.
When my Gastro surgeon told me I had IBS I gave him my theory, and he had to agree with me that on many occasions, it is an over used diagnosis when no other explanation for the patients obvious discomfort, pain & nausea can be found.
Please Shali….. do some more research, that is why we call it ARD – ADHESIONS RELATED DISORDER because the adhesions play havoc with normal “freely floating” organs, causing everything from mild irritation to severe, constant and debilitating pain. Adhesions constrict the cladder causing incontinence.... there are just so MANY problems & disorders that can be directly traced back to adhesions...IBS is NOT the underlying problem..... ADHESIONS are causing your bowel to manifest these symptoms. As my surgery proved this time (as it has proved other interesting things previously) even what can be seen on a scan may not be what they find when they actually do a laperascopic procedure to resolve a health issue that has become serious enough to require surgery.
Please understand I am not attacking you Shali..... my interests in this board are only to hekp others find the right path and to empower each of us to have a more pro-active participation in our treatment and our future health.
My wish for you Shali, is peace and happiness.
-- Love and gentle hugs, Joanne Eslick Founder Australian Adhesions Support Group http://www.bombobeach.com Australian Co-ordinator of International Adhesions Society http://www.adhesions.org
-- I am not a medical person, and all my messages are based on personal experience. I am a fellow adhesions sufferer reaching out to help others.