I was diagnosed with IBS last year after 2 years of problems with my gut.
I am 21 years old and have constant issues with my stomach , which seems to effect my work, going out ..pretty much everything... my problem is having sudden urgues which happen almost everyday, i have lost weight, lost alot of my confidence and i find myself constantley sluggish..no fun really !!!

i have been trying hypnotherapy since april this year and this seemed to calm me down which then seemed to calm down my stomach issues aswell but lately they seem to have gotten worse, and i made a trip back to the doctors ...
i have tried making food list to see if any type of certain food is affecting me , relaxation , anti spasmodics , and every doctors i have seen seems to have a different opinion on what is causing my ibs!
some say food could be affecting it and the last doctors i saw last said that ibs is never to do with food is always to do with the mind.... so im getting very confused !!

i cant find anything to try to help with this, i feel like ive tried everything but am just getting nowhere.

for the past 3 weeks it has been getting increasingly worse, and i end up not eating for the whole day in worry that if i eat something at work it might trigger my stomach and i end up rushing to the toilet throughout the day, so i wait till im home and have a light tea.
i know that this is not good for me as my weight drops during these time and im always feeling tired and sluggish but i dont really know how else to handle it at the moment...

i am hoping to see a dietician soon and will have food intolerance tests ..so may have some luck there !

if anyone has any suggestions of what they have tried and has helped, i would be grateful as am willing to try anything

Science Daily recently reports that plastic surgeons are turning to mathematics to take the guesswork out of efforts to ensure that live tissue segments that are selected to restore damaged body parts will have enough blood and oxygen to survive the surgical transfer.



Mathematicians, in the world's first published mathematical model of tissue transfer, have shown that they can use differential equations to determine which tissue segments selected for transfer from one part of the body to another location on the same body will receive the level of oxygen required to sustain the tissue.



The most common tissue transfers are used to restore body parts destroyed by cancer and trauma. The researchers say reliable mathematical modeling of the blood supply and oxygen in tissue segments will not only reduce failures in reconstructive surgery, but will also improve understanding of conditions in which an adequate blood supply is a basic problem, such as heart disease, cancer and stroke. To obtain tissue for reconstructive surgery, a plastic surgeon Phoenix experts explain, cuts away a segment of tissue, called a flap, that is fed by a single set of perforator vessels – an artery and vein that travel through underlying muscle to support skin and fat. Surgeons generally agree that vessels at least 1.5 millimeters in diameter are required to sustain oxygen flow within the flap intended for transfer.



Mathematicians have shown that under certain relationships between the size of the tissue flap and the diameter of the perforator vessel, the oxygen level in the flap will remain above 15 percent of the normal level, thus ensuring a successful flap transfer. If this relationship is not satisfied, the most distant tissue from the vessel will start to die – something already observed by clinicians and specialists in plastic surgery Phoenix sources say.



The research appears the week of July 13 in the online early edition of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. The routine use of a patient's own tissue from the lower abdominal wall to restore deformities on the chest dates to 1982. In the early days of full removal and transfer of tissue, surgeons took muscle along with skin and fat, resulting in loss of strength where the muscle was removed. With chest deformities and breast augmentation Phoenix surgeons quote the researchers as saying that as time has gone on, they have learned that they don't have to take the muscle, but can take a single blood vessel coming through the muscle and transfer the tissue on that vessel. What they found was that the more they designed flaps like this, the less reliable the tissue became. The motivation to try to reduce injury to muscle was leading to an increase in problems with part of the flap failing because it doesn't have enough blood.



Miller asked Friedman, founding director of Ohio State's Mathematical Biosciences Institute, to work on a model that could add more predictability to tissue transfer.

To create the initial model, Friedman and colleagues needed to determine a number of values: the level of oxygen in the tissue, which comes from tiny capillaries spaced just microns apart; the rate of exchange of oxygen from vessels to tissue; and the pressure under which the blood is flowing in those vessels.



Because there are thousands of capillaries that make it difficult to compute the oxygen levels, the researchers found a method of averaging. They average the oxygen concentration in the capillaries, think of capillaries as being uniformly spread all over, and look at the transport of oxygen from vessels into tissue. The model's outcomes exploited clinical observations, in that if the oxygen pressure fell below 15 percent during the few days following the tissue transfer, fat tissue on the outer edges of the flap would start to die. When that happens on actual surgical cases, doctors must replace the dead tissue, and sometimes have to redo the entire operation.



The pattern of blood vessels and capillaries in live human tissue is not uniformly spread throughout the flap. In many cases, there is a gap in the presence of branching vessels at the point at which the feeder artery and vein enter the fat and divide. And to add accuracy to the parameters used in the equations, the researchers agree that animal studies of tissue transfer are needed to make the model more reliable.



Imaging technology is also expected to factor into the future of reconstructive surgery. Surgeons currently use three-dimensional CT scans to image a potential flap and the perforator vessels that are feeding that flap. But the imaging available to date can't display the entire vasculature of a flap. The researchers hope to provide surgeons with software that could be combined with advanced imaging to supply more reliable information about the likely survival of a tissue flap. The image of the flap will give the surgeon an idea of the distribution of vessels. Then the surgeon will use the software to determine that with this given vasculature, a specific size of tissue can be cut. According to specialists in tummy tuck Phoenix surgeons often go to the abdomen as a common source for tissue to be transferred because it contains a lot of tissue in a location that allows the resulting scar to be hidden by clothing. Theoretically, surgeons can make flaps from anywhere on the body; the whole body is divided up on a vascular tree. If you can isolate a flap of tissue on a blood supply, you can remove it and reattach it. This research was supported by the National Science Foundation. For more information on these developments in tissue transfer technology, contact your local plastic surgeons.

Well for any of you who read my previous blog, I managed to get there in one peice, stay there the whole time, with little tummy cramps and no rushing to the toilet!! I admit when I heard I may be staying later than expected to go for a meal as well, I panicked a bit more and persuaded my parents and sister that it would be nicer if we could eat at home, but all in all I was proud of myself!! Although only a little acheivement it has given me a small amount of confidence that I can still go out and do nice things, when I dont know the area and things like that because I have done it once, obvioulsy there are going to be days when I am going to be ill and cant go but, fingers crossed I am going to be getting less and less of those days


Til next time xx

So today is quite a busy day for me, and I will have to do alot of rushing around I feel, before I can start to calm down! I am suppose to be taking my little sister to race for life, now I am not doing the run, so it is not as important, but still it is for a good cause and therefore is rather important! My problem is I will be out of the house from 4 until about half 9 and this worries me, it worries me greatly, more so because well there are no toilets for the majority we will be in the car, and well today I am having a bad day, and worry I will need the toilet alot, I do not want to be caught short, and wellthis makes me worry more, which sends me into panic attacks, which in turn starts the vicious circle which causes my panic attacks!!

I have tried not thinking about it and putting my mind to other things, but this is waaaayyyy easier said than done, I have tried breathing exercises, I have tried sucking mints, to take my mind of it and give me another taste in my mouth which would also settle my stomach! I have tried taking my medicine, but if all else fails I will haveto let her down, and not be able to take her or go and watch! Which I know she will understand but it upsets me that I have to do this, that I need to let her down, that I am tied down by this IBS that is starting to take over my life!!

I have heard that thinking about it makes it worse, so I try so hard not to worry about it, but its clearly in my subconcious and now well I cant help it!! When I am there hopefully we will be ok, but you know its hard to tell!!

I have a few hours before we have to leave so I canjust hope I calm myself down and get on with it, prove to myself I can do it and then maybe make it easier from there on in!!


Wish me luck..... I will let you know when I succeed!! xx

Today I begin blogging. Never before have I typed my way from a depressive state to near divinity buy today I begin the effort.

Like many others here I have been kind of diagnosed with IBS. The road to this so called diagnosis was quite a journey of fear and loathing along with long and short periods of incapacitation. Unfortunately not the kind of incapacitation those without IBS may assume. My incapacitation happens the way that many others' do...the nearby necessity of a bathroom, missed school then work, a drawback from activities and friends and a fear of losing it all.

I began this journey at a very early age when the diagnoses for such an illness were often incorrect or non-existent. My first memories of abdominal pain were at about five. I remember my mother carting me off to the doctor with no luck for many years...so many years in fact that I decided just not to complain anymore for fear of having to go back for more "tests". Mostly through my adolescence and early adult years I hid my illness from those around me as best I could and often removed myself from places where it became known. I had a real desire and draw as a younger man towards Para medicine and for a number of years was successful in this pursuit working in a major east coast city (Canada) and then in the Rocky Mountains for some time. I however had to leave this profession for the odd hours, bad food and sleep depravity added fuel to my already burning IBS fire. Eventually I ended up spending months out of work and experiencing severe pain every day. I again began frequenting the doctor and seeing various specialists to no avail and eventually left my loved profession and became a wandering gypsy, finding work where and when I could in Jobs where it didn't matter if I got fired by a not so understanding boss or where it made no difference whether I was there or not every day. All the while not having a diagnosis for my frequent attacks of severe and debilitating abdominal pain.

I traveled throughout western Canada for may years moving from place to place. When I ran out of willing employers or I felt as though a bridge was about to be ashes at one job I would go find a new one. Now I am getting older and over the years have realized what foods inhibit my day and how to deal with various employers but yet I am getting nowhere in life because of this illness. Pay cheques do not fall from the sky and one cannot live in today's society without income. The vicious cycle of our illness leads us around and around causing us to worry about an illness that is aggravated by worry. Today I worry about an income for my family and thus tomorrow I have none.

Stopping this cycle is seemingly impossible these days. After extensive research I self diagnosed with IBS, then went to see the doc again. The only diagnosis I have yet to receive is "yea it could be IBS" without any confirmation or solid affirmation that this is my problem. Fortunately over the years I have noticed that consuming certain foods was not helpful and have since stopped eating processed foods almost entirely, including MSG and fast food items. I have given up caffeine, and almost all dairy (I still like a little cheeze now and then) along with junk food and carbonated beverages. I have tried medium and high fiber diets along with other diet rituals all to no avail, seen Chinese medicine specialists and herbalists along with reiki and acupuncture therapists all to no avail as well.

I worry these days because after all I have done my IBS gets no better. I am married now and looking for a stable life but I am having trouble convincing myself all will be ok. I have regular severe abdominal pain attacks and bouts of depression mostly in combination with these "attacks" that still interfere with work and every day life. I had always assumed medical science would catch up to me as I got older and find a way to at least manage the pain without causing more discomfort or longer symptoms but this does not happen.

Thirty years of pain and discomfort along with a never ending sense of doom is enough already...where is the magic pill...I'll take it!

Well this is my first blog and I think I am going to use it to let off steam, and hopefully relate to some people reading this because I would hate to think I am the only person who feels like this out there.


I have recently been diagnosed with IBS, well I say recently, its all been a bit of a sham really. I went to my Doctor in October, after having abdominal pain for about a month, not severe but bad enough, he passed it off as trapped gas and left me to it. So I presumed I was just being stupid and left it and left it, becoming more of a recluse because I was constantly cancelling on friends, because my stomach hurt or I was worried I would need to "go" when we were out, I knew I was upsetting people and losing contact with them, and I knew they didnt understand because as far as they knew there was nothing wrong with me, because I thought there was nothing wrong with me. Until one night in May the pain I felt was unbearable, I couldnt move, I couldnt eat, I really thought I was dying, it hurt so much I was crying, I lay there for a while, thinking should I go to hospital or not, my boyfriend was asleep next to me and I didnt have the energy to wake him up, I couldnt talk or anything from the pain, I managed to make it to the bathroom, and good job I did, I was ill, like so ill I have never been like that before, it hurt, and hurt my stomach, and I thought I was going to feel better, I was starting tothink I would die in my scummy student house toilet. Luckily I had taken my phone in with me I rang my boyfriend who came running in, with water and to my aid!! He really helped me and made me promise to go to the doctors again, he said I should tell them how upset I have been, how it has been compromising what I do and about that night. So I did, and he said straight away .... it is IBS which is related to your PMS, which he also diagnosed me with. He put me on tablets, and off I went expecting to feel better, he told me to keep a food diary and to bring it next time I went in.

The tablets didnt work but it didnt down hearten me too much, I knew they were trial and error. So I went back to the doctors, I got my food diary out and he didnt care, he didnt look at it, didnt even want to know what I had put in it, I said I had noticed some foods that made me feel worse, and he said, well food doesnt affect IBS!!! WHAT!? why make me keep a food diary then?!?!?! I was really upset I felt like it was for nothing all over again, I told him tablets didnt work, so he gave me some others and told me he would do a blood test if it made me feel better! So booked me in for that after I had tried the new tablets.

Again these didnt work, and I was more downheartend this time.... feeling a bit cheated by the doctor, but I percevered, I kept the food diary myself, diagnosing what food made me feel worse, and keeping that out of my diet for the time being. I researched other options for me, and tried stress relieving exercises. Some of which worked on some days sometimes didnt. I went back for the blood tests last week, and everything came back fine and dandy, which in a way made me feel good, but also led me no closer to what was wrong. I explained to the doctor I was still getting severe cramps and in fact if anything they were getting worse, so bad sometimes I dont leave the house for a few days because I am scared of being outside, I tried totell him about my anxiety about going out, but he was very dismissive of me, he had a ten minute time slot with me and clearly wanted to keep to it. He printed off a leaflet from wikepedia, or some such search engine, and let me choose my next medication, which I found unprofessional. I tried to talk to him about how I felt and that I needed to sort out a diet and he was not very responsive so here I am sat here, with the tablets which I initially thought worked but, at the moment seem to be failing me as I sit writing this with stabbing cramping pain that makes me want to cry a little!!

The reason I am so upset, is because I used to be so outgoing, love going outside and for walks, now I get panicky at the thought of it, unless I know where the toilet is of where we are going I am never very keen and eating out is becoming a big no no, I hate letting my friends down but I seem to be getting rather good at it, they are understanding to a point, but some of them are just gettin bored of it now, and leaving me behind!! I really thought I was going to get a bit better after this doctor appointment but it has really knocked me back, and made me feel worse!! I wanted to be better for my 21st and I still can be I have 2 months, but with no conclusion or help from my doctor I am not sure how I will be!!! All I can do is hope I find something soon that makes me feel better!! Or at least start getting a bit more confidence to go out and do things with my friends


Any way will sign off now, my little rant is over and I do feel a bit better for getting it off my chest ... muchos love guys

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Well first off I would like to thank everyone that has commented on my other postings that it helps to know that there is someone out there that is actually on my side for once. Any ways since my last posting I have been hospitalized with extreme stomach pains and diarrhea with an vengeance. The ER doc decided to do a CAT scan and found fatty deposits on my liver and fluid in the cul da sac which I found out was the area behind the vagina which is suppose to be normal to some degree however he wanted to add an ultrasound to the tests as well and then admit me to the hospital. My mother was with me from 3 in the afternoon until 5:30 the next morning in the ER with me since they had to wait for a bed. Once they found me a bed i let her go home and my dad came to stay with me for a little while, while my mom went home and got some sleep. With in those two hours 3 doctors had come in to see me and ordered a bunch of blood work and stool samples. The nurse was completely in shock since she has never seen 12 pages of stool sample tests needing to be run. She said she has never even heard of half of the things he was running which I guess is a good thing because that means he is being thorough. Well 2 days later I was finally able to leave the hospital since it can take weeks according to the doctor for all the test results to come in and there was no point keeping me there. I had no fever and just diarrhea. What I did get back though was that my white blood cell count came back a little elevated, and some markers for the liver and inflammation did come back abnormal as well, and my b12 count is down. Leaving the hospital was a nightmare!!!! I had to put one of those huge diapers-the ones that they put on really old people in the hospital, just so I could make it home from the hospital because I was so scared I was going to go to the bathroom in my pants. When I was in the hospital i had to run down the hall to another bathroom because my room mate was in the bathroom in our room, and I had to go now!!!! I barely made it down the hall but did make it without an accident. So now I am home taking Prevalite daily which has stopped the diarrhea thank god because it got so bad that i had gotten hemorrhoids so bad!!!! I just could not take it any more. By the way the Prevalite is what the doctor had given me after I had my gallbladder out and the diarrhea became uncontrollable. I am also on 20mg of Paxil and 60mg of Cymbalta daily as well and Xanax when needed. I still can not leave the house due to the fear of not being near a bathroom and having to go right then and there and not be able to hold it in. I still have the feeling of like i constantly have to go in the rectum in area which i guess you can say is pressure, and i have bad gas. Tomorrow is the 4th of july and what am I doing you ask?? Well I am staying at home by myself with my cats because I can't leave the house and am to embarrassed to have friends over in case I have an attack. My parents are going out to dinner tonight by my family and then tomorrow with their friends, and i absolutely hate it when they go out and I am home alone. I know I can't expect them to stop their life just because I have decided to stop mine and let the fear in me win instead of trying to go out. Am I crazy for letting the fear win, or is it that I have been through the scary feeling so many times that I can not even remember what it was like to live without it. I am 23 years olds, and should be out with friends having a great time and living my life, instead I am sitting at home because I am scared I am going to have a BM in my pants. THIS IS NOT NORMAL!!!!! I really hope that on tuesday when I call the doctor for the test results they actually find something wrong with me that can be fixed and I can get back to my normal life again. Its like the fear has paralyzed me and it completely sucks!!!! SO is it really ALL IN MY HEAD???? I am starting to believe it I have heard it so much now. I was taking a summer class that I had to go to school for and had to drop because I was hospitalized and missed to many classes which almost made me not go away to school in the fall to finish up my nursing degree because I need this class in order to start. Thank God I found an online chem class that offers not only the lecture online but also the lab part as well. The school approved it and now all I have to do is hope that the school offering it lets me take it. I can not see why they wouldn't I have a 3.5 GPA. I also have to hope that the school lets me take a different orientation program since my orientation is next week and i cant get in the car and drive the 2hrs.


SO SOUND OFF PLEASE

until next time
futurenursewithibs

I saw on the national news tonight that we are now at the highest obesity level in the history of our country. My first thought was that I under the assumption that diet sodas, fat free foods with Lord knows what in them, Equal, Spenda, and all of these weight reducing aids were supposed to help us get our weight under control. Well, that was a huge false assumption. I don't know if these diet aids actually hurt our effort at weight loss but they sure are not helping. Obviousley, we are all still consuming more calories than ever.

The point is that I strongly believe that these sugar-free products are a HUGE contributor to IBS-D. If you drink a lot of Diet Coke (or any other diet sodas), eat fat-free foods that traditionally have fat in them (like ice cream, cookies, candy), or consume a lot of Splenda, Nutrasweet, or Equal, I challenge you to stop and see if it helps. There is no long term research on the effects of these man-made products. If you really want to lose weight, simply reduce your calorie intake.

Fortunately (or not, as the case may be) I don't have much of an opportunity to stand still as my
working week starts with a 9am Mental Health Act Assessment which was set up for my return.

So I'm charging my work phone in order to check the messages so that I'll know if I'm still needed.

In the meantime there seem to be a gaggle of stories worthy of comment of which I can only touch on
a couple which link in a way to depression, work and stigma.

A report in The Independent yesterday notes that

The blight of depression affecting hundreds of thousands of people across Britain is costing the
nation's ailing economy

I was curious as to why the costs relating to depression should have increased so sharply.

Cheers..

First off, my story is not ultra-optimistic with a great ending. In fact, it's just beginning. I'm 18, from Ireland and just finished school. For the past year I knew I had some kind of condition, but didn't know what it was. There was no real trigger to my IBS, it was more a random series of weeks when I was sick. I was in school and had these weird feelings of claustrophobia in certain classes. The next thing I knew was I had to be picked up from school with an abnormal sense of urgency to get to the bathroom. I was totally clueless to why I continued to have these attacks of sickness over the next few weeks. The fear of getting sick in a public place like school made me anxious, and its only now I realise the anxiety probably spurned it on.

I went on holiday that summer, but found it far from enjoyable. My symptoms were at their worst. I felt really angry that I had let this ruin a holiday, but my anger was emphasized by the fact I felt my illness was self-inflicted. I believed my irrational anxiety had triggered something in my mind that told me I was sick when I wasn't. It's taken a year to figure out I actually am.

After searching on the net I was convinced I was lactose intolerant. Then I was sure I had Coeliac Disease. Then it was wheat/ dairy intolerance. I went to my GP who took blood samples. He soon ruled out IBS, saying bowel movements would occur within half an hour of eating, and this isn’t normally the case for me. The blood results showed everything was fine and my family thought I was over-reacting. For a while I thought I was too.

Despite being written off as a hypochondriac, I continued searching the net for answers. I’d often considered IBS sufferers as people intolerant to certain foods, but a site showed me it doesn’t necessarily mean that. I now feel I can go out and try remedies and medication without feeling stupid, or like I’m worrying over nothing. I’ve never met anyone with this condition (I suppose it’s not something that comes up in small talk) and I hope to talk to some people on this site about their experiences, like what has and hasn’t worked for them and so on. I’ve already read a few stories that make me realise there are others far worse off than me, but also hopeful for the future!

x

My wife's alarm awoke me at 5 am. I'm not complaining, because 99% of the time I don't hear it. But it's that 1% of the time that really, there must be something wrong with me. Today it was the abdominal pain!

After having a decent day yesterday, I awoke to this god awful pain today. There is nothing I can take that makes it feel better, aside from the pain killers that they have given me at the ER...

Ok, ok, let me back track here a minute:

I believe the problem started almost 2 years ago to the day. I had been hospitalized after a 'simple knee scope.' I say simple, but not so much. Two days after the proceedure, I was admitted to the hospital with blood clots below the knee, and compartment syndrome above. The doc later stated that I had a better chance at winning the lottery than something like this happening. Anyhow, I come back to this point of origin, because, not only did this alter my life, but so did c-diff.

After contracting c-diff, which is common in older patients who have stays in the hospital (which I was in ICU for 10 days- 13 overall), I had the worst pain in my stomach ever! It felt like what I would picture of feeling an elephant stepping on my stomach! After having to take treatments for this 2 times, over 5 months, and having the worst bowel movements ever, I felt that I could move on.

But c-diff did something to my GI tract. I have never been the same! I continuously have pain in my upper right abdomine. I have had 3 colonoscropies, and 1 'down the throat'-scropy too. They have found little wrong with my colon, and nothing wrong with my digesive tract. Pollips, and some inconclusive info leading to the fact that "you have colitis, but not enough to prove that it is colitis."

I'm going on 4 straight months of uncertainty now. I am now seeing my 2nd GI specialist. I have tried about 12 different prescriptions (2 of which were different dosages), none of which have eased the pain nor lessened the diarreha. I haven't worked during that time, because my job intails me being on the phone for 8 hrs, and being accounted for during that time.

It is tough! It is tough! I'm not asking for Calgone to take me away, but if it works on IBS, I'm game!

After three months of having only minor episode, yesterday I had a major episode that took me to the ER once again. Althought it is non-life threatening, and I know they won't do a thing, but after three hours of struggling I decided I have to find some help. Well, as expected for ER in Ontario, I went in at 8pm and finally got to see the doctor at about 2am. My pain was already subsided when the doctor came.

I felt that nobody believe how painful I experienced. As if I was a pill junky just trying to get my hands on more pain killer. I am only in my early 30s and I take more medication then my parents who both diabetic. Anyhow, this time I was determined to ask the doctor for some pain medication that will hopefully work, and no I don't want to hear things like it is just constipation or it is my bladder infection. Mind you my urologist already told me the level of pain and my description of pain cannot be caused by bladder infection or my cystitis. And I really hate doctors who doesn't seem to listen, as if they must be right and I am wrong! Hey, who owns the body here?! And don't tell me my urologist 40 years of experience doesn't know what he was talking about!

This time I specifically emphasized my excrutiating pain to the doctor, and thanks God this time the doctor wasn't a young guy who looks like who just came out of medical school. Seriously all these young doctors with their arrogant attitude these days drives me insane. This time I think the doctor take pity on me because I have IC. He didn't just sent me home, he took x-ray, and found that I have a lot of gas. With my description of my pain it seems that I have gas, and my intestine spasm that's why I have such pain. He didn't say anything about pain killer, so I asked him. He prescribe me toradol, I hope this will work.

Women have a lot on their minds. Work and family top the list, but these days the economy is taking its toll on women in more ways than one. Visalia Times-Delta reports a recent study by the American Society of Plastic Surgeons found that it's not just genetics that determine how we age. Stress, and particularly how we deal with it, can also dictate aging. Whether it's the economy, work or coming to terms with life-changing events such as divorce, women deal with stress differently. Some eat, some lose their appetite all together. Some reach for a martini or find that antidepressants help.

This study found that when women introduce certain factors into their lives, they interfere with the aging process. Clearly things such as smoking and sun damage can cause dramatic increases in the age of our appearance. But this study found that divorce, use of antidepressants and dramatic weight loss/gain affect aging, primarily because the face loses volume. It's up to women to choose whether to deal with stress differently or rejuvenate the face in other ways. Soft tissue fillers and Botox injections, as well as surgical procedures like a Beverly Hills facelift, can reverse these trends.

Question: How much does a person's heritage dictate how they age?

Answer: Quite a bit. A good example is that darker-skinned individuals have less sun damage because the pigment in their skin absorbs ultraviolet light, that portion of sunlight that causes skin damage.

Q: What are some factors that contribute to the aging process?

A: Some of the biggest things that you can control are smoking and sun exposure — sun exposure is harmful for obvious reasons, but smoking is more complicated.

Holding a cigarette in your mouth can lead to wrinkles around the mouth. The nicotine decreases blood flow to the skin leading to changes that accelerate aging. The toxins in the smoke get into the blood stream and also contribute to aging. Either way, Beverly Hills plastic surgeons say avoiding these can make a big difference.

Q: What are the best preventive measures women can take to slow aging?

A: There are various options available for improving the appearance of existing wrinkles. A good skin-care regimen, including glycolic acids and Vitamin A derivatives (Retin-A, Retinol, etc.), will help if used faithfully. Chemical peels will improve skin texture and smooth wrinkles. Soft tissue fillers like Restylane, Radiesse or Sculptra can provide more fullness in treated areas. Botox smoothes wrinkles in areas where muscle function causes the wrinkles. Microdermabrasion helps to exfoliate the skin. Even corrective otoplasty Beverly Hills plastic surgeons point out, can help achieve a younger look for a patient's face. Finally, the more invasive procedures like laser resurfacing and face-lifts may be needed depending on the extent of improvement desired. Discussing your concerns with someone who can provide all of these options gives the patient the information to decide what is best for them.

Q: In this economy, what are some of the more economical surgical procedures that correct aging?

A: Botox and fillers create improvement with a much lower cost than an operation. However, my personal feeling is that the operation that creates the biggest "bang for your buck" is the upper eyelid lift (upper blepharoplasty). Opening the eye area creates a dramatic improvement in the signs of aging for a much smaller cost than a face-lift with only two weeks down time and most people won't be able to tell you had an operation. They will say that you look more awake and refreshed without knowing why.

Q: Do you have any advice for patients on how to make surgical procedures affordable in these times?

A: Work with your provider to see what options they offer and don't hesitate to investigate on your own. Your Beverly Hills ear surgery specialist may be willing to set up a payment plan where you can essentially "save up" for your procedure. For example, you'll pay installments on an interest-free basis until the total cost of the procedure is covered, then the procedure can be done. Others have financing options available that allow you to get a procedure and make payments on it later. Such options are more costly.

Most women who get breast implants are realistic about the surgery. For them, it's a body image issue; according to a top plastic surgeon Phoenix patients come in who are often simply not happy with their bodies and wish to improve them. They have realistic expectations that if this is done, they will look more satisfying to their own eye and to others. But their self-esteem does not depend on it. However, the journey to the operating table can be emotionally painful for some. One study showed that in the year before their breast augmentation Phoenix women reported greater distress about their appearance and more teasing about it. They also spent more time in a psychiatrist's office than women who didn't get the surgery.

Over the years many Phoenix plastic surgeons have come to recognize the patient with unrealistic expectations. They say that they won't treat patients who are going through major life changes - divorce, death in the family, according to WebMD. Patients are told up front it won't change their life, won't get them a new job, won't get them more dates, but it can make them feel better about who they are.

When self-esteem and sense of self are more fragile, that's when people tend to have unrealistic expectations of breast implant plastic surgery Phoenix surgeons explain. They are seeking transformation of sense of self. The gap between their ideal self and real self -- or the way they see themselves - is greater than for the other group.

Studies have certainly shown high levels of satisfaction and improved quality of life after getting breast implants or a tummy tuck Phoenix surgeons tell us. But a decade later, the satisfaction fades for some reason in some cases. Experts do not know for sure what the reasons are. Bottom line: Good surgeons must help women assess whether their expectations and reasons for wanting breast implant surgery are realistic.

My story as short as I can make it:

Constipation all my life, sometimes caused as a child by "holding" BM due to painful cramping & large hard stools. Held once too long around age 20 and it was last time I ever felt normal, natural urge to go. I actually felt something snap inside me - hard to explain.

Started taking herbs and over-the-counter meds to go but had very unreliable, incomplete relief, sometimes even going 2 weeks with no BM. At age 25 a gastro-enterologist recommended tap water enemas since nothing else helped. They worked better than anything else but I don't recommend them as dependency is the result. I still need a daily enema 30 years later.

But that's not all. I found that using cascara sagrada and a stool softener daily helped with complete evacuation and used that for 25 years. At age 51 it suddenly stopped working and actually made symptoms worse.

I became very ill, sometimes going days without eating and lost too much weight. With keeping a food diary, going to several doctors, researching on the internet and in books, I discovered that I had to completely change my diet and take certain natural substances that help me alot. Amitiza didn't help, nor Zelnorm (or some -norm), and various combinations of herbs, etc., didn't work for me and I was desperate.

I think it's due to menopausal changes, but I now have not only chronic constipation, but sometimes (rarely) diarrhea (IBS-C), and an everyday problem with what I call "trapped gas." Here's what I do for relief: Drink lots of 100% grapefruit juice to be able to pass the gas; take lots of probiotics to have a complete BM (Intestinal Care by Ethical Nutrients is the BEST!); drink lots of water; eat only the foods I can tolerate, which are mainly soluble fiber, no meat, dairy or eggs.)

I'm hoping some of this may help some of you out there, and maybe I can find better solutions for my problems as well. What I'm doing these days is expensive, time-consuming, and 2-3 cans of grapefruit juice is adding unwanted calories & weight even though I've cut out one meal. But I'd rather put on a little too much weight than be sick and miserable. Please let me know if you have suggestions or if mine have helped you, OK?

Is the master cleanse really a colon cleanse or just a diet?

The master cleasne as a colon cleanse

Back in Nov. 2008, I had a colonoscopy after a bout with diarrhea that had some blood in it. The diagnoses was Ischemic Colitis. The past few weeks, I have had recurring diarrhea. Went back to the colon/rectal Dr. and he diagnosed IBS. I have taken Immodium AD and Xanax off and on for the last 2 weeks but I can't keep that up, nor do I want to. I am also on Yaz birthcontrol pills. Does anyone know of any correlation? Any help or advice is appreciated.

yeah, i know I'm taking a break from the forums b/c of a looming deadline, but my body's not giving me a break... so I'm here this moment cos i could really use a place to vent. Any rate, since the night before, my gut's been pretty painful and I've had countless BM's... not really watery, but alternating between hard and loose, kinda crazy; BUT, I'd even make do if it's not because of the pain.

At this juncture, can I afford to lose my concentration? No. Can I afford to be futher sleep-deprived b/c of the pain? No. Can I afford to take time off work? No. Can I afford to be sick? No. BUT does my body cooperate? Of course not!!

What's also bothering me is, because of the lack of physical activity (at the computer all day and now this pain further comprimises my only time to get up and exercise at about this time of the day), I'm gaining wait REALLY fast! As much it doesn't make sense that I'm sick and have so many loose BM's per day and I'm not eating more, I'm still gaining stupid weight! Sigh, it took me 5 yrs to get back down to a normal healthy weight, and now I'm gaining again

Anyways, OUCH! And sigh. Now back to work

This is my first blog so please be patient with me. I have been visiting this forum for 3 years but joined today because I was compelled to start this blog to help others and to continue my recovery. I am not a doctor or health care professional of any kind however I am experienced first hand with IBS-D - more than we can say for many that provide us professional advice. The quick rundown on me is that I am a male living in the US in my very early 40's who has been suffering from IBS-D for around 5 years. I had no illness, surgery, food poisoning, or any other event that I know of that triggered IBS-D. It just happened and it upturned my life. I have always considered myself a regular guy with a wife and kids, good job, and active social life with many friends.

The good news is that I am better. Not cured, but better than I was last year and last year I was better than I was the year before. The lesser news is that I will be dealing with IBS-D for the rest of my life. At least that's the way I am approaching it - more on that later.

Whatever you are going through I promise I have been through it - we all have - uncontrollable anxiety, fear, abdominable pain, hopelessness, depression, agoraphobia, uncontrollable and unpredictable 'D', damage to relationships, etc. It's no fun. I will admit that my IBS-D was probably in the severely moderate category. Some of you seem to have it worse than I ever have and my heart bleeds for you. I was able to funtion somewhat even during the worst of it. Now I had to alter my life dramatically in many ways that I never imagined just to 'function' and I missed out on many things. Every day was a challenge and I wondered how I would get through it and some days still are.

This blog is intended to help others if possible. Again, I am not a professional and my opinion is not intended to replace medical or professional advice you receive. I just want to help a few people if I can. If your IBS-D is medically related to a specific condition, I'm not sure if my advice will be of interest. I'll let you decide. If you disagree with me that's fine. IBS-D affects people differently and I appreciate that fact. BUT, I do think there are some common threads with those of us who don't know why this condition has afflicted us.

I could write all night (I won't) but I do want to leave you with the 4 most important facts that I believe about IBS based on my mostly self-treatment.

1) You must ACCEPT the fact that you have IBS-D to be able to 'cure' it. When I say accept, I mean accept without emotion. If you are angry at IBS-D you feed right into it. This is not easy but critical. Accept that you have it and just manage it day by day the best you can without emotion. If you stop reading right now I understand because you think how in the hell can I not be angry? Having been there, I understand but it will not get better in a day, week, or month so put that hope aside. It will take time - maybe a few years - it has for me. If you can accept that fact I believe you are on your way. If you have a bad day, just shrug it off as a bad day and move on. Easier said than done, but at least try to work on it if you can...

2) There is no magic pill. Believe me, I have shoved the same things into my body as you have....over the counter drugs (Immodium, Pepto, etc.), prescription drugs (Lomotil, others), probiotics (more than I can count), Calcium, antidepressants (many), colon cleanses, and probably other stuff I can't even rememeber. I think reading this forum has showed me that nothing works for everybody and medications by themselves don't work long-term. Which leads me to...

3) The very first step in controlling IBS-D is to somehow get the anxiety under control. You CANNOT begin to cure IBS-D if you have significant anxiety - it feeds IBS-D. One thing I have learned is that anxiety will overcome (through 'D') everything when it comes to IBS-D including Immodium, Calcium, pretty much everything. I went on Xanex around 2 years ago and am still on it. Pretty small doses but it HELPS and was a good decision for ME. I have been on the same dose (1 mg a day) for a couple of years. I am not saying take Xanex but I am saying that I don't think IBS-D can be cured if significant anxiety is present - it's the first very big step to getting IBS-D under control.

4) BEWARE - CONTROVERSIAL - I don't believe antidepressants (AD's) are effective at all in controlling IBS-D. Again, this is my opinion based on personal opinion, experience with taking several AD's, and carefully reviewing this forum. If you are clinically depressed, that's completely different. If you are 'depressed' because you are sick and tired of IBS-D and that's why you are 'down', I'm not sure that qualifies as depression and the need to take AD's. I took Effexor, Welbutriin, and several others and I hated the way they made me feel. Didn't help my IBS-D either not to mention the side effects. I do still see a psychiatrist but told him no more AD's. I have just started a beta-blocker - no effect so far.

That's it for tonight. I'm just getting started and have a ton more thoughts. If this is helpful to one person, then I'll continue. Please let me know if you want more.

I would love your questions. I am an open book. I'll tell you anything about my condition and and what I believe I've learned over the past few years. I'll also tell you if I don't know the answer to your question or don't feel qualified to respond. Again, I am not a doctor but want to help if I can. This is theraputic for me as well.

If you read this whole blog, thanks, and good luck to you in this challenge! Don't forget to use prayer. God is great!