[franci]

just wondering how many of you out there have taken antibiotics in the past and are now experiencing compromised bowel function?i am on a personal quest to figure out the correlation between the two, if it exists. my symptoms are namely bloating + the ever so infamous 'leaky gas' syndrome. i spent a lot of time on antibiotics for acne, as well as other things, and noticed the onset of increased 'gassiness' then. any thoughts? ideas? feedback?

thanks!

 

[Arnie W]

Hi there, evabella. So glad that you posted!I think that I had leanings towards IBS as a kid, but I have an idea that antibiotics (yes, for acne) triggered everything off.Many moons ago, after having been prescribed anitbiotics, I was sitting in a crowded lecture room when I felt this rumbling sensation in my anal area which I could not control, and I ended up clenching my butt cheeks for the rest of the class. I was in the same situation - the same time and room - the next day, and you know the story, history repeated itself. It was downhill from there, and gradually I got those sensations right throughout the day. I also developed very much changed bowel habits, namely having a bm as often as possible, not because I had to, but because I wanted to try to make myself 'empty.I think that stress was also a factor.And, you know what, the antibiotics were a waste of time. I had bad acne for a couple of years after. I don't know what stopped me from becoming a social hermit. Farting and acne to contend with at the same time. They were challenging years.

 

[missC]

you ever tried tranquillizers, Arnie? (not for the obvious reason). i'd actually forgotten (or not forgotten, but had submerged at a lower level of consciousness) until reading Dan and spasman's recent threads on opiates etc, that during a short period on valium years ago i had practically normal gut function. i don't know why and i'm a very lazy researcher. but i might try to talk my doc into a prescription and give it a try (last time was during some stressful exams and she wasn't having any).

 

[Arnie W]

MissCLast year a friend from overseas shared with me the name of the medication he had taken when he went on a plane trip (he's absolutely terrified of flying). I looked it up on a search engine and discovered it was xanax. One thing led to another and suddenly I found that there was a link to IBSGroup from the xanax listings and hence you see my name here today. I did a search for xanax and ibs and came up with thousands of results.Armed with that info, I asked my doctor for some, and he stared at me incredulously. He either thought I was an idiot, ill-informed or a drug abuser. I thought like reminding him that I worked in a psych hospital, and if I wanted to abuse those drugs I'd pilfer them (I wouldn't really!)But if I do ever feel that they or any drugs of the benzo family would help me, I'd refer him to the internet to find out for himself.

 

[Arnie W]

Btw, I'm sure that tranquillizers would help with gas caused by everything being churned up, but do you think they would help with the gas odours?

 

[flux]

quote:that tranquillizers would help with gas caused by everything being churned up, but do you think they would help with the gas odours?

It doesn't make sense they could impact gas in any signficant way.

 

[bonniei]

Well flux, it could help to slow dow transit so that as much undigested food does not reach the colon. It could also help ease spasms which send gas through the system much fatter than normal.

 

[missC]

Arnie i have no idea but i think it's worth a try. i'm going to try to talk my doctor into a short trial but it'll be hard going...

 

[flux]

quote:it could help to slow dow transit so that as much undigested food does not reach the colon.

So then where does it go?

 

[bonniei]

The undigested food gets digested before reaching the colon, flux! So there is not that much substrate left for the bacteria to eat and make gas.

 

[bonniei]

quote:It could also help ease spasms which send gas through the system much fatter than normal.

It should be "It could also help ease spasms which send gas through the system much faster than normal."

 

[Arnie W]

I would have thought that tranquillisers would bring more stability to the gut. I know that, facing stressful, potentially dangerous situations from time to time from my job, I get a really churned-up gut.I did a google search and came up with librax, a combined anti-cholinergic/anti-anxiety. I then did an advanced search on the IBS forum, and ended up thinking that I would have to weigh up the pros and cons very carefully before committing myself to anything like that.I'll certainly bring it up with my doctor, but want to explore every other avenue first.

 

[bonniei]

Yes tranquilizers will "un knot" all the knotted up muscles.I think Librax is a better choice than Xnax because Xanax is for short tem use only.