[kare_bear88]

I've noticed that many people on this board (both D & C) talk about severe right-sided pain. However, I deal with mostly left-sided pain (IBS-D). I was just wondering if maybe there are specific treatments that work better for people who deal with pain in different places? I've tried Dicetal, Questran, and several over-the-counter drugs; none of which have given me much relief. The most successful thing I've done for my IBS is simply to eat less. I don't seem to have any specific stressors that set it off (food or emotional). This method for dealing with "flare-ups" has caused me to lose too much weight, and I was wondering if anyone with similar symptoms had any other ideas. I've tried high fiber (both soluable and insoluable) which made my problems worse, and none of the doctors I've seen have been able to give me any advice that works. I'm working on my Masters in Information Science, and I'm sick of having to leave each class two or three times (as are my professors and colleagues, I assume).Thanks, Karey

 

[maggiew]

I used Bentyl when the left side pain was bad (me too!) for a year or two way back. Had several months when things were really bad. Mostly I just learned to avoid trigger foods, and eat smaller meals more frequently.I have had IBS since 1971. Had a bout of constipation, then diarrhea since then. Back then, they did not call it IBS, it was spastic colon, colic, digestive irregularities, you name it, and it was pretty much ignored by the medical community. I think IBS was just as prevalent then, just not well understood because they could never find anything wrong....Maggie

 

[maggiew]

I used Bentyl when the left side pain was bad (me too!) for a year or two way back. Had several months when things were really bad. Mostly I just learned to avoid trigger foods, and eat smaller meals more frequently.I have had IBS since 1971. Had a bout of constipation, then diarrhea since then. Back then, they did not call it IBS, it was spastic colon, colic, digestive irregularities, you name it, and it was pretty much ignored by the medical community. I think IBS was just as prevalent then, just not well understood because they could never find anything wrong....Maggie

 

[gutsgonewild]

I also have the severe left side pains and lower ab pain as well. My left side pain is actually from my colon. I have done CT scans, small bowel follow thru, standing x ray, sonograms blah blah you name it and the cause for me is my colon is dilated when I occur this pain, then this leads to the abdomen distention and all the fun that comes with that.

I also am more diarrhea proned, so the reason I fill up so quick even with bowel movements baffles me. I was losing weight pretty fast from this as well, so actually cutting back on food IE nutrients isn't something I would actually recommend unless you want to be faint and pass out....which I have done in my severest of flares. The only thing that seemed to even out my bowel movements and ease the pain before was mag citrate to clean myself out and vicodin to firm my stools and stop the pain and allow me to leave the house. Not something I would recommend to anyone without knowing what is causing your pain and symptoms.

I have taken enough prescription meds to know that they just don't work for me, they may slow a symptom down for a short and I mean short period, but the side affects always outway the benefits for me. I just say that is what would work for me so I could live a half way normal life for that day or week I needed to run errands and leave the comfort of my home which soon felt like a prison.

I have been taking fungal defense supplements and digestive enzymes and one or two caplets of soluble fiber a day for 3/4 days now and I feel better than I have felt all year, besides being on the narcotics of course.LOL I actually had my first FIRM bowel movement this morning and have absolutely no pain and what was also strange, the poo didn't smell of rotting corpses, amazing. I haven't lost any weight in the past few days either. There is hope. No more thinking about ramming my truck into a tree at 100 miles per hour anymore~

Don't suffer needlessly, if you can't find a doc or script to help you, help yourself. It was the only choice I had left.

 

[gutsgonewild]

I also have the severe left side pains and lower ab pain as well. My left side pain is actually from my colon. I have done CT scans, small bowel follow thru, standing x ray, sonograms blah blah you name it and the cause for me is my colon is dilated when I occur this pain, then this leads to the abdomen distention and all the fun that comes with that.

I also am more diarrhea proned, so the reason I fill up so quick even with bowel movements baffles me. I was losing weight pretty fast from this as well, so actually cutting back on food IE nutrients isn't something I would actually recommend unless you want to be faint and pass out....which I have done in my severest of flares. The only thing that seemed to even out my bowel movements and ease the pain before was mag citrate to clean myself out and vicodin to firm my stools and stop the pain and allow me to leave the house. Not something I would recommend to anyone without knowing what is causing your pain and symptoms.

I have taken enough prescription meds to know that they just don't work for me, they may slow a symptom down for a short and I mean short period, but the side affects always outway the benefits for me. I just say that is what would work for me so I could live a half way normal life for that day or week I needed to run errands and leave the comfort of my home which soon felt like a prison.

I have been taking fungal defense supplements and digestive enzymes and one or two caplets of soluble fiber a day for 3/4 days now and I feel better than I have felt all year, besides being on the narcotics of course.LOL I actually had my first FIRM bowel movement this morning and have absolutely no pain and what was also strange, the poo didn't smell of rotting corpses, amazing. I haven't lost any weight in the past few days either. There is hope. No more thinking about ramming my truck into a tree at 100 miles per hour anymore~

Don't suffer needlessly, if you can't find a doc or script to help you, help yourself. It was the only choice I had left.

 

[Sally Jane]

kare_bare88, I have had the same problems you are having. When I was at my worst, I was losing too much weight. Many times if you have diverticulitis, there is pain more on the left side than the right because of the curve in the colon. My husband had it so badly, he fianlly had to have that section of his colon removed. I have it too and that is where I will have pain when I experience a flare up of that. Also if you have this fiber is highly recommended. Because of my IBS-D I cann't tolerate really high fiber so I have to get mine from foods and not supplements. A fiber supplement is just like taking a laxative for me. So with the two it seems to be a Catch 22. Maybe you have some problems with diverticulitis. A colonoscopy will show if you have any problems there. I can relate to your post so we are not alone.

 

[Sally Jane]

kare_bare88, I have had the same problems you are having. When I was at my worst, I was losing too much weight. Many times if you have diverticulitis, there is pain more on the left side than the right because of the curve in the colon. My husband had it so badly, he fianlly had to have that section of his colon removed. I have it too and that is where I will have pain when I experience a flare up of that. Also if you have this fiber is highly recommended. Because of my IBS-D I cann't tolerate really high fiber so I have to get mine from foods and not supplements. A fiber supplement is just like taking a laxative for me. So with the two it seems to be a Catch 22. Maybe you have some problems with diverticulitis. A colonoscopy will show if you have any problems there. I can relate to your post so we are not alone.

 

[eric]

I have been told although not positive how totally true it is, that the majority of IBSers have left sided pain because that is where the bowel wall is thickest. However, there is a lot of referal pain in the gut and even though the pain maybe coming from one spot, it maynot be the spot causing the pain either, but somewhere else. Pain in the gut is complex.

 

[eric]

I have been told although not positive how totally true it is, that the majority of IBSers have left sided pain because that is where the bowel wall is thickest. However, there is a lot of referal pain in the gut and even though the pain maybe coming from one spot, it maynot be the spot causing the pain either, but somewhere else. Pain in the gut is complex.