[WonkyColon]

I know you guys are sick of my hypochondria. But, as they say, "Just because you're paranoid doesn't mean they're not after you."I talked my doctor into ordering an abdominal X-ray (no barium). The tech who took the X-ray said "Oh my God!" when she saw it but said she couldn't tell me why. I looked over her shoulder (which I wasn't supposed to do) and there are HUGE black bubbles all over the upper left side of my colon. I asked her what they were and she just said "That's air."Now I'm flipping out even more. I wanted the X-ray for reassurance that I don't have a serious problem like colon cancer, but "Oh my God!" isn't exactly reassuring.A radiologist won't read the X-ray for at least 24 hours, maybe as long as three days. I'm scared shitless. (Literally.)Why would I have such huge gas bubbles unless I have colon cancer blocking it from evacuating? Can IBS cause gas bubbles that bad? Since there was no barium, cancer wouldn't have shown up, would it?Please, somebody respond. I'm so terrified and need reassurance.

 

[WonkyColon]

Please, someone respond. I'm so scared!

 

[Bonzi]

Wonky,If you were blocked up where you couldnt have a bowel movement, then their would be concerned. But a tumor wouldnt block air, yet allow something solid like stool to pass through!The xray tech was probably right by amazement, if you have tons of trapped air like that, I can only imagine the xray

You need to #1 start by preventing this gas and take Beano before every meal. #2. Get rid of the gas you have now. Take Gas-X extra strength and knock that stuff out!When I first started having anxiety issues after a month of abdominal pain, I got bad, bad gas buildup. I bet my Xray wouldve put that one to shame. I had to go on a crazy regiment of probiotics, beano and gas-x, along with relaxing and sure enough, a week later I was expelling all of the gas and not allowing any to be built up. I had trapped gas so bad it was unbearable, I felt like I was dying. My doctor told me if I were to relax more, the gas would expel, and she was right on the money. Your anxiety and stress will keep that all built up. You need a good few days of gas prevention, expulsion and relaxation and youll be feeling good in no time!

 

[Kathleen M.]

IBSers often do not move the gas around in the intestines all that well and it can accumulate because it isn't being moved.A tumor so large it completely blocks your colon most of the time would be causing other problems (like vomiting feces because if Air can't get out, neither can your stool.)

 

[Bonzi]

Also Wonky, when mine got really bad, I could actually push the bubbles along. Thats how big they were. I could feel them. Once I started relaxing and releasing my anxiety, they found their way out(And wow what a night of passing gas that was!

)

 

[Nancy from Safety Harbor]

To WonkyColon,Remember we decided we had identical symptoms? First of all, that xray tech should be reported to your doctor. That was not professional at any means, especially when he saw how it disturbed you. I too had alot of gas bubbles when they did the test and the technicican was pushing on my stomach to break them up. IF what he saw was so bad, I am SURE someone would have called you already to get in there office QUICK. I am willing to bet you it was nothing but alot of bubbles and agree with the other commentators that he was surprised to see so many. Get back to us when you know, ok? Keep the faith kiddo.

 

[FrozenYogurt]

I am a MAJOR hypochondriac /paranoid too. I would be shaking in my seat right now if that happened to me.From the outside, people tend to be calmer. I can not say it isnt anything serious but from my personal experiences if I lay down and begin to push on my stomach I can literally 'pop' the air bubbles in there and move them around... So... Hopefully what she saw really was air and not something else. It could be completely harmless.

 

[WonkyColon]

The radiologist's report came back, and I have a really, really horrible disease...Called IBS. With constipation.

The "Oh my God!" was apparently a reaction to the amount of poop and gas I had in my large intestines. I wish the X-ray tech hadn't commented on it. That really freaked me out.Even if she'd looked at the X-ray and seen the face of an alien about to leap out of the picture-- she shouldn't have said anything about it until a radiologist reviewed it. I'm still not entirely out of the fear-zone, though.

I've been using laxatives and enemas several times a day (per doctor's orders). Why would there still be so much poop in me? I read that constipation that persists with over-the-counter treatment is a sign of colon cancer. I AM pooping. Maybe it'll just take a few days for everything to get cleared out? Also, if my bowel sounds are "hypermobile", isn't that a sign that they're struggling to move poop? And that I shouldn't be blocked up at this point? And also, the report only mentioned that there's too much stool in my LARGE bowel-- so maybe there's a blockage?I'm eventually going to calm down and realize that I DON'T HAVE COLON CANCER. It's just taking me a few days to totally overcome the fear.You guys have been a major help. I'd probably be hospitalized for severe hypochondria at this point if I didn't have you guys to reassure me. I'm sorry I'm being such a pain in the ass.

 

[Nancy from Safety Harbor]

You are not a hypochondriac. What you feel is real. I am IBS-A. But the EqualActin (just picked up another box yesterday) keeps me going. The minute I feel a little constipated, I reach for the stool softener. That is what constipation really is; you can't get that hard rock stufff to move. The stool softener, two at night for a couple nights, and you will go well in the morning.

 

[WonkyColon]

Thanks for the reassurance, but I think that I can have a real condition and still be a hypochondriac. Hypochondria is health-related anxiety. It doesn't mean that I don't have IBS or that my symptoms aren't real; it just means that I experience an unusual or disabling amount of anxiety regarding my health. Hypochondria is easy to laugh at and people who struggle with it get a bad rap. I know that I really do have several health problems. Hypochondria-- health anxiety-- happens to be one of them. My doctor says that most people with IBS have hypochondria because IBS is such an anxiety-inducing condition. But it doesn't mean that IBS is all in your head or anything.I've been taking stool softeners and I've had diarrhea the last few days because of the intensive laxative treatment. Right now it's sorbitol, Miralax, senna, glycerin suppositories and Fleet enemas. So anything that is in there SHOULD be coming out-- so why would I still be constipated?I appreciate your help, splenic-flexure/IBS-C sister!

 

[Bonzi]

So anything that is in there SHOULD be coming out-- so why would I still be constipated?

Ah, the million dollar question!

I would like to know why I have abdominal pains for 3 months, but normal bowel movements. Then, the day the abdominal pains stop, I start getting odd bowel movements!!! IBS is more complicated than brain surgery, I do believe

 

[knothappy]

x-ray techs are no drs so they should keep their mouths shut..not say someting or make a face then say " oh i cannot tell you" it has happened to me and i made a lot of noise.... so much she got fired!!!!!they are supposed to make you comfortable not scare the life out of you and then you have to wait for days for the results!!!!

 

[WonkyColon]

I'm still scared.

Seriously, I need to get over this phobia already.If I had tumors big enough to cause pain for a couple of years, would the X-ray have looked abnormal other than showing constipation? I know that colon cancer doesn't show up on a non-barium X-ray... But wouldn't something have looked unusual if I had, like, a grapefruit-sized tumor or something?I'll be able to put this fear out of my head if someone will tell me that the X-ray would have shown something if it was cancer. The radiology report says: (quote)--"Large amount of stool in large bowel, indicative of chronic constipation. Otherwise unremarkable."If anyone suspected colon cancer, would it say anything different? I guess what worries me is the fact that nobody even seems to understand why I'm worried. Yes, I know colon cancer is extremely rare in a 23-year-old vegetarian with no family history. But it COULD happen, and ignoring symptoms could be fatal. Nobody's willing to do a barium x-ray or colonoscopy because I'm not high-risk enough. But I'd feel so much better!!

-_-I'm almost over it. Just need that extra nudge. Please tell me that the X-ray would have shown something, even if you're lying.

 

[Kathleen M.]

By the point colon cancer would be causing symptoms they could likely see it on the regular X-ray even if it just because a tumor would have spread or would be causing something to be displaced a bit.Do the doctors really know how diabling your anxiety issues are. Not just saying I am scared of cancer please do a test, but saying I have severe health anxiety, it is impacting (whatever it is messing up in your life or how it effects the quality).Unfortunately anxiety doesn't show up on a medical test so they can't always tell if you are having normal levels of anxiety out in your life that isn't a problem or it is completely messing you up. It isn't like there is a blood test that gives them your anxiety level and how often it seems to be in control. Sometimes treatment that controlled it when mild may not be enough with a severe bout of it. Please talk to someone who can provide treatment. I mean we can try to help, but sometimes fretting over symptoms and test results on line does a lot more harm that good when the anxiety is really bad. If you feel worse after being on the board (or any other on-line activity) it probably isn't doing you any good. Sometimes when the anxiety is bad people need to back away from the internet as they just use it to reinforce their fears. Even being told they sound like they have nothing to worry about seems to make some people even more anxious. If it is making you feel better then don't worry about it, but if any on-line activity makes it worse I would avoid doing those things.

 

[Bonzi]

When I worked as a vet-tech for an animal hosptial(give me a second, Ill tie this into a human connection!

) I would do tons of xrays a day. And while it wouldnt show what a barium xray would, like Kathleen said, it would show displacement. Meaning the tumor would push on other xray viewable parts. So if you had a tumor on one side of your colon wall, it would show the feces being pushed in an odd shape, that would be alarming to the radiologists. Would it see polyps or small tumors that would not be causing blockage? No. But if you were so blocked that that you cant move your bowel, it would show an inconsistancy that would practically yell "TUMOR!!!!"

 

[Nancy from Safety Harbor]

WonkyColon Sister,Did not mean to infer anything with my last response. My daughter Tracy has Anxiety/Panic Disorder and hers is health realted also. When I went to the doctor with her in April, the doctor asked if she had suicidal tendencies and she said, "no, I want to live and worry about my health too much". One thing Kathleen said rang a bell. Our doctor told my daughter, "get off the internet". Every symptom she saw on tv, she looked it up. Every Rx she got, she looked up the side-effects and was prepared to have them all. Our pastor used to say, "save for a rainy day, and guess what, you will have rainy days". I feel the same way about my health, expect/worry about something and you will convince yourself you have it (whether you really do or don't). Keep the faith Sister. Seems like stress is your biggest enemy.

 

[Bonzi]

What Nancy says is very true. The internet will make symptoms worse(Although this forum has been a blessing) Like Ive told WC before, anytime you have any health issue, you can google it and it will ALWAYS give you some life threatening disease. Even common cold symptoms could make you believe you were dying of some type of cancer.I have completely avoided any diagnosis type site, and strayed from searching symptoms, as even a scraped knee can wield you results of life threatening staff!

 

[WonkyColon]

Hey guys. I'm feeling much, much better today.Kathleen: My doctor knows how bad my anxiety is. The problem is that nobody seems to be able to "fix" it. I've taken over 20 different drugs to treat anxiety; I was diagnosed with an anxiety disorder at the ripe old age of four. The meds almost always make it worse. The only thing that helps at all is Valium, but I would rather be incredibly anxious than addicted to something that strong.I'm trying Buspar. I've tried it before. It's making me worse, but I'm trying to stick it out for another month just to show my doctors that I'm really NOT opposed to trying new things.Thanks a bunch for always being so reassuring and kind.These forums actually have helped me to calm down. It's definitely much more soothing than the "Colon Cancer" section of Mayo Clinic or WrongDiagnosis.

It is really comforting to know that I'm not alone in being anxious or having a messed-up colon.Nancy:I didn't take any offense at all. I wasn't trying to sound defensive; I was just letting you know that I actually AM a hypochondriac and that I've accepted that diagnosis. I think that's a huge step toward getting over it. I think your sister's response to the question about being suicidal is hilarious and also very sad. A girl I went to middle-school with committed suicide because of severe hypochondria... She tried to split her head open to remove an imaginary brain tumor. Do you struggle extensively with health anxiety, or did your sister get most of that end of your gene pool? Thanks once again for the encouraging thoughts. It's kind of fun having someone with near-identical symptoms. Bonzi:Just so ya know, I've told my husband (jokingly) that I've got a secret boyfriend who has taken over the role of reassuring me that I don't have cancer. I think hubby is glad that he doesn't have to accept all of that responsibility anymore!

I'm pretty much over the colon cancer scare. A few little moments of panic here and there, but I think I'll be back to "normal" in a few more days. I'm passing a fair amount of blood, but I think it's because of bad constipation combined with a bunch of laxatives. Irritated my hemorrhoids. I haven't had them this bad since a few weeks after I gave birth.

 

[Bonzi]

^

Well, hopefully I can help lessen the colon cancer scare load from your husband! Glad to hear you are having a good day(Anxiety wise,etc) Light pink blood is very consistant when I have hemorrhoid flare ups as well. Especially on the toilet paper. I think its pink like that, similar to if you pop a pimple,etc, and after the blood and pus comes out, you have a few minutes of light pink blood, thats diluted by clear liquid. Same with hemorroids, after you have a flare up, and its healing or done bleeding, its pushing out that last bit of pink ooze. Not 100% sure on that, but it makes sense to me!