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Yet another newbie!

192 views 0 replies 1 participant last post by  Jen Moreno 
#1 ·
Hi all. I have been lurking the past few days and thought I would jump in and get my feet wet -it looks like I will be here a long time! As yet, I am not "officially" diagnosed, but have had mild symptoms for several years now - probably dating back (at least) to 1999 when my husband was diagnosed with Non-Hodgkin's Lymphoma and we almost lost him. At around that time I started noticing that my stools were getting softer and more "urgent" when I got up in the morning. Sometimes I would go more than once a day and often the stools had mucous in them and lots of undigested food bits (Gross, I know - sorry!) Anyway, I would occasionally get stomach cramps/gas when I ate things like Popcorn, raw onions and other raw veggies, salads etc... Because I got used to the "urgencies" in the morning and because the gas pains were not severe or often, I just ignored it all and chalked it up to stress and old age! (I'm 47!)
Then in March I had severe stomach cramping which felt like gas pains for 24 hours. Finally they intensified and I started vomiting so off we went to the emergency room! After being given blood tests and a CT Scan they said my appendix had to come out. It eventually ruptured, or (in light of my present symptoms) I would now think that maybe it had only been IBS! Ever since the appendectomy I have had problems with "gas pains" either right in the belly button area, or upper left area. Usually I am uncomfortable for a few hours and then the gas starts to break loose and will come out a bit both ways and the pain subsides. Nothing major, but it can be quite uncomfortable and painful at times. I have also had quite a few days of very loose, frequent stools.So that's where I am right now. I put in a search for "gas pains" and when I found a website that listed symptoms for IBS, I thought "ding, ding, ding - we have a winner!"
since I appear to have every symptom.I am planning to go to the doctor to rule out more serious conditions, but based on what I have been experiencing (and looking back at my past history!) I really think that this is it - however I seem to be very fortunate in that it has stayed relatively mild with only a few "flare ups" that were mild enough to dismiss with "must have eaten something bad" or "getting old sucks!"
My main concern is to try and get this under control by diet. I already take metamucil daily (have been since 1999 when I had bouts of constipation followed by very loose stools - and hey - perhaps this is why my condition has stayed relatively "under control"
) I have increased the dose and now take it in the morning and afternoon also. I also am taking peppermint oil (enteric coated) and bought some fennel seed capsules to take after meals. I also got the Extra Strength Phazyme for when the gas pain hits.One thing I tried before I knew what was going on has been putting a heating pad on my stomach when the gas pain hits. For some reason the heat seemed to help get the gas moving. Maybe it causes the bowels to relax (or stop spasming) so the gas can move. I don't know - I'm new to all this and just guessing, but it really does seem to help for me when things get painful, so I wanted to throw that out there. (I should point out that I only started using the heating pad AFTER my appendix was taken out. I don't think you are supposed to use heat for any symptoms that could possibly be appendicitis.)Anyway - sorry this ended up being so long - I just wanted to say hello and tell you my story! Take care and hope everyone can get their lives back! :love:
 
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