# Endometriosis and IBS



## lorabean88 (Apr 25, 2012)

Hi there,So I am new here. Just diagnosed with IBS 2 days ago and still trying to wrap my brain around it. Anyways, I am 23 and was diagnosed with endometriosis when I was 14...I was wondering if anyone else was in the same boat and if it was common to have both of them, if they are some how related to each other.


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## miss sick (Apr 14, 2012)

I dont have an answer to this sorry, but I am interested in any answers others have. I have a family history of enodometriosis, and my dad has been telling me to get checked for it incase its whats wrong. I know I've had untrasounds of my abdomen, dont know if that would've shown it?


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## sweet226 (May 4, 2012)

There is definitely a correlation. I have endometriosis and during surgery last year was found to have it in my bowel and bladder, which I'm sure accounts for a lot of my IBS symptoms. Endometriosis can only really be diagnosed through laparoscopy.


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## ashleybug (May 7, 2012)

I have been told that I may have 2nd or 3rd stage endometriosis by a few doctors. I don't have health insurance so I have been unable to get a laproscopy done, but plan to as soon as I am able to. All the doctors I have seen say it is quite common to have the two and I do feel they are linked.


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## Allieb92 (May 19, 2012)

I have both endometriosis and IBS. I had laparoscopic surgery to diagnose it and had adhesions on my bowels. Also, I have had just about every bowel test there is (colonoscopy, upper GI, lower GI, etc) and the lack of results with my symptoms lead my OBGYN and family doctor to believe I have IBS. I had worsened IBS symptoms around my menstrual cycle, and am now on continuous birth control to prevent menstration and associated pain. This has somewhat helped with my IBS too. I definitely think they are related! Hope that helps...


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## TVgirl (Sep 16, 2009)

Well yes and no. IBS is a functional motility disorder and isn't classified as a disease. Endometriosis is a disease. Usually when people have bowel issues with endometriosis it is because the endometriosis is attached to the bowel or aggravating it somehow. This in my opinion would mean that the bowel problems that are caused or aggravated by endometriosis is not IBS because there is a disease process that is the cause. Now if the endometriosis isn't aggravating or affecting the bowels in any way and the person has a functional gut disorder then yes you can have both. BUT any bowel problems that are caused by endometriosis I would say is not IBS but a complication of endometriosis.If anyone were to do corelational studies, I am sure there are tons and tons of women with endometriosis and bowel problems, but it wouldn't be fair to say that the bowel problems are IBS because they are more than likely CAUSED by a disease process.Make sense ??that is my take on it anyways. If bowel issues are present with endometriosis and are that bothersome to one's life then surgically there may be something that can be done to help, laparoscopy with cauterization of adhesions for example.Also for the record...I have been diagnoses with endometriosis in my early twenties via laparoscopy, I had alot of bowel pain with my periods. After my laparoscopy the doctor cauterized the adhesions and some were at the base and against my bowels. I have had problems on and off after childbearing and eventually went into a hormone imbalance and had a hysterectomy due to hemorrage. Was found to also have adenomyosis. Since my uterus has been removed I have had nothing but bowel problems (IBS diagnosed) although I am still not convinced. I strongly believe I have adhesions on my bowels from my surgery / and / or endometriosis. I want another laparoscopy.


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## glenda2484 (Mar 18, 2014)

i too am in same boat ive been told i have ibs but recently i gained access to my health folders and it was stated i have endometriosis on my bladder

ive been on no treatment for it so who is to say it hasnt grown on my bowel and thats what is causing my stomach issues, booked in to see gyno at end of month so will know more then . My advice seek out a doctor that will look into and give you a laparoscopy. too many woman are getting overlooked with bowel endo


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## Benzo Belly (May 21, 2014)

I suspect this is the case for me.

As a side note, endo does not have to be growing on/in the bowel to cause bowel symptoms. The endometrial growths produce prostaglandins, which trigger inflammation and pain in surrounding areas. Prostaglandins also cause IBS-like symptoms (urgency, diarrhea) for many healthy women during their periods as well. If you have endo, it makes sense that symptoms would be more frequent and persistent since your body produces more prostaglandins. Bowel endo is supposedly one of the rarer types, accounting for only 15-25% of all cases. Yet many women diagnosed with endo elsewhere report IBS-like bowel symptoms.


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## jilliantodd (Jan 20, 2015)

Many women find that their IBS symptoms worsen around the time of their period. When this happens, it is not too much of a stretch to wonder if perhaps the problem has to do with the reproductive organs and not the bowel. Endometriosis is a gynecological disorder that like IBS, can result in symptoms of abdominal pain and cramping. This overview of endometriosis and its possible overlap with IBS can help you to determine if you have been diagnosed accurately.
Endometriosis is a condition in which this endometrial tissue grows in parts of the body outside the uterus. Because this tissue is outside of the uterus, it cannot be expelled out through the vagina during a woman's period. This tissue may become inflamed and/or result in adhesions and cysts. To make matters worse, this tissue will be stimulated to grow by the same hormones that encourage the lining of the uterus to build up each month.
Here are the main symptoms of endometriosis:

Strong abdominal pain and cramping, particularly during one's period (dysmenorrhoea), but may be present throughout the cycle
Pain experienced during or after sexual intercourse (dyspareunia)
For some women, infertility
Bladder difficulties


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## kaiem (Feb 14, 2015)

I'm in the same boat. I was diagnosed with endometriosis when I was 13. Apparently there is a correlation with IBS, endometriosis, and migraines - I have all three. I don't know if it's as much a correlation as it is just being common for women to have IBS and endometriosis, etc.


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## marleyma (Aug 13, 2014)

Did you have the scope to confirm endo?


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## Corydalis Aurea (Dec 14, 2014)

Glad to see this topic come up again, it has been brought up here on the forums a few times in my stay, but each time it seems there are a few more tidbits of good info and testimony.

I was clinically diagnosed with IBS-C, and I was told according to my symptoms by sever docs that I probably have endometriosis, but I have never went for the scopy. I know gals who have had the scopy done, and it is the practice of the docs to laser out the endo while in there if they find any, since the only way to know if you have endo is the scopy-of course it would not make sense for them to put you under to go in there just to see. I have heard that often the endo returns, and usually the lasering is not a cure. For some reason, a person is predisposed to growing this tissue.

There is some theory, that IBS-C patients have less serotonin in their gut, while IBS-D folks have a bit more. Less serotonin means our pain thresholds are lower, we are feeling pain in there where others may not feel a think or maybe only slight discomfort.

Hormones play a huge part in endo tissue, depression, and inflammation, during a womans cycle, just after ovulation and before the menses starts, there is a drop in most of the hormones, estrogen, progestin and testosterone, and I believe there are a couple others, but with endo gals, progestin can be low anyway, also affecting how we feel. Estrogen and serotonin levels have also been linked, if there is not enough serotonin already due to IBS-C say, and then estrogen gets lower at this time of month, lowering the serotonin more, ones pain threshold goes down even more, and the low progesterone can bring in the fatigue and more pain!!! It makes perfect sense that IBS symptoms FEEL more painful around that time of month. Not only that, but during our period, there is a lot of swelling in there, with the bloating of the period and the boating of the IBS, things can bet a bit squeezed.

I am not having pain during ovulation too, sometimes even a spot of blood, not uncommon for many, and I have ovulatory cysts which swell and cause me great discomfort and pain. It feels like I have a foreign object lodged in my lower side, it presses on my uterus and colon, there is discomfort to sit and even walk. It lasts about two to three days until the cyst bursts, and there is relief instantly then. I wonder if the endo is also there doing it's thing, and the IBS doing it's thing. It has gotten to be for me that I am miserable in all parts of my cycle. I have hard periods, with much cramping, pain, clotting, heavy bleeding and C, then I have fatigue and mood swings before the ovulation, then the cysts during the ovulation, and then more mood swings and fatigue between the ovulation and the menses. I am really unhappy with it all.

I have tried birth control, it made he terribly depressed, all the color drained from the world and I felt like some kind of a tortured statue, it was awful.

I try to keep up with vitamins and herbs, they do help some...

Anyway, lorabean88, thanks for the good question, to all of you who commented...I think it is a really good subject for us ladies and the medical field to be putting some more thought into.

Best wishes.


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## leapinglion (Oct 22, 2015)

I definitely think so. my endo diagnosis isn't definitive since my dr couldn't get enough tissue to test when I had laprascopic surgery - but I'm nearly positive it's endo (since my sisters have it too & have had definitive diagnosis & surgery). And just last month i went to the dr for some digestive issues, and she thinks that I have IBS. Sigh. I have an IUD which is helping with the endo, and has been great so far - I've had it for maybe a little over a year? and it's been good. Now I just need to get my digestion figured out/treated/under control.


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## whyworryac (Oct 7, 2015)

I'm starting to suspect endo. The only person who ever brought it up was an ER doc when I was having abdominal pain. My most recent abdo x-ray (taken a week ago) showed no major constipation or anything. I'm usually IBS C I guess... my pain can be crampy and it's all lower abdomen. Recently I feel like it's in my bladder area. Sometimes when I pee, I feel like I'm not emptying totally. But then other times I am... so I dunno. I have no idea how to even approach the idea of endo with a doctor. I don't want to go through surgery for no good reason, so it seems like a gamble. Been dealing with constipation issues for about 2 years now. Have had colonoscopy, endoscopy, etc. Never been seen by a urologist. But sometimes it does seem like the pain is there. Or gets worse occasionally when I flex muscles in abdomen - but if I eat, it helps. So I don't know, honestly.


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## Alida Wagner (Jul 22, 2016)

Like many of you, I too have been through the ringer with this. Endo at 19 with ablation, every GI test known to man, etc. Pain came back worse than ever after my c-section, so in my case ablation was not a permanant fix. I did birth control pills forever and that only messed up my body(sure I had no pain because I also had no periods..not healthy!)

The person who mentioned prostaglandins is right on. Endometriosis is not an autoimmune disease but it does cause inflammation which can trigger abnormal immune responses.Eventually I got diagnosed with an autoimmune disease.

The only thing that has helped in all these years is changing the way I eat and lifestyle changes. No more processed foods, a paleo diet and major stress management. It is possible to do this without drugs and surgery.


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## helldell (Aug 31, 2016)

Adhesions can bring about or add to disturbances in the bowel movement (and also different indications connected with endometriosis). Frequently the gut is adhered to different structures, for example, the ovaries, uterus or pelvic sidewall. This scarring can cause pain during the bowel movement, or blockage or looseness of the bowels.


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## endopat (Jun 4, 2017)

hi all, glad to find this post. i was diagnosed with endometriosis a year ago and the symptom i had that led to this diagnosis was IBS. i did not have any pain and only started to get concerned when my stomach made a lot of noise even when i was not hungry. my gynae did a scan on my ovaries and found bilateral cysts and after the operation, one of the cysts was diagnosed for endometriosis. a month after the surgery I was prescribed to be on Visanne for 6 months to avoid recurrence and once the treatment was over i went to another gynae as I relocated and after another month, she started me on a combined birth control pill called Maxim. I have been taking the pill daily for 6 weeks now but I am now experiencing IBS like symptoms and flatulence. I noticed that I have been farting frequently as well along with dark discharge for almost a week now. I just monitoring this situation for now but wonder if there is a possibility for the endo to be on my bowels since the scans were only done on reproductive areas and not the stomach so far. anyone with similar experience?


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## Justwannabenormal (Jun 2, 2017)

My doc thinks that I have endometriosis, and we are trying to sort out the situation with progesterone cream and if not that then progesterone only pills (I am not supposed to have estrogen as I have a blood disorder which predisposes me to blood clots). I have very painful periods. I also have a crazy hormone imbalance going on right now. I am not sure what is causing it, I wish that I understood. If the progesterone doesn't work out then we will need to do laparascopy to confirm. I have had very painful periods since I was 14 years old, and I would always take birth control pills for a few months (this is before I knew that I had a blood disorder - so I was very lucky that nothing went wrong) and it would clear everything up for about 5-10 years. Then it would come back, and I would need to go on the pill again. Now that I know I have a blood disorder this is no longer an option. My doctor thinks that my constipation could very possibly be linked to the suspected endometriosis, as it can grow on your bowels. She showed me pictures from a medical database online showing it.


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## jswillard82 (Sep 13, 2017)

I was diagnosed with IBS three years ago and was just diagnosed with endometriosis a couple months ago. And when I am on my period, the endometriosis and IBS are both horrible. But my doctor put me on a medication that almost stops my periods entirely. But the IBS is still not great


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## AIRPLANE (Mar 15, 2004)

I would try and see an endometriosis excision expert. These are surgeons who have taken advanced training to both find and remove endometriosis. The average OBGYN does not have the proper skills to deal with endometriosis.It is a very meticulous surgery that can be as labor-intensive as gynecologic oncology. They cannot go into or do work outside of the pelvic area so the endo that is in other areas- the diaphragm, urinary and GI tract, for example, gets left untreated. And the gold standard of treatment is excision- which means to cut out the endometriosis lesions. The average OBGYN only burns the surface via ablation which is like cutting the grass and expecting it to not grow back.

Also, bear in mind that hormonal treatments like birth control and Lupron do not prevent the endometriosis from progressing. It is palliative at best and should not be viewed as a permanent substitute for excision surgery- removing the disease. There are closed Facebook groups like Endometropolis that have an international listing of endometriosis excision experts. There are not very many of them yet. It would be a good group to join to get a better understanding of what does and does not work for endometriosis.


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## ccoleman (Apr 10, 2017)

IBS can and does occur in both genders, regardless of whether or not the patient has Endo. However, it is highly prominent in women with the disease. The important thing to determine is whether or not it is "true IBS" or whether it is related to the presence of Endo implants on or around the GI tract. Often, once removed successfully and completely by an Endo specialist, IBS type symptoms will resolve. In cases where the symptoms do not totally go away, they may lessen. It is important to obtain an accurate diagnosis and effective treatment - don't let anyone tell you it's in your head.


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## AIRPLANE (Mar 15, 2004)

Many women who have endometriosis will often obtain relief from their digestive issues if they are able to get it diagnosed and properly treated by an endometriosis excision surgeon who has had additional training specifically for endometriosis.


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