# Katey's IBS-D story



## katey (Jul 20, 2012)

Looking back, I am unsure about when I first noticed I had IBS. When I was very young my Gran used to say to me I didn't drink enough, and I know that if I drank lots of fluid it would make me need to go. I wonder if this was the starting point.When I was 19 I had a night when I was in excrutiating pain in my abdomen, to the point I thought I was dying. I went to the doctor who ran tests for ectopic pregnancy and when that was clear just gave me painkillers, I think now that this may have been the first bad bout I had, although I didn't have D at that point.I had occasional bowel problems (normally D, occasionally C)during my early 20's, but the main problem was exhaustion. I was always tired, I had tests for CFS but they came back negative. Work was nigh on impossible and I felt like I was a freak for getting so tired so quickly. I had numerous blood tests including Coeliac screen and everything was negative, stool sample was normal. I had my first experience of urgency at this point and had an embarrassing situation when out at a sporting event when I couldn't get to the toilet in time.It got really bad when I was 28, after I had my son. Naturally I was tired, and he was ill as a baby, and the stress of it brought on bad IBS-D. This linked with the tiredness spurred me on to go back to the GP and I was put on Mebeverine 3 x a day, with buscopan to take in an emergency(I was also on fluoxetine for PND at this point). It helped for a while, but then seemed to stop working, I had lots of very bad, painful bouts and the urgency has become the major issue. I have since been put on Buscopan, 2 tablets, 4 x a day, with immodium to take as needed. I thought that they were helping, but now wonder if I was just in a remission phase as when I have had flare ups it has done little to help. I have started developing lots of mouth ulcers (have about 5-6 at the moment, and when they go I seem to get more within a week), have had sore joints (esp. elbows) and on top of the IBS and exhaustion I am now seeing my GP to rule out IBD. Trying to get a colonoscopy/endoscopy is nigh on impossible though! I have just today had another load of bloods taken, this time looking for inflammatory markers as well as redoing all the other tests. I have cut out certain foods and drinks that I know are triggers, but still have really bad flare ups, lasting anything from a day to 3 weeks.My main symptoms are-v. loose, watery stoolsfeeling of incompletion/incompletionbloatingwind/trapped windpain around anusblood and mucus with stools (think blood may be piles)abdominal pain (low in stomach, which is a dull pain, on r/h side near pelvis which is a sharper pain)Mouth ulcersexhaustionsore and achy jointsI am so tired with it all, I just feel like I could curl up...


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