# How to keep going...



## cwhizzz (Jul 3, 2014)

Being young and full of ambitions and dreams has made the sudden onset of IBS much more devastating than anything I have had to deal with prior in my entire life.

What I want to know is how do you remain ambitious and not let go of your hopes and dreams?

Before IBS I was all school and focus but after IBS I could care less about grades. I could care less about school. I am dealing with something horrible and all I can focus on is overcoming IBS or at least getting better. I have been dealing with this for almost 2 years and its gotten worse. I find it very difficult to care about other things in life that I normally would because I feel like my health is the most important and wouldn't trade good health for all the success in the world. I just want to feel good in my body again. I always felt happy and content in my own skin even throughout the bad times but IBS has taken that away and I am obsessed with getting it back.

Screw school and work, my only dream right now is to live again.


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## ohheyitsflower (Aug 25, 2014)

Hey

I feel like I can relate to you on this. I just finished my university degree and going to school and dealing with IBS is anyones worst nightmare. And not a lot of people understand what we go through so its like impossible to find someone to talk about it with, without them judging you. 
For me, it got to the point where I was missing classes and leaving halfway through from the IBS and at one point I almost wasnt able to graduate.

But at this point you dont care about class or grades, you just want to feel better and have a happy stomach. Its the worst feeling in the world and I am sorry you are going through it too

I feel like IBS has taken away my years of Uni and have replaced it with constant anxiety.

I hope being on this site can help you too


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## cwhizzz (Jul 3, 2014)

ohheyitsflower,

Thanks. Its always good hearing from others in similar situations to remind me that I'm not crazy and we are all dealing with some tough ****. I am actually taking a semester off on MLOA to get things together healthwise. I need to find something that works to some extent before going back because my body just wouldn't be able to handle the engineering life without my health being decent. Ugh, shouldn't we have to deal with this when we are old? I feel like a senior citizen most days haha.

Has naturopathy helped you at all?


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## ohheyitsflower (Aug 25, 2014)

I totally do too. I am afraid that when I actually am a senior, I will have to wear diapers or something haha. PLEASE NO.

Naturopathy is the one thing that has really helped. Normal doctors dont care, they just re-diagnose you, pat you on the back and send you home. They dont specialize in IBS, they just do their own thing. As you can see, I am a little bit bitter with doctors. I have been to so many and NONE of them have helped me.

Going to a Naturopath was the first time in a long time that I felt I was being helped and treated. Not just for my IBS but for my well being. Yes, they are expensive appointments but since I was still in University, I was covered for those appointments. 
We worked on eating habits (ie. which foods cause the IBS to be worse and what to cut out in a healthy way) and then we worked on the stress and anxiety, which is what can cause IBS to be worse.

By no means has my IBS gone away, but its way way way better then it used to be and I have better tools to cope with it.

I totally recommend going to see a Naturopath


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## cwhizzz (Jul 3, 2014)

Your experience with normal doctors is spot on. Already been to two gastros. Their reaction? "Oh, its just IBS no big deal! Take some meds and be on your way. Nothing serious move along...Oh, you're back? Taking the semester off? You seem fine to me why would you do that? Try these extra meds and suck it up! Bye!"

I probably should try a naturopath. Thanks for the advice.


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## ohheyitsflower (Aug 25, 2014)

Yup, thats exactly what they say. They think its not a big deal... "could be worse" sort of thing.

You try living with IBS for even a week, doctor. Then tell me about it  grrr. so angry

and no problem!! Best of luck!


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## Rugger777 (Aug 27, 2014)

I have had a very tough time in school too. I'm a junior this year and I'm 20 years old. I'm very active--I play rugby--and still i have major flare ups. In my experience, it goes through waves where it gets to be a lot better but then all of a sudden it's terrible. Right now I'm studying abroad and it's been a nightmare with my stomach. My saving grace is the loud fans in the classrooms because for some reason background noise helps me deal with the anxiety. It's also probably because my stomach can be very noisy, and the fans help tune out the sound of my stomach. I know how embarrassing it and I know how it feels like there's no hope. I've felt the same way many times. Just keep on going and eventually we will have to find our own nitch where things get better. My social life has suffered a ton because of ibs, but I still do my best to be as outgoing and social as possible. School can be tremendously difficult just by being in a quiet classroom. It sucks but time goes on and in 10 years, no one is going to remember the kid that kept having to excuse them-self from class. Also talk to your professors and get help. I finally gave in when I was abroad and it has helped me with my situation. There's always hope! Good luck!


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## EightC (Aug 28, 2014)

I have the exact same issue as you and it's also making things a nightmare for me. I went to the doctor and explained everything and like you he sent me to a psychiatrist who prescribed me anti-depressants. Nothing changed and I knew that this wasn't right so I got a second opinion and the doctor diagnosed me with IBS.

I am going back to school this year as well and I was already in school but took sometime off because of this issue. I found that the noises became very apparent and that people would look at me alot, sometimes say things to me and the worst part is I had a teacher who insisted that everyone move closer together which made it worse to the point where I wasn't attending some classes especially lectures where it was quiet. I start back in a few days and I am already dreading it to the point where I don't want to take this course and look for something where school is less lectures and more hands on where there is abit more freedom then just sitting listening to lectures.

I firmly believe that this is all anxiety related that is causing all these issues and no matter how much I prep myself or tell myself it's gonna happen just go get through it, it just never works and the second I get to class it hits me like a brick and I find that I don't even pay attention in class or rather I do but I'm so busy trying to control this problem that I kind of zone out which doesn't help.

This also effects all aspects of my life and dictates what I do on a day to day basis from social to which job I take.socially I avoid alot of things and at this point I've lost most of my friends but I find it so hard going out for long hours on end as I can't enjoy what I'm doing or just relax.

I've been to school before and after I worked a pretty good job as an artist in the mobile and game industry however the company I worked for closed and I was let go leaving me with very little. I've been working a low end job for a few years now but at this point I decided to go back to school because I cannot continue living on very little on my own and need to find a better job for myself.

You would think that despite the problem this would be priority, to deal with it and make life better which is what I want so very much but the problem just becomes so incredibly overwhelming to the point where I get nervous, sweat and then of course stand out like a sore thumb in any meetings or class rooms. It's like I'm not even the same person and I'm so zoned out that I don't remember alot of my lectures. The sad thing is I know that when I finish school I'll be able to find a much better job and have a better life but this issue just keeps getting worse.


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## cwhizzz (Jul 3, 2014)

EightC said:


> I have the exact same issue as you and it's also making things a nightmare for me. I went to the doctor and explained everything and like you he sent me to a psychiatrist who prescribed me anti-depressants. Nothing changed and I knew that this wasn't right so I got a second opinion and the doctor diagnosed me with IBS.
> 
> I am going back to school this year as well and I was already in school but took sometime off because of this issue. I found that the noises became very apparent and that people would look at me alot, sometimes say things to me and the worst part is I had a teacher who insisted that everyone move closer together which made it worse to the point where I wasn't attending some classes especially lectures where it was quiet. I start back in a few days and I am already dreading it to the point where I don't want to take this course and look for something where school is less lectures and more hands on where there is abit more freedom then just sitting listening to lectures.
> 
> ...


Hi EightC,

Sorry to here of your struggles it is truly difficult dealing with this day to day.

Do you find that your symptoms only flare during anxiety attacks? Are there any symptoms when relaxed and without pressure? I have anxiety too and notice that it makes my IBS way worse but anixety or not I still have this horrible abdominal discomfort.


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## EightC (Aug 28, 2014)

cwhizzz said:


> Hi EightC,
> 
> Sorry to here of your struggles it is truly difficult dealing with this day to day.
> 
> Do you find that your symptoms only flare during anxiety attacks? Are there any symptoms when relaxed and without pressure? I have anxiety too and notice that it makes my IBS way worse but anixety or not I still have this horrible abdominal discomfort.


Hey cwhizzz,

I still have problems when I'm relaxed without pressure but like you mentioned they become worse when anxiety kicks in. I think my biggest issue with this all is that I really don't like being confined to a smaller area with alot of people. Usually if I'm around alot of people but have freedom to move around abit I manage just fine but classrooms and even at work when we had meetings were pure terror. I don't think it would be as bad if classes were shorter but for me they are like 3-4 hours long with no breaks and I've found ways to sit and move around abit to kind alleviate some discomfort but doing that for that many hours is impossible for me.

Part of me just wants to think who cares, when I'm done school I won't see these people again so let them think what they want but the embarrasment and difficulty just ruins me.I have no choice but to go back to school as I'm simply not gonna find work in my field at this point as there are too many layoff and not that many job openings or offers coming my way. I'm dreading this to the point where right now I'm hardly sleeping at all and this last week my symptoms have been horrible and I've been gassy and bloated all week which isn't helping my mind set.

Kind of at the point where I know no matter what I do or say to myself it's gonna happen and that there really is no avoiding it.


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## cwhizzz (Jul 3, 2014)

EightC that sucks. Nothing really helps me in the high anxeity situations besides deep breathing and trying very hard to think of things that make me feel good and at peace but its still very hard.


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## ibssisters (Sep 2, 2014)

You are not alone! Check out ibssisters.com, a site for women to come together to learn to live better with IBS!


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## cwhizzz (Jul 3, 2014)

ibssisters said:


> You are not alone! Check out ibssisters.com, a site for women to come together to learn to live better with IBS!


ibssisters,

I very much appreciate you informing me of this but I am a guy . I can inform female IBSers of that for you!


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## vanessa6801 (Apr 12, 2014)

cwhizzz,

I can relate to everything you have written in your post. In fact pretty much the same thoughts are going through my head right now.

Every once in a while I just sit down and think about how my life couldve taken a completely different course if I didnt have IBS.

I have also been dealing with IBS for 2 years. I developed IBS when I was in 10th grade, and now I am in my last year of school and my uni entry exams are a month away. I have always had my mind set on going to university---- it was my dream to enter the field of academia, and even now I know that deep inside I really would like to make it to university but I just don't want to try anymore. I just want my quality of life to improve, to be able to do things that other 18 year olds can do, as you said ---- 'I just want to live again'.

I also suffer from a degree of fatigue (I viewed your health profile) from IBS. Also, since I have had IBS my cognitive function has declined as well, though I don't know whether it's related to IBS or not. IT is very frustrating.

RE: the posts relating to anxiety:

I have myself been diagnosed with generalised anxiety disorder and have been going counselling for 4 years non stop. I have been on Zoloft for the past 3 months and it has helped my anxiety a great deal but my IBS symptoms are the same. (I believe that Zoloft is only suppressing my symptoms of anxiety, and that there is still a lot of room for improvement in terms of my anxiety, and by extension IBS.)

Eight C and cwhizzz, when you say school do you mean high school or university??

I have a feeling that if I give up on my dreams and ambitions for now, and get a dead end job- that my IBS may actually get better. The expectations that my family has placed on me and also my own expectations of myself to be a high achiever has been a huge source of stress for me. I need to eliminate this stress factor. By keeping my anxiety levels to a minimum I am maximising my chances of recovery from this illness.

I think you might find the below link interesting:

http://www.ibsgroup.org/forums/topic/74068-ibs-the-syndrome-of-high-achievers/

What do you think?

cwhizzz, I am very glad to have come across your post. I really hope that you do get your life back again, and also achieve your goals, in that order


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## Julie. (Jun 8, 2012)

Hi.

I can relate to all of you too. I'm do feel sorry for your experiences, even though I had them myself. It's very hard. I finished my degree, but it almost felt like nothing. I skipped many classes, I avoided people, so I didn't make many friends there, I was always with fear, and feeling sick because of IBS. It's sad. But it's doable...

Like some of you said, "I just want to live again"...

Edit: I forgot to say, I feel better after working out, doing abdominal exercises (crunch and stuff). Eating less at night, and stay active can help! It works for me, at least.


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