# how do you deal with professors?



## 16963 (Dec 5, 2006)

Classes start again on Monday. I am less than thrilled, and a big part of this is my IBS.I was only recently diagnosed, and I missed the VAST majority of my classes last semester because I was afraid to leave the house. While I was still being diagnosed, I just got a vague letter from my dr and told my teachers I was having digestive problems. They all assumed that it was a vomiting problem, and I did not correct them.But with the new semester starting, I can't keep missing my classes. I finally have a diagnosis, some medicine, and I'm hoping to get through this alive.So my question is: Do you tell your professors that you have IBS? I feel like I want to give them a heads-up so they aren't offended when I run out of class every day and am gone for long stretches of time. At the same time, I can't think of a ladylike way of explaining "I have to #### a lot. So I'll be running out of your class in a panic a lot of times so that I can do that." I know a lot of professors get mad if you even leave a few minutes to use the restroom, I can't imagine what those would think of me. I'm thinking of telling all of my professors that I have spastic colitis, because I've heard IBS referred to as such. Maybe then they won't think too hard and maybe just won't even realize what that is? Then I won't be as embarassed, and I could avoid those stupid people who will try to tell me that its all in my head and they won't give me special consideration.Ugh. Do you tell your professors what's up? Or do you just run out to the bathroom often very mysteriously?


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## 22943 (Aug 27, 2005)

Go talk to disability services at your university. I use mine for my ADD, not IBS since I'm generally IBS-C, so I'm not entirely sure what they could do, but I'd give it a shot. They work as a go between advocating for me with my professors for special accommodations. Maybe trying more non-traditional ways of taking courses is a better option? Such as online courses.


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## Guest (Jan 6, 2007)

Sorry to hear of your troubles. I know how frustrating it can be to deal with IBS while attending school. I managed to make it through graduate school--and teach undergraduates at the same time--all while dealing with IBS. There have definitely been times when I'd rather not have been in front of a classroom full of students while suffering an IBS attack.I'm not going to presume to speak for all professors here, only for myself. My suggestion would be to tell your professor on the first day of class that you have a digestive disorder which occasionally flares up and requires you to leave class for brief periods of time. You're hoping this will not interfere with your ability to participate in class, but you want to give him or her a heads up in case they notice you leaving occasionally. As a general rule, it's better to let your professors know early on what your situation is rather than after several episodes of what they might consider to be erratic/rude/inconsiderate behavior. I know I appreciate such notices from my own students. Ultimately, what you choose to tell them is up to you. I also suggest sitting near the door. As both a former student and a current professor, I find it incredibly disruptive when a student gets up to leave the room and is seated about as far away from the/an exit as possible.Hope things go well for you. Keep us posted.


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## 14416 (Jun 21, 2005)

Ditto what Blonde said.I had a professor that told the class on the first day that if you were running late he didn't want you to come into class because it just caused a disturbance. He also said that if you had to leave the room to just stay out of class the whole time because he didn't want you coming back in and creating more chaos. Needless to say I HAD to talk to him.I let him and a LOT of my professors know I had a stomach problem that might cause me to need to go to the bathroom during class; if I ever got up and left it wasn't because I was disinterested, it was because I "needed to go."I emailed him that day and told him that I wouldn't be able to stay in his class and I'd have to drop it if he didn't bend his rule; a professor as strict as he was was actually MORE THAN accommodating; he said it was NO problem at all for me to leave the class or come in early if I was feeling bad. Honestly, I feel like a weight got lifted off my shoulder each time I opened up about it to my professors. Some classes I didn't need to because it was huge lecture classes (150+) and I would sit in the back of the class and use the back door to use the bathroom right behind me, but other times, like the class I mentioned above, I really had no choice.I wouldn't say "IBS" because a lot of people don't really know what it is. They just think it's some minor inconvenience because of the way a lot of people portray it. They don't take into consideration that there is mild, moderate, and severe cases of the disorder.


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## Cherrie (Sep 1, 2006)

Ditto all previous posts. I know how hard it is -- it took me A LOT OF time and thought and courage to finally be able to open up when i had to tell my advisor last semester that my thesis revision was going way slower than expected because of my IBS. -- BUT it's really important to let the profs know beforehand, so that they won't have already formed a less favorable opinion about you as a student. My "talk" with my prof turned out really well -- what i did was that i didn't start with "I have ibs." Instead, i told her briefly without being unncessarily graphic about how much it hurt and how much i'd been suffering -- when she understood that the pain and the sufferings were for real, i then told her that it was ibs. Turned out she was very sympathetic and supportive and were very willing to make the accommodations that I need to work on my thesis. In your case you probably could also make arrangements like if you could always sit by the door so it's easier for you to sneak out and in and things like that. Porfs always appreciate students who already have some idea about how they need to be helped. Good Luck!


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## 16963 (Dec 5, 2006)

Well... I think there's good news! I discovered that one of my classes is being taught by a professor I had last semester...we got on friendly terms, and she was completely sympathetic when I started having a lot of problems with my IBS (I didn't tell her that was the problem) and missed most of last semester.So today I emailed her and told her that while I'm better, I might need to leave class suddenly. She hasn't emailed me back, but I'm pretty sure that she'll be fine, and happy that I at least plan on being in class this semester!I'm going to go talk to all of my professors this week...I talked to my psychiatrist and we agreed that it will probably take a load off my mind and make everything a lot easier. Grant, your story really gave me courage, too. I know that one of my professors is a real hard ass, and I had to drop his class last semestser when my IBS appeared suddenly and I didn't know what was going on. So here's hoping that we can work something else the second time around!And I looked at my schedule, and found that I have at least an hour-long break between classes except at one point on Mondays and Wednesdays and one point on Friday. I just switched one class to a different time slot, so now the only time I don't have a break between classes is once on Friday...but one of those professors is the most laid-back and understanding guy in the world, so I don't think I'll have a problem there. Plus, on Tuesday and Thursday, one of my breaks is for a couple hours...which means I can go home and poop to my heart's content.PLUS today has been a very good day, and even though this sounds stupid about an hour and a half ago I felt suddenly like I needed to have a BM... but I've been holding it in (I'm home, so I know that I can run to the bathroom if completely necessary...and I'm about to go there in a minute here because I can't wait much longer). That sounds stupid, and I almost feel stupid saying it. But I guess I needed to practice "holding it" since classes start tomorrow and for most of christmas break I had pretty ready access to a bathroom.So I'm starting this semester with optimism that I hope I can keep. My biggest worry is that my Dr. doesn't really want me on Lomotil... for break I got a family memember to write me a prescription, but when I called my Dr. he said that it was for D, not IBS. Um, excuse me? My whole problem is that IBS gives me D!Sigh.But of all the problems I could have, I'm glad that right now I don't have as many as I had worried about.


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