# Constipation and excruciating pain?



## AlyxaG (Oct 25, 2013)

I'm posting this here because I have no experience with IBS-C, mine is IBS-D and has never switched. So I'm hoping you guys can help me. Bare with me, bless you all who read all this and reply!

Background: 
June of this year I started having excruciating lower abdominal pain that woke me up in the middle of the night. Like pain that is so bad you have to do other movements to keep your mind off it. I'd sweat, shake, cry, get nauseated, and all these pain attacks seemed to be associated with bowel movements. During the day I'd have a couple episodes like at night but generally i just had moderate intermittent pain. I ended up in the emergency room where they did an ultrasound and found a hemorrhagic (bleeding) ovarian cyst on my left ovary. I got pain meds and followed up with my Dr. Being BM associated and my having IBS he thought the pain was more GI oriented. I had a colonoscopy. Came back completely clean. So it was the cyst causing pain, being seriously aggitated by BMs and my IBS.

Now: 
I'm having the exact same pain attacks, and symptoms and this time i saw my Dr. 3 days into the whole ordeal (wednesday). He had a fellow following him who met me and went over everything first. I told him it was i dentical pain, onset of symptms was 3 days and since its BM i haven't been eating much and I'm not hungry, so I hadnt been having what I'd call regular bowel movements either. But i told him i had a regular one Monday morning. So my Dr. decides to a pelvic exam to see how much my ovaries hurt, and I winced, i said it was uncomfortable and he said that wasn't a strong enough reaction to indication another ovarian cyst. He said I'm constipated. Because I've lost weight recently he said my IBS is probably changing. Gave me MiraLax. Which I've taken two doses but it's causing me to have an urge to go, which causes the pain attacks. Having these pain attacks every 2 hours now im hurting so bad. I'm exhausted. And I've had 3 BMs. And my pain is absolutely not resolved.

But my question is, does that make sense? I don't buy constipation being the source of pain. I was having regular BMs right up until it started, then when they started i was barely eating, therefore barely pooping. Do those symptoms and pain attacks even sound like constipation or IBS-C??


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## Kathleen M. (Nov 16, 1999)

IBS can cause a lot of pain, and the whole cyst thing and how various pains can interact could have made the IBS a lot worse.

IBS pain doesn't always completely go away between BMs so hard to say it can't be part of the IBS. A lot of us have pain between BM's and pain with urge to go is more typical of IBS than anything else.

I would talk to the doctor, there are treatments for IBS pain and they shouldn't just say IBS and do nothing at all about the pain at all.


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## AlyxaG (Oct 25, 2013)

I totally agree. I've had IBS-D 10 years, sometimes it hurts inbewteen BMs, some days the urge never goes away. But I have never ever experienced such intense excruciating pain like this with my IBS, and I know it's diarrhea and constipation is a whole different world. But I don't understand how I'd be constipated in the first place, you know? I was having regular BMs up until the pain started.


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## Kathleen M. (Nov 16, 1999)

I had severe pain with my IBS so severe pain doesn't mean it isn't something else.

All you need is the gut to slow down for some reason and you can get a bit constipated.

If you aren't eating enough and moving enough because of the pain that can be constipating. Eating regularly stimulates the gut to move things along. Walking around also keeps the gut moving things along.

If you are taking pain killers, especially the narcotic ones, those will constipate you as well.


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## AlyxaG (Oct 25, 2013)

Well being ive taken the miralax and had several BMs i dont think i need to get constipated. Im not taking anything narcotic either. Just my daily meds.


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## Sue81 (Oct 24, 2013)

Hi.
I've had IBS-C for some time now. Diagnosed after that same pain you've described. It was so infrequent at first that cysts & kidney stones were ruled out first. Only symptom in recent months was constipation & that was kept at bay by taking acidophilus daily.

But boy have my symptoms gone through the roof in the past few days!! Now suffering with constant pain, both day & night. Not constipated now but still have pain. Just yesterday started the FODMAP's diet & drinking a lot of peppermint tea for the spasms. No real positive impact yet but fingers crossed it will happen.

Also had allergy testing done today but results will take 2 weeks so here's hoping diet helps ASAP. It's so debilitating as I can barely move around the house, meaning time off work.

Sounds like yours could be associated with food. Have you tried any elimination techniques yet?


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## AlyxaG (Oct 25, 2013)

Well I did talk to my Dr. about my pain he said it sounds like spasms so he gave me a perscription for Bentyl to hopefully calm them down. I definately have foods I've elimenated for my IBS-D, as for foods that cause constipation, I have no idea being I've never had it naturally. My IBS has never switched before :/


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## Mary S (Jun 25, 2013)

I have IBS-A......Diarreah and Constipation. I have been regular these past few weeks since I started taking Cholestramine but I still have abdominal pain all the time. I know the kind of pain you describe. It feels labor pains. Excruciating!!!! I have tried elimination diets but nothing works so now I just eat what I can tolerate.


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## AlyxaG (Oct 25, 2013)

See up until now my IBS-D never bothered me too much. I just had diarrhea and like 5 movements a day. If I ate trigger foods then i knew I'd pay for it later. Sometimes it'd be crampy and a tad painful but nothing that ever lasted and it was always tolerable. Always relieved by a movement. But now here i am with all this pain and the idea that now probably my IBS is alternating. The pain is excruciating and not relieved by anything. Luckily the Bentyl is working magic though. The pain attacks are way shorter and the pain, while still present is way less. Its all tolerable now. But I'm glad to know IBS-C can cause this kind of pain. So maybe I'm not crazy after all.


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## Double Trouble (Apr 8, 2013)

I have had constipation problems all of my life and then in June of 1996 I was diagnosed with IBS. It took three months of excruciating abdominal pain bouts of explosive diarrhea that would last for hours and sometimes days before I finally got a diagnosis of IBS. It took a lower G.I. series(barium x-ray) to find out what was wrong. I was put on Bentyl four times a day and Citrucel in the mornings and evenings, and Acidophilus at least twice a day. I also found that even though most of the time my problem was constipation, any stress whether good or bad would send my intestines into excruciating spasms that would start the bouts of explosive diarrhea for hours ad the urgency feeling I had to go even though I had nothing left in me followed by days of not going at all without the use of a glycerin suppository and enemas. Even after the suppository and enema I would have strain as hard as I could to force a BM. After 15 years of misery, I decided I needed to try to do something to combat the extremes. Because my main problem was the constipation problem, I looked up natural ways to combat constipation without the use of stimulant laxatives on a regular basis. I found an article on the internet about bowel retraining for constipation. I read the article thoroughly and then started using the program the next morning. It took about 2 weeks on the program to get my bowels to move on daily basis without abdominal pain and the straining and forcing myself to produce a BM. After 2 1/2 years on this program I now move my bowels daily and it has kept most of my IBS symptoms at bay.
This is the program I follow:
1. I eat breakfast with soluble fiber and some fat in it.
2. Twenty minutes after I finish eating breakfast I go sit on the toilet for at least 30 minutes, to try to move my bowels.
3. I take 10 slow deep breaths and hold it to the count of 15 and then slowly exhale through pursed lips. Keep repeating the cycle until you have been able to move your bowels or up to 30 minutes. This slow deep breathing actually helps to relax the rectal and anal sphincter muscles making it easier to pass a BM. It certainly doesn't hurt like when I have strain to force a BM.
4. I drink at least 64 oz. of water a day.
5. I eat 25-30 grams a fiber a day.
6. If I haven't had a BM within 48 hours of my last BM then I use a glycerin suppository to help to make it easier to go. When I allow it go more than 48 hours then I fi it takes twice as long for the suppository to work and it hurts to pass a BM a lot more.
I hope this can help you to be able to be constipation and pain free !


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## Rose (Mar 25, 1999)

Read my post "can somebody please help me. I too have terrible pain everyday. Bentyl doesn't help me at all. My pain is confined to my lower left side. The only thing thing that helps is lying down. I have had a colonoscopy, two cat scans and a trans vaginal ultrasound. Nothing was found to account for this pain. I know I have diverticulosis in my sigmoid colon and although I have ibs c, I do move my bowels everyday, but the pain never goes away. I feel as though there is trapped poop and gas in the sigmoid colon. I have an appointment with a colorectal surgeon to talk to him about removing my sigmoid colon, because I can no longer live with this pain everyday. Right now, I have no life. At this point, I'm willing to have the whole colon removed, if it means an end to the pain.


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## AlyxaG (Oct 25, 2013)

Rose, I was lookng back at my medical records and a CT scan of my abdomen in 2012 showed scattered diverticuli on my sigmoid also... but then i read my drs notess from my wednesday visit and he said he was comfident i wasnt experiencing diverticulitis or anything. Like i said before constipation as the culprit doesnt seem right... maybe a side effect/complication but not a true cause. Also, hang in there. Im sorry your having so much pain  im still having pain even on the bentyl but thankfully it has worked miracles so far.


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## Rose (Mar 25, 1999)

Hi AlyxaG,

Diverticulosis occurs when sacs form in the colon. Most often they do form in the sigmoid portion, but they can form anywhere. Particles of food and feces can get inside these sacs. When the sacs become infected, diverticulitis can occur. I have had attacks of diverticulitis, which causes lots of pain. However, sometimes things can get stuck in the sacs and not become infected, but but if this stuff is stuck and won't move, that can cause pain also. In any case, I'm hoping that is what is causing my pain and by removing the affected area, I'm hoping that will get rid of the pain. It's worth it to me to find out. Anything is better than living like this. :-(
I'm glad the bentyl helps you, but be careful on how much you take as it can cause constipation

Rose


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## AlyxaG (Oct 25, 2013)

I hope thats not what im experiencing now and it was over looked... is your meeting with the surgeon soon? I hope you get relief soon! I have to try and go back to work tomorrow.... i am terrified to leave my bathroom, heating pad, and bed. Plus idk how im going to do with bentyl and work.. i can get drowsy somwtimes.


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## Rose (Mar 25, 1999)

My appointment with the surgeon is nov 11th. I will post and let you know what he says. How much bentyl do you take? Good luck going back to work. Also,I was wondering where is your pain located? Is it the entire abdomen or confined to one area?

Rose


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## AlyxaG (Oct 25, 2013)

Well my birthday is the 7th and thats soon, so your appt. is soon too  both are right around the corner. Ive been taking it 4 times a day since i got it friday. And miralax once a day since wednesday. I know the bentyl can be constipating so a few times ive tried not to take or to space it out more than 4 hours but the excruciating pain comes back. It seems to be the only thing that makes life tolerable right now :/ my pain is located generally across my lower abdomen, like a band across my body underneath my belly button, with some twinges of like stabbing or shooting pains sometmes on my left side.


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