# 2 cats, 3 litter boxes!



## Faithsong (Feb 4, 2016)

Hi everyone.

I just joined a few minutes ago and have been reading a few of the topics and replies. Who said life was easy?

I am 71 years old and have had IBS D most of my life. I recently talked to my older sister and mentioned something about how long I've had this problem, and remembered a time when we lived in a certain house when I was about 13 when we were in the garage and she said all of a sudden I used the kitty litter box, which wasn't used much by the cat as he was an indoor/outdoor cat! I don't even remember that incident!

Looking back now, outside of that incident, the earliest experience I vividly remember was when I had just had my baby, and was in the hospital (1967) and they gave me a laxative.....NOT what I needed! I won't go into detail on that one!

I have never had pain with my IBS D, just the urgency to go, and I mean "get out of my way folks!" I have never been a bathroom reader, as speak of.

I've now been married 37+ years, but was married before that for 11+ years. After my divorce all I do remember is that I didn't suffer with the D any longer and I started gaining weight. A couple of years later I remarried, and the problems started once again.

My issues are more of the inconvenience of it all, but until recently it was only once a day in the early morning. I had never done any research on it, but decided to one day and how I searched on the internet was "early morning diarrhea" and BINGO up came a Chinese site for TCM, and it they call it Cock Crow Diarrhea, for obvious reasons. Then I did more research on CCD and found out what herbs are good for that, tried to find somewhere in the states to order some, and I could not. This has been a few years now, close the 15 I'd say. I did find a wholesaler in Canada who talked to his people and they were willing to sell to me, and I tried the product and it actually did work. For some reason I stopped using it, probably the cost. But like I said if I were in severe pain I would be doing something for certain.

At one point we lived with a couple in their home for a year, the front part of their home, and to use the bathroom it would wake them. We had an indoor cat, with a litter box, and yes, that's when I said one early morning, "Move over Bootsey!" Then is was lined wastebaskets.

Moving right along, (no pun intended....ha ha!) now I've been searching on the internet daily for lots of health issues, but have read recently of all the Amazonian herbs, etc. not Amazon.com! There is an extract made from the bark of a tree called Dragon Blood. It has been used for a few years for HIV patients who evidently suffer with D. I dismissed that for about a year, and after ordering a book by a woman who went to the Amazon to hopefully find healing for a cancer that no doctors in the states could help, I decided to try it myself. I ordered a couple of bottles of the extract, which tasted horrible, so kind of put it aside, until recently when I found it in capsule form. I started taking one capsule daily and it actually has started to help me. Now I have much firmer BMs, but more often, usually one after each meal. I still have the early morning one though.

Now, I'm getting to the kitty litter story once again!

About five years ago I got the flu and when it went away I ended up with FM, a lot of joint and arthritis pain, etc. and have had to sleep in a recliner every night. My husband has recently had some major health issues himself, has had a pacemaker, ventilator and nebulizer, plus oxygen machine, and he has to sleep in a recliner as well.

We have two cats, one 11 years old, one 3 years old, and right after we got the second one, the first one decided to HATE him. We love them both and don't want to get rid of either one, so we have to keep them separated, so guess who sleeps in each of our bedrooms? There is Bootsey's room, and Buddy's room! My husband has an office, so that's where his recliner is, and mine is in the living room. Who runs the house?  Duh! So, one stays in a room over night and the next day we switch them around. Insane, yes!

We have one bathroom and that of course is right across the hall from Buddy's room, and he is in there all night, while Bootsey is out here in the living room with me. When it is time for the "cock to crow" and I run down the hallway, Buddy, of course wakes up and starts pounding on the bedroom door and meows and meows. Yes, I am a very anxious person and try to tip toe around, but the second I hit the "flush" button, he starts in, and I'm back out here in the living room stressing out, and can't go back to sleep, and of course Bootsey is very anxious out here with me!

So, to help solve this problem, I purchased a camp potty, which very nicely looks just like an ottoman, with a lid, which I put a garbage bag in and fill it part way with kitty litter. It works nicely, and I don't have to head to the Head, wake up Buddy and stir up Bootsey, but I'm getting tired of taking care of it all early in the morning, and hiding it back out in the back porch. It's been below zero lately, so I really don't even want to go out in the porch and bring it in.

I guess I should try Imodium again at night at least, so maybe I won't be the best customer in the pet department at the local Dollar Store!

Well, now that I've totally bored you with my saga, I will close for now.

Wishing you all the best.

Faithsong


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## marleyma (Aug 13, 2014)

This is besides the point, but you are a great writer! I was intrigued to read the whole cat litter story 
You poor thing though. Just the circumstances must be very hard. Dealing with your issues AND your husbands. I like all of your creative tricks. I am ibsc so do not have much advice but I hope you find something to help soon so you don't have to deal with all this.. and yes.. Unfortunately life just can't be that easy :-/


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## Faithsong (Feb 4, 2016)

Thanks Marleyma!

My sister keeps saying that I should have a blog, but I really don't want to get into that. I do like to write when I have time, and it seems as though they are life situations or family things that interest me the most. When I was in high school they mailed out the class schedules for the following year a few weeks before school began. So when I received my schedule for my senior year I was more than a little put out as the English teacher had put me in Accelerated English. That's the last thing that I wanted for sure. I immediately went to the office and told the secretary that it had been a mistake and she kindly switched me to a regular English class.

When school had started once again I was in that regular English classroom awaiting the roll call. When Mrs. Parker called my name out she didn't even wait for a reply from me, but instead blurted out in a very loud voice, "Dianne Gray go to the office!" It shocked me as well as my classmates, who I'm sure couldn't understand what I had done wrong. They all knew me, as my dad was not only the mayor of our city, but also owned and operated the movie theaters. So that in itself was a real embarrassment to me. After the teacher had finished the roll call, she immediately came into the office where I was waiting in absolute terror. She didn't hesitate in switching me back to the original class schedule which she had intended.

Today, as I look back, if it weren't for her, and the care and love that she had for all her students I would undoubtedly have no desire for reading or writing.

So, here I am once again, back at the 2 cats, and 3 litter boxes! I'm still in the dilemma of what to do in my situation. Until I come up with something more helpful, I don a Bose headset at night and early morning which cancels the noise (the scratching and meowing from down the hall) and also wear a sleep mask to keep all light from disturbing my zzzzs. Six in the morning is the "normal" cat switching time. It sounds more like bewitching time! I think the two cats are more used to this schedule than I am. Bootsey is out till six tonight, and Buddy is in "his" room enjoying his long cat nap!

I look forward to hearing from more of you, and reading your "war stories."

And if we didn't have a sense of humor, life would be very sad and boring, indeed!

Faithsong


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## Arzaan (Feb 1, 2016)

How u can njoy ur life with ibs dear


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## Faithsong (Feb 4, 2016)

Arzaan,

I see where you live in India. Do you use any Ayruvedic treatments for your IBS? I'm sure there must be something

that would be helpful.

Faithsong


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## foxylady60 (May 23, 2013)

I have been been lurking here on the IBS forum for several years before I joined and have never posted but I just had to reply to your post.

It is great to see your uplifting humor in regards to IBS, even in your suffering. Sometimes thats exactly what we need something to lift our spirits and get our mind off this horrible condition.

I have no answers to what to try, my ibs is not as bad at the moment and I have alternating form, but I know what you mean about about the morning rush, I have been there in the past.

Have you tried various kinds of probiotics? Sometimes you have to keep searching until you find one with the right cultures that work with your system.

I am still laughing picturing your cats in the 2 bedrooms whilst you and hubby sleep in recliners.







I have 3 cats, 2 seniors and a younger my older did the same for 2 years, hissing and trying to intimidate the youngest after we got him. We have the same set up at feeding time, all 3 cats have to be seperated to eat 2 are diabetic on low carb diets one has a sensitive stomach and allergies and all try to eat the food they are not supposed to be eating.

You are a very entertaining and good writer, thanks for making me smile.

I do hope you can find something to help as we all do hope we can find something to help this maddening condition and wish you and your hubby and kitties the best.


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## jaumeb (Sep 1, 2014)

I have one cat and no litter boxes because she lives outdoors. She sleeps on top of a noisy chair and I can hear her when she moves at night.

My symptoms are very different from yours. Lots of pain and no D now. Look into diet. That may help sometimes. Dairy and processed foods are common offenders.


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## Faithsong (Feb 4, 2016)

I'm not very good with all this replying stuff, so this is for the last two or three ladies that have posted in reply to my silliness! With everything that's going on around the world, and now this morning reading about the current weather conditions in the USA, what we are dealing with is certainly minor, although it doesn't seem that way of course at our worse times.

The internet certainly is an amazing tool, and we can learn so much, and meet people from every walk of life and from every part of the world.

So, I send my love and greetings to all, and know that we are in this together.

The best to you all.

Faithsong


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