# Bowel Urgency - But Not necessarily diarrhea



## catarific (Oct 6, 2010)

My IBS has gone through many different variations - but this is a new one. Sometimes I have a reaction where I have to continually go to the bathroom but my bowel movement is not watery or soft - it is actually formed - but I urgently have to go and a lot - and many times during the day, as well. I used to take Welchol when I had watery diarrhea and it worked but now the stool is different and when I tried taking Welchol - it held the bowel movement back - but I felt the pressure - that I really had to go - but could not and the pressure was very, very uncomfortable. I actually looked forward to going to feel some relief. Anyone experience anything like this?Trust me when I say, I have been through all the tests - bloodwork, stool samples, colonoscopy, endoscopy - and the diagnosis is IBS. I have had IBS since I was very young - for years it was IBS-C, then more recently IBS-D, and now alternating of IBS-D and C. Any suggestions - would be appreciated!Thanks...


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## Kathleen M. (Nov 16, 1999)

Rectal hypersensitivity is common in IBS. One thing is you can get urgency to go at times when you should get a gentle "you should go sometime soon" or it should be waiting to give you the signal.So even with normal stools or farts you can get the kind of "gotta go now" that you normally associate with watery diarrhea.So several normal consistency bowel movements a day can be seen if you can regulate the stool consistency. Changing the consistency won't necessarily get rid of the rectal hypersensitivity.They can diagnoses the rectal hypersensitivity with an anal manometry although that is usually more of a clinical study thing where they want to quantify it. It doesn't really tell you more than the symptoms alone do.Since this seems to be in the nerves sensing the rectum rather than something changing the stool consistency will fix you might look at things that work on relaxing the gut (like peppermint and chamomile if you want to stick over the counter) or look at a low dose antidepressant that might block some of the inappropriate nerve signals. Mind-body and other relaxation techniques can also calm the nervous system down a bit so may be another option.


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## catarific (Oct 6, 2010)

Thank you Kathleen. I have noticed a significant difference when I drink peppermint or chamomile tea in the morning. This problem started when I was on a cruise - and had a diet much different than I normally have. My system certainly was not used to it - and I also think that I ate a bit more than usual - which probably also was a contributor. We have one more cruise scheduled in February but this time I will make it a point to try and keep the foods I eat closer to what I usually eat. I will also make sure I bring my own sugar substitute - Stevia. I never had a problem before with Equal - but I guess with all the changes in food - sleep - activity, etc. - it might have been a strain on my IBS.Going back to the rectal hypersensitivity - I thank you hit the nail on the head. Before the cruise, my doctor gave me some samples of Rifaximin. They were 550 mg pills and I was to take 1/2 pill a day for 10 days. I had a bad reaction with cramping the first day - and on the second day - I had rectal hypersensitivity - thinking I urgently had to go to the bathroom - but nothing was there. I stopped the antiobiotic immediately - but it took about 4 days to get back to normal.


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## jmc09 (Oct 5, 2009)

catarific said:


> Thank you Kathleen. I have noticed a significant difference when I drink peppermint or chamomile tea in the morning. This problem started when I was on a cruise - and had a diet much different than I normally have. My system certainly was not used to it - and I also think that I ate a bit more than usual - which probably also was a contributor. We have one more cruise scheduled in February but this time I will make it a point to try and keep the foods I eat closer to what I usually eat. I will also make sure I bring my own sugar substitute - Stevia. I never had a problem before with Equal - but I guess with all the changes in food - sleep - activity, etc. - it might have been a strain on my IBS.Going back to the rectal hypersensitivity - I thank you hit the nail on the head. Before the cruise, my doctor gave me some samples of Rifaximin. They were 550 mg pills and I was to take 1/2 pill a day for 10 days. I had a bad reaction with cramping the first day - and on the second day - I had rectal hypersensitivity - thinking I urgently had to go to the bathroom - but nothing was there. I stopped the antiobiotic immediately - but it took about 4 days to get back to normal.


I've just finished 2 weeks on Rifaximin and I only had the bloating for a day or two at first. It didnt help me either.


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