# I'm So Depressed



## dlt647 (Jul 30, 2003)

I was diagnosed with IBS-C about 3 years ago. I also have diverticulosis and endomentriosis (diagnosed through colonoscopy and laparoscopy). The IBS seemed to begin after a major stressful event in my life (sudden divorce). As a result, I lost 80 pounds, couldn't eat (I would forget to eat anything some days), drank more than I should have, had panic attacks, depression, etc. Luckily, I got my life back in order and started eating again. Once I did that, though, I suffered from constipation, gas, bloating, bowel sounds, etc. I saw my GI and she diagnosed me with IBS. I have had exams with my GI, my regular doctors and my OB/GYN and no other problems have been found. I had so much difficulty with constipation, that I started taking Colon Cleanse. It seems to work, however, I ended up taking it a couple times a day for 8 months. I had diarrhea, but at least I was going. I ended up with a lot of lower abdominal pain and went to my regular doctor. She advised me to immediately stop the colon cleanse and gave me zelnorm for the IBS. It worked great. The constipation, pain and bloating was much better. I also went for allergy testing as I seemed to be very sensitive to many new things. I can't use scented soaps and developed a new allergy to several medications. I tested positive for dairy (this was the only food I was tested for, though). I have not eating dairy in a year now. My IBS has gotten much better, however, I still continue to have bouts. I noticed that it seemed worse after eating breads or pastas. I decided to try a gluten free diet. This helped tremendously. Unfortunately, last weekend, we ate out at restaurants a few times and I believe there must have been something that I ate which bothered me. My husband and I (I have since remarried) had some mixed drinks that may have also bothered me. We usually only drink red wine, but had drinks with vodka in them. I don't know what it was that set off this latest attack, but I am so frustrated I can't stand it. I constantly search the internet for clues or answers. I feel like all I do is complain I don't feel good. I worry that I have something horrible, like an infection or ovarian cancer, etc. I've had exams, tests, etc. and all come back with nothing. I don't have any other symptoms of anything else (other than just plain IBS), yet I still worry. Did I mess up my body so much with the stress/eating problems/laxatives that I now have to live with this for the rest of my life? When I feel good, I don't get depressed, but when I have symptoms, I cannot stop obsessing. I guess it is difficult with IBS because it is something you can only diagnose by ruling out other problems. I now exercise regularly and don't seem to have as much trouble with constipation. The only problem now is sometimes my BMs will be very hard to pass and I'll have bloating and some gas pains. To me, there is always some doubt as to whether this is really what it is. I am sure everyone else has been through the same thing. I love this site because I feel like I am not alone. Thanks for listening.


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## Tiss (Aug 22, 2000)

I'm so sorry about all your worry- I hear ya though--I'm the same way!! Is the Zelnorm still working? I've been taking it about 3 months and have a love/hate relationship with it! I've decided that I'm much more OCD than I ever thought. I do not respond to antidepressants well--have you tried any of them? I do take xanax, klonopin when I need it (thank God for antianxiety meds) and I also take Restoril for sleep, which doesn't really help anymore but I have to be weaned off of that stuff. Good luck and know you are not alone. Tiss


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## dlt647 (Jul 30, 2003)

Hi Tiss and thank you. I haven't taken the Zelnorm because it seems to give me diarrhea. I guess I probably should give it a try (at half the dose) again since when I first started taking it, it gave me diarrhea for the first day or two, then was fine. It just gets so darn frustrating to not be able to eat whatever I want and constantly feeling that uncomfortable feeling in my lower abdomen. Now my herniated disc is starting up, but I have scheduled an appt. with a chiropractor my father goes to and seems to love. Right now, the feeling I have is like I have so much gas buildup, but I just cannot get rid of it. I can feel it rumbling around and it is almost like when I was pregnant and the baby was kicking (BTW, pregnancy is not a possibility). Very weird.


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## sadone (Dec 17, 2003)

dlt







yeah, i totally feel like that too! i'll sit on the internet, typing in my symptoms and seeing what kind of 'diseases' are pulled up...hoping that i have something other than ibs, hoping that i have something that can be cured...completely.my family doc jokes with me about how i'm the one in my family that always has all the 'strange' problems...or the ones that aren't that fixable...ibs, migraines, depression, and had an eating disorder (still a few remnants of that)...speaking of eating disorder, is that what you were talking about when you mentioned 'eating problems' and 'laxatives'?...i often wonder if my past eating disorder set my ibs in motion...i've brought that issue up on here before, it just makes me feel horrible that i could have possibly saved myself so much trouble...


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## dlt647 (Jul 30, 2003)

Hi Minimum - I, too, wonder if my eating disorder is what started this whole mess. I would go a day or two eating absolutely nothing. I also suffered from bulimia (actually, I'm still struggling with that one). It was like my body got used to not digesting anything and then when I started eating again, it didn't know what to do. I am fine when I get up in the morning, but as soon as I eat, my stomach starts rumbling and I get gas pains and bloating. It is much better now that I have stopped eating all dairy and foods with gluten. It is so frustrating to worry about everything I eat, though. I still suffer from anxiety attacks and worry about everything. It feels like my body is in a constant state of nervousness. I just want to feel normal again, without the cramping and bloating.


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## california123 (Jun 8, 2003)

Hi dlt,A psychiatrist diagnosed my GI problems as anxiety-induced and then prescribed meds that stopped it. It sounds like that could be true for you. Can you go see one? I promise it will help.


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## dlt647 (Jul 30, 2003)

Thanks California123. I am sure it is anxiety induced since I am always worrying about something. It drives me crazy sometimes. I probably could go to see someone, but I don't really want to take any additional medications. I take a mild anti-depressent (Trazadone) at night to help me sleep. I've been taking that for about 3 years now and it is the only way to I stay asleep all night. I also have restless leg syndrome and this helps with that problem. Years ago I took Prozac for several years. My daughter has some behavior/health issues that I was at my wits end about and my doctor gave me Prozac. It did help me stop worrying, however, I ended up going the opposite way. I didn't care about anything. I ended up spending too much on my credit cards (because I didn't really care about the bills - I figured they'd get paid eventually) and completely lost interest in sex. I finally stopped taking it because I just couldn't continue like that. I just recently got remarried and do not want to take medication that will do the same thing. Tiss, I did start taking an extremely small amount of Zelnorm again. I have 6 mg. tablets and I cut them (as best I can) in 3's. I take it just before dinner. I do have a lot of stomach rumbling and gas thereafter, but when I wake up in the morning I feel great. No pain, no bloating, no gas. The first day I took it I spent half the night in the bathroom. Now I just have a small amount of D in the morning. I'm not sure if I'll continue taking that small amount every day or just take it a couple times a week. I'll try not taking it tonight and see what happens. Thanks for your help.


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## Linda25 (Jun 8, 2004)

hiI was just diagnosed with IBS. It has zapped the life out of me. I have had so many diagnostic tests. So, everything else has been ruled out.I have had terrible anxiety, heart palpatations, nauseusness, and awful pains in my stomach. I have it with constipation. I am a nervous person to begin with, and I had major stress in March I believe brought this all on.I tried zeldorm for a few days, but it though it did help with constipation a bit, it made me a wreck. So, I just stopped after a few days.I saw another gastro doc and he started me on Librax. It is supposed to be a mix of antispasmodic and anti-anxiety. It's a bit early to tell yet. The only way I get sleep is with ambien.I think this is a pretty severe case of IBs. What do you all think? This is very life alterning and it scares the hell out of me.thoughs?Linda


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## sadone (Dec 17, 2003)

i think that if YOU think it's severe, then it's severe...if it's disrupting your life daily, then it's severe (just my thoughts though...).


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## DivaMom (Jun 9, 2004)

Hi, y'all.This is my first post... just registered a few minutes ago. I am SO sorry y'all feel as badly as I do, but I'm glad there's someone else out there who knows what I'm going through.The last six months have been horrible. I don't know if I'll be able to go back to work - I am (or was, at this rate) a music teacher with a challenging and successful Choral program. My poor kids have been late to school every 2nd or 3rd day since March, and I've used up more than my allotted "sub" hours. The Doc now has me on several different meds that add unpleasant side effects to the whole thing. I'm about ready to give up... my family thinks I'm just malingering. How can you be in the bathroom for three hours and then just lie around for 6 hours every other day?Anyway, just reading your posts has cheered me up big time. Thanks!


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