# Deciding on the right future - university?



## anna.17 (Jun 9, 2014)

Hi there, this is my first post and I only made this account an hour or so ago. There's just a few things I need to talk about which I'm pretty confused about.

Basically I have been looking through the topics and I can't seem to find anyone with similar symptoms to myself. I'm 17 years old and I don't exactly know what I have, but here are my symptoms:


Diarrhea - I usually have to go 3-4 times a day.
Flatulence and stomach aches - my stomach makes some of the most embarrassing noises and at some of the worst times!
Terrible anxiety due to IBS symptoms.

These symptoms only really occur when I am at school, in a quiet classroom, an exam or assembly. I think it all comes down to anxiousness, which causes the IBS-like symptoms, which causes more anxiety. It's a viscous cycle haha.

It started off when I was around 11, and my stomach was making these awful sounds when I was in a lesson once. It probably would have been a one-off if I hadn't been so worried that it would happen again. After that, because whenever I was at school in a quiet lesson, thinking about whether or not it was going to happen again, it of course did happen again. Over the years it has become increasingly worse. I have a million new symptoms and triggers. I know how my body works quite well now - for example, I know what situation I am most likely to become anxious, need the toilet or suffer with flatulence in, but I have never really considered my diet as a problem. Is it worth changing my diet? Also, despite understanding these particular things about myself, I don't have a solution or control method.

I try my best to lead a fairly 'normal' life - for example, I still go out often and I'm quite social, but I really suffer particularly in school. I'm worried about my future as I am due to go to university in a year or two but I hate drastic changes (I've been with the same school for 4 years - which is most of my 'IBS life'). I don't know whether I will be able to cope at university but I have no idea what I would do other than go onto some sort of further study.

I have some very embarrassing stories due to my symptoms and I constantly worry every day that something humiliating will happen to me. I am so embarrassed of it that I don't talk to my mum or family about it (a few members of my family are aware of it as a couple of years ago I was going to the doctors to try and sort it out - which, by the way, wasn't very helpful and I am currently on no medication whatsoever). I also told my teachers a couple of years ago and although some are still aware of it, they think that my anxiety is more of a problem than the IBS symptoms, when in fact, they are just as problematic as each other. They think this because if I ever skip an assembly or lesson, I blame it on my anxiety as I find the anxiety a lot easier to admit than "I couldn't come to assembly today because I was worried my stomach would rumble" - haha. So that's sort of why I'm on here 

(When I say 'rumble', I don't mean the kind of noise that is made when you're hungry).

Anyway sorry this was so long and boring, just had to get it off my chest. It's been 6 years now and things just seem to be getting worse. This issue is preventing me from moving on from high school and I have no idea what I have or what to do.


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## Kathleen M. (Nov 16, 1999)

It may be worth checking out the low FODMAP diet to see if that will help reduce symptoms. This diet removes the things that get into your colon intact that the bacteria make gas out of.

Remember you rumbling generally seems louder to you (everyone's gut makes some noise most of the time). And quiet times you are more likely to hear it as there isn't cover noises.

Does sound like maybe getting some help to control the anxiety may help as well. Usually gut symptoms and anxiety form a vicious cycle and the gut may not calm down while the mind is worrying as well as the mind won't stop worrying as long as the gut is acting up.


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