Where do I go from here?
Hello all
I'm here because I'm feeling really down. I've been having gut problems since at least my late twenties, had tests for gluten intolerance years ago but it came back negative.
I've just persevered over the years with it. I'm now nearly 39.
I had a colonoscopy this year and still awaiting removal of a 3.5cm colorectal polyp, due to doctor strikes.
The biopsies that were taken from the large colon also came back negative.
I'm still regularly having diarrhoea, at least once a day and can't even remember the last time I did anything solid.
It's ruining my life and I'm desperate to work out what it is that's causing it.
I've cut out lactose and thought this was helping, and I guess it did for a couple of weeks but the diarrhoea is back. Unless it's dairy as whole.
I'm so miserable. I can't enjoy life without the need of a toilet near by. I've had so many near misses recently too.
Can I have your opinions on what tests I should request now? I obviously don't want to just let it go now I have the doctor's attention.
Many thanks for any help or support provided.
Kind regards
Sarah
Hey there 🙁 I can really feel you.
Have you tried probiotics yet? They're not without risks but dirrhea daily sounds as if your gut microbiome is totally out of whack (believe me, I know what I'm talking about). For dirrhea and loose stool there are 2 strands that come to mind which you could test (both rather "safe" - I put that in quotation because nothing comes without risks).
1.) Sacch. bouldarii -> It's a yeast and ususally prescribed for traveler dirrhea but in studies it has helped even infants with chronic dirrhea. The good part is that it's a yeast that doesn't stay in your gut (it helps your biome, fights bad bacteria and even candida and then leaves your gut 3 days after by stool).
2.) B. Coagulans -> This is a spore-based bacteria that I'm currently taking which is supposed to regulate the count of bacteria in your intestines. So far I can tell you that it gives me really firm stool and I know for a fact that it prevented one onslaught of dirrhea already (had a rumbling/gassy stomach after a more fat-heavy meal which would normally result in dirrhea but the stool only came out loose ~2 days after - I had some passing gas for that time tho).
Hi Sarah, I'm so sorry that you're dealing with this, that's really hard.
Have you been tested for SIBO yet?
Have you done stool tests and blood work?
I haven't any personal experience with that but I've heard that holistic doctors/naturopaths can do additional tests like a GI map, I don't know if that's something you might be interested in.
We're all very different, so what works for one person might not work for someone else. However, I still wanted to share what has helped me:
- cutting out gluten completely (I also tested negative for Celiac and continued eating gluten, but it turns out it was causing the constant discomfort I was having and my reaction got worse over time).
- eating more whole foods instead of the heavily processed foods I was having, and avoiding artificial sweeteners
- eating a lot of different protein sources instead of just chicken
- eating fewer veggies, but always cooked, and root veggies are easiest to digest for me
- lifestyle changes to minimize daily stress
- working on stress, which is actually the biggest one for me. For a long time, I was so sure that my IBS caused my anxiety and not the other way around, but things like hypnotherapy, meditation, going outside every day, EFT tapping etc. make such a big difference for me.
Here are a couple of articles that might interest you:
https://irritablebowelsyndrome.net/living/why-do-i-react-to-everything-i-eat
https://irritablebowelsyndrome.net/living/daily-supplements
https://irritablebowelsyndrome.net/living/missing-treatment
I also wanted to mention that other community members have found that spine/neck injuries caused their digestive issues, so if you've ever had something like that, it might be worth exploring.
Karina (team member)
