IBS Venting Session Vol. 1

As many of you already know, being an IBS sufferer is very hard, and I wanted to use this opportunity to get some things off of my chest. Some, or all, of you might be able to relate to what I’ve been going through lately, and I finally found the words to express how I feel. So let’s just call this, “my venting session”.

Lately, I’ve been having a really tough time with my symptoms, to the point where just eating right and/or taking any medication just isn’t working. I suffer from both IBS constipation and diarrhea and sometimes it feels like I’m dealing with two different illnesses. For those of you who suffer from IBS-D: do you ever use the toilet so much that you can barely even sit on your bum, and all of a sudden you’re drained of energy, so you don’t want to do anything but lay in bed? How about those of you who suffer from IBS-C: have you ever rushed to the bathroom so many times because you ‘think’ you have to go, and then you strain, and you strain, and you strain, and, let’s say after the fifth attempt, you finally feel something coming out and it’s only a little itty-bitty brown turd? I mean, talk about a waste of time, right?

Doesn’t it just get tiring? Always running to the bathroom, the internal hemorrhoids, the consistent stomach pain, the extreme anxiety, the depression, and the lack of sleep. I mean the list goes on and on, and it’s exhausting. Sometimes I end up asking myself, “Does it ever stop? Does the pain ever go away? Will I be able to eat this meal and not have to suffer through any discomfort afterwards?” Never ending questions. Questions that I already know the answers to, but I choose to stay hopeful because I really don’t want to live with this condition for the rest of my life.

Not to sound so pessimistic, but unfortunately, I know the pain will never completely go away. I’m going to have to deal with being tired of it most of the time, and you know what, that’s ok. There are things we have to go through on this earth that we may never understand, or may never agree with, but when it’s all said and done, we’re a lot stronger because of it. (I know, I know. That sounds cliché.) I may not feel like it, I may not see it, but I am stronger. We’re ALL stronger. Think about it, the fact that we choose to wake up every day and fight the same battles that left us with battle wounds from the days before, to me, takes courage. So we are stronger whether we believe it or not. Whether I believe it or not. (You know, at this point, I think I’m talking to myself more than I am to you guys.)

Well, I do want to say to you guys, whatever it is that you do to manage your IBS, keep it up! This IBS journey (or whatever you want to call it) is obviously a tough one, to say the least. I’m sure a lot of us have learned, and are still learning, plenty along the way, and this is why our IBS community is important because we get to share our experiences, learn from one another, and also support one another. So if you’ve read this far, thank you for allowing me to vent and express myself, which isn’t always easy to do considering the topic. I truly appreciate the support. Take it easy, stay strong, and stay positive!