Does IBS cause a change in stool frequency?
Hi, everyone! So, a bit of background. All my life I had IBS symptoms (I am now 25) and ignored them, thinking it was normal for everyone. However at the start of the year after moving and starting a business, I ended up having non-stop loose stools (not exactly diarrhea) for 6 weeks. I ended up going to the doctors and was given blood tests covering nearly everything, which all came back normal and was then told I had IBS exacerbated by stress/depression/anxiety and was put on sertraline. A week later the loose stools were far less frequent and now more in line with how they used to be. However, one problem remains and it's that I'm going more often than I used to. In the past (prior to official diagnosis) I would go once a day. It's now 4 months on and I'm going 2-3 times a day, sometimes with mucus and I'm left wondering if this is really IBS. Does IBS cause a change in frequency? Even if the stool being past is mostly normal?
Hi
- thanks for submitting this question! It can definitely be challenging to decipher these symptoms. While stool frequency is taken in to consideration during diagnosis, there are other factors that are also evaluated. Unfortunately, we cannot provide any medical advice (for your safety), so we encourage you to ask your doctor, if you haven't already. In the meantime, we do have some articles that address the question of having IBS without diarrhea and constipation, mucus in stool, and the criteria used to diagnose IBS.
I hope this information is helpful. Please keep us updated! Take care. - Chris, Team Member
