molitor

I have found out from my mother more recently that her mother died of bowel cancer, they only found it after she had died. My mother has a sister that died from bowel cancer and now one of her other sisters has two daughters in their late 30's early 40's with it.

I have suffered with bowel problems since I was 16, i've been diagnosed since then with IBS. However more recently the past few years its got worse. Much more painful when I get colicky pain and distended lower abdomen. I change from severe constipation to diarrhoea and might have what you would call a "normal" day once every week to ten days.

I was placed onto supplements recently as a nutritionist believed that I don't absorb my food proper. Was given friendly bacteria, glutamine powder, milk thistle and asked to eat lots more healthy stuff like nuts and seeds. Unfortunately a week of the supplements caused my stomach / bowel to react, I had severe twinging sharp pain just under my left lower rib which lasted for days. Once I had stopped the supplements it slowly stopped, but in that time I had light yellow type stools. My stools always smell bad regardless of what I eat.

In the past six months i've also suffered bouts of real pain in my bowel, where within a few minutes of the pain, I have to go to the toilet. When I go, I notice white mucus and for an hour or so after I feel like my bowel is stinging inside.

I've had times where I also feel like (sorry for the description) someone has shoved their fist right up my backside and it is still there. Its a feeling of fullness that can sometimes last for two or three weeks at a time.

I am seeing the bowel specialist in two weeks, I am concerned that maybe i'm panicking for nothing and the bowel problems I have are purely IBS, I am concerned that I am also becoming some form of hypochondriac..

I guess I just needed to tell people who might have felt the same or be going through the same.