Hot flashes caused by IBS?? - Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS) Message Board

ljturner · 01-11-2007, 08:26 AM

This is a weird question...but I am wondering if anyone else has "hot flashes" that seem more connected to IBS than menopause. I have had IBS-C for a long time, and have had a couple of problems with diverticulitis. I take in a lot of dietary fiber, take a probiotic, drink tons of wanter, all that jazz. I continue to have consipation, major bloating and uncontrollable gas. A lot of the time my abdomen is tender to touch because of the build up of gas and bloating.

What has been happening lately is that every night when I go to bed, I have LLQ pain that is a constant dull ache. But in addition to that it feels like there is heat radiating from that spot that makes me feel like I am having a total meltdown. I can't keep covers on or be touched because I feel like I am on fire.

From what I have read, menopausal hot flashes are usually felt most in the chest and neck area. This is definitely originating in my pelvic area.

Has anyone experienced this???

darkeyes · 01-20-2007, 12:49 AM

well, i'm not menopausal... in my 30s.. but i understand what you mean with the gas and all. it's very irritating and uncontrollable. you have more LLQ pain? i have more RLQ pain...and went to the ER for it almost a year ago. what are you taking for your constipation?

ljturner · 01-22-2007, 07:06 AM

Well I had an interesting discussion about this with my new OB?GYN, who said that based on hormone tests I am not in perimenopause or menopause, so the "hot Flashes" I am experiencing are more likely a result of the IBS and some issue with my bowels. That same day I had an ultrasound and the tech had to push on my lower left side to, as she said, move my bowels out of the way, and for the rest of the day I was so uncomfortable in that spot. It's a pain that never totally subsides and gets worse when I have a BM, very painful because I am always backed up. So I will take milk of magnesia at night and have a oversized BM the next day which makes the pain much worse.

I have had so many problems over the last few years but they always chalk it up to IBS. I have had numerous CT scans and they rarely show anything, and the surgeon who removed my gall bladder doesn't think I am a candidate for resection because my diverticulitis isn't "severe" enough. So now I just grin and bear it and pray I don't end up with a perforation someday!

desiii · 01-22-2007, 11:52 AM

When I get a bad IBS flair up, my whole body heats up to a degree that I sometimes pass out for short periods of time. It's like a fever that eventually brakes (sometimes several times over before it goes away). By the end of it, I'm drenched in sweat and the floor around me is even soaked. I've had this since I was a kid, so it's not caused by hormones.

My sister had a dull pain in her intestine for several years, and the dr's couldn't figure it out. She went to a reputable naturopath and had the electrode allergy test (quick, and painless, but expensive!). The printout showed her all the foods that she has any kind of reaction to, and the degree of the reaction. So she knew which foods to limit, and which ones to cut out completely for about a year. It worked wonders and the pain has been gone for several years now. She can even eat many foods now that she used to have to avoid. Anyway, might be a route to try if you can't find anything else that helps.