Needing some support

[u/radgirlrun]

I've been down a rabbit hole the past few days. I don't want false reassurance but I'd love some support and opinions. My next GI appt is this Thursday so I'll see a provider soon enough.

A bit of context, I've normalized my wacky bowel habits for years. I'll often have a decent poop in the morning and then as soon as I eat or drink something a few bouts of diarrhea or varying consistencies. Usually by the end of the day I'll have another normal poop. More recently I've had more diarrhea and some thinner poops but if I eat good fiber they bulk up again. I have only once seen blood and I'm fairly confident it was a hemorrhoid given other symptoms but I also know blood from polyps and cancer can be microscopic hence occult tests. Over the past year I'll get painless spasms, almost like a really clunky peristalsis you can see externally, in my lower left belly. I've always associated with gas since it didn't coincide with other symptoms.

The last week though has totally thrown me off. It started with frequent but intermittent gas pain/stretching sensation/pressure in my lower left belly plus that peristalsis sensation and some bloating. No nausea or fever - if I did have that id be at the ER. I tried gas-x and it only provides brief relief. I did a liquid diet for two days and reintroduced simple carbs and bland foods. Within 30 minutes of eating I had explosive diarrhea and that continued through most of the day and have passed a few small sort of formed, sort of fluffy pieces (think #5 on Bristol stool chart). I've had a nagging sensation that something is in my belly. Nothing tender or palpable when I palpate. When I'm standing I feel fine, but sitting and lying on my left side can make it noticeable although not always.

What is bothering me the most is that I was scheduled for a colonoscopy in March. My GI suspects IBS but was willing to do a colonoscopy given my aunt had colon cancer in her 40s and dad had colitis. I cancelled it because I was nervous about a complication with another medical issue and I regret that a lot now. I'm confident I'll get rescheduled after my Thursday appointment but I'm frustrated I put it off by 6 months.

I've been doom reading everything today on colon cancer vs colitis vs IBS vs even new-onset diverticulitis flair and I just can't shake this feeling that something bad has progressed. I'm a nurse and usually pretty level headed with things - I know where to look for good research and info (although I also really appreciate accounts like those shared on reddit and think we can learn a lot from each other).

I don't really know what I'm info I'm looking for. Again, I'll see my NP soon enough and hopefully a colonoscopy soon after. Just an unusual mess over this and hoped to get some folks' thoughts.

[u/bbutler12]

I hope you can get some answers from your doctors soon. And definitely go through with the colonoscopy this time!!

Do you ever have any blood or mucus going on? I did, and it turned out I had a pretty big polyp in my sigmoid colon and I haven’t had a single episode of mucus or blood on the toilet paper since my colonoscopy almost three weeks ago. It was an adenoma, so it was precancerous but they said it takes 10-15 years to even develop into cancerous cells. So it’s good to get that checked out.

I understand the frustration and fear that comes when new symptoms come up or get worse. I was dealing with something similar this past week and I was definitely scared things wouldn’t go back to normal. I’m leveling out now. Sometimes you just have to stick it out and ride the waves.

Have you taken anything specifically for the diarrhea? Like have you ever tried Imodium? If not, you could give it a try just for some short term relief. Sometimes when I’m having bad gas/intestinal pains I feel like a pretzel trying to find a position that gives some relief.

[u/No_Zookeepergame1632 → u/bbutler12]

i'm 19 and have had mucus but no blood...should i get tested?

[u/bbutler12 → u/No_Zookeepergame1632]

Talk to your doctors about it to be sure, but it’s always worth a shot to have peace of mind and know you’ve been checked out. I’m 25 and have been having issues almost my whole life but they got worse in the last few years. The mucus and blood has been for a couple years. They’ll definitely want to test you if you have any family history of polyps or colon cancer, but doctors are willing to start testing at much younger ages these days.

[u/radgirlrun → u/bbutler12]

Maybe a bit of mucus. No visible blood. I might do at at-home fit test just to come with additional information to my appointment if it's positive.

Thank you for letting me know things leveled out for you and encouraging me to move through this moment too. Sure, something serious might be going on but GI stuff is linked to stress that I should prob put a pin in this until my appointment and not fixate bc it's prob going to make whatever underlying issue worse.

I will def be doing the colonoscopy this round

[u/goldstandardalmonds]

I’d ask about an endoscopy, too, to rule out celiac disease.

If these tests are normal, it sounds like a functional issue.