Diarrhea Troubles

[Baseball56]

Hello everyone --

My troubles with diarrhea started the day before my senior year of high school. I woke up feeling extremely nervous for the new year, and after 10 minutes of being awake, I felt the extreme need to use the bathroom. I used the bathroom and it was pure liquid diarrhea. I then got to my first class of the day and fought my way through the intense stomach pains and I did not have to go anymore.

Ever since then, whenever I am out to eat with friends or out in a public place with friends and I eat even the slightest bit, I immediately get hit with the fear of not being able to find a toilet in time. This increases my urge to have diarrhea and I need to find a bathroom very shortly. I also seem to get urges to use the bathroom shortly before all of my classes. Once I use the bathroom, however, I am fine.

When I am in a comfortable environment such as my house, I can eat anything and everything and have normal bowel movements. However, I always have to take Imodium before I go out to eat with friends and every time I leave the house.

Something leads me to believe that my anxiety for being caught short is causing my bathroom troubles. If I had IBS, I figure that I would have diarrhea every time I eat, but the thing is, when I'm at home or not in a stressful situation, I can eat the same foods I would when I am out and not have as much trouble!

This is something that no college student should have to live with, as I have pretty much been confined to my dorm room and I haven't gone out to eat with a big group of people for fear of needing a toilet after I eat. I believe my anxieties have all just built up that going out to eat with people automatically makes me think of having to figure out possible bathroom situations, which then leads me to being anxious about having an accident, which leads me to being anxious about being embarrassed, etc.

I plan on making a trip to my doctor soon to ask him about how I feel, but I wanted to ask, here in the forum, if anybody else has had similar trouble. Was your problem solved by medication (which I would prefer not to take)?

I try to take my mother's advice to not think about it, but I find myself avoiding social situations all together to avoid the problem. I also plan to exercise more once winter break is over, but I'm not sure if this is the answer. My anxieties only lie with my bathroom problems, and nothing else. Besides worrying about having diarrhea, I feel perfectly calm about everything else and do not have any other troubles, thank goodness!

Thanks again to any help any of you can offer. 

[maladjust_ted]

I just find it hard to believe no one responded to this. Anyway, baseball, you are not alone. Hehe, however embarrassing that might be. I've dealt with what I just like to call a "nervous stomach" for years. Back in my college days I bought maalox .... bulk. I'd have like 4 of the big bottles in my fridge. I learned to enjoy the fake cherry chalk flavor the best. It worked pretty well. Except for the end result.... being constipated. This was all before I actually went in to see someone about my panic disorder though. I survived college... self medicating, alcohol, other assorted chemicals, maalox, ex-lax.... I was the king of self medicating in those days.

I can honestly tell you that after I started "prescribed" meds I haven't suffered nearly as bad. I would guess maybe once every couple of months I find myself on a mad dash to a bathroom. My guess is that once the perpetual nervousness slowed down, the "nervous stomach" slowed down too. I know you said you'd prefer to NOT take meds, but I will tell you the honest truth.... it was much easier taking the paxil/konopin than dealing with the daily maalox/laxative situation.

but by all means, talk to a doctor, maybe they have better medicine for people with "nervous stomach" nowadays. I wish you luck, and hope it gets better
Ted

[sarahleigh]

i didnt see this post otherwise i would have responded. i have ibs, have had it for about 8 years now and what you are describing are symptoms of ibs. days that i go to work, i wake up feeling very nervous and i cant leave the house before i have been to the toilet at least twice, three to four times on a bad day with diarorrea. however by evening time i might find myself constipated which is the other extreme and again this is a symptom of ibs. days when i dont have to go to work or im not doing much i am fine and have normal bowel movements. i dont take anything, i just try to watch what i eat and i get up at a certain time to make sure i have plenty of time before i leave the house.
i dont tend to get the feeling i need to go when i eat out with friends though but im guessing your anxiety is bringing it on. personally i am at my worst in the mornings coupled with my anxiety i find myself being physically sick about 3 days a week too and i was recently diagonised with depression.
peppermint oil is meant to help and i would recommend that you look up ibs on the internet and read about the symptoms so you know which ones and you get and how to improve them the best you can.
Sarah

[Baseball56]

I usually find that I have diarrhea once in the morning if I am nervous and I am all set for the rest of the day.  I can't say that I have the same symptoms of becoming violently ill.  This is why I tend to believe it's nerves moreso than IBS.  I have done quite a bit of research on IBS, and I tend to believe that my IBS is directly attributed to my anxiety.

I have also kind of a side issue.  I drink alcohol on the weekends (and only on the weekends).  Would this interfere with any medication that I would take?  Obviously if it came to choosing between drinking and having regular bowels, I would take the regular bowels any day of the week!  I am just curious, though, if there is any interaction with anxiety medication and alcohol.

[maladjust_ted]

well, I've been on the paxil/klonopin diet for about 10 years now. I'd guess that about once every 2 weeks I just break down and have a night with some beers. There have been occasions back when I first started the meds that I got seriously ripped with my old buddies out at the bars. I don't recall any times that the drinking made any noticeable difference in things. I felt fairly good while drinking and equally crappy the next day. My klonopin is a very low dosage. I can't say that it changed or changes my intake amount.

Of course I am only telling you this so you know. Being a father now and attempting to be more of an adult, I have to at least say that drinking is bad. (did that work....are you gonna stop now....pffff). Ok I am preaching what I don't practice.

Hope you decide to go with the meds regardless. They helped me more than I could ever explain

Ted

[Steve_P]

IBS actually runs in my family and for years I thought I might have it.  I actually got on medication for it a few years ago and I didn't really notice the meds make a whole lot of difference.

I have to mention that I was in a black hole with my anxiety at the time  and I honestly believe this was the main culprit behind my almost constant upset stomach and diarrhea.

Years later I'm completely off of all meds for ISB or anything else and I believe 1000% that nearly every seemingly chronic discomfort I was experiencing during my years of panic attacks was tied to my anxiety and the constant stress I was putting myself through.

I'm of course not saying that's the case for you or anyone else, but it certainly was for me.

Cheers

[mommy_2_4_babies]

Trust me I have been there. I done the same thing my whole senior years so I learned as soon as I got up in the morning to take 1 imodioum and it helped for a couple of days and never did make me constipated hope that you find something to help

[duncil]

i too have ibs and a nervous stomach, oatmeal helps and if i have to go out for a long time i just eat a bow before i leave the house, if i could only find the place in my brain that causes my stomach problems life would be much easier

[mommy_2_4_babies]

sounds like a good plan  :action-smiley-065:Duncil

[duncil]

oatmeal is so dam boring though grrrrrrr

[tigerpaw]

Oatmeal with real VT maple syrup is good, as well as cream of wheat with it.

I wish I had the patience to make it sometimes.

[duncil]

i have no patience hehehe i make instant oatmeal

[mommy_2_4_babies]

I can eat oatmeal just as long as there r raisins involved so I guessthat would not do my IBS an good lol

[duncil]

hehehehe i cant eat raisens, i have no teeth hehehehheheehhehe


                 ok i have false ones but   blahhhhhh, yuk



                                       but i can make gummy smiles now


                                                                                       hahahah

[BraveWorrier]

Hi Bseball56,
I just came by chance across your post with a google search and then signed up. I realize that this thread is pretty old, so maybe you have already found a solution. I just wanted to let you know, that I had almost the same experience. Mine was even worse, in that I had diarrhea when at high school, could not immediately leave the room, because we were in the middle of a written exam, and I almost pooped myself. I went through all stages you describe:  avoidance of eating with others, staying alone at home, using too much imodium and other medications... Since you say that your problems are only in public, I do not think that you have IBS. For me, a psychotherapy was the solution, and it turned out that the diarrhea event was only the trigger, while social anxiety, OCD and all kind of other anxieties existed long before. I have meanwhile developed a whole range of techniques of how to deal with my anxiety. Please let me know, if you are still in this forum and if we should continue this discussion.
All the best, and you are not alone...

[Chadster]

I know this is an old thread, but add me to this list. I have had this problem since my early teens. I remember days in school when I nearly messed my pants, and I would also have diarrhea every morning. It has caused problems as an adult too, it's embarrassing when you're in a meeting at work and have to step out to the bathroom. Add to this that I HATE using a public bathroom! The only thing I have found to help is Imodium and Klonopin. I was prescribed Librax years ago but it is very addictive so I don't recommend it.

I see now that they make a instant release chewable form of Imodium that can be carried in your pocket. I'm thinking of getting some of that just to see if the "comfort factor" of knowing it's there will help. If I knew I had something to immediately stop it I probably wouldn't get diarrhea in the first place.