Irritable bowel syndrome may be possible, especially with association with stress and the change in bowel habits. However, you want to evaluate for more serious causes. This would be the various causes of dyspepsia - either an ulcer, GERD, or inflammation of the upper digestive tract.
An upper GI series or upper endoscopy can be considered for further evaluation - these tests can evaluate for the aforementioned diseases.
An ultrasound can also be considered to evaluate the liver and gallbladder.
If these tests are negative, then you may want to consider treatment for irritable bowel syndrome - either with increasing the amount of fiber in the diet or treatment with antispasmodic agents.
You may want to consider a GI referral for further evaluation.
Followup with your personal physician is essential.
This answer is not intended as and does not substitute for medical advice - the information presented is for patient education only. Please see your personal physician for further evaluation of your individual case.
Kevin, M.D.
Medical Weblog:
kevinmd_b
can you stop the fiber after a while and be fine or is it something that would have to be taken everyday for the rest of my life also i am worried about being on an antianxiety for fear i wont be able to go to boot camp any other suggestions
Hi...I had a problem a couple of times where I would have diareah after I ate anything, and without doing any extensive testing, my doc ruled it IBS. He tole me to take fiber every day, which has truly helped me be more regular and hardened up my stools, and stopped the diarreah. Since you say your diet is not the greatest and it sounds like you may not get enough fiber, try the fibercon tablets two a day everyday in the a.m. Fiber is a great tool to either bind you up if you are prone to loose stools, or loosen you if you are constipated...basically regulating you. This also happened to my mother who had to wear depends, because it got soooo bad, she had no control. She had every test in th book done, and it came down to the fiber thing, and taking Immodium which also worked for her. I also have anxiety, and my stomach is totally the trigger. I won't go out to eat in fear of diarreah, or I won't eat alot unless i am close to home or a familliar toilet!! I know I worry myself into thinking I will get diarreah from previous episodes, and sometimes the anxiety itself will cause this. I take xanax for anxiety, not everyday, but when I am in situations where I think I will worry my stomach into an episode. Try the fiber thing though, I am suprised your doc didn't recomend it if he suggested IBS.. Hope things get better for you...Maria
For the fiber...I have taken it every day for 5 years...it is an over the counter pill, so I don't know if that would be considered a medication for your boot camp or not. I wouldn't think it would be any different than vitamins. I know there are no long term problems for taking it all the time, but maybe you could just try it for a while to see if it helps, and if it does...there should be no harm in taking it everyday. If you can't take it because of the service, just see if you can try to eat good sources of fiber in your diet (if the fibercon worked, but you aren't allowed to take during bootcamp).
As far as the antidepressant...I don't see why he perscribed an anti-depressant if you have anxiety??? Xanax is for anxiety. I don't know the answer to bieng cut off from the anti anxiety or anti depressant meds...I would have a hard time bieng told I had to stop taking them. It is more like a crutch for me to know I have them in my purse, yet I don't need them all the time, but will freak out if I am in a situation, and they are not at my disposal. If your diarreah worries are causing the anxiety, than with any luck, the fiber will help the diarreah and the anxiety will go away. But I know what it feels like to think you feel great, eat something so small & then get that gurgle feeling & start worrying that you might have to go...it is an awful feeling and controls your life, well it does mine anyway.
I am the same way when it comes to worrying about it in public, or away from home, yet feel fine when I don't think about it, or am working or concentrating on something. That's why I chalk most of mine up to the anxiety. I wish I could say you can lick the anxiety if the diarreah stops, but I know I will alway's start to freak out as soon as I start to have that gurgle feeling. I'm sorry that I can't help you further, but I can relate!! Feel free to vent any further!!!
Maria
I am sorry, I misread your medication...you ARE on antianxiety, not antidepressant...anyway's, try the fiber, see if it works, hopefully the anxiety will go away!! Good luck! maria