what's going on?

I am a 24 year old female, who is experiencing many different symptoms.  It all started about 1 year ago when I experiecned a miscarriage.  After that happened all sorts of problems started.  I began having major indigestion, burning, hunger feeling pain in the middle of my stomach.  I had a upper GI barium swallow test in 03/03 which came out negative, a abdominal/pelvic CT scan which also came out negative, and a number of blood test that were negative.  I was prescribed Nexium, which helped somewhat. Symptoms cleared for a couple of months, then i started to experince nausea, stomach cramps, discomfort in the lower abdomen, constipation (which was always a problem from before).  Another CT of abdomen was performed which was negative and a sigmoidoscopy, which was also negative.  My indigestion came back around christmas time, my doc prescribed for me a protonix and symtpoms of indigestion cleared.  Now I have major gas in my lower abdomen and when i try to use the bathroon, alot of gas and brown jelly-like mucus in stool. I use the bathroom a couple times a day, but only small amounts of stool comes out each time.  I started on Citracel.  I also have pain in the left lower abd. which comes and goes.  My gastro doc thinks i may be suffering from IBS.  Does that sound right?  Also, i have major anxiety, for which i see a psychiatrist, i constantly think that i am ill and dying.
I guess i'm not satisfied with IBS, i feel what i am going through is horrible and im always uncomfortable.  Do you have any idea what else it could be?

Thank you-
Mee-ling

[Kevin Pho, MD]

IBS is typically a diagnosis of exclusion - meaning it should be considered if everything has been ruled out.  One test to consider would be an upper endoscopy - which is a more thorough test than the upper GI series.  This can evaluate for inflammation of the upper digestive tract, as well as ulcers.  

I would also test for H Pylori - a bacteria associated with inflammation and ulcers.

Regarding the mucous in the stool - this can be caused by malabsoption syndrome or inflammatory bowel disease.  A lower endoscopy - either colonoscopy or flexible sigmoidoscopy can be considered to evaluate this.  

You may want to consider a GI 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.

Thanks,
Kevin, M.D.

[PAJ]

Yes it sounds like yeast [candida ]Try this questionnaire, yeast is closely associated with panic attacks IBS etc: see my other posts  
search   panic attack yeast ,  IBS yeast  for more info

http://web.archive.org/web/20030203021827/www.howdyneighbor.com/jbayliss/crook.htm


This is stop press on testing , all good stuff

http://www.greatplainslaboratory.com/oat/index.html

[yoshi]

what the gastro doc does not tell you is that all these medications like nexxium,prilosev,prevacid,and even the over the counter ones like mylanta and galvescan all contain chemicals which alter the flora in your system.read the label-aluminium and magnesium can cause diarhea (diarrhea) and constipation.
if you are constipated and the feces accumulated in the lower tract and the chemical react with it and fermentation will yield gas and thats why people start farting and bloated with gas.
i dont know what the solution is,of course not taking any of these medication sure help,but then you will have the stomach problem.

[Qgirl]

alot of the symptoms you have I have been having for the past month.  I have been under tons of srress and am also one of those people that think that I have something deadly when something happens to my body-I have always been this way.  Its not all the time but I wonder if once symptoms start I think about it way too much and create alot of it myself.  I have the lower ab pains which feel like cramps, lots of gas and belching.  I have also had lower back pain.  The symptoms come and go.  They seem to get worse at night.  Your symptoms sound so similiar to mine other than you not having the lower back pain.  I will be seeing a gastro on Thursday and my family Dr had me do one of those kits which I dropped off last Friday and am awaiting results.  Stools normal color in fact when this started they were lighter and thats why I originally went to the Dr.  Not sure if this helps at all.  I will log back on when Isee the gastro and let you know what I find out.  Thanks!