IBS

[GrungeLion]

I am a teen who started having odd digestive patterns in February, just this year.  I have had hints of stool oddities for a few years but just now it has started to bother me.  I started to lose my appetite and my stool was either runny or I was constipated.  I went to the hospital in February for what doctors thought could have been appendicitis but I had no fever, no vomiting and I was my normal, hungry self.  I think I had an IBS attack because the night before my hospital visit was when my violent, stabbing stomach pain began.  I have anxiety and I think it plays a role.  I am a little self diagnosed with IBS but I did pay a trip to the doctor and he said IBS could be the case, along with lactose intolerance.  I am supposed to visit the doctor again in a few weeks and I have been learning to control my IBS.  Do you think IBS could be the situation I am in?  Or does it sound like something else?  

[GrungeLion]

Thank you very much

[Paderla Anitha, DNB]

Hello and hope you are doing well.

IBS is a diagnosis of exclusion. If all the tests to rule out other disorders are done and found to be negative, then the diagnosis of IBS is made. IBS is diagnosed when a person has abdominal pain or discomfort at least three times per month for the last 3 months without other disease or injury that could explain the pain. The pain of IBS may occur with a change in stool frequency and may be relieved by a bowel movement.

For now you can wait and watch and monitor your symptoms. I suggest you develop good style measures to promote your appetite and health. Eat healthy balanced meals. Try to get organic products. Do not consume caffeinated beverages. Practice good relaxation techniques like yoga and meditation. Maintain a food diary and try to identify those foods which are likely to produce the pin and avoid them. Exercise regularly and go for long stress free walks; this promotes appetite and keeps you healthy.

Hope this helped and do keep us posted.