Somewhat odd stool?

[Brian0357]

I am not sure if this is normal or not but in my stool I have been noticing some peanuty looking chunks in it. They are light brown and just are kind of speckled throughout my stool sometimes. It looks like small pieces of say a granola bar? They are peanuty butter colored which I think is normal and for the last few months my stomache has been kind of sensitive. I just started some anxiety meds and I have noticed it changing more lately.. Is this something to be concerned about or maybe just my diet?

[Banned1]

Hi Brian:

If your GI give you any grief about the endoscopy, change GIs.  I'm sure you won't have any trouble because extreme excessive thirst is something that should make lightbulbs go on for him immediately.  At the very least you need to find some answers.  The stress and anxiety of not knowing what's going on in your own body is brutal.  Hang in there and write any time you need to vent or even someone unbiased to talk to.

All the best,

Sam

[Brian0357]

Thanks for showing care towards me. It makes me feel alot better. I have read alot about anti depressants (lexapro) affecting your digestion so I think that this may be the issue. I just need to get that endoscopy done and rule some things out. I used to have really bad stomache pains and gas but since being on the medication I feel alot better. I will let you guys know how the doctor goes when I see him. Thanks

[Banned1]

Hi Brian:

It's not silly and I'm pretty sure excessive thirst can be a symptom of a number of issues including diabetes.  Please call your doctor and tell them that you have excessive thirst and cannot manage the endoscopy.  Based on that, they might be able to run some other tests and get to the bottom of this for you.  It's wonderful that you're eating better.  Panic attacks are associated with many digestive diseases.  This sounds like something that needs to be investigated sooner rather than later.  Hopefully you'll have a caring Gastroenterologist who is willing to get to the bottom of this for you.

For anxiety attacks or panic attacks, there are some relaxation techniques that can help you get through it a lot more quickly.  If you have everything in place well in advance, it's less panicky.  This site talks about women but these exercise are great for anyone with high stress all the way up to someone suffering from panic:
http://www.healthy.net/asp/templates/article.asp?PageType=article&ID=1205

I was told about an episode of "Mystery Diagnosis" called "An Unquenchable Thirst" from Season Two, episode 9:  http://health.discovery.com/fansites/mystery-diagnosis/diseases-02.html.  I didn't see it and I'm not sure which disease went with which story.  There were three diseases covered:  Whipple's, Meningyoma and Cystinosis.  I couldn't find much information about Cystinosis but extreme excessive thirst is definitely a symptom.  Here are a couple of links:  
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cystinosis
http://www.cystinosisfoundation.org/

According to http://digestive.niddk.nih.gov/ddiseases/pubs/whipple/index.htm, Whipple's Disease "Symptoms include diarrhea, intestinal bleeding, abdominal pain, loss of appetite, weight loss, fatigue, and weakness"  It also states that, "When recognized and treated, Whipple's disease can usually be cured."

Please let me know how you're doing.  You may also want to create a new post with a title relating to excessive thirst, nausea and abnormal stool.  Hopefully someone with personal experience can share their thoughts with you.

I wish you all the best, Brian.  Take care,

Sam

[Brian0357]

I have kind of been staying at home MUCH more. I eat alot healthier and aot less. I snack on small foods and dont seem to be eating alot of fatty foods like I used to. I am not sure what it is, I originally saw my doctor about stomache problems and nausea as well as some panic attacks and I think they are all related. I havent been able to do my endosocpy yet because this may sound dumb but I cannot go all night without drinking water. I cant sleep qt night lately so I just cannot stay up without drinking.. Its silly I know

[Banned1]

Hi there:

I don't know about you but when I start a new medication, I'm always a bit anxious and hyper-aware of potential side effects.  I'm not a doctor and I don't know anything about medicine but I've learned a few things along the way that might help.  If I'm reading through the lines, are you concerned that this might be undigested food in your stool or malabsorption?  As always, you'll want to thoroughly read the patient monograph that came with your medication and you might also want to go online to look at the medication website and look for additional information or warnings.

Here is a link to the Bristol Stool Chart and it might.  We don't look at other people's stool, so we don't have any frame of reference for comparison.  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bristol_Stool_Chart#Bristol_Stool_Chart

Changes in your stool could be related to food sensitivities, allergies or other dietary issues.  If you could think back to before this started, perhaps you would remember something new or different in your diet.  Start keeping a log of everything that goes in and out of your body (food, drink, medication, etc.) as well as any symptoms might help you to identify patterns and changes.  

If you're worried about undigested food or malabsorption, you might want to see your Doc or a Gastroenterologist to make sure this isn't something more serious.  They may perform an upper endoscopy to ensure that there isn't anything else going on (i.e. h.Pyloria bacteria, etc.)  If this continues and you are still worried, you might consider taking digestive (and pancreatic) enzymes.  Enzymes occur naturally in our bodies, can assist with digestion and can improve our overall health.  The most important thing to remember when purchasing them is to make sure that they only contain Proteases, Lipase and Amylase without other active ingredients.  Prescription enzymes are the best but they can be purchased at health food stores and some pharmacies.  Enzymes can take several weeks.  Enzymes and stool go hand-in-hand.  You're obviously anxious about it but you don't want to do anything that CREATES symptoms.  I'm adding a few links and if this doesn't help you on the way to answering your questions, you can always create a new post and hope that someone with personal or professional experience can help you.  

All the best,

Sam

ENZYMES

www.pancan.org/Patient/Pancreatic/Diet/PancreaticEnzymes.htm
www.enzymestuff.com/basicsdosing.htm
www.pancreatitis.org.uk/enzymes.htm
www.hopkinscf.org/docs_shared/nutrition/pancreatic_enzymes.pdf
www.talkmedical.com/medications/1512/Creon-5

STOOL
http://www.merck.com/mmhe/sec09/ch125/ch125a.html
http://yourtotalhealth.ivillage.com/undigested-food-in-stool.html
http://www.enzymestuff.com/rtstools.htm
http://www.prohealth.com/library/bulletinarticle.cfm?ID=6592