What iis going on?????????????

[leanne357]

I went to the ER in April of 2008 complaining of cramps. I considered them severe menstrual cramps. The doc there did CT-scans, X-rays, and a vaginal ultrasound. He told me I have cysts and masses on my ovaries and fibroids in my uterus. I suffer with it for months. I finally,b/c I have no insurance, made an appt with a gynecologist. I brought him all my records from the ER. I explained my symptoms to him he said I have IBS. Without an examination or anything. He referred me to a specialist. I did not keep the appt, remember, I have no insurance. I have problems with consipation and diarhea mostly when I am on my period. Now, I feel so sick to my stomach ALL the time. I want to throw up, literally, but I never do. I do not see a pattern to my bowel problems, except when I am menstruating and have VERY painful bowel movements and gas. All this time I thought it was my cysts, now, I am not so sure. I feel worse in the morning, every morning I wake up feeling so sick to my stomach, I don't even want to get out of bed anymore. I cannot afford all these specialists but I cannot afford to feel like this!!!!! What are the symptoms of IBS?

[leanne357]

I have been trying to keep track of what I eat. I know it has only been a few days but I cannot find what upsets me and what doesn't. I have a stressful life, I worry about everything. Especially finances these days! This morning I feel so full. I had some plain old oatmeal for breakfast. My side is hurting, like, idk, there is something stuck there! It feels real tight. I woke up last night 'bout 3 am, feeling so sick to my stomach. That is a horrible feeling!

[sparkle40]

Also while you are at working on your diet, remove processed foods.  Pay attention to colorants and preservatives in the foods.  Many of them distress me something awful.  I have stayed off of sodas for 1 year.  I was able to drink one without a problem one day.  I won't push it. I stopped eating corn for 2 years and now I can tollerate it.  If your symptoms are related to a sensitivity then you might be able to eat it again once you eliminate it for a long time.  My gastro doctor has a website that is good to take a look at.  Has information about the gut and also some diets.  He put me on a diet that helped me find out what foods caused me gas.  The ones that caused me terrible gas was also ones I was sensitive too.  This is how I found I can't eat wheat.  He suggested a gluten free diet.    www.gicare.com
I always hated me periods because I was so sick.  But it was during my PMS weeks that I usually found out what my triggers were.  In some ways it is a blessing.  UGH!

[leanne357]

Thank u so much. Ypu have given me alot of info. I am starting to keep track of what I eat now. I have found some diet plans on a few web sites that are not blah recipes like I thought they would be. I'm going to give it a try. Gotta start somewhere! Thanks again, Leslie.

[FurballsMom]

I know you're miserable, but there is a definite link between the IBS and the menstrual misery.  It has been well documented.

Since you don't have insurance, and I've been there myself, you'll definitely need to do as much research on this as you can on the internet.  Look up information on Dysmenorrhea.

I did discover something that made some improvements in my own case and I tell any woman with a similar issue about the connection I discovered with my menstrual cramps and my IBS and gluten intolerance.  I discovered that not everyone with gluten intolerance has Celiac, but not everyone with Celiac will have problems with the classic chronic diarrhea symptoms either.  One can actually have the opposite issue with Celiac, too.  With gluten intolerance and/or Celiac, comes lactose intolerance, especially cow's milk.  I don't tolerate any dairy at all.

First, I went off of dairy for about a year before I discovered that I am definitely gluten intolerant, too.  Going off of dairy really did help with weight loss.  One thing you'll discover with food sensitivities is that we often crave the very thing that we're sensitive to or allergic to.  Now that I have been off of dairy for so long, the cravings are gone.  Now, I can't stand the thought of cheese or milk at all.  I know I'll just get a big belly ache with it, too.

Before I went off dairy, I had discovered that I was definitely allergic to corn, because it will give me migraines, so I stopped my favorite snack of tortilla chips and diced tomatoes and jalepeños without the onions.  Later, it turned out that I couldn't eat the tomatoes, the jalpeños, onions or garlic.  I have problems with GERD to go along with my IBS.

A while later, I discovered that I was definitely sensitive to gluten, too.  Gluten is found in several grains besides wheat, but wheat has the highest amount of gluten and is very pervasive in the American diet, which is too much.  Grains to avoid are WHEAT, BARLEY, RYE, TRITICALE, SPELT (a type of non-hybrid wheat), KAMUT (another type of non-hybrid wheat), and OATS.  Corn doesn't have gluten in it, but a lot of people can't tolerate corn, so it is best to just steer clear of corn, too--ALL forms of corn.  Your body doesn't care what kind of corn it is if it's sensitive to corn.  Most people with gluten intolerance still don't tolerate corn either.  This means that you'll have to STOP drinking soda pop and most other beverages that Americans guzzle, because they're loaded with high fructose corn syrup (HFCS) which is worse for you than ordinary table sugar is.  Lately, too, it has been discovered that HFCS is loaded with mercury, which is something I know you didn't plan on bringing into your diet.  You're better off with things like herbal teas, if you don't have sensitivities to certain ingredients in them, especially ones that you don't mind drinking without any kind of sweetener in them.  I found that rooibos (African red tea) with vanilla (Republic of Tea) tastes great without any kind of sweetener added to it at all.  Watch out for the majority of green teas, too, because the majority of them have mercury in them, too.  You can find this information and lots of other great health information on mercola.com.  I think you'll benefit if you sign up for his newsletter.  You can also research his archive articles and maybe you'll find what you're looking for.  Again, the problem with your menstrual cycle is called Dysmenorrhea.

A few months after I stopped eating all gluten, I noticed a wonderful thing happen that I wasn't expecting.  I no longer have nearly the distress that I have had with my Dysmenorrhea that I've had my whole life.  Sure, I still have some sort of heavy periods, but not as heavy as before.  And, I no longer suffer from nearly as bad of cramps--just a little bit and not even for a whole day.  And, none of those giant blood clots that seem to be associated with the worst of the cramps.  I haven't touched gluten in more than two years now.  I also no longer get the SEVERE eczema that I used to get on the heels of my hands that started out as giant blisters about an inch in diameter.

I still have SOME problems with my GI issues, but the IBS is still a lot better than it was.  And, except for this virus that I've had over the last few days, I don't get as much nausea as I used to get either.  I'm assuming that it's because I haven't discovered all of the food sensitivity issues that I have, so maybe you'll fare better and stopping all gluten and dairy and HFCS will be enough to help you get back on your feet.

By the way, the symptoms you've just described are quite typical of IBS.  You can find a lot of useful health information on mercola.com, so I think it's worth checking into.