IBS and school - :(

LegacyUser

To start off, I'm a 17 year old male in 6th year.

Since the start of secondary school, I've been missing a good bit of school. It became worse in 5th year, where I would get stomach problems. It wasn't something I took notice to until a few weeks ago where it was very bad so, I decided to get it checked. The doctor diagnosed IBS - Irritable Bowel Syndrome. It's okay, most of my teachers are supportive and pardon me when I'm absent from school. Wrong food and stress usually make me get sick.


It's just the fact that I can't do anything about missing school, but I feel like I'm disappointing someone, somewhere. Maybe I'm disappointing myself? I get stressed alot, and my stress leads to me being stuck in the bathroom. It's the LC year, and I feel like I'm going to miss out on a lot of things (my LCVP project was last week, I was sick) or I'm going to get on teacher's bad sides.


I'm planning on going to a PLC college anyway, so I shouldn't be too worried about points but it's always there in the back of my mind. Study is another thing, too. I'm missing out on homework, gotta catch up and then the word "study" comes to mind. I'm not making excuses but I've got a huge backlog of work to do, studying is hard for me to do and my Christmas exams are on the 16th!:O


Heh, I'm writing about this as if it's something serious!


Sorry for my jumbled up post, it's hard trying to get this out of my mind

Thank you guys!

LegacyUser

Hey,

Sorry to hear you're under so much stress and suffering with your IBS. I have IBS myself so I know what it's like. The only real advice I can offer is try not to stress or worry too much have early nights and nice hot Radox baths as this is a very important time regardless of your IBS. As for the IBS you should figure out what foods trigger it for you, i've had bouts where I haven't been able to eat a whole lot for 3 days as my tummy was so bloated. Foods with wheat can play havoc with this, for me anyways. You'd be surprised how many foods contain wheat, muesli, soup, wraps you name it. You can buy wheat free products in most shops. Things like white bread, pastries, potatoes, chips are a killer. Would you have a lot of these in your diet. Have you considered seeing a dietician, this could really help you. Also if i'm really suffering I take tablets called Colpermin, they can be bought without a prescription and are pretty cheap. Best of luck with this and your LC : )

LegacyUser

Hey,

I suffer from IBS too. I think its a bit strange that your doc told you you had IBS after going to see him once? Is that correct? I was only diagnosed with IBS after about 1.5 years and after id had every blood/stool test, camera in my intestines, more tests, more tests until they were sure there was no other more serious problem there first.

It is the most frustrating condition and painful too and sometimes when you think youre not stressed and you get sick then you realise you actually are because your body is telling you you are!! I agree with the previous poster, Colpermin helps a great deal for the spasms and cramps. Hot baths really really do help to relax you. You've gotten yourself into a vicious circle with the anxiety leading to IBS leading to lack of schoolwork/studying leading to anxiety and so forth, you get the picture! All you can do is take one thing at a time and try to get through it. Start on the backlog of homework, bit by bit and as each one gets done you'll feel a bit better. Homework is a form of study aswell so youre killing two birds with one stone. I put myself under an awful lot of pressure in my LC year, try to step back. Youre not in a race for points, youre going to PLC college so just do what you can when you can and hopefully it will all come into place.

As for the IBS ive been to a homeopath (not sure if that has worked) and im considering going to a hypnotherapist aswell. Doesnt help that im pregnant at the moment so im limited to what tablets i can take !!! Anyway hope you feel better soon

LegacyUser

ibssufferer wrote: »

Hey,

I suffer from IBS too. I think its a bit strange that your doc told you you had IBS after going to see him once? Is that correct? I was only diagnosed with IBS after about 1.5 years and after id had every blood/stool test, camera in my intestines, more tests, more tests until they were sure there was no other more serious problem there first.

)

Sorry to be thread crashing here but I was also diagnosed on one occassion, when I told my doc about my stomach being constantly bloated going days with my stomach being huge and not being able to eat much they said it was IBS. My mam has IBS so they really jumped on the band wagon when I told them this, they've never done any tests to prove this. Which I think is the general practice around the country.

LegacyUser

username21, IBS can affect people with either constipation or diarrhea. Mine was the latter, lasting up to a week at a time. Maybe the diagnosis is different if its constipation. All i know is my doctor exhausted all avenues before telling me i had IBS and to be honest im glad he did. With the symptoms i had it could have ranged from anything from cancer to Crohns disease to any number of bowel diseases. These were all ruled out. I just think its too easy for someone to go to the doctor with a bowel complaint and for them to be told oh you have IBS!

LegacyUser

username21 wrote: »

they've never done any tests to prove this. Which I think is the general practice around the country.

there is no positive test for IBS, the tests are done to rule out any possible alternative cause. i've have cameras up and down me, stool tests, blood tests, all sorts of stuff and the only conclusion they can come to is "there'e nothing wrong with you that we can find, so it must be IBS".

for the OP, i sympathize with your predicament, school is not an easy place to deal with IBS. i found college to be a lot easier because you have more power to control your timetable, your attendance and you're not subject to the control of a teacher in the same way. it gets even better in the workplace when you have more freedom to dictate your day to day activities. it'll always be a problem on public transport, long journeys, trips to the cinema, etc, etc, but if you're careful about exercise, diet and medication life can and will be as fulfilling and enjoyable as it would be without IBS.

IndigoStarr

Hi OP!
Your story completely mirrors me! When I was in sixth year I missed a lot of school due to stomach problems, mostly nausea, bloating etc. I missed so much between just feeling awful and having to go for loads of tests. I felt so guilty and was convinced that I'd do terribly in my Leaving Cert. I was eventually diagnosed with IBS and thought that my problems would just get worse.
I'm now in final year of an Arts degree and have really learned how to control my condition. I found that keeping a food diary and how you feel after you eat really helped. This way, I was able to cut out the foods that made me feel ill. For me, it was coffee and beer mostly. I also tend to stay away from white bread, rice and pasta but sometimes the temptation is just too much!
Please don't let this get you down! It's nothing to be ashamed of and can be quite easily managed. In regards to school, the best thing you can do when you have the support of your teachers is just do your best to stay on top of everything. I know it's really hard when you're feeling awful but it's worth it in the long run!
Also, remember, stress can make it worse, so try really hard to just relax and calm yourself about school. Remember that it's not your fault and that people are always there to support you.
If it's any help, I've found peppermint tea the best thing for soothing my stomach when I'm feeling a bit iffy. Hopefully this can help you too.

Good luck and remember that things can be made easier for you about your condition and that there will always be people to help you when you have to miss school!

cbyrd

I'm surprised you were diagnosed after one consultation??? what about lactose intolerence or ceoliac disease?? best advice so far was the food diary.. i'm lactose intolerant i discovered at the age of 33 suffering since i was about 14 and it was me that put it together.. once you're in control of your symptoms and you know your triggers it really will take the stress out of it. just makes eating out a pain in the ass!! it's amazing how many resturants look at me when i ask about dairy content., makes you feel like a spanner:D good luck with it;)

LegacyUser

the food diary is indeed a great tool. also, get one of those allergy tests in a health shop with the metal things and the beeping. they isolated some foods i knew i reacted badly to as well as a few new ones. so far it's mushrooms, oranges, lamb, bread, wheat, dairy, rice, prawns, sugar, caffeine, loads of other stuff i can't think of off the top of my head.

you train yourself to analyse meals and ingredients to figure out how you will react to it. i know if i have a fried egg i will suffer so i make sure i don't arrange to be out driving or socialising after it. it's a balancing act, but you'll get very good at it.