IBS + Impotence = FFS!

LegacyUser

So I goto my doc. I explain yes I'm an anxious person, I exercise, I eat healthily, I drink lots of water, eat fruit, take ginseng, L-Algernine, vitamins, Kalms. lots of sleep. Happy outlook.

Yet I've IBS, I pee far too often, I feel nauseated in the morning...and I rarely get a full, long lasting erection.

Took a herbal erection stimulant and WHAM! IBS gone, erection at full power.

I told this to the doc. She looked dubious. I told her how upsetting it is. How positive I am,, and how uncooperative my body is.

She's gonna test my bloods, then possibly prescribe viagra "if it comes to it". She told me to keep a food diary.

How unhelpful is that?! Argh. So frustrating. I need my tummy well, and my sex life restored.

dudara

Keep working with your GP - please don't self-medicate.

dudara

gerryk

Personally, I wouldn't be too happy with the 'if it comes to it' bit. If there are no actual contra-indications, and you want a viagra prescription, you should be given it.
ED is a complex issue, and as much about the head as the body. Cause and effect are tightly interwoven, and a continual lack of performance on your part while investigating could potentially have an effect on your self-image, thus exacerbating the problem.
If it was me, I'd be quite strong in requesting the scrip, unless there was a convincing medical argument against it.

kerryman12

It is pra bit unhelpfull, but I am sure the many GPs are getting told stories all the time by people who are just looking for Viagra - so they are bound to be skeptical. I am not suggesting that is what you are doing, but I can understand a GP being slow to perscribe in this case.

Go through the process the GP has asked you to, you cant blame your doctor for being dilagent.

Alot of GP's in Ireland are very quick to put you on a drug nowadays so it is refreshing to see that some actually arent just "drug happy"

Bottle_of_Smoke

Here mate I'd imagine "herbal viagra" is about as "herbal" as the "herbal drugs" headshops were selling.

It is probably a slight chemical alteration on an erectile dysfunction drug. So untested and side effects unresearched.

I'd stay well clear.

gerryk

'Herbal' means nothing. Opium is a plant extract, therefore heroin is of herbal origin, as is methamphetamine, aspirin, cocaine etc...

Pebbles68

I agree with the posters above. Stick with the GP. Do what ever tests are needed. Maybe you'll be lucky and they can rule out any physical symptom. If that is the case then you can deal with the mental/emotional side of the problem. I saw a documentary a few years back about how much IBS was stress related. This might help. Good luck http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/31216.php

sam34

NoGoBoner wrote: »

So I goto my doc. I explain yes I'm an anxious person, I exercise, I eat healthily, I drink lots of water, eat fruit, take ginseng, L-Algernine, vitamins, Kalms. lots of sleep. Happy outlook.

Yet I've IBS, I pee far too often, I feel nauseated in the morning...and I rarely get a full, long lasting erection.

Took a herbal erection stimulant and WHAM! IBS gone, erection at full power.

I told this to the doc. She looked dubious. I told her how upsetting it is. How positive I am,, and how uncooperative my body is.

She's gonna test my bloods, then possibly prescribe viagra "if it comes to it". She told me to keep a food diary.

How unhelpful is that?! Argh. So frustrating. I need my tummy well, and my sex life restored.

not unhelpful at all, tbh.

she asked for a food diary to establish whats aggravating your IBS symptoms.

she took bloods to establish if thee is a physical cause for your ED.

quite helpful, i think, considering you want your "tummy well and sex life restored".

tommy21

(First off none of this medical advice, just an opinion) - From the little I know around IBS, taking supplements like ginseng etc. will aggravate it. Why take L-Arginine (good for cold sores, not sure what else)? Diet is the key here, listen to your GP and keep the diary even if a bit tedious - at worst treat it like a diet overhaul for yourself (e.g. you might want to lose/gain weight, good way of achieving that goal, two birds with one stone etc.). It seems to be like your taking way too much - vitamins, ginseng, l-arginine, kalms (which has 4/5 different herbs in it) and other mysterious supplements!

If you are on medication for depression this can also impact on your sex life.

Anyway short version is listen to your doctor

tenchi-fan

NoGoBoner wrote: »

Took a herbal erection stimulant and ....

Have you posted here recently in a thread that got locked?

It's just (like the last guy who posted) your "herbal stimulant" probably was "cheap knock-off viagra"

I know IBS can be triggered by certain foods such as garlic, chilli peppers and spicy food in general. For coeliacs and other people it's can be triggered by wheat, beer, etc. I think the food log is a brilliant idea in that it's pretty unintrusive.

I recommend laying off the drink for a while, particularly beer, to see if it helps with the IBS/Impotence.

gerryk wrote:

ED is a complex issue, and as much about the head as the body.

Not necessarily. It can be a physical problem, obviously made worse by the mind, but you can't say it's as much about the head as the body.

gerryk

tommy21 wrote: »

Why take L-Arginine (good for cold sores, not sure what else)

You're probably confusing L-Arginine with L-Lysene. L-Arginine is part of the process by which the body manufactures nitric oxide, which is a component of the vasodialtory mechanism, hence the ED connection.

L-Lysene can speed the healing of H-simplex outbreaks, L-Arginine can actually slow the healing, or exacerbate outbreaks.

LegacyUser

I'm always suffering with IBS. No foods afect me differently. I always feel either like I need a number one or number two or both (sorry if that's crude). I'm so tired of it. Why keep a diary if there's no difference between any foods?

Jack B. Badd

NoGoBoner wrote: »

Why keep a diary if there's no difference between any foods?

Because there is the smallest possibility that the doctor, with her years of training, knows more about how your bowels work than you do. It's common practice to eliminate the most likely causes before jumping to the less common ones. If you have IBS it may be down to something to do with what you're eating. Maybe it's not that, but it's the sensible place to start. You sound like you wanted to be fed a magic pill that would "fix" the problem asap. Thankfully your doctor seems to want to find the source of the problem rather than cover up the symptoms. Unfortunately for you, that's gonna take a bit longer than the "quick fix" you want. Fortunately for you, it may help you manage your IBS in the long-term.