Irritable Bowel Syndrome

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I have suffered from Irritable Bowel Syndrome since I was very little (around maybe 7 years old or so). I am 20 now, 21 in September.

I am starting at IUPUI for pre-nursing in the Fall, and hope to be accepted to the nursing school (I have all 4.0s so far, as well as hospital volunteer experience at Methodist)

Does anyone have any ideas about what I can do to minimize possible complications of going to school with this kind of condition? And how about once I get my license, are there jobs that I could fulfill? When my stomach isn't causing me problems, I can function perfectly fine, but when I have an attack, I can be get quite upset.

I've been reading about PRN nursing jobs that allow you to work whenever you'd like, given that you work a certain amount each month. Is this a possibility?

Any help?

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Specializes in Trauma, ER, ICU, CCU, PACU, GI, Cardiology, OR.

there is no single type of treatment for irritable bowel syndrome (ibs) that works best for everyone. having said that, you and your doctor will need to work together to determine what may be triggering your symptoms. needless to say, it will be necessary for you to adapt your lifestyle to best deal with your symptoms and still carry on with your daily activities. therefore, your idea of going into the prn nursing sounds like a good idea to me, just to see how your system reacts, and take it from there. unquestionably, for some people who suffer from ibs, certain foods may trigger symptoms. with that said, there are several foods that need to be avoid, check with your pcp and he/she will be able to inform you which ones to avoid in your case. in addition, it has been determine that stress plays a significant role in ibs as well. lastly, there isn’t a miracle remedy for ibs or a cure. however, one can live and function a healthy life style being aware of what triggers ones condition in order to manage ibs . wishing you the very best in all of your future endeavors…aloha~

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I have suffered from Irritable Bowel Syndrome since I was very little (around maybe 7 years old or so). I am 20 now, 21 in September.

I am starting at IUPUI for pre-nursing in the Fall, and hope to be accepted to the nursing school (I have all 4.0s so far, as well as hospital volunteer experience at Methodist)

Does anyone have any ideas about what I can do to minimize possible complications of going to school with this kind of condition? And how about once I get my license, are there jobs that I could fulfill? When my stomach isn't causing me problems, I can function perfectly fine, but when I have an attack, I can be get quite upset.

I've been reading about PRN nursing jobs that allow you to work whenever you'd like, given that you work a certain amount each month. Is this a possibility?

Any help?

Suffered from IBS starting in my mid-teens. Then physican put me on Donnatal which seemed to work quite well. One day when reading out loud from my "Practical Drug Theraphy/Wang" that the stuff contained Pehnobarbital, sent Mama into fits I was being "drugged up" had her hauling me into doc's office to find an alternative, he didn't and one reamained on Donnatal until moving into one's first apartment after college. At that time got a new local doctor who flat out refused to perscribe anymore Donnatal and told me basically to exercise more, eat better (more fiber and veggies), and learn to deal with stress and anxiety other than with drugs.

That was >20 years ago and haven't had an attack of IBS since.

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Thanks for the comments, guys. I'm definitely working on identifying triggers and staying away from them. My IBS is very mild compared to many others who have attacks daily.

I have been looking into Donnatal and may ask my doctor for an Rx.

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Unquestionably, for some people who suffer from IBS, certain foods may trigger symptoms. With that said, there are several foods that need to be avoid, check with your PCP and he/she will be able to inform you which ones to avoid in your case.

I would highly recommend looking into this! I suffered for a year with IBS, having been told there was nothing I could do but take my prescription when the attacks hit. About a month ago I had food intolerance testing done and have found that changes to my diet have eliminated nearly all attacks. Best of luck to you!

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I have tried all that and hasn't helped....although I have crohns and MS. Steroids only do so much. My guts ALWAYS hurt, there are days I could just vomit I am so neaseated. The stress is getting to me

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I saw this and I wanted to reply to this I am almost 21 I have Crohn's, Bipolar disorder, asthma and I sear I'm allergic to everything. I was in remission from my CD for four years and then in November I came out of remission. It's hard because I just started my first semester of nursing school and I have to go to the doctors at least once every two weeks and go through a bunch of unpleasent tests. I am very transparent with my teachers. I tell them that this is what I have and I am going through some things right now and I'm sorry if I have to run to the bathroom several times during class...but I am not going to have an accident in class. I am not on any meds for it yet since I am seeing a new GI doc but monday I hope to be put on some meds. They are thinking cimzia since I was on it before and it helped. But I know with IBS there really isnt much to do since it isn't a disease...but it is something you have to live with. Just tell your teachers what is going on you will be surprised how understanding they are. I even told my clinical instructor what was going on and if she can't find me i'm most likely in the bathroom. They will understand...trust me. It's hard to tell someone because you think it is embarrasing, but it really isn't. Talk to your doctor and see if there is something that you can take to help you or even if you can get it diagnosed as a disease like colitis or crohn's. I don't know if you have ever been tested for it. if you haven't please do! If you have any questions you can ask me (btw I've been diagnosed since i was 7)

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Specializes in Hospice, Palliative Care.

Good day:

I've had IBS since my 20's (I'm now 49).

Here's what I've done to help decrease symptoms to be extremely barable:

1. Eat as gluten free as possible. I as told that if I could go grain free (that's difficult in our geographic area) that would help even more.

2. Watch what I eat at what time. For me, if I have tomatoe or other highly acid based dishes later in the evening, I get more attacks. I've learned to try and not eat any major meal past 7:00 PM; and try not to even snack past 7 PM.

3. Drink more water. I've broken away from soda and carbonated drinks completely.

4. Watch your caffeine input. Try not to drink more than 3 cups of caffeinated coffee/tea. Stay away from energy drinks as they typically have extremely high amounts of caffeine.

5. For me, stop eating pork as much as possible (occasionally I break down and have some bacon).

For you, it might be something different. Keep a journal and carefully document when your attacks come, and what happened in the previous 24 hours -- food & activities along with the when's.

6. Watch alcohol consumption. While I've never been much of a drinker, have no more than a glass of alcohol per day.

7. Get sleep.

8. Try Epsom salt baths -- 2 cups in as hot a water as you can stand for 30 minutes. Do this at least 3 times a week.

9. Exercise. For me, this is typically 20 to 30 minutes of walking per day plus minor work outs at home.

10. If you can lose weight in a healthy manner; this can be a great help as well.

I've also been seeing a naturopathic doctor for nature based ways to deal with IBS; and all combined the worse I have to deal with is rare (i.e. less than one handful per year) attacks.

Thank you.

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I have had severe IBS since 6 years ago, it started when I was 19. Initially I had a possible Crohn's diagnosis but after a colonoscopy and labs showing that I was only severely deficient in Vitamin D my GI is certain its IBS. Anyways mine was always pretty mild up until early 2012 after the birth of my second child. My stomach became very distended, I was in a lot of discomfort, and I could barely hold my bowels together. After ruling out other potential scary illnesses, my IBS has taken a turn from mild to severe is a year period. My saving grace has been hycosamine 2x/day every day without fail. Also vitamin D 50,000 units 1x/week to improve the fatigue. I feel like a new person! I am working on my diet at the same time, trying to eliminate things and not taking my medicine one day too see if it works but so far my only identifiable triggers are meat, eggs, and spicy food. I hope to be off of the meds one day but for right now I am just enjoying that I can go to work and focus on my patients instead of making sure i am near a bathroom at all times.,.

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Specializes in Hospice, Palliative Care.

Good day:

I'm glad you've found help.

I would be careful of any prolonged drug use. For me, I was on nexium, and it was killing my ability to naturally produce bile for digestion.

Thank you.

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Thanks for the links! I too worry about prolonged use of my IBS medications but I hesitate to go back to the miserable state I was in last winter...

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Specializes in NICU, education.

I've had horrid IBS since I was 9. It comes and goes in phases for me. When I'm super stressed, my intestines pretty much take over and ruin my life. I take lots of immodium and levsin (Rx) and i keep my levsin with me when i am working, because you will never know when you really need it. I also take ginger for nausea because it doesn't cause constipation that zofran does. Regular exercise does helps and yoga; I like to think that it "tones the intestinal tract" Taking a good probiotic may offer some occasional help. Yes, and stay away from gluten. Most of us IBS suffers react to gluten and dairy also.

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