My bowel is basically asleep.

[JessMcL]

So I posted this on the IBS group and thought it might be a good idea to also post here to see if anyone has experienced this with Endometriosis. My gynaecologist is certain I have Endometriosis but I’m yet to have a lap to diagnose.

Hey everyone,

I’m desperate for some idea of what’s going on.

I’ve seen my gastroenterologist and I’m awaiting a colonoscopy date from the NHS. This can take anywhere between 6-8 weeks though and the thought of not knowing what’s happening for so long is so hard right now.

I’ve been having ongoing bowel problems since early December.

Since early teens I’ve had IBS symptoms but something changed in December.

I had agonising pain that has put me into urgent care / A&E 3 times now.

It first started off with constipation. Every three days I’d manage to go with the aid of strong laxatives which causes pain so bad I would come close to fainting each time.

This then stopped working. I started having impaction a twice a week and would take at least two days to clear with the use of cosmacol at the highest dosage alongside laxatives.

I’m now taking cosmacol at night and in the day I have to use a suppository to make my bowel wake up and empty.

When I go to the toilet and pass a movement, it’s very loose and I can’t understand how it doesn’t pass on it’s own. It really is as if the suppository wakes up my bowel and then it can empty. It’s not that my stool is too hard or large to empty naturally. The stool is soft and loose enough but my bowel won’t empty by itself.

Everything I eat hurts. I’m eating less and loosing weight. Thankfully I was slightly overweight so the weight issue isn’t a problem at the moment. The pain however, that is. The pain and the need to use cosmacol each night and 2 suppositories each day to empty my bowel. If I don’t do this routine I end up incredibly nauseous, shaking, headaches and exhaustion. This is all cured when I manage to empty my bowel and take rehydration drinks.

I feel so lost and really just need some ideas. I’m so hoping someone here has anything. Advise, tips, anything. Have you ever heard of this before?

[Chinaxo]

Hello. Sorry you are going through this, sounds really horrible. Have you researched into Crohn’s disease at all? While constipation occurs less often than diarrhoea in Crohn’s, it can happen - and the exhaustion, nausea, weight loss and you saying everything you eat hurts you made me think it could be an option. Might be worth you looking up, however this or any other kind of IBD will show on your colonoscopy. I hope you don’t have to wait too long for it x

[JessMcL in reply to Chinaxo]

Thank you so much for replying. Yes I’ve looked into IBD. I have all the symptoms apart from bleeding. I feel like it’s that sort of thing but yeah, colonoscopy will tell. I just don’t know if I should be requesting a laparoscopic surgery too to make sure

[Chinaxo in reply to JessMcL]

If I were you I’d have the colonoscopy first as that’s far less invasive and you’ll have a much quicker wait and it will show any kind of IBD. And once you have results from that and (hopefully) an idea of what is going on and some treatment, you’ll be able to decipher what symptoms are what and if endo is still likely. You may be unfortunate enough to have endometriosis and also a separate bowel issue which while many of the symptoms overlap, they kind of flare each other up and it can be confusing as to what is what.

[JessMcL in reply to Chinaxo]

Thank you so much for the advise. It really helps to have someone kinda reflect back my thoughts and help me get to grips what to do in this sorta situation

[Chinaxo in reply to JessMcL]

Any time. It can all feel so confusing and overwhelming. If you need any advice before your colonoscopy just shout as I have had one (and it wasn’t as horrible as you think)

[Shanette77]

Celery juice will be your savior!! Thank me later.

[SimplyDeeDee]

Hi Jess, some of your story sounds a lot like mine, have a read of my posts; I know exactly what you are going through. Endometriosis can cause bowel which are very unpleasant and frustrating; I’m still trying to figure out what’s going on a year later.

I know all the tests can be daunting but please have your colonoscopy and see if this can figure out what the issue is; also update us with any outcomes. It might be good to compare notes.

[endokicker1]

Im sorry you are hurting so much. I know the pain of bowel endometriosis and the horrors of being in pain when needing to use the loo but nothing as severe as you described. Definitely have the colonoscopy. Also, do you have a lot of bloating or abdominal pain? it might be worth looking into SIBO - Small Intestinal Bacterial overgrowth. If there is an overgrowth of pathogenic bacteria in your small intestine, it might be causing some of the problems and might be affecting your gut motility and the work of your migrating motor complex which sweeps your gut clean. A breath test can be done to see if this is the case.

I hope you find answers.

Take care