This may seem like a random question… but what does IBS pain actually feel like in the body of those that suffer with the condition?
My reasons for asking, is that I have been diagnosed with ibs due to chronic pain I have experienced on my right side for 7+ years. I experience frequent nausea and loss of appetite, as well as episodes of diarrhoea when my pain is worse. I have read online about ibs pain feeling like cramps that move around your abdomen, so I guess I am wondering if it is ‘normal’ for possible ibs pain to remain in one single place on my right side. I could pin point the exact place that I’m tender on my right flank and it never changes, but the pain does radiate out into my lower back, shoulder blades and upper centre of my abdomen when the pain is intense. Does this fit for anyone else with ibs? Thank you!
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Most of my pain is middle to left side going down sometimes radiates into back. Sometimes it's an ache other times it feels like contractions followed by diarrhea. Have you also been checked for Gallstones as gallbladder is on the right?
Thank you for sharing your experience with me! I had an ultrasound and an MRI done in 2018/2019 which both came back clear so my GP ruled gallstones out! I don’t experience any kind of cramps or contractions, just feels like pressure on my right side- almost as though something is too swollen to fit comfortably in there if that makes any sense! Best wishes for you on your journey
Well I have diverticulosis & my pain can move all over depending on where my bowel is spasming I think. I also get pain in my abdomen. I also have muscle aches weakness mainly in my thighs/legs. I generally feel crap (pun intended) most of the time.
I am sorry to hear you feel crap 😔 it sounds exhausting! The pain that you experience as moving, how would you describe that pain? If you don’t mind me asking!
General aching & tenderness mixed with a few shooting pains. Poor appetite. When I say moving it could be wind & ‘things’ moving along an inflamed bowel. That’s only my theory of course.
Hi! IBS pain is individual to each person but as I am sitting here with a warm pad on my tum, I thought I would share with you my experiences. I have IBS d, and I too have pain on the RIF (right side) in the same place at the caecum, this is where the large and small bowel meet. The pain eases when gas is released or if an urgent bm is imminent. Always seems to be a problem after lunch. Of course sometimes I get the usual cramping can feel it travelling from the right to the left. Gastro noted my caecum is rather low down????Who confirmed hour IBS and did you have any tests?
Thank you for sharing your experience, I really appreciate it! Is your abdomen also tender to touch? My ibs was confirmed by my GP- I had a blood test and stool sample test thing in 2018, both came back with high levels of inflammation (I can’t remember the exact results) so I was sent for a colonoscopy. The colonoscopy was too painful with an adult scope so the consultant opted to use a child scope but it was shorter, so they were only able to see 50-60% of my bowel. I was then discharged from the service as the 50-60% of my bowel that was examined was clear, and returned back to my GP. My GP then sent me for both an ultrasound and a MRI, which both came back clear so I was then diagnosed with ibs!
Yes, I had the paediatric scope as my diverticular made the test uncomfortable. Secondly, I do get tender sometimes. All I can say is if your symptoms change see your GP. Good luck
What you describe is the exact same for me and how i describe it to my doctor. I have had this for maybe 7-8 years just came from nowhere and has never gone away. Like an elastic band tightening …a dull ache .. if I walk, stretch, exercise it eases but if sitting on the settee so uncomfortable…
I’ve had every test had gallbladder removed but the ache is still there …
My doctor never shows concern but he is very helpful.
After 7 years I now live with it and manage it some days I forget it’s there other days it tends to remind me ..
Continue to speak with you doctor for peace of mind
Oh yes also I’ve dropped lactose this helps a little ..
I concur with most of what has been said here. My ibs was only diagnosed through tests eliminating other possible causes of my symptoms . I’ve done my own research and believe part of my problem is due to visceral hypersensitivity syndrome. I wonder if anyone else has come upon this? Basically some people just have a more sensitive gut!! My mother always told me I was a colicky baby so I guess I was born with this.
I have mostly ibs/c but also periods of ibs/d when under stress. The pains can be intense and totally debilitating or just low level aching. For me mostly on left side, dull aching or sharp. I do have some food triggers so have to be careful but stress is a major factor and I try to use breathing techniques to manage that. I find walking helps as movement seems to keep the gut healthier rather than resting. Even though there is pain.
Sounds exactly like me. Started in 2018 and has steadily got worse. Doc said ibs and just smiles nicely if I mention it and has never sent me for any tests. I wouldn't go anyway due to distance to hospital and as I have fibro, all tests come back negative. I can pinpoint the exact area although I can press as much as I like and it doesn't hurt. Just below the right ribs near hip. Mebeverine used to help as did a gentle massage to release wind and also natural bowel cleansers but now I have to have tens on to block the pain or I would never get anything done! Lying down helps but not very practical. I do sympathise, it's so debilitating.
It is where the brain interprets the normal activity of the bowel as pain - this is due to a wearing down of neurons in pain control centres of the brain which can be caused by PTSD, neglect or abuse in childhood, extreme stressful events etc. The first line treatment is nerve pain agents such as low dose amitriptyline. There is a theory that being on something like amitriptyline for 6-12 months can help the pain control centre neurons to regenerate. Note that amitriptyline can cause constipation, but this can be helpful in people who are diarrhea dominant. Unfortunately I couldn't tolerate these. Linaclotide (for IBS-C only) & Alflorex probiotic have helped me with this intestinal pain.
The reason why Alflorex helped me is that my IBS started with a bout of holiday food poisoning. This led to a gut bacterial imbalance, which is true for many IBS sufferers. This imbalance can also be caused by other things such as restricted or unhealthy diets and stress. When bad bugs dominate the system, they can oversensitise the nerves in the gut too. When put together with visceral hypersensitivity, with the brain incorrectly interpreting signals and then the gut sending even more signals than it should, it ends up being a double whammy effect. If this is true in your case, something like Alflorex might help to bring things back in balance. When I took Linaclotide, it reduced my pain by 50%-60%. After taking Alflorex my pain reduced to zero and only comes back when I am challenging with new foods and before my body gets used to them (or I have to continue to give them up). Alflorex which has been scientifically studied for IBS has made me more tolerant to a much wider range of foods. Having a more diverse diet increases bacterial diversity in the gut. Bacterial diversity helps to additionally keep bad bugs away, in turn helping IBS symptoms.
There is also the Nerva gut directed hypnotherapy app to consider. This helps to calm intestinal nerves.
You may also find assistance with anti-spasmodic medication such as mebeverine (Colofac) or enteric coated peppermint.
I see that you also mention having a high calprotectin reading. When someone has high inflammation markers like calprotectin and is diagnosed with IBS, this could be diet related. It has been found that high protein, low carbohydrate diets (including low fibre), can increase inflammation in the body. However, those with IBS often have highly restricted diets including being very low FODMAP, which reduces feed for the microbiome, which leads to a compromised microbiome. A healthy microbiome is also needed to keep inflammation in the body in check. Anyone with IBS should try to improve their tolerance to different foods through medication and/or well studied probiotics. By increasing food tolerance and eating a varied diet (such as the Meditternean diet which is very good for the microbiome), this should help to reduce inflammation in the body which is better for your overall health.
In terms of the pain, I experienced this as a dull ache and sometimes sharp pains in my back overnight. It took me years to find out this was related to IBS and food intolerances.
I had IBS diagnosed 30 years ago and I had 6 months of hell. Lost my job because I couldn’t stand 9 hours on my feet. It subsided and I managed the condition really well as best I could for 20 years. Now I have Diverticular Disease diagnosed about 10 years ago.
IBS for me was slimy foul smelling poo. Severe abdominal cramps all over the abdomen. I lost weight because when I ate food the pain went worse and was terrible. In the night the pain would be unbearable and I could only lay on my back. I had shooting pains through my left lower back and tingling toes on my left side. An out of hours GP thought I may have an infected bowel. He gave Ciprofloxacin for a week and my symptoms cleared. My condition in the end was actually called “ Spastic Colon” where part of the bowel was not moving properly and an infection had developed. I had dreadful constipation which I relieved with glycerin suppositories.
Just pondering if you have spastic colon ?
Also have you been checked for an Inguinal Hernia. Inguinal Hernias cause pain and discomfort on sitting down etc.. sharp searing pain when you cough or sneeze and you feel a lump on standing in inguinal area.
Mine takes varying forms, or at least it has. Varies from uncomfortable to agony/excruciating. They don't transmit beyond gut but can be totally disabling. Poking, stabbing, burning, aching, 'griping'. Mostly in a band just below belly button, sometimes to the left, sometimes to the right (wrt direction me looking forward) where the colonic flexures might be.
There is no exact definition of IBS as it is simply the conclusion made when no other cause can be found for the abdominal pain felt by different people in different ways. Thats why there is IBS-C, IBS-D and IBS-M which is the even more diverse version of it. I am classified as having IBS-C but my really painful episodes when I can pass out with the pain are with dreadful diarrhoea. I also have episodes of Colitis and I have recently been in hospital with this. So everyone will have a different experience with it made even more confusing depending on what is causing the condition which again could be different for different people. Good luck with managing your version, it’s not an easy road. x
Oh this sounds more like gallstones that is where my pain is and also radiates round my back. This was picked up by an ultrasound. My ibs and divicultus is cramps in my lower bowel. Hope this helps.
Hi,my ibs pain varies so much! At the moment it’s a sharpish pain in my left side where the bend is in my colon. Probably trapped wind due to the constipation. I sometimes get pain in my right side and now and again I get an awful spasm left or right side but lower down. Hope this helps you feel better x
My IBS pains are most often on my right side but can sometimes affect my left as well. My pains can be horrible sometimes lasting up to 2 days before subsiding a little but never fully going away. My pains are on my lower right side, sometimes upper right abdomen radiating to my side. Luckily I work from home 90% of the time and have done since the pandemic. I sometimes have to go in the office though which can be painful and often leads to an attack due to my anxiety.
I do have periods where I don't get any pain but doesn't last long unfortunately. I also suffer from bad stomach acid and I'm taking Lanserporazale for that. For my IBS I take Fybigel quite a lot, almost daily as I have constipation quite a lot. I also sometimes need to take Imodium. Buscopan doesn't really help me sadly.
This doesn't happen every day with me, but comes on for a few days or so at a time. I get an "ache" in my lower left abdomen which feels like wind desperately needs to come out...but it doesn't. If I'm lucky, it does!
My lower abdomen often swells up a bit as well.
Then it eases up but can come back or disappear, depending on nothing I can work out! I got this last night about 4 hours after dinner and kept massaging my belly gently. Nothing came out but the ache disappeared eventually.
When I get trapped wind that consists of sharp pains which can shoot all over the place.
I often get backache in the lower back before a bm in the morning. That usually passes after a bm, but doesn't always.
I had much the same symptoms (minus the diarrhoea) for a couple of years. Blood and stool tests all came back fine, CT Scan showed nothing - so they said IBS and put me on amitryptiline and fybogel. None of it really made a difference, but it steadily got worse until the pain was there constantly and I couldn't move without it hurting. A further CT scan then colonoscopy showed a mass in my caecum which they thought was cancer so they gave me a right hemicolectomy to remove the caecum. Turned out not to be cancer but my appendix was totally obliterated and fused to my bowel. Don't ignore it or be fobbed off if you feel it is getting worse
I conclude it is very individual. My discomfort comes from
1. pain under the ribs (bloating) though I have less now… trying to be gluten free and low fodmap. Was diagnosed as SIBO
2. Definitely wind in the gut which, when worst, is the same as my worst period pains used to be, in lower intestines - that does pass eventually
Fortunately I’m told no other issues than ibs Originally it was C but that seems resolved.
3. I’m resorting to OTC omeprazol as I’ve started with a lot more persistent acid in my mouth/stomach (don’t seem to have reflux though) and I’m hoping that will calm things down again.
I tell myself “it’s only wind” and get help from going for a walk (doesn’t help pain but lifts my mood), hot water bottle and I’m usually improved next day. Thankfully I sleep at night.
I’m also thankful I am retired. I couldn’t have coped if I were still working.
I also conclude it is a condition that changes in time and the best I can do is try to manage my symptoms day by day and try to keep positive. A bad day is usually a bit better the next day for me
I wish everyone all the very best and do persevere with medical help, but be prepared to accept that they really can’t wave a magic wand.
The IBS pain I had was mainly central in my abdomen, almost like a cramping, twisting pain. I would suggest that you get your gallbladder checked again. And from my own experience, I ended up in hospital with Sepsis from an abdominal infection (had a large cystic mass on one ovary), and that led to a complete hysterectomy a few months later. The surgeon explained that my fallopian tubes had been chronically inflamed for at least 10 years and that had been the major cause of my pain - there's been little to no pain since. I would ask for an ultrasound to rule out any inflammation as mine was missed for years.
As you say the pain is on the right side, it is a bit disconcerting that your colonoscopy did not reach round to that part of the colon. I had a colonoscopy a few months ago, and the Consultant said it was most important that the whole colon is viewed. Flank pain can also be related to the kidney, but you said you have had an MRI and ultrasound. I would suggest getting a further gastroenterology opinion, as the pain does not appear typical of IBS.
This is exactly what my pain is like, sometimes with diarrhoea other times with normal stool. It’s a constant ache in right lower side, when i pass wind it eases but builds up again Happens at random times and lasts for a few weeks at a time. Been like this for several years after diagnoses of ibs from Consultant after u/s, barium enema, CT scan with contrast.
Not gallbladder, removed years ago. The pain is where my appendix is, my Consultant said it’s very common in that area. It’s also where the pain of ibd can be.
oh thats worrying. I have had pain lower right before, i think its gas pain tho as if i press the spot, i can get the gas/stuff to move out and pain goes. Do you think its gas or something worse? Dr Gut is good for gas pains and i do get them lower left or right.
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