Digestive Disorder; intense pain. Help?

[Woollyhats]

Apologies, this isn't about sex, but just health. On the upside, I wonder if you'll appreciate that I'm still very much asking a question about the exit of the digestive system, hehe .

The boyfriend has a few issues, in that as a child he had severe irritable bowel syndrome, and there were a few complications and his colon ended up having to be removed. Through a surgical procedure he's basically fine, no colostomy bag anymore - he just has to use the washroom frequently.

Unfortunately, the problem is that digestive related problems are exacerbated. For example, sometimes he will literally be in excruciating pain, curl up in a ball, unable to move, to the point where his eyes are running from the pain. Some of it is avoidable, for example not having lactose before his procedure, and it doesn't happen frequently enough to impact his standard of living, but it is upsetting to watch.

I was wondering if by chance anyone here has or knows someone with this problem, or even someone that has irritable bowel syndrome or even lacks a colon? What do you do to help pain episodes, medications, etc.? I'm going to convince him to talk to his doctor, but opinions are nice too, and I figure since it's pain related it's worth asking about.

Anyone's stories about similar issues (or stories of people they know) and what they do, opinions, or advice is good. I just couldn't find much because his health concerns are less known . And of course, medical advice will come first, so don't worry that I'm making health related decisions based on forum advice... I will just find it reassuring.

Thanks .

[larafan25]

What is his pain from, exactly?

I have Crohn's, so I get mild crampy/ tight/ monotone, weirdish pains in my lower regions. I have them as I'm typing this, but they're not that bad at all because I have only had Crohn's 4 leik... hmmm a lil while. I'm sure my pain doesn't compare to his agony, if he's curled up in a ball.

I try to avoid tight-fitting pants and make sure not to eat crap that I know for sure is bothersome for me.

So like, I have a question. He has no colon? How does that work?

[Woollyhats]

What is his pain from, exactly?

I have Crohn's, so I get mild crampy/ tight/ monotone, weirdish pains in my lower regions. I have them as I'm typing this, but they're not that bad at all because I have only had Crohn's 4 leik... hmmm a lil while. I'm sure my pain doesn't compare to his agony, if he's curled up in a ball.

I try to avoid tight-fitting pants and make sure not to eat crap that I know for sure is bothersome for me.

So like, I have a question. He has no colon? How does that work?

It's like a combination of things. What started it was a disease called Hirschsprung's Disease, but it wasn't caught early like it normally is so it worsened a lot of things for him. He almost died and they had to cut out the colon (third part of intestines), for many years he had a bag, and than they performed a restorative surgery to reconnect his remaining intestines so he could function basically normally as an adolescent. Given that he has less intestine he must drink and use the washroom more, which isn't an issue. Most of the time there's no noticeable difference between him and any other person besides that he uses the washroom frequently, and if you're extremely observant, you would notice he is thirsty more than is average.

He has a lot of symptoms that people with other intestinal problems have, which is why I was wondering what they would do. He is in chronic pain, but it's usually miniscule and has no impact on his daily routine. Simply put he's used to it and hardly notices it. Unfortunately, every few months, he'll have an episode, so I was curious to see if anyone had similar problems and relevant advice.

Obviously he's okay now though, else I wouldn't be here talking about it

[larafan25]

Also, perhaps de-stressing exercising would help? I know when I get stress, even a moment of it, the discomfort worsens.

Does it depend at all on what he eats? Or is it just sporadic episodes of intense pain interspersed between the usual discomforts?

[Woollyhats]

Both, he can't eat lactose containing foods a few weeks before his procedure. I discussed perhaps taking lactate all of the time, preventively. It seems sporadic. I imagine there is some kind of trigger (it would be nice since it would make the pain avoidable), hopefully his doctor may be able to discuss some.

Stress is a trigger for you?

[MisterTinkles]

Im not pretending to know anything about this, as I do not know anyone who has this condition, nor do I know anyone who has had their colon removed.

Although I do know about cramps and intestinal pains. Not that they may be the same kind, but I am using my logical judgments on this.

Basing the following thoughts on what I do know about intestines and intestinal issues, I have the following thoughts--

*With the surgical procedures he has gone through, might it be possible there was some un-repairable damage to his intestines?
*Also with the surgical procedures he has gone through, is it possible the removal of his colon has created these issues?
*Did the doctor ever tell him he was to avoid certain foods and drinks? If not, then maybe there are foods and drinks he needs to stay away from.
*Has he seen a intestinal specialist? If not, I would suggest he see's one.
*Has the doctor told him that eating too much of certain things will irritate his intestines?

Removing a significant part of your insides, especially one that is important, can cause different reactions for different people.

He may have become intolerant to certain foods and drink, as well as allergic to them.

I would definitely suggest he see at least two intestinal specialists and tell them what is happening.
I would also suggest he get tested for allergies and food intolerance's.

From what you have said, I would suggest he stay off of ALL dairy products for three months, and see if that helps to relieve some symptoms. If it does not, then he can go back on to dairy products.

I would also hazard a guess, that he also needs to stay away from hard roughage, such as cereals, popcorn, nuts, and chips/crisps made from fried cornmeal (ex: Doritos, Cheetos).

If he likes spicy foods, onions, garlic, and peppers, then he may want to see about cutting those out for a while, as spices and peppers can irritate intestines that have been altered or have had problems in the past.

Of course, talk it all over with a specialist who really knows what they are talking about.

[Bowyn Aerrow]

Pain I know, I have had a very long intimate romance with Pain... however mine is due to herniated disks and a wrecked knee.

Pain management is half learning your limitations and then devising a life plan where you appear to have a normal life while respecting your limitations. In his case part of those limitations is steering clear of the lactose.

For all chronic pain sufferers there are three main pillars toward pain management outside of medication:

1. Diet.

2. Exercise.

3. Sleep.

Regardless of the source of pain, these three pillars can do wonders to lessen the pain.

In his case diet is like really obvious, and whilst you listed what he can have, have you ever bothered to list those foods he is allowed to have? Perhaps if you make that list and start working with those foods you can improve is overall diet. Understand that diet can lead to general physical feelings. Eat a shitty diet you end up feeling shitty. Eat a well balanced diet that meets your needs and a few of your wants, you tend to feel better.

Exercise: Usually for joint pain they say to strengthen the supporting muscles. I wonder if working his abs a bit to strengthen those won't support his gut a bit thus lessen the chronic part of the pain? Ask the doctor.

Exercise in general aids in digestion, and makes the whole body feel better. Trust me, having a body part that hurts/aches and acts up all the time means you do not want to feel a general dis-ease of the body.

Sleep is crucial, pain causes us to sleep less, sleep deprivation makes us more prone to feeling the pain, which leads to us sleeping less, which leads to us feeling more pain, which leads to even less sleep which leads to even more pain....

Doctor had me keep a log of my sleeping habits for a month. We got to note down when I went to bed, how long I estimated I laid there before sleep overtook my brain traveling at warp speed, how many times I recalled waking up partially or wholly that night, when I woke up and groaned sitting up right to face another day ridden with pain.... Seeing the log, doctor wrote a few non-narcotic type prescriptions (Low Dose Amitriptilyne was one of them) I ended up sleeping better, and ended up with less pain, which meant I sleep even better, which meant even less pain.... A reverse of the other deadly cycle.

He also needs to tell doctor, "I constantly feel pain on a scale of 1-10 at a __________" - (Fill in the blank with the average everyday ache/pain/agony level). be it a 1 a 2 a nine - whatever it is he needs to let doctor know. Doctors do not read minds.

Depression kicks in with pain suffers - actually anyone who has a chronic disorder is more prone to depression. Depression leads to lack of enthusiasm to pursue ones medical therapies. Depression makes a visit to a doctor sound like it requires an act of a belligerent congress that wants to shut down Government instead of have you go to doctor.


Sounds to me that the BF has a chronic, life long condition here and he needs to face this reality and start acting like a man with ____________ (fill in the blank with the chronic condition(s)) and doing is part.

If he was diabetic and needed to be on a low sugar diet and on insulin, he definitely would not respond well to eating a high sugar diet and 'forgetting' to take insulin. If he needs to steer clear of lactose, then you and he need to sit down and come up with a menu that severely limits lactose.

Instead of focusing on the foods he should not have, he needs to focus on the foods he can have, and work with those to make up a happy diet.... A happy diet is where we feel like we are eating crappily (naughty food always taste better) while eating well.

So to shorten that all down, and to make a list for doctor:

1. What diet exactly works best?
2. Will physical therapy work in this case? IF so get a referral to a PT. If not, then ask doctor what a general exercise program that the BF can do to improve over all fitness.
3. Sleep - log it, list it and seek help.

[Woollyhats]

Thanks Mistertinkles are BA; you definitely gave the kinds of responses I was looking for as everything you've both said are wonderful suggestions. I've written down some of your points and I'll talk them over tommorow. It definitely seems to me that these episodes are triggered by something, and if those triggers can be worked out I'm sure that future episodes can be avoided. I definitely believe that seeing a specialist will help him, and in the meantime there's no harm in working on a healthy diet devoid of possible triggers and checking to see if that helps as well.

Who knows, perhaps working on this issue will indirectly lead to a healthier diet and lifestyle for him. So at the very least, it's not going to cause any harm .

Thanks again; you both have so much common sense, I wish there were more people like you .

[MisterTinkles]

Well, Im glad we could give you some ideas/suggestions.

He has to always remember that he has had MAJOR surgery, which removed a part of his working system. Therefore his system is not going to work like it is supposed too. That means he has to make a lot of changes in order to circumvent possible problems down the line.

He wont like it, he will probably even fight it, but he HAS to do it if he wants to live as problem-free as possible. And I would think giving up some foods/drinks in order to help stop the pains is a small price to pay.

If there are things he will have to give up, or even add to his diet he doesn't like, you will have to learn to be the stabilizer, the one who gets him to do the right thing, to keep himself from anymore problems and pain. And the older he gets, the more you have to keep an eye on his condition, and get him tested for food allergies every few years.