My Nervous Stomach

Thursday, December 1, 2011

Irritable Bowel Syndrome: possible cure?

'); } One of my friends that is a MD told me recently that there's a cure for this damnation I'm bearing each day. Apparently, you take it for a few days, and thing start looking better. Do I need to tell how cool that sounded when I first heard it? If you read anything I wrote before, the answer is probably 'no'. However, since I'm such a thorough person, I'll tell it anyways: I was thrilled!

Let's stay on the safe side:

Irritable bowel syndrome: Possible cure!

Now, it's not my goal to advertise some miracle cure, since I'm full of those people. Once it comes to our market, I try it and verify it helped, I'll write about it. I doubt it's called the same in all countries, but I'll write the ingredients, how it works and how it's used - which should be enough for any doctor to prescribe something similar.

Another possible victory!

I managed to do something on my blog today, something that I was unable to do for quite some time. This is so cool that I want to publish it ASAP on one of my other blogs. This is not a technical blog, so no need to write technical details about things that I'm doing with CSS code and javascript, but let's keep it at I'm really happy with myself today.

There's even one more cool thing that happened today! I watched some really nice nature scenes. They brought so much pleasure to me. Afterwards, everything felt so relaxed and cool.

And all this happened in the end of a rather shitty day.
I think I should start thinking positively :).

Thursday, November 24, 2011

Nervous stomach & that certain female

'); } If you have a nervous stomach, you can consider yourself lucky when compared to people having a bunch of other serious issue. You do, however, have an issue.

Not only an issue: you're having something that's difficult to cope with on a social level. It's not that easy to deal with you, when observed from normal perspective. If you think of it, it's hard enough to find that special someone if you're totally normal. So, what can IBS troubled person hope for?!?

I admit: I'm one lucky bastard!

I found my certain female. She's kind and she often reminds me of a kitty. While this wouldn't be anything special to some people, I happen to be a cat lover. Did I mention I'm a lucky bastard?

How nervous stomach rewrites your life

'); } While having a nervous stomach isn't a funny thing, it was always funny for my friends how I learned to measure distances - by being longer or shorter than it takes me from the moment I feel the urge to go to toilet until the moment I can't take it any more :) :(

I called it sh*t-o-meter. (I live in Europe where metric system is being used).

During years I had issues with IBS, several practices developed inside my head, all of them being practically unconscious:

when I move to some new place (town, street address etc.), I start looking for safe spots. These include acceptable toilets with enough privacy that can make me feel comfortable.
automatic mapping of routes between safe spots, determining the quickest ones. In case I need them, right?!
once first two points are covered, I relax a little bit and start widening the circle.

Most of my walks are done alone. I'm not very opened for wide circles of friends, at least not for some casual walking around town and enjoying. That way, if I'm in trouble, I don't have to fight with burden of explaining why do I need to run, why am I quiet all of the sudden and so on. If you have a nervous stomach, you'll probably understand. I refused so many parties because I can't stand the thought of being inside toiled with a queue of people waiting outside. Most of people thought I'm an a*s. Who would have thought that IBS can form other people's opinion about me?

Another funny thing about my condition: in most cases, it disappears when I'm drunk. No matter how badly alcohol influences stomach and digestion, when I'm drunk there isn't anyone more relaxed than I am. I'm like a stoned panda. Even if something happens, it's so much easy to cope with... Maybe I should start heavy drinking and make a new blog, one that would start with 'My name is Jack and I'm an alcoholic.'

Do you have stomach problems? Butterflies in your stomach? Nervous stomach? If so, please write something about it as a comment and I'll be glad to publish it.

Sunday, October 23, 2011

Woods adventure

'); } It was a fine day today, except for certain things. Any story, on any day, could start this way. Depending on the amount of certain things, days could be categorized as good or bad. If you like more diversity, you could put some more thought into and separate it differently, but the point is the same.
Considering the fact that my blog is all about I.B.S., it's probably easy to guess what exactly were my certain things. If not, do read on and see what was going on, even if I mention here that my title is somewhat illustrative...

My nephew was getting christened today. It was all taking place in a very beautiful place, one that is among the most peaceful places I know - in a monastery near the town I live in. It was relatively small gathering of close relatives with small guy being the center of everything. The day was a bit gray and rainy, but it wasn't raining when we were there. Ceremony was great - small fella didn't cry since he was too busy trying to repeat the words of the priest (he's 1 year and a half), everybody had a smile on their faces, and the rest of the day was equally promising. Except for the fact that my stomach decided to play a game on me, one that's he best in.
He sent me running into woods.

This time it wasn't alcohol, but it may have been the case of bad diet - since my dinner the night before wasn't what you'd call healthy. Nice to know that there are other things than alcohol I'm having problem with. Life just gets better every day.

Monday, October 10, 2011

Something new maybe?

'); } Weekend is time for a drink or two. Or at least, it used to be. Being a persistent person, I had to re-verify how exactly is beer doing me wrong. Being smart and capable, re-verification went well, and I'm feeling a sickness all day long. Not something bad - just a reminder of why bad habits are named that way. Sweet.

Apart from that, nothing much is happening. Still having issues going to bed on time, which inevitably results in bad mood in the morning.

On the other hand, if things were any different, I wouldn't be writing this.

Wednesday, October 5, 2011

From nervous to proper annoyed in an hour or two

'); } If anyone wonders why should someone go from nervous to proper annoyed, he should probably continue reading my blog. While it was my best intention to introduce people to IBS, what it exactly is and how to avoid / defeat it, this blog turned out to be a list of mistakes I make on a daily basis, and explanations on how exactly are those mistakes making my life worse.
On the other hand, if one considers a saying that it's better to learn on someone else's mistakes than yours, there still might be some common sense in visiting this place and reading it.

Last night was a party night for me. Not that I planned it, but one beer lead to another, and it stopped with quite some beer being filtered through my system. As expected, my stomach stopped being nervous and decided to go medieval with my a**, confirming one more time that I'm a proud owner of IBS-D (type of IBS that is characterized by diarrhea ). The good part of this is the fact I was so sick today, I couldn't even care about the mess found on work. Being a bit casual about things does have many good sides, and it was fun to remind myself how exactly my body worked few years ago, when my stomach was as peaceful as Dalai Lama.

Anyways, it's good to note it one more time: I'm definitely going to stop with beer. Some day, at least.

Monday, September 26, 2011

Butterflies mimicking the sound of the city

'); } A big, unfamiliar city with only one happy thought: a perspective I cannot push out of my mind when turning the engine of my car, embarking on a trip. The city itself isn't a problem, once I get there and make an anchor somewhere. The thought of myself coming to my destination, some 45 minutes that need to pass from the moment I enter the city to the moment my stuff is laid in some room I'll be staying - a totally different story.

Breathing deeply and convincing myself that everything will be OK is something that helps. I only wonder if it's always going to be that way (which it probably won't).

One great weekend is behind me now. Really beautiful weekend. The only dark spot is my stomach, coloring every first step I'm taking.

Need to stop with beer & coffee. Need to start with tea and healthy eating. Even in this condition I'm positive that this is a key step I should take if planing to stop worrying about IBS. Leaving old habits is a problem, though.

Wednesday, September 14, 2011

Bowel, what makes you tick?

'); } Obviously, tick in question won't be hooking on your ties and drinking blood & trying to infect you with some potentially dangerous disease. No, but this tick of mine isn't any more pleasant anyways.
Here's some info that might come as a surprise to some - I live with my parents. These same parents went on a holiday, leaving me home alone. OK, while this episode probably isn't as interesting as the movie with the same name, it produced some interesting findings on my side:

somehow, parents aren't as bad as they seem, even if you're in your thirties,
a cat can be a pain in the ass, and it likes it's toilet clean,
paying bills isn't interesting at all, and it's probably often smart to keep your mouth shut,
using the washer is a simple task, but it's rather boring to dry your clothes by hanging it on a piece of rope, and finally
your sister isn't always your best friend, when it comes to lunches.

All this is stated for the simple purpose: not to leave the last point alone. Therefore, I'll skip explaining all the points (if you're interested, feel free to ask and I'll respond) and jump straight to the last, sister, part. She has two little devils that tend to make anyone's day interesting, even if maybe a bit too interesting. Apart from them, she also likes to cook (a virtue not often found in sisters, and I truly respect that). However, she had chicken sauce with some pasta (the first day) and with mashed potato today. I was, on the other hand, too lazy to wait for potatoes to boil, and asked if pasta is still OK. When my stomach was full, I noticed that some of it's fullness wants to get out. And this same thing happened yesterday, as well.

So, finally... An idea, or an advice, if you like it better: if you have issues with bowel, or have been 'diagnosed' with Irritable Bowel Syndrome, make yourself a favor and keep track of what makes your ibs tick. Once you're a master of that, you won't be having any more IBS issues.

Thanks,
NS

Thursday, September 8, 2011

'); } One more time I started sweating as a result of a feeling in my lower belly - that things are getting bad. I was just finishing my breakfast break at work, drove my colleagues to work and stopped by a mechanic to fix some boring issue I had with car ventilation system. When we finished eating, I felt kinda weird - that kind of feeling. Some call it butterflies in stomach, but for me it's simply a feeling that something ain't right. It's often followed by unpleasant warmth through my body, which in turn makes me even more anxious. I tried to overcome it by convincing myself everything will be ok and by breathing calmly. It kinda worked: we came back to the office without issues.

Issues, however, did come after all :(. When I was waiting for my mechanic, a sudden urge came to my stomach, alarming me in the worst possible way. It calmed down a little bit when I sat down, but it also came back when my position changed to a standing. I cursed myself and my darn condition, but was determined to survive the day :)

And so, after few minutes, the mechanic came, listened to me explaining what the issue is, and I was ready to go back to my office (mechanic is only a few minutes from my office: 5-10 minutes, but more than enough when IBS is concerned). What annoys me very much is the fact that I was totally OK once back in the office. Ok, my stomach was kinda upset for some more time, but actual situation wasn't so alarming as it seemed back at the mechanic's. It's often like that. And I would like it to stop.

I read somewhere on the web a post (blog or forum, not really sure) titled 'Nervous stomach is controlling my life'; so true... SO, SO true.

I'll try to share some of my findings in the future... A ways to cheat on my stomach, making it less nervous and more life-acceptable. Not sure if that would be of much help, but ANY help is welcome for people with the same issues (I guess, at least, based on my own experience!).

I'm done with this post now. I'm also done with disinfecting my house. It's time for bed (11.15pm), as I'm getting up at 6.45am. Life ain't fair!

Stay good people!

Wednesday, September 7, 2011

My nervous stomach - one who never walks alone

'); } You'll never walk alone is an anthem for FC Liverpool. However, I'm not a supporter of FC Liverpool, nor would like to be connected with any football club at all. On the other hand, my stomach has it's own ideas and looks on the world, which often differ from those of mine. This is, of course, to be expected - if I was to be one with my stomach, none of this would exists.

Then who or what exactly is company to my crazy stomach, or IBS if I want to be more official? It's Hypochondria, a condition that is characterized by a belief that physical symptoms are signs of some illness, usually a bad one (probably fatal). While I have to disagree with some of my friends who think that it marks me as a person (very much), there might be some truth in their jokes about me. Namely, from time to time, some physical manifestations on / in my body really do render as something very similar to certain illnesses. Yes, there were periods when I was sure something bad is boiling in me and that I might be facing a rather painful and unpleasant death, but that is long behind me. Some remains still exist, though.

Something else does never walk alone, as well. It's trouble. I'm a big animal lover. From dogs to cats, from cows to horses. You name it, I probably love it. I don't have too much pets though. It's only a male cat, 5 years old, with nice orange fur and a bad temper. A real alpha male in the neighborhood, he recently had some condition with his ears - an inflammation that took him about 7 days to get over it. And when it was gone, something much worse came (hence the never walk alone part): he caught some kind of pathogen fungi that is easily transmittable to humans. My neighbor found a stray cat recently that had that same condition, but was careless enough not to take his animal to a vet. As a result, almost 10 people caught the same fun fungi, which then resulted in my neighborhood looking like Star Trek: Voyager (to be precise, like Nelix the chef ). After all this, my cat has to stay in quarantine for the next 8 days, and I have to disinfect the whole house, and hope for the best not to catch the same thing.

My cat and his fungi probably won't be walking alone.