[Mike Tyson]

Ok, here goes. This is a pretty hard topic to talk about.

I'm going to the hospital on Thursday for a colonscopy. Being the typical young male I have ignored the warning signs and passed it off as "Nothing to worry about, I'll be fine".

I have had pretty bad guts for around 2 years with things ranging from slightly uncomfortable to the down right unbearable. So after finally having an appointment with the GP I was referred rather swiflty to the hospital. One thing the GP mentioned was my problem may be a polyp. Now I know the internet is good for researching stuff but upon reading the various atricles and advice pages I found, I have become very worried. The sypmtoms that are described fit what I have experienced pretty damn closely, and things seem to point toward "villous adenomas" and my research is starting to make me scared.

As I said its easy to get carried away when looking at stuff on the web, but this is getting me really worked up. I keep thinking, "I'm only 25, surely there wont be anything the matter with me". I was hoping one of the many knowledgable folk on here could reassure me I'm simply being overly worried.

Cheers,

Mike

[Carnage]

I put up with something similar for a long time. Was terrified to go to the doctor in case it was bad news. In the end, I sucked it up and went. It turned out to be irritable bowel syndrome. This is pretty common and shares many of the symptoms of the nasty stuff and the pain can be pretty unbearable (A friend told me his mom was hospitalised with it).

Because of this I expect your doctor is sending you in for big black snake probe (don't worry, you get some pretty good sedatives these days!  ) just to be on the safe side. I'm no doctor, but I would have thought at your age the odds of it being the big C would be very low and simple polyps are pretty common and often removed. Anyway, good luck and hope it all goes well.   

[drdeath]

The odds of this being anything serious at your age are extremely low...

Please do not worry about yer forthcoming exam...it isn't a pleasant experience but you will survive!

As to what is causing your symptoms its impossible to tell without all the info...

I had a pretty bad episode of IBS type symptoms a few years ago and (despite being a doctor) got myself quite worked up...

Long story short - far too much protein by way of Whey powder and meat with not enough roughage was the cause, initially my GP wanted to send me for a scope but i tried a change of diet first and havent had a symptom since...I have now become a fibre evangelist!

Aaaaaaaanyway, enough with the personal info:  try not to worry too much, get yer scope, look at yer diet closely and I am sure you will be fine..

Good luck 

D

[fatdoc]

good luck mate,
odds are way in your favour...

[Mike Tyson]

Thanks everyone for the replies.

I've recently been looking at my diet and making an effort to see if I'm doing anything in excess. I've tried not eating dairy products, cutting alcohol out completely for say a week (I know this may not make any difference). I am a little concerned as from 2001 to around 2004, I was pretty much an alcoholic drinking way in excess of what I should have. For around 5 months after I was in a car accident and was off work, I was drinking around 12-15 pints a day, every day. I'm worried I have done some permanent damage to my internals. I still like a drink just as much as anyone, but have tried to cut down as much as poss.

I'm just super paranoid its going to be something awful, I guess its human nature to panic. I'm glad this is a fairly common problem, and know the old camera wont be too pleasent, but hope they can tell me whats going on.

Thanks again for the helpful advice guys.

[nik at work]

Just to add I've had the same problem and the camera up my ass.

Again turned out to be IBS, which isn't really a true diagnosis, just more a case of it's not anything else so we'll call it IBS.
Messing around with your diet can really help. Personally I very rarely drink and don't eat Ragu sauces or Marks and Spencers sandwiches which seems to help. So if something seems to help just go with it, even if it sounds mad - I mean sandwiches sold in one chain, really?!?

Before you get the camera they'll give you a course of Picolax, which is amazing at getting the entire world out of your arse. Quite impressive.
Anyway good luck with it all, very unlikely to be anything serious (unless you really like M&S sandwiches )

[Mike Tyson]

About to start the whole process shortly light lunch now, then start with the flushing process at 7pm.

Weirdly enough, I love chicken sandwiches from M and S and made a spag bol last night with Ragu sauce..... I kid you not.

[matthew]

Best of luck Golt! See if you can keep the video... would make interesting viewing... One of my friends has the video of them inserting a camera under her knee cap...

[Mike Tyson]

Don't know about keeping the video, may make for interesting viewing, but probably wont!!   

[SA Chris]

Best of luck Golt, just try to relax and enjoy the ride. Not too much though, or you might starting making a habit of it.

[Mike Tyson]

I'll try my best, hopefully the strong sedatives Carnage mentioned should do the job. And dont worry, I will NOT be making a habit of this!

[Nibile]

yes, best of luck!

[AndyR]

And dont worry, I will NOT be making a habit of this!

You might have felt the same way about cheese and jam sandwiches.....

[Mike Tyson]

I'm pretty confident the nice warm feeling I get from cheese and jam sandwiches will beat the entirely not nice warm feeling I will get from a camera up my butt any day!

[GCW]

Don't worry, they'll check for cheese and jam sandwich residue whilst they are navigating their way to your caecum.
Don't worry about it.  Sedation is ace.  You'll be screaming in pain whilst it goes on and the doctors laugh, but you won't remember anything afterwards.   
On a serious note, do you like Johnny Cash?

[Falling Down]

Golt - I went through a similar episode in my early twenties... I was diagnosed with Ulcerative Colitis which is one of the nastier auto-immune disorders that affect the gut.  The colonoscopy can be little unpleasant but its a great relief to know what is actually wrong rather than thinking the worst.  I cut down on high fiber and underwent a few years treatment of steriods etc. It's now in remission thankfully but returns with a vengeance every now and again.

Like others have already said, tinkering with your diet is a good thing.. Lactose, Gluten, Red Meat, High Fibre, Low Fibre - basically anything can trigger flares of IBS/UC or Crohns depending on the individual.

Good luck...

[Mike Tyson]

Thanks for that Falling down.

I will be very happy when they can finally tell me whats up with me. I'm hoping its nothing serious but we'll have to see. I'm guessing that if the problem is diagnosed, the doctor/hospital wil have recommendations on what to eat or not eat, dependant on what the diagnosis is? Any advice here?

[SA Chris]

Hope you get the thumbs up. As in good news, not in the literal sense.

[Falling Down]

I'm guessing that if the problem is diagnosed, the doctor/hospital wil have recommendations on what to eat or not eat, dependant on what the diagnosis is? Any advice here?

Yeah.. depending on what your diagnosis is, they not be able to be as specific as you would hope in terms of recomending what to/not to eat.  I'd be patient and see what happens...

[Dr T]

at least you'll soon know one way or the other and can act appropriately
 
(would suggesting you "lie back and think of England" be too churlish?)

all the best, hope it's good news

[lorentz]

Good luck with it, dude. You'll be fine.

I had a camera stuck up me cock once (spectral endoscopy) whilst I had biharzia. Basically checking my bladder for calcium deposits and taking a biopsy from the bladder wall. It really smarted, but was worth it for peace of mind. And women complain about childbirth!

[Mike Tyson]

Well had the trip to Warner studies yesterday for the all out block buster movie shoot.

And accoding to the doc, all is good. Twas not the most pleasent of things but its done now. The thing is, if there is nothing wrong, whats been going on??? I'm waiting on some test results and I have to take a sample in to be checked and there may be some answers after that.

So I'm hoping I'm gonna be good to go from now on. Thanks to everyone for the well wishes.

And Lorentz, I can sympathise with you a little. I once had to have a pipet jabbed down the old fella to get some tissue samples. It looked like the ones you had in chemistry class at school! The moral of the story is always put a helmet on the general.

[SA Chris]

whilst I had biharzia.

How did you get it? In spite of swimming in loads of skanky water in my youth, luckily I was spared.

[Nibile]

hey its nice to hear good news!!!

i think im going to have some allergic (???) tests, cos some kinds of food (like pasta) lead me straight to the bathroom.

anyway, happy for the good news.

[lorentz]

Picked up bilharzia swimming in lake malawi back in the day. Was on a gap year tour of east africa. I should have just taken the cure out in africa cos the doctors over here didn't really know what it was and it was only when I started getting blood in my piss that they started taking me seriously! Still it's all sorted now. Good luck with the tests mate. It'll be something random like IBS probably.

[Dr T]

cos some kinds of food (like pasta) lead me straight to the bathroom.

and you being italian... what a bitch

that'ld be like an englishman who's allergic to curry...........

hope they sort you out.............

[Nibile]

its a shame, isnt it??!!
im using brown (non refined) pasta and bread now, but theyre hard to find when youre eating in restaurants or bars.

[Simon S]

Great news Golt. I must say that I admire your honesty.
Like Falling Down, I too have Ulcerative Colitus and have a colonoscopy on the cards at some point in the future. To be fair, the sigmodoisopy I had first wasn't as bad as I feared, although after four hours in the waiting room I was quite uptight. How long did the colonoscopy procedudure take?  I can only hope that my next appointment is later rather than sooner. It should have been done last september, so I'm on borrowed time.
Anyway, good to hear that all is ok.

[Mike Tyson]

Cheers Simon.

I am glad its nothing sinister. I imagine its going to be something like IBS or similar. The colonscopy was not very pleasent but was manageable. The worst bit was the doctor having to push down on my stomach to get the camera past a particular section, not nice! I had 20-30 mins on the recovery ward having me tea and toast and come evening time I actually had a beer as I felt perfectly fine (Although this was against the recommendation's I hasten to add). The hardest thing I guess was not eating, I went 28 hours without eating, I was only allowed to drink water or clear liquids. That was torture, you don't realise how much advertising there is on TV for food and drink until you have to starve yourself! Everyone does react differently though, so you may feel woozy from the sedatives.

Its very surprising to find the amount of people who post on here who have similar problems, it is a hell of a lot more common than I thought which is quite nice to know actually.

Good luck with yours, and i'm sure you will manage with procedure. My advice is read a book the night before though, don't watch TV!!

[Falling Down]

Glad everything turned out OK...

[Andy F]

Glad to hear you've got the all clear.

[Mike Tyson]

Cheers all.

[Mike Tyson]

Well it turns out the sequel will probably be shot soon to the original epic "The inner workings of Golts arse!"

I have gone for the last 2 years without too many issues but have taken a downward slide in the last 7-8 weeks. Weight loss, intense abdominal pain in the right lower section, blood in places where blood shouldn't be, tiredness etc etc the list goes on. After seeing 3 different GP's and trying Fybogel, Colpermin and Omerprazole nothing has helped. The only thing I can link to making things worse is alcohol so that has been knocked on the head. I had a skin full after a gig last week andwas ill for about 5-6 days afterwards. The 3rd GP I talked to said there is a possibility that it could be Crohns and he was the first one to mention this. I have had all my blood tests done though and there were no inflammatory issues so he was not sure.

Got an appointment with the gastroenterology specialist in December so will know more then. Think another colonoscopy is on the cards to try and pin point the problem. I didn't have weight loss last time so I am a lot more concerned this time. Truth be told this is the first time I have been genuinely worried about my health as I have always been pretty much in good health.

I was wondering how a few of the folks who have colitis etc had got on? FD and a few others? It would appear that Crohns and various types of colitis can often be hard to differentiate between.

[jfw]

fingers crossed for you golt - hope its nothing too serious

[slackline]

Sorry to hear this Golt, hope the gastroenterologist provides some insight.

It would appear that Crohns and various types of colitis can often be hard to differentiate between.

This is a major problem with many diseases, symptoms get grouped together to give a disease, when in actual fact there are differences between them.  Heterogeneity is a bitch!

[robertostallioni]

Not the kind of thread that usually gives me much cause for concern (my alimentary canal resembling a gleaming gun barrell), but worrying about your own health is no fun at all, so I hope you find out what's up sharpish. I'm sure the meeting with the arse-doctor will be an "eye-opener".

[Mike Tyson]

I'm sure the meeting with the arse-doctor will be an "eye-opener".

Haha! It certainly will be!!

[Houdini]

[Mike Tyson]

Don't think its of much interest to the masses but have been diagnosed finally.

After 2 colonsocopy's and a sigmoidoscopy the verdict is IBS. Which is nice, but now I need to find out what is irratating my bowels. I have cut red meat from my diet, still off the fags, booze input is minimum i.e. nothing like it used to be, but still suffering. Been taking Mebeverine 3 times a day for about 2 months which seems to have helped and just been put on Amitriptyline for the IBS.

Going for a food intolerance test at the end of this week to see what that brings up. Thankfully now more cameras though!

[Falling Down]

Good to hear it's "just" IBS and if that's the case I'm sure you'll find the source eventually.

[SA Chris]

Going for a food intolerance test at the end of this week to see what that brings up.

Not too much I hope! Good luck, hope you at least find out what it is.

[magpie]

There are loads and loads of sites that have heaps of great info on IBS and how to deal with it, I can dig you out some links if you like?  They would probably have info on diets and ways to work out what effects you worse, there is also a lot of information on supplements and stuff which can really make a difference.  Let me know if you want me to dig out a couple of addresses  for you so you can do some extra reading.

Glad you have a diagnosis of some sort although as others have said IBS is the biggest cover all ever when it comes to the range of symptoms and things it includes. 

[GCW]

I can dig you out

Let me know if you want me to dig out

Well, most of us knew what you were like, but there's no hiding it now.


Golt, at least it isn't anything serious.  Get on the Maggy Pie diet and get out crushing.

[magpie]

I should punter you, you vile creature. 

I was trying to be helpful. 

[Jim]

Good to hear its nothing serious Lennox

[Mike Tyson]

There are loads and loads of sites that have heaps of great info on IBS and how to deal with it, I can dig you out some links if you like?  They would probably have info on diets and ways to work out what effects you worse, there is also a lot of information on supplements and stuff which can really make a difference.  Let me know if you want me to dig out a couple of addresses  for you

I would appreciate that thanks Miss Pie. Dont want to pry but do you suffer from IBS as well?

Good to hear its nothing serious Lennox

Cheers word.

[Jim]

I'd be more worried about that massive slug on your head!

[SpanishJuan]

Some time ago I went through the same stuff colonoscopy, endoscopy etc.  my follow up was rubbish but I went through food groups and Onions, garlic, cabbage, cauliflower,  seemed to get my IBS upset. fortunately garlic is tolerated now. but Aliums and Brassicas still cause an upset.
Best of luck, hope you get to the bottom of it (no pun intended)

[magpie]

I would appreciate that thanks Miss Pie. Dont want to pry but do you suffer from IBS as well?

I'll PM you some links.  And yes, I do but mine seems to be mostly stress and anxiety  related rather than particularly tied into diet, for now.