Anonymous wrote:Iodine supplements (Iodoral) completely put my IBS symptoms into remission. It's sort of a miracle. I have no idea why it works - my gastroenterologist had never heard of Iodine making such a difference - but if I don't take them for a day or two, the loose stools come back with a vengeance. Worth a try.

Probiotics are also excellent.

This. Research iodine and the many health benefits.

Go to doctor. They can give you a work up for chronic diarrhea.
Giardia?

Could be Crohn's

As others have posted -- see a GI. Do NOT cut out gluten or make any other changes until you do. You want to do the blood work first before you cut our gluten, for example.

As for dietary changes being hard -- yes they will be hard at first (if they are needed) But geez, isn't having to run constantly to the bathroom with watery bowels hard, too??

OP that is no way to live! Sorry you are struggling with this. Go to the doctor ASAP. I could be IBS, a gluten sensitivity, other food allergies, or many other things. There are medications that can help and ID-ing foods that trigger it is key. It's daunting to tackle something like this, but for your health and your family's sake, you really need to. Good luck!

some random thoughts

Definitely see a doctor, to make sure you're not having any organ issues.

I would do a food elimination diet as many doctors are clueless about nutirition, unless you see a specialist. Cut dairy, nightshades, and gluten for 2 weeks. Add 1 food at a time.

Drink lots of water.

Take probiotic pills.

The beans would have done my husband in, and the peppers would have done my sister in.

If you really have no clue what could be causing your troubles I would head straight to a GI doc. I find that my primary physician is not a whole lot of help with complex GI issues.

I often have to run to the bathroom and have for years but I also regularly have solid poops (more often than I have the bathroom issues). You never have regular poops?

See your dr, but most likely IBS.
In which case you can try following a FODMAP diet. Google it if you haven't heard of it before

Anonymous wrote:That's a lot of fiber in dinner OP. Sounds like it could be celiac disease.

Celiac is gluten related, not fiber.

I agree that you should see a gastroenterologist, but I had similar issues for years and the gastro couldn't figure it out. Finally I figured it out on my own. I had endometriosis on my bowels. One surgery to remove the endo and my IBS symptoms cleared up. Probiotics also helped me.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This has been going on for years and you haven't even asked your primary care doctor about it? Start there.

Perplexing.

OP was asking what type of doctor to see.

I'd say a gastroenterologist is a good place to start, and they can test for celiac and lactose intolerance. I think the OP could also try some other things, like eliminating gluten and dairy (and remember to try for a good 6 weeks at least. If you are indeed sensitive to these things, it takes a while to recover. Though you should feel a difference after just two weeks.)
And probiotics could help.

Anonymous wrote:This has been going on for years and you haven't even asked your primary care doctor about it? Start there.

Perplexing.

Anonymous wrote:I would try quitting gluten right away. You might find that is all you need to do. It takes about 6 weeks to know for sure.

No! Don't go off gluten until you get the celiac antibody blood test. It won't be accurate if you are not eating gluten. It's a simple blood test that is worth doing to rule it out.

Go to a doctor immediately. This could be a major problem, and you are just ignoring it completely. I would never risk my children losing their mom by inaction in this way.