i am 38 yr old male have been having these symptoms for the best part of 4 month sometimes so bad ive ended up at AandE quite a few times literally struggling to walk somedays, hurrendous pain confused, dizzy, nausea indegestion heartburn slight jaundice in corner of the eyes there isnt really a sympom i have not had over the course of the past 4 months to be honest  it really has been a test of my resiliance to keep going and pushing for answers and my persistance paid off i have now had both an endoscopy and colonoscopy both clear although they did take some biopsys which i am waiting for results for all good news but it doesnt magically make your symptoms disappear does it im also waiting for the results of a CT Scan i really wouldnt worry chances are these will all come back clear for you aswell my smyptoms have been terrible but thus far all clear 

Hi worriedlonesome.

I'm not a doctor and I have no medical qualifications.

I've read your other post where you dismiss the idea of IBS, because you think your symptoms are too severe.  You might be right that it's not IBS and eliminating every other possibility is the right thing to do. However, when your doctors do eliminate other possibilities, then you should consider IBS very carefully.

I've been a sufferer of IBS for over 40 years; sometimes the symptoms are mild, but sometimes they're very severe and painful.  There are many other people who suffer badly with IBS. In my time I've had pretty much everything you describe.  I found antispasmodics (Mebeverine) useful, plus Immodium for diarrhoea, plus Aloe Vera juice, but none of these has fixed my problem, although they've all been useful.

When the doctors have eliminated everything else then I suggest you should look at something called the FODMAP diet (or FODMAP protocol).  The protocol tries to control IBS by finding which particular food groups are triggering your symptoms, then helping you eliminate them from your diet.  In my own case, I discovered that I'm highly sensitive to mushrooms and beans (which is a pity because I really like a traditional English breakfast), plus some slight sensitivity to lactose.  (These are my triggers, and they're unlikely to be yours).  By cutting out mushroom and beans, plus reducing dairy and replacing by almond milk, my symptoms have greatly reduced.  In fact, I don't think about them any more and they no longer rule my life.

When you feel ready, I suggest you talk to your doctor about being referred to a dietician with a view to commencing the FODMAP protocol.  I won't lie - it's hard work, particularly at the beginning. But it worked for me and it might work for you.  I wouldn't recommend you try it on your own - it's just too complicated.  I also wouldn't recommend randomly cutting out certain foods in the hope you find a trigger - that's unlikely to work if you don't understand the food groupings.  

I hope you find an answer.

Hello, sorry to hear that things are difficult for you. My partner is experiencing very similar symptoms, with the dull ache/tennis ball feeling in the lower right hand-side... I am worried sick for him, he's 38, his doctor run some blood tests which came back clear and they just said to wait to see if the pain/feeling goes away... How are you getting on?

Sorry to hear about your partner.

I have been for various tests and scans and all are clear. The pain comes in peaks and troughs. I find a number of things help me keep it under control. It took about 3 weeks for me to see a difference.  If I slip back into the below it flares up very quickly.

Private hospital  test says it is not IBS despite the below.

1. At least 1.5 litres of mineral water each day. 
2. Little to no alcohol. I did not drink regularly before, but I find a few glasses of wine can aggravate it.

3. As little sugar as possible - cutting down on all things with sugar in.

4. Little to no red meat.

5. Not a lot of caffeine. 

6. Generally sticking to a healthy diet.

7. Keep stress levels down. 

Thank you for replying.

The quest for diagnosis can be so challenging at times, can't it?! I think we might have to explore the private options too. Thank you for all the suggestions - the sugar element might be tricky for my partner, he has a particularly sweet tooth! 

I hope things improve for you. If you find any aswers, I would be grateful for any advice.

Best wishes

It was a Bowel (GIT) Profile - looks for various markers, so doesn't specifically test for IBS, Chrons etc but 'should' flag up any indicators (or so I was told by the hospital). 

I can't find any reference to a Bowel (GIT) Profile test online.  Did they test blood or stool or both?

Just a wide variety of bloods. It was £140 at Spire Hospital 4 months ago. 

If these tests found nothing then that's good news.

I'm not a doctor but I do suffer from IBS, and I don't think there's any blood test that can either diagnose or eliminate IBS.  So, I think you could still have it, despite the test results.

Can I suggest you have a look at my earlier post on this thread where I talk about FODMAP?  This has definitely helped me.  If you think it might help you then have a chat with your GP.  However don't randomly cut out food groups in the hope that you'll stumble upon a combination that helps you - the group are complex and the chances of finding exactly the right combination for you are small, and you run the risk of cutting out certain foods unnecessarily.  Follow the process with the help of a dietician or similar professional.