Poll: Stomach/Intestinal problems

I have severe problems with my stomach, since I was a very little girl.  I'm always in constant pain.  I have tried everything under the sun for constipation, and even my gastroenterologist has prescribed medications that won't work.  I've already had a sigmoidoscopy and a Lower GI Series (Barium), and I'll be getting a colonoscopy done very soon.  I've been told that I have Irritable Bowel Syndrome, but I've also been told that I have a redundant colon (my large intestine is way too long).  I also know that iron overload causes constipation, which doesn't help me any.  So, I'm just curious to know how many of you have these kinds of problems.  The votes are anonymous, so you won't be revealing who you are, unless you post something in a message.  I know subjects like this can get embarrassing at times, but I've been dealing with this my whole life, and I wish I could find some relief, so it doesn't embarrass me.   

Please vote, even if you don't respond by posting.  I'd like to know if this is mostly related to Thalassemia or not.     Thanks.

I think the constipation is certainly related to iron in the system/body, and hence related to Thal.
One of the local/herbal remedies that some people have used successfully is Isabgol (gotta find out the English name) - it's a herbal laxative, fairly efficient and said to have no side effects.

The other interesting thing that I have noticed with using L1 is that the constipation just went away over a period of time.
May be an undocumented benefit?!  I have completely normal bowel movements now, while I used to be badly constipated as a kid.

I think IBS and such are just fancy names that doctors come up with when they can't help us 

Wow, I'm so glad to hear that the L1 may have helped that in some way.   

I agree that the iron is certainly the culprit, but I'm also wondering if anyone else has this "redundant colon" that they found that I have.  I also agree that these doctors give the label of "IBS" and other generic names when they don't know what the problem is.  I hate when they do that.  I don't know for sure if I have IBS, but I know that I have the abnormally long colon, which makes it harder for stool to pass through, because by the time it gets to the end, all the water is removed from it.  The large intestine removes excess water from it's contents, so if the colon is too long, it will definitely make things harder to pass when the contents have no water in them, so they end up getting stuck in there.   

I think this just may be something that runs in my family, but I'm also wondering if the ones that have it, are the ones that have Thal minor also.  I think this Thalassemia trait does more than doctors know about, because even people with Thal minor/trait sometimes have symptoms that range from minor to severe.

If you can find out the name of that medicine you mentioned, I'd appreciate it.  Thanks, Poirot.   


Oh, and you didn't vote! 

 

Hi Danielle,
    I am constipated a lot of the time too, however, mine could be from all the pain meds I take.  I know that I take stool softeners with the added laxative (2 at bedtime) and they help a lot.  The secret is to drink  a lot of water throughout the day.  I had to do a volumn study and I found out that I drink about a gallon of fluid a day.  When taking those stool pills, it is important to take alot of water.
lmk if that helps.
Dan

One of the local/herbal remedies that some people have used successfully is Isabgol (gotta find out the English name) - it's a herbal laxative, fairly efficient and said to have no side effects.

Sorry for the late reply Poirot! I think I had missed this post and now I have checked when Dan replied and the 'new' mark was in the index.

I know what it is called. It is called 'Husk' but generally husk is the outter cover of any pulse(Daal).  Although this one is also called Husk see this link Click Here!

It is called 'Husk' but generally husk is the outter cover of any pulse(Daal). 

Partially correct, Sajid! .... You may now have a coconut or cigar .....!!!

It is actually "Pure psyllium husk", which is derived by milling from only one type of grain. I had pinged Danielle direct, when I had the info and forgot to post it here.
My bad ....