Irritable Bowel Syndrome Message Boards | new/alone/scared/frustrated

I'm so sorry to be one of those people looking for a diagnosis online, but I don't know where else to turn. I've seen many different doctors for the last few months, and yet no one seems to know what's wrong with me.

Since late Dec, I've had two main symptoms: sleep disturbances and abdominal problems.

I know that being woken up from sleep is rare with IBS, but I did see on this site that it's at least possible. And though it took awhile, there's no doubt that the sleep disturbances are stomach-related. Sometimes Maalox before bed can help me sleep through the night. Sometimes not. But always when I wake up suddenly, my stomach either hurts, or it's making noises, or I feel like I have to have a bowel movement. Sometimes I can spend an hour in the bathroom at 3am and even when I do poop I don't feel better.

The abdominal symptoms started the same week as the sleep issues. I have recurring pain (mild but uncomfortable) that ranges anywhere from my upper back to just below the rib cage, but most frequently the pain's on the sides of my ribs.

The gastro doctor has had me on several different reflux medicines, but none have helped. (Plus I don't seem to have any of the traditional reflux symptoms.) I think the chest pain is gas.

Quite often I'll feel very bloated. Like I can't even pass gas. Eventually, with some time and persistence, I can push out some solid, normal poop. But it always feels like there's more. Hours later I'll start to push out some less solid stuff, then eventually it gets really mushy. It's almost never diarehea though.

I've seen a cardiologist to rule out heart problems waking me up, a pulmonologist to rule out asthma. I've had mild sleep apnea for years but it's never actually woken me up. The gastro doctor has done an endoscopy and colonoscopy in the last months and has found basically nothing (there was a small hiatal hernia and internal hemorhoids, neither of which he thought was a factor). I had an adominal ultrasound, abdominal x-ray and CT. The CT revealed some enlarged lymph nodes in my groin which an oncologist is looking into for me (though at this point I've been told not to panic).

I'm also waiting for some tissue samples from the colonscopy to come back from the lab and just delivered a stool sample yesterday.

I guess the reason I'm writing is to ask if any of these symptoms sound like IBS. I have started drinking chamomille tea and eating white bread on an empty stomach in the last few days. In fact I've kept a pretty good food diary for weeks, and except for noticing that salad and wheat chex has me doubled over, I can't find the link between what I ate and how I feel.

Can I really be considered constipated if I'm having more than one bowel movement per day? Can it really be considered diarehea if it's mushy as opposed to liquid?

I feel like I'm running out of options here. I can't miss any more days from work and I have a 3 year old soon who I've barely been able to take care of lately.

Any opinions would be appreciated. Thank you.

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