Embarrassing bowel problems

[TheRealMrsHannigan]

I have a very embarrassing problem, and so far have been too embarrassed to go to the Dr, but am now so worried I think I probably should. I just wanted to check if anyone had experienced similar and could put my mind at ease.

For a few months I've been experiencing frequent bouts of diarrohea, it often comes on with a sesne of urgency, like I need to go right then adn can barely wait.
I also have very loose stools, frequent rumbling sounds in my abdomen and more gas than I used to. There is often blood in my stools and sometimes in the toilet bowl as if its dripping from me, there is also a yellowy jelly like liquid. Then this morning I checked after wiping and there was quite alot of dark red blood on the tissue and a blood clot, a small one about the size of a garden pea.

I stupidly googled my symptoms and 'Cancer' just kept cropping up and now I've scared myself silly.

Has anyone had similar? I had piles after DD's birth but these went away and the symptoms were nothign like this, I was constipated rather than loose bowel movements. So that alone makes me think it can't be piles.

Could be a number of conditions. You need to make an appt with the GP.

I would expect some blood tests and most likely a camera test to look at the bowel. Lots of other causes for these symptoms, not only cancer. Sounds pretty miserable for you though.

Make the appointment

Please do go to the doctor and don't be embarrassed to tell him all your symptoms (it's important when the GP is considering the urgency of a referral). As the last poster said, it could be symptoms of a number of things including benign polyps which are not harmful in themselves but should be removed because they can cause the nasty symptoms that you're experiencing and they can eventually become cancerous.

Thank you, I guess I should bite the bullet really :(

could be crohns disease or ulcerative colitis , which are on the whole easily treatable and managed . deffo need to see doc though, and not scare yourself with google x

it sounds like ulcerative colitus afaik..but please go to the doc as soon as you can so you can put your mind at rest and start to deal with the problem :)

I agree - see dr. They have literally seen every embarrassing ailment you can imagine and hundreds you can't.

Good luck and don't google!

Hi there,
I've got bowel problems too. I've had so many medical professionals down there for my bowels and bladder even before i had a baby. I still feel a little uneasy when they examine me but i find it slightly easier to talk about.

Mrs Hannigan, you sound like me a few months ago. I started a thread called 'Could this be Ulcerative Colitis?' on General Health and got a lot of help from lovely MNers. You will see it sounds very similar to my symptoms and i was diagnosed a couple of weeks ago.

I hated the thought of going to the doctors, but was feeling so dreadful (and had also Googled) that i knew i had to just get on with it. It really was not as bad or as embarrassing as i thought it would be. The hospital were brilliant and my consultant has just written a 'to whom it may concern' letter about the condition for the job centre and how it affects me, which i am hoping will help relieve the stress from them a little.

Please go to the docs, UC is a condition that can be treated by yourself after diagnosis, so not at all embarrassing. A lot of people tend, like myself, to take it with a large dose of humour, at it as it makes it easier to deal with. Let us know how you get on.

Sorry to be the voice of doom but I had similar symptoms and it was cancer :(

In my case they told me I was too young, didn't fit the profile, it was IBS etc etc etc from June to January (I went to the GP every month). They finally got fed up with me and referred me at the end of Jan 2011, altho the GP that referred me put in my notes "patient thinks it's cancer but we don't". I had tests in Feb and surgery in March. (and an apology from both of the GPs who'd seen me )

Actually altho it was scary at the time and I could think of better things to have happened, the whole process wasn't anywhere near as nasty as I'd anticipated and I'm almost back to normal.

If it is cancer the sooner it is found the better your prognosis. If it isn't cancer then the sooner you find out what it is the sooner you can be treated. Either way you need to get to your GP ASAP.