I had ibs symptoms for years. All symptoms were dismissed as 'just' ibs by all of the GPs that I saw.
It turned out that I had picked up a parasite while on holiday abroad....an off the beaten track type of adventure holiday in a tropical climate.
I was just wondering has this happened to anyone else here? I have only ever met one other person who had a similar issue, but she, very sensibly, went to a travel clinic after getting back from her exotic adventures, so she got diagnosed and treated very quickly, before ever developing any symptoms.
My situation was very different. I had become very unwell before finding out what was wrong with me. And so much time had passed, by the time that the symptoms were affecting my life, that I had never even considered that my symptoms were related to travelling so many years ago.
It's also difficult for me to answer any questions about this, because my nhs tests kept coming back negative. But my gp saw exactly what was happening and agreed 100%. It was quite complicated to get a definitive diagnosis and treatment. I am much better now. So I probably can't answer questions, and this isn't ama! I'm just wondering if anyone else has been through this? It's been quite an isolating experience.