WearsblackLoveschocolateAvoidspeople ·
25/08/2024 14:05
I feel these drugs may be my last chance saloon.
I have suffered with IBS for 26 years, half my life. The symptoms have been getting worse since I hit perimenopause and have also been going through the stress of watching my mum suffer from dementia and breast cancer.
I know stress is a huge contributing factor to my gut issues but literally nothing I do helps.
Changes to diet and drink, exercise, supplements, hypnotherapy, IBS medications etc, I take/do them all yet here I am still suffering.
The main problem I think, is that over the years, as the severity of the symptoms have worsened so too has my brains perception of the symptoms, so every pain, ache, gurgle, gassy feeling, pressure, feeling of needing the loo etc is greatly heightened. The rectal pressure is now so heightened these days that I constantly feel as though I need the loo and I often do, especially after eating. This makes everyday living a nightmare tbh. It’s making my life a very small one right now. And despite endless gastro tests and knowing all is ‘normal’ my brain is perceiving every movement as a threat and causing so much anguish and panic.
The one med I haven’t really tried is the older style TCA drugs, Amitriptyline or Nortriptyline. Even at low dose, these are supposed to be good at switching off (or at least dampening down) the overactive gut/brain connection in IBS sufferers.
Has anyone tried this? Did it help at all? Constipation seems to be one of the main side effects but that would be a welcome right now.