TMI - poop pic included. Is this IBS or BAM?

[Casualtysecured]

Apologies for the picture but I’ve been trying to get my doctor to take me seriously for years.

Im 52, this has been going on at least 5 years. With no rhyme nor reason and out of the blue, I will get these episodes where I will eat something, I’ll get terrible cramps in my lower stomach and I need to get to the loo NOW.

Ill go to the toilet multiple times, progressively getting looser until its like water, the poop floats in the loo. The colour is always this yellow and smell is weird, like a chemical ammonia type smell.

It’s always within minutes of eating a meal. Sometimes that meal is high in fat, sometimes it’s cheese based. It doesn’t always happen, it makes me so anxious to eat out as when I happens I literally have 30 seconds to get to the loo or it just pours out. Just horrendous.

i have had my gallbladder checked by ultrasound, all clear. Bloods and poop samples are all normal (I’ve never been able to get a poo sample during a flare as it happens so infrequently and suddenly).

I have a feeling it might be lactose but I can eat cheese one day and be fine, next day I might have this. Today’s explosion was after eating chicken / peppers/ feta / olives on flatbread and broccoli.

I have also wondered if there is a hormonal element, my stomach is always upset around ovulation and just after. I’m just after ovulation today.

I can’t take immodium too often as it happens with no warning so I can’t prepare - I do take it if my stomach is ‘off’ in the morning when I wake (some mornings it feels odd and unsettled).

Does anyone else get this? Have you got to the bottom (excuse the pun) of it?

Hi, I have a similar issue . Had all sorts of tests done and so far consultants have put it down to ibs. It’s horrendous and painful when it happens but like you it doesn’t happen all the time. I manage it for the most part by limiting wheat, dairy and avoiding garlic and onions altogether. I’d recommend the low FODMAP diet for a short time to work out if any foods are triggering.

Thanks, I’m sorry for you albeit it’s somewhat reassuring I’m not alone!

For me it almost feels like I have a limit, if I go over the limit (maybe at the wrong time of my menstrual cycle) boom, it will happen. Today I’ve drunk two cups of tea with milk and a little chocolate at lunch. Maybe it was the feta at tea that pushed me over the edge.

it’s so annoying as there is no pattern to it.

My doctor referred me to a dietician who helped me with a low fodmap diet to try and pin point what causes me problems. I have a booklet which I follow religiously as there is a huge amount of mixed info out there online. The thing in your meal that is not low fodmap is the wheat in the flatbread. Feta is low in lactose.

Maybe look up dumping syndrome

I have IBS and this happens to me. After following a low fodmap elimination diet I've established that the key triggers for me are stress, alcohol, dairy and wheat/rye/barley (fructans), in that order (stress being the worst). I now broadly avoid dairy and wheat in my day to day, limit alcohol to dry white wine/,champagne and gin/tonic (red wine is terrible on my stomach) and take care to manage my stress. This allows me to indulge when I feel like it wothout too much worry. But when I have a flare up (every few months) then I have to be super careful. I also take buscopan and this helps.

I can’t tolerate any FODMAPs at all, and I’m lactose intolerant. I have to be very strict with my diet if I want to have a “normal” life. It’s worth it.

Is your stomach noisy too with the urgency? Im having a sigmoidoscopy in the next 2 weeks, my symptoms are a little different to you though.

No, not always noisy although when I do have the awful diahorrea I get a lot of wind too. I get horrible cramping, literally feels like someone is twisting my bowel. Like a very strong period / labour pain right through my uterus.

I know then I need to get to the loo quickly. It’ll always be this bright yellow- tan colour and ammonia like in smell. Then it’s over, cleared out (might take 2/3 episodes) and then I’m done, just left feeling very tender.

Yes I have it right now. Been going on so far for 2 weeks and I’m panicking as going on holiday on Friday. It’s that colour too. Will wait until o get back to see a gp but I will mention BAM as been looking into it….the only reason I wonder if it’s not is I also get diarrhoea on an empty stomach too

Could it be gluten intolerance? Does it happen after bread, flour based foods? Or dairy/lactose, or both?
My mate has celiac and before she was diagnosed she had these type issues. Not sure about the exact way her poo looked though.

I hope you find a solution soon x

There’s no rhyme nor reason to it. I can eat bread one day, cheese, milk etc and can go days / weeks with no issues then Boom out if nowhere I’ll eat something and within minutes I’ve hit uncontrollable diarrhoea. I’m scared to eat out.

it can happen at any time of the day and not always right after eating.

im always living on my nerves looking out for any twinge in my stomach.

Yes I know what you mean - I can go 4/5 months of being ok. I’ve just started Nerva this week. Will see how that goes….

Tha majority of your immune system is in your gut. Around ovulation and before your period is quite a stressful time for the immune system.

I take an immune suppressant and one thing I noticed is my tolerance for high fat meals has drooped significantly. If I eat a meal with over 15-20g fat then it comes straight out very quickly. I've also had to drop processed supermarket bread - I get on much better with sourdough.

I had similar before I started HRT, pretty much went back to normal with HRT, but I do think hormones make some food intolerance worse for me. I really relate to the straight after eating part.

Yes I have bile salt malabsorption and IBS

You need a sehcat test

It's worth remembering that you might be able to eat a little of whatever causes you problems one day, but if you eat some more of it the next day then that on top might be too much and it all has to come out. How much you can handle can vary as well I find.

My issues are onion and garlic, very common with IBS. Sometimes I can eat three little packets of onion ring crisps and be ok, once I had some tiny crispy fried onions on top of a meal at a restaurant and had to rush home or I was going to shit myself in the street.

The one thing that I find really helps and means I can eat out without worrying so much is taking Holland and Barrett multi digestive enzymes. They are pricy but a complete life saver if I'm eating out as just about everything has onion or garlic in it.

After being told IBS for years, I finally got diagnosed with BAM after a sehcat scan. I have my gallbladder so we don't know what caused me to develop it. I'm on medication now which has really helped.

I am having this problem right now and mine has been going on for a week. I ate oatmeal that was packaged last night and it's causing this problem my doctors are trying to help. So here is to hoping they can. I have cut out dairy and garlic and onions. What all can I eat now I just might have to go to a dietitian to find out because I put myself onto not eating but only two small meals for three days and I lost around 4lbs in just three days now I'm trying to get it back

Everything they tested me for come back normal. I don't have Bam and the doctor said when I went Friday he would be sending me in a antibiotic for a stomach infection because if it wasn't that then it was more then likely a stomach infection but now I get to wait for him to do that because his nurse didn't seem like she wanted to send him a note asking for it.

Hi, have you found out what is was? I'm having the exact same symptoms and drs just say ibs and I'm going back today to ask for more tests