Does IBS get worse as you age?

For me, I've gotten better. I have a hyper-spastic IBS. I was diagnosed in 1966, and I'm 69 now. I'd be doubled up with pain-covered with sweat-diarrhea everywhere. I lost lots of weight-I'm glad that this wasn't when eating disorders were popular-I suffered enough indignity with some doctors and health systems. In the early 90s, the AF found workable medicines for me. It's close to what the Navy first gave me, but I took those as needed. Now I take one med daily; the others are as needed. It's a mild tranquilizer-anti-anxiety pill-Librax. It relaxes the gut so it can move, and calms it when it's over active. My intestines swelled up, adhezed to each other. They couldn't even find my ovaries or uterous from the swelling and adhesions. While I was thin, different doctors in different years could feel where parts of my gut was stiff from being scar tissue. I had one episode that lasted almost a year in the early 1990s.

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The GI said that my thyroid problems contribute to my IBS. I do get out of bed about 2 am, because my gut is spasming, but it's not every night-It's been about 10 years since I passed out from pain. I can't say that about my bowel opening up while driving. I carry spare clothes. I walk a lot, dig, keep active. I was raised to believe that my digestive system is a muscle like all others. So I lift weights too. I was told by the Navy and AF that I'd probably be dead by now, but I can drink a cup of coffee-that's such a luxury for me. I need to avoid sugar and carbonated things. Sugar gives me cramps and diarrhea. carbonation gives me GERD, acid, gas and cramps. I stay away from fried foods-oven browned potatoes-oven cooked french fries are just fine. When my husband took off with a blonde younger than our daughter-lots of stress went with him. I had to learn new coping skills, went to college, graduated and couldn't find a job. I've found that taking small amounts of citricil while having diarrhea, keeps my stool from compacting, getting hard and being constipated. I can actually jog with my hounds, I climb ladders, paint walls and over heads, shovel, dig. I'm digging out and laying a wall for a terrace. I trimmed trees this weekend, today I loaded up the truck and went to the dump by myself. I can't ride horses any more from injuries, but I pretty much can do what I did before during well times. I'm slower and can only lift about 40 lbs, but I'm not ready to watch TV all day. If you guys go to Interpals.com, and look for meyati, you can see me and my hounds-my work projects -like new kitchen cabinets that I put in by myself this January. Yes, I enjoy my geriatric nap in the summer when it's about a 100, but I'm old. If anybody has any questions-you can ask me- remember-I'm the boss of my life-and I choose to rule IBS with diet and exercise. I'm actually considered to be healthy now-that's a big joke-