Embarrassing but important question

[Cosmo75]

We have a saying at the camp I volunteer at..."don't pick up the rope"

IBD = autoimmune disease of the digestive tract
IBS = neuromotility disorder of the digestive tract

However, there is emerging evidence of an inflammatory response going on in IBS, albeit mild and with a different part of the immune system than IBD.

Medicine doesn't have a fantastic grasp on either condition really. But at least they have meds that seem to work for IBD. IBS drugs are a crap shoot (pun intended).

That being said, sure some symptoms can be very similar, others are distinct to each condition. I don't get a whole lot of bloating, but I do get the fun Crohn's arthritis. Regardless, both illnesses can lead to substantial grief and even impairment. I've met people with IBS who have a lot harder time than I do, and my condition is supposed to be more "severe." Which brings us back to the topic at hand: managing a pesky bowel disorder in grad school.

---

Members don't see this ad.

 

[RayneeDeigh]

Right, back on-topic we go!

I actually have a question. Since it now seems clear that I can't expect an uneventful year like my last one, I've accepted that when I go back to school I'll need to tell my profs about what's going on and that I may need to leave suddenly from time to time or show up late. How would you guys phrase it? My clerkship supervisor has been absolutely wonderful, he told me yesterday that I can come and go as I please and can show up at noon or not at all if I need to. I bit the bullet and used the initials "IBS" and ever since then he's sort of been like "oh god don't tell me any more" and therefore really understanding. I'd rather not tell my profs the exact label since I have a feeling they'll believe it's all in my head if I do. So how best to say it? Digestive disorder? Medical issue? That all makes it sound like I have something way worse than I do.

Cosmo, I'm so intrigued that they're starting to research a possible inflammatory response underlying IBS. Do you know any more about it?

For what it's worth, I read the other day on a website (god knows how reliable it was) that some drug is currently in phase 2 of testing for IBS (and it's being especially targeted for IBS-A which makes my little heart happy). This is great news, but it could be a decade or more before it's out on the market.

 

[RayneeDeigh]

Oh, and Cosmo did you by any chance catch something on the news about a month ago about a possible link between Crohn's and some cow disease (it was called something that sounded like Yo-Nees)? It was interesting stuff.

 

[Cosmo75]

I didn't see the exact story you're talking about, but I have read about the possible relationship between Crohn's and Johnes disease in cattle. There are some (conspiracy?) theories that IBD is caused by milk. But research hasn't really panned out for that.

As for the IBS inflammatory response, it has to do with IL-10 (and possibly the IL10/IL12 ratio) where IBD is tumor necrosis factor alpha and IL-6. Of course, I'm not an expert in immunology If you put IBS and IL-10 in google scholar or pubmed, you get quite a few articles.

As for what to say should you need accommodations to leave class? I was pretty open, but as has been mentioned IBD has more of a severe connotation to it. People kind of go "whoa...no problem" when you mention it and they actually know what it is. Then you have to navigate the whole bowel symptom taboo. Part of me says just say "I have a chronic digestive problem and I may need to bolt to the bathroom." Keeping it to the point usually works with most people, and subtly hinting at "hey I have explosive diarrhea" makes most people uncomfortable enough to not ask any more. Which I think is good and bad.

 

[cara susanna]

Often when trying to phrase what I have so that it doesn't gross people out, I say that I have a functional GI disorder, a stomach condition, or chronic dyspepsia.

 

[Mr Violin]

Often when trying to phrase what I have so that it doesn't gross people out, I say that I have a functional GI disorder, a stomach condition, or chronic dyspepsia.

I really dislike disclosing my condition to people that I am not close with and even then I don't like talking about it much. If I have to, I usually just say my stomach is "messed up" and leave it at that, hehe. I am hoping that if I can get into a program I can avoid bringing it up, but at the same time I am not going to let it hinder my aspirations.

 

[tresofbass]

Can I ask what kind of accommodations she was able to get?

Yikes. Sorry to re-open a thread that's been dead for a month, but I didn't notice this question until now. She was able to get accommodations for testing and attendance, without the need to explain to professors. That is, she would show the disability services certification to the professor at the beginning of the semester (which, to my knowledge, had no information specific to the disorder), and if she needed to reschedule a test or miss all or part of a class due to an IBS attack, the professor could not penalize her as long as she attempted to make up the missed work. Hope this helps.