IBS and Work - A Bad Combination?

If you have IBS, you already know all the symptoms and may not need to be warned. If not, then the ROME / ROME II1 diagnostic criteria can be eye-opening - including pain, changes in stool frequency, mucus, bloating, distension, nausea, fatigue - and more! Any single symptom will definitely make your day uncomfortable, vague to say the least. The combination - on the contrary, their bouquet - can make daytime work seem like eternity in a fiery place where you get pitchforks. For IBS patients, more of the back pain (if you forgive the expression.) This can be a ticket to a difficult, if not miserable, job.

Imagine a defined work life, on the day of your interview, with your assessment of the location, number, hygiene, and toilet facilities available. Can you take a job if offered? Can you hold it in? You may have to wait for lunch, in a small, crowded women's room, smelling every sound and mumbling queues and complaints that accompany any 'old visits'?

Or say you have to keep your eyes on the clock, waiting for the next reasonable point where you can make a 'tour'. others. Twenty minutes since last? Oh God no. Two hours? Maybe, but you can still get 'comment'. And of course if you work in the call center, don't forget! Schedule scheduled damage is just for you!

If you find certain foods to help you improve, you may find yourself at work, too. It's easy to be 'good'. on a break at home, sunshine comes through the window, herbal tea and steamed vegetables (or whatever works for you) at the lunch table. The story is a bit different when you are under pressure at work, one end date is missed and another is coming, and your desk is next to a home coffee shop and double-shot espressos.

So you're late, you have coffee or six, your coworkers are giving away donuts for their birthday, and when it comes to the end of the day and your manager suggests the team go back to the pub ... well, in this matter, what's the difference?

And don't forget about disclosure issues when you're looking for a job, too. Hmm, employers have two pretty good job applications in their hands - the leading candidates, but someone with chronic illnesses that could lead to lower productivity and work time. Hard choice?

Do you have a colleague with IBS? After reading this, it may be easier to be understanding and sympathetic. And if you have the same situation, take pity on yourself. Working with IBS can be difficult - it gives you the respect to get out of there and do what you need to do every day.

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