Slight but continual bleeding at 49, which convinced me I had colon cancer so I quit smoking, bleeding got worse, bleeding got really bad when I quit nicotine. I bled continually that whole summer (stayed off cigarettes & nicotine) until I was diagnosed, put on meds and went back on nicotine in ecigs.
I think I had it as a baby but diagnostics weren't there to find it back then, blamed food allergies. I may have been diagnosed at 14, the Dr said "colitis" but not Ulcerative Colitis or IBD, although prescribed Lomotil/Imodium for life. Age 20 Dr said it was all in my head, still no colonoscopy. I ignored some pretty major bleeding issues as hemorrhoids after that but they were all short lived. I learned to ignore the pain blaming it on anxiety "all in my head". Xanax worked on the pain when I got that so I really though it was all in my head (turns out Xanax works on much IBD pain).
All my pain spots were confirmed as inflammation points with a colonoscopy.
At 49 Drs almost blew me off again but I was close enough to the age 50 colonoscopy. It said long term damage that showed treatment (that I never had, marijuana? smoking?) that was stopped. First diagnosed with Crohn's, a week later after upper tests Ulcerative Colitis, then Indeterminate Colitis for a few years. My last colonoscopy changed it back to Crohn's, very inflamed but my GI and I were both expecting to find remission, so there doesn't have to be blood or pain to have inflammation (that was however when I had the radish incident, same spot so inflamed Dr couldn't get scope through).
Blockage pain is horrible and builds fast, you would want to go to the ER it's so bad. Mine was partial so when it blew through the pain relief was fast.
You don't need to see blood but if you do that's reason to definitely go to a Dr.
How long has it been since the diet change? Vegetables can cause pain and dodgy bowels even in normal people. If the pain is always in the same spot that would make it more likely to be inflammation, if it moves I'd blame the vegetables. If you recently quit smoking I'd be thinking UC, and mention that connection to the Dr, not all know about it.
Blood, I'd definitely go to a Dr. The way you describe the pain I'd probably see a Dr. Near age 50, I'd get a colonoscopy early just to see what the pain is about.
I highly recommend Desitin (the baby water barrier diaper rash stuff) around your anus for the cleanout. Desitin and a bidet make it not so bad other than the diarrhea from hell, but just the Desitin without the bidet helps.
