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Original poster

Unexplained child health issues. Can you help

37 replies

sadscotmama · 21/12/2024 10:22

Hi. I’m a newbie. My DD 8 has had severe headaches and stomach pain every single day for months. . She isn’t attending school and i don’t know what to do.

AIBU to ask for advice here online to ask what you think the cause might be, maybe a parent has gone through the same with their child. Then I could go back to my doctor and say it could be XYZ.

They don’t seem to be investigating and calpol and ibroprofne aren’t helping with the pain.

She is nearly 9, was a happy very energetic active child. Now she spend her whole day in the sofa or bed, on the IPad or tv. She has headaches several times a day which vary in intensity. Last nights he cried jerked to sleep and finally does off around 1am.

Shw also has stomach pains and is very lethargic and has low energy.

Paediatrics told me to put her on a wheat and dairy free diet as she was intolerant as a baby but outgrew it.

Its not helped. I’ve also cut out migraine causing foods like chocolate etc. All bloods and her stool sample came back clear.

She is just deteriorating and DH and I are confused as some hours she seems like her old self then all of a sudden she looks and feels ill.

Has anyone gone through this with their child?

She always says she feels dizzy and has no energy.

OP posts:
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ittakes2 · 20/09/2025 07:52

Please google PoTs - if you have a finger tip monitor which checks heart rate and oxygen levels (about £20 Amazon but must be one which fits kids) when she wakes up in morning before she gets out of bed take her heart rate and then get her to stand for 3 mins unaided and take her heart rate again. If her heart rate goes up more than 30 beats in that time talk to gp about investigating pots.

also try her on a daily antihistamine 30mins before first meal to see if she’s having allergic reactions in tummy. Fexofenadine best option if she is old enough

Barnbrack · 20/09/2025 07:11

Take her to the optician, tell them you're concerned about brain tumour symptoms, they'll dilate her pupila and look at her optic nerves. Choose one with an octopus scanner and ask for an octopus scan of her optic nerve. This will show if it's swollen. It's not 100% but a fair whack of brain tumours are picked up this way and I suspect that's the worry at the forefront of your mind.

saracharlotte · 20/09/2025 06:44

Hi I know this post is a bit old but please reply to me - I am going through the same with my 7 year old,

Original poster
sadscotmama · 10/06/2025 15:41

CiscoTS · 07/04/2025 01:24

Go to England then.

Sorry OP. Nothing stands in the way of the health of my child. Even if I couldn’t afford it on paper, I’d make sure my child had that scan whatever it took for me to pay for it.

I pay for private health insurance for my daughter because your scenario terrifies me.

Show quote history

This seems such a young age though. Would it be be worth considering she is going early puberty as my daughter did.

Her symptoms of severe fatigue, extreme headaches and dizziness have thankfully gone. She enjoyed a busy holiday and is back to her happy self.
I really hope your daughter finds answers. Please push for all tests. You know your daughter well and don’t allow any medical professional to gaslight you or make you feel you are a hypochondriac. Most medical staff were great but I had one terrible experience.

pleas what in touch if there’s any way I can help. I will never forget the worry and desperation I felt being so confused watching your child so ill not knowing what was happening.

All the best.

OP posts:
Original poster
sadscotmama · 10/06/2025 15:36

Corilee2806 · 02/06/2025 19:27

hi - sorry I know this thread is a few months old but I’m wondering if you got any answers for your daughter? Going through almost the exact same thing with my 6.5 year old and no one can tell us the cause. Have also been accused of being an over anxious mum in urgent care!

i’m sorry to hear Thankfully my daughter has recovered fully I would say. It took several months and she is due her paediatric appointment soon where I will let them know.

I put it completely due to hormones as she started her period very early and after this she got better daily. She has now had 2 -3 periods and no longer has her previous debilitating symptoms.

OP posts:
Original poster
sadscotmama · 10/06/2025 15:34

Hi. I tried posting but I was away on holiday and it wouldn’t send

OP posts:
Corilee2806 · 02/06/2025 19:27

hi - sorry I know this thread is a few months old but I’m wondering if you got any answers for your daughter? Going through almost the exact same thing with my 6.5 year old and no one can tell us the cause. Have also been accused of being an over anxious mum in urgent care!

CiscoTS · 07/04/2025 01:24

sadscotmama · 21/12/2024 10:50

She tested negative to celiac and excluding gluten and wheat has made no difference.

I want her to have a CT or ultrasound scan because I’ve noticed when she is going to the bathroom before bed, she is in pain and that’s when her headaches are worse. I called Spire but they said to call back on Monday now.

Ive pushed for an MRI and it’s not available in Scotland privately.

re

Go to England then.

Sorry OP. Nothing stands in the way of the health of my child. Even if I couldn’t afford it on paper, I’d make sure my child had that scan whatever it took for me to pay for it.

I pay for private health insurance for my daughter because your scenario terrifies me.

ElBeMe · 07/04/2025 01:21

Did you ever get to the bottom of this? It sounds very similar to my 5 yo but without the headaches…

endofthelinefinally · 23/12/2024 15:43

Dizziness and lethargy can be symptoms of both anaemia and over use of ibuprofen.

You don't say whether you have taken her to an optician for a proper eye test, but I would recommend booking one at your local optician or optometrist asap. Tell them about the headaches. They will do a much more detailed examination and test than can be done in a GP surgery.

YesYesAllGood · 23/12/2024 15:02

Something very similar happened to my friend's sister growing up. She had all sorts of tests done, all to no avail. It turned out to be severe anxiety.

stayathomer · 23/12/2024 15:01

My son had similar but no headaches but was so lethargic his teacher was telling him wake up, buck up etc etc. he complained of a sore tummy and was even in hospital for a week where they wondered was it appendicitis and then was it just him being anxious. He had awful eczema too them bam- went gluten free and it was like a switch was flicked- energy back, eczema still there but not close to what it was, stomach much better.

even if gluten isn’t the issue look into auto immune diseases- before we figured out gluten was the culprit a doctor at the hospital said there’s a lot of stomach issues being misdiagnosed and there’s countries such as Germany finding autoimmune diseases linked to the gut. Best of luck op, I hope ye figure it out x

Plastictrees · 23/12/2024 14:58

sadscotmama · 23/12/2024 13:26

Thanks for all the advice. We had to go to out of hours as DD was in severe pain for hours and nothing helped.

The doctor was brutal and was more concerned about us wasting time as DD looked fine. She said I come across as an anxious parent and that's what is possibly contributing to DD's poor health.

I'm just dumbfounded. She said I need to be careful I don't get labelled as a hypochondriac as if it's out in medical notes " no doctor will take me seriously."

Prior to this DD had rarely been seen by any medical staff.

So sorry you experienced this OP, that doctor was seriously out of order.

What is your family set up like, do you have any other children?

Have there been any significant changes/stresses recently?

endofthelinefinally · 23/12/2024 14:49

I would stop the ibuprofen immediately as it causes stomach pain and damage if taken for more than 3 days if you are not giving medication to protect the stomach.
I would also stop the screen time because if it is migraine the screens will be aggravating it.
Look up abdominal migraine.
Look up adenitis.
As pp have said, consider hormonal changes as this can cause headaches too.
Vit D deficiency is another consideration.
What colour and consistency are her stools? It is really important to check this if she has been taking ibuprofen for more than a few days because it can cause gastric bleeding, which in turn causes anaemia.

SummerHouse · 23/12/2024 14:38

Migraine seems like the most likely especially as her Dad had them. Where I am, the GP couldn't prescribe for migraine so we were referred to the hospital and got sumatriptan nasal spray, although DSs episodes were monthly rather than daily. He also had stomach pain from about age 9 (migraine didn't start till he was 11). For the stomach pain, Gaviscon worked like magic but they didn't want him on that longer than a month and he eventually got omeprazole which sorted it.

Don't ever feel you are wasting their time. The Dr you encountered I think is thankfully rare. They are clearly in the wrong job. It's a desperate situation you are in and I hope you get the answers you need.

Prrrerr · 23/12/2024 14:23

OP@sadscotmama how often are you giving meds and what meds? Neither ibuprofen nor paracetamol should be given on a long term regular basis for a child , both can cause headaches and other symptoms due to medication overuse. Im a bit perplexed about why your GP hasn’t referred you on to paediatrics ,considering she must be missing a significant amount of school, this would normally trigger interventions, has the school attendance officer not been involved?have you ever kept a diary for a couple of weeks of her symptoms, behaviour and medication / food ?

DoYouAlwaysHaveToSayThat · 23/12/2024 14:11

You say she has a lot of headaches - how many hours a day does she look at a tablet or tv?

Hufflemuff · 23/12/2024 13:57

Has she had a stool sample taken? That will test for white cells present in her poo. Higher white cells count indicates diseased colon.

I have ulcerative colitis, but before my stomach got really unbearably painful, my main complaint was headaches. It was probably due to the dehydration and loss of blood via my colon (so slight you can't see).

Original poster
sadscotmama · 23/12/2024 13:29

Pre- puberty

OP posts:
Original poster
sadscotmama · 23/12/2024 13:28

They can't give anymore painkillers to manage pain.

She is going through ore- puberty. I'm wondering if this is causing her ill health.

Does anyone have experience of this?

OP posts:
Original poster
sadscotmama · 23/12/2024 13:26

Thanks for all the advice. We had to go to out of hours as DD was in severe pain for hours and nothing helped.

The doctor was brutal and was more concerned about us wasting time as DD looked fine. She said I come across as an anxious parent and that's what is possibly contributing to DD's poor health.

I'm just dumbfounded. She said I need to be careful I don't get labelled as a hypochondriac as if it's out in medical notes " no doctor will take me seriously."

Prior to this DD had rarely been seen by any medical staff.

OP posts:
quarterofanonion · 21/12/2024 13:29

Just to add please read up on Long Covid, POTS, MCAS etc as this could all be part of what you're seeing. The NHS is not set up for any of it and is often not interested/disbelieving in post infection illness and very frequently will decide it is psychological.
An initial thing that can help with the stomach pain is antihistamines.
Lots of information on the Long Covid Kids website.

quarterofanonion · 21/12/2024 13:16

I would also look in to whether it is Long Covid and consider posting in the Long Covid Kids Facebook group as well

mumoftwo1981 · 21/12/2024 13:12

With b12, you will not get an accurate result if you have had supplements for maybe 4 months beforehand xx

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