What’s wrong with me, hospital clueless

This could be caude equine syndrome. It is extremely rare but is caused by compression of nerves from your back that lead to your bladder and bowel. It is usually associated with back problems and herniated disks. It is regarded as serious and NHS staff need to perform tests immediately to diagnose this and prevent permanent nerve damage.

Makes me wonder if it was a man pain the surgical team would be dealing with this differently.

I get pain like this with endometriosis depending on the time of the month. It won’t show on a TV scan unless something like your ovaries are stuck to something. My endometriosis only started after I had my baby. Def refuse to leave until they’ve found out the pain. Hope you’re ok

I have never heard of this but I really hope she did it!

I guess you have a kindney stone. That's very painful.

@MooseJuice before you wrote all that you should have RTFT.
OP has been discharged.

Grok says this:-

Most likely possibilities (not exhaustive)
Renal colic / small or passed ureteric kidney stone (very common match)
Classic for sudden, excruciating flank pain radiating to back (sometimes groin/shoulder if severe irritation). Pain can feel colicky/"twisting." Acute pain or morphine itself often causes temporary urinary retention. Standard gold-standard imaging is non-contrast CT KUB—your "CT with dye" (IV contrast) is excellent for other abdominal issues but can miss small/non-obstructing stones or ones that have recently passed. No fever fits (stones aren't always infected). Many cases resolve spontaneously once the stone passes.
Next steps to ask for: Urine dip/microscopy (for blood/crystals—even if dipstick was done), renal ultrasound (quick, no radiation, detects hydronephrosis), or repeat non-contrast CT if pain persists.
Biliary colic or gallbladder issue (e.g., stone/sludge or acalculous cholecystitis)
Right-sided pain radiating to back and right shoulder tip is textbook (Kehr's sign from gallbladder irritation of the diaphragm). Can be triggered suddenly and feel twisting/colicky. Your post-evening-meal diarrhoea could hint at fat-related biliary dysfunction. Contrast CT can miss early/mild cases without obvious stones or wall thickening.
Next steps: Dedicated right upper quadrant ultrasound (far better than CT for gallstones/sludge—cheap, quick). Liver function bloods if not already repeated.
Ruptured ovarian cyst or endometriosis flare/deep infiltrating endo (especially with your laparoscopy history)
Sudden severe pain + peritoneal irritation (shoulder tip) fits a cyst rupture; fluid/blood can irritate the diaphragm but often absorbs quickly, leaving normal TVUS/CT. Bladder or deep pelvic endo can cause urinary retention and "twisting" pelvic pain flares (even postpartum). Gynae scans miss deep endo without laparoscopy.
Next steps: Urology/gynae review for cystoscopy or consider diagnostic laparoscopy if history suggests endo. Repeat pelvic US in a few days.
Less common but worth ruling out (given normal CT)
Early/mild appendicitis or other bowel issue (CT is good but can miss very early cases).
Postpartum ovarian vein thrombosis (right-sided common; contrast CT usually shows it but can be subtle).
Rare things like renal infarction or referred musculoskeletal/spinal (e.g., postpartum-related strain + pain-induced retention), though shoulder radiation makes these less likely.
Urinary retention was likely from the extreme pain/spasm or morphine—good it's resolving with bladder scan confirmation. No temperature/low HR is reassuring against major infection/sepsis.The gynae consultant's attitude sounds unhelpful—advocate for yourself. Ask the surgical team (when they come): "What exactly was ruled out? Why not renal/gallbladder ultrasound? Can I have urology input or non-contrast imaging?" Mention your endo history and post-meal symptoms. Request better analgesia (you were on oramorph/codeine before) and a clear follow-up plan if discharged (e.g., outpatient urology/gastro, urine tests, pain management).Plenty of people on forums (including that Mumsnet thread) report similar "mysterious" episodes that turned out to be a stone that passed, a cyst that ruptured, or biliary issues—often after pushing for the right scan. You're not alone, and it's valid to be scared with a 6-month-old and toddler at home.Please update the thread or speak to your team immediately if pain worsens, you get fever/vomiting/new symptoms, or they try to discharge prematurely. Get a friend/family to help advocate if needed. This isn't something to "wait and see" at home without answers. Take care—hoping they get to the bottom of it quickly so you can get home to your little ones.

This may sound daft. But I know from personal experience that liver problems can cause pain in the shoulder..I've had three liver biopsies and always been warned this before. I don't know if your liver is also creating the gut pains. Like I said..maybe daft.

Haven’t RTFT but blood clots stick out immediately - I had shoulder tip radiating pain and had multiple blood clots in my lungs. Please ask if they’ve done a D-Dimer (blood test). Mine were small and missed on CT but caught on VQ scan.

Kidney stones or appendicitis? Check WBC count and if high, consider uti or kidney infection. Ovarian torsion another possibility

Kidney stones or appendicitis? Check WBC count and if high, consider uti or kidney infection. Ovarian torsion another possibility

Discitis?

You have more confidence in medics than me. It took 5 years of arguing, complaints, genuinely making a nuisance of myself and repeated visits to ED before they would even start to look at what might be going on with my learning disabled son.

The NHS works well if there is a clear pathway or protocol for what is going on. If there isn’t good luck.

So they do this to nurses too? Which area do you work in? Is it because you’re not an and e nurse or something that made them dismiss your nursing experience? Like I’m just trying to understand why this is happening everywhere?! I’ve had an awful time with this lately and I’m so sick of it.

Also: At age 42 I had a history of random sudden pain (often associated with coffee or wine, but not always) in upper abdomen, radiating to centre of back. This had been happening for roughly 10 years. I had cat scans, lab work, etc nothing showed anything. Finally, I told my GP that I was pretty sure it was my gallbladder (I'm an RN and even though I am dark haired and normal weight--so not the 'fat, fair and 40' I knew that my symptoms most closely matched gallbladder disease). She ridiculed me saying 'we've tested for that, and you are wrong.' I saw another doctor and insisted on more tests (This was really getting old after 10 years). Finally, I had a HIDA scan (radioactive) done, and guess what? My gallbladder was literally rotting. Had it removed and problem solved.

appalling that you are being sent home still in such pain and with no diagnosis. I would get in contact with PALS to complain and if you need to call an ambulance again do. How the hell would you know whether it was life threatening.

Sorry to hear about your pain. It's difficult to know what to say other than I wouldn't pay too much attention to the "mum's net college of medicine" diagnoses. The doctor's will have done their best to find out what the problem is and you can always ask for a second opinion. There will be various consultants on duty or standby. Bon courage

Not had similar but do not go home! Stand your ground. I had meningitis a few months ago, went to A&E and told multiple people o think it might be meningitis….doctor tried to send me home saying it was anxiety and stress. I am a nurse aswell, which I told them and they still didn’t consider what I was telling them

Did they check for kidney stones?

Sorry. I haven't RTFT, but I immediately thought kidney stone. Absolutely excruciating pain. Really hope you get some answers soon x

Sorry. I haven't RTFT, but I immediately thought kidney stone. Absolutely excruciating pain. Really hope you get some answers soon x

Could be kidney stone, worst pain ever. Peoole pass out front it. Ask for an ultrasound, this would also pick up other potential causes. You couldn't possibly be pregnant could you? I know you said you have a 6 month old, but it is possible (have they ruled out ectopic). Hope you get to the bottom of it.

It can be trapped nerve hun. It can be painful and explain radiation and twisting feeling. Doctors can be clueless sometimes. I would ask for a blood test to see if your calcium levels are low. Muscles do struggle to react if your calcium levels are low and as a result trapped nerves.

Probably sounds like a weird suggestion but could it be severe trapped wind? After my second c-section I also had excruciating back and shoulder pain, as did the woman in the bed next to me, and that’s what it was in both cases! Appreciate you’re 6 months pp so not exactly the same scenario, but it could be something similar? Drinking a lot of peppermint tea helped me to relieve it

How would you know if it was life threatening, they don't even know what it is, so they can't even say that. Do you have any other hospitals near by? Just if you go home and obviously its not going to go away, I wouldnt fancy going back to that hospital after being treated that way. I hope you find out what is going on soon