To be considering going to A&E?

[leopardprintlover88]

Woke up at 4am this morning with pain high in the middle of my stomach. Thought maybe trapped wind, took buscopan and windeeze , went to loo twice and no better.
I've not eaten all day cos of this pain. It's like an intense stitch or wind type pain?
I don't know if I should go to a&e or if I should just wait. It's probably a 6 on the pain scale, I can walk around kind of but it's always there. It's about here (see photo)
I don't know what to do.

@hedgehoglurker that makes more sense if it's not a painkiller as such, I was expecting it to help after one dose. I've got to take another this evening x

My gp advised me not to take my son to A&E, I left the gp surgery and drove straight there, he was in hospital for 8 days and had a serious operation for an abscess… good job I didn’t ‘call back in a few days if I was still worried’

Moral of the story, follow your gut.

Yes you need to avoid ibuprofen and aspirin if you possibly have an ulcer.
Stick to paracetamol

Well it could be quite a lot of things! I would ask to be examined by the GP ideally as an emergency tomorrow, of it really does worsen then go to A and E.

It’s shit that the NHS is so underfunded and under staffed that you have to worry about this Op. If things were sane atm I’d say go in without a second thought. Andominal pain can be nothing (indigestion, trapped wind etc) or it can be one of several life threatening emergencies. I had appendicitis as an adult and it felt like a stitch or a period cramp that never unclenched and just got progressively more painful over a period of about 4 hours. I described it as a 6 on the pain scale on arrival at hospital and when I said the pain had gone up to 7 they gave me intravenous paracetamol. (Synctocin induced contractions were a 10 though). Keep on eye on your symptoms OP. If you develop a fever then definitely go in.

You don't think it sounds like appendicitis do you? I'm such a baby with medical things. I'm feeling quite scared

It's a proton pump inhibitor which will reduce acid secretion in your stomach and so should improve either gastritis or an ulcer if that's what you have. Obviously no diagnosis made yet.

I don't recall eating much fat. I've felt a bit nauseous for a few days so I haven't eaten much. The last thing I ate was some lasagne about 5pm last night x

@leopardprintlover88
Yes, it really does hurt. I've had ulcers three times. Take the prescription as advised, possibly some gaviscon too if it helps.

Definitely paracetamol is much safer than ibuprofen and should help ease the pain.

It should gradually start getting better with the lansoprazole. It definitely helped me.

Your gp sounds like they are taking care of you well.

This sounds a lot like it could be gallstones. I speak from my own experience. A gallbladder attack can be very, very painful and the pain is often very much in the location you describe. If it is gallstones, the pain will usually subside on its own as suddenly as it started, but attacks can recur. If the pain hasn't eased by this evening I think I would call 111 and see if they advise A&E, and even if it subsides, you might want to make a non-urgent appointment with your GP and about a referral for a gallbladder scan.

The problem is you can't be diagnosed on a forum. It could be a number of things- gastritis , gastric ulcer , gallstones , gallbladder inflammation, atypical appendicitis presentation, pancreatitis and even more serious things. Or may be nothing! Try to get a medical professional/ doctor to examine you and continue with the PPI. A and E if getting worse.

Oh, and although fat is a common trigger for gallbladder attacks, it can be triggered by anything really. I had a shockingly bad attack once when I'd eaten some extremely healthy sushi and a salad!

Not eating much or having an empty stomach and taking ibuprofen won't have helped an ulcer, so they could certainly have intensified your symptoms.

@hedgehoglurker thank you ❤️ when you had them was it constant pain or did it come and go? I'll take some gaviscon and paracetamol now.
I was quite impressed with my GP. I rang up when they opened and she spoke to me at 9.40am x

That's how I feel after taking ibruprofen.

If it gets worse or its stopping you sleep then seek help. Hope it passes soon.

How did people function before MN 🤷🏻‍♀️

@hedgehoglurker I had a light tea about 5pm as I felt a bit nauseous and had a meeting so ate early, then took 2 ibroprofens before bed for some back pain I've been having. I very rarely take them as I used to take them a lot when I was younger but they were the first thing I came across. I took them around 10pm I would say, and then woke up in agony with this pain at 4am. I've been suffering a lot lately with bloating and some kind of acid reflux x

I am always amazed when people can tell posters that they are ok and that they don't need medical advice and examination. Maybe I've been around too many extremely sick or dead people who were 'ok' then suddenly not, but I think it's dangerous.

The OP could have a bit of indigestion, an ulcer, an inflamed gallbladder, the start of pancreatitis, or any number of other conditions. You can't possibly know what it is.

The OP spoke to her GP - that implies she hasn't been examined. So she doesn't know there aren't any worrying signs.

@leopardprintlover88 do you have a tendency to constipation? Is it usual for you to struggle to go? Is the pain getting worse or better? You might need to phone the GP surgery and ask to be examined in person if you just spoke on the phone earlier. I think pain that prevents you from eating needs an in person examination.

@MrsPelligrinoPetrichor really? How long does it last for?

@isitfridayyet22 my mummy 😂

No I'd stick with what your gp has said. Give it time to work. An ulcer isn't going to heal in a day

@10HailMarys my sister had her full gallbladder removed via emergency surgery so it is in our family x

Sounds like gastritis from the ibuprofen. Never take them on an empty stomach or at bedtime.

www.nhs.uk/conditions/gastritis/ Contact your GP, it's not an emergency.

Sounds like gallstones, even the nausea as well and the fact it's sharp central pain. They do say it's more common for 'fair, fat, forty and female ' not that I'm making any assumptions about you!

@Lougle thank you. I have IBS so I vary with constipation and then going 5 times a day.
I'd say the pain has got worse since it started. I just don't know what to do with myself x