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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

To ask you to help me diagnose my daughter before I take her to the GP?

138 replies

BonjourMonsieur · 18/10/2022 21:54

Before I get flamed… I’ve taken DD to the GP about the same issue multiple time’s and we’re getting nowhere with it. Im going back on Thursday with her and need some ideas of what could be causing these symptoms so I can push to have it investigated further.

Since December last year, DD has been suffering from persistent nausea. It started around the time of an increase in Covid cases and lots of isolations happening amongst her friends. We initially though it might be anxiety. Fast forward to now and it’s still going on. The main issue is nausea after eating and nausea preventing her eating her full meal. She has a small appetite now and seems worried to eat sometimes incase she feels sick. But on occasions where she doesn’t seem worried to eat, she’ll eat some and then the nausea will kick in. This was very problematic at the start because it would result in her spending half an hour with her head over the toilet. We gave suggestions like “try going to the toilet” or “let’s get some fresh air” and we’d take her outside to the garden to try and almost distract her out of it. She now believes that both of these things help, to an extent.

So she’ll only have a small breakfast, because otherwise she’ll feel sick and won’t be able to brush her teeth and then will be late for school etc. There are all these scenarios that she’s dealing with daily to try to mitigate it. And she shouldn’t have to. There have been time’s we’ve been about to go for a day out, to a place of DD’s choosing and then the sickness will come on after breakfast/lunch and she’ll say she can’t go. I know for 100% that she isn’t faking this in any way.

I’ve also noticed, on the odd occasion she forgets to flush the toilet, her stool is lighter in colour than I would expect.

So far, the doctor had put it down to anxiety. We’ve also been advised to give a daily actimel which we do. She says at school she goes to the toilet immediately after eating lunch and then straight outside to play (fresh air) and that stops it from getting too bad at school.

Can anyone help? What could be causing this? 😢

OP posts:
PickAnyName · 18/10/2022 22:26

Insist on blood tests. Heliobacter pylori can be linked to ulcers. Ask for a referral to a gastroenterologist.

RebeccaNoodles · 18/10/2022 22:27

Sorry to hear about your DD. I'd ask to see a different GP and also, if you can, ask to book a double appointment. It means you're more like to actually get somewhere rather than being rushed.

MooseBreath · 18/10/2022 22:32

I had this as preteen (from 10 years old). Never found out what it was, but in my late teens was diagnosed with Generalized Anxiety and Panic Disorder. The nausea after eating slowly morphed into being very conscious of my breathing, which then morphed into full-blown panic attacks. Mine is managed with medication, as it is a serotonin imbalance and wasn't caused by any particular trauma.

If she's finding going outside or to the toilet helps, it may be that she's creating coping mechanisms. I used to use a heating pad and that was my way to cope. Caffeinated drinks like tea and Coke always made it worse for me.

I would say to rule out things like coeliac and gastroenteritis though!

Northernlass13 · 18/10/2022 22:34

Aww bless her! Hope she’s ok!
sounds like she could have celiac disease! (I am too!)

it’s hard at her age to test as in order to get a true result, she’ll need to keep eating food which contains gluten.
they can do a blood test which would be followed by a camera down the throat. (You can have false negatives so it’s best to have both bloods and camera) but... she’s so young, they might not test her.
hope you manage to get some answers
xxx

Amarette · 18/10/2022 22:40

My money is on coeliac or gastritis. She needs full bloods done and I would suggest a trial of a PPI to see if that helps.

You can buy a home test for H.pylori. Just need a stoop sample and then it's a quick test like a covid LFT.

Tomnooktoldmeto · 18/10/2022 22:45

She does sound like my DD before coeliac diagnosis, are her poo’s smelly and floating? My only other thought is if she’s had lots of antibiotics she could have a gut flora imbalance and need a reboot with good quality pre and pro biotics (we use optibac)

Original poster
BonjourMonsieur · 18/10/2022 22:47

@Tomnooktoldmeto yes to both!

OP posts:
Ireolu · 18/10/2022 22:53

Get a referral OP! Bloods and a stool sample for h pylori. It's been going on for 10 months that's too long to leave you with no answers or treatment for a child

dontknowwhatisbest · 18/10/2022 22:55

Does she have any abdominal pain?

Something else to add to the list could be Chrohn's.

Haggisfish3 · 18/10/2022 22:56

My dd has this. She has acid reflux which causes all of these symptoms. If she takes omeorazole it helps hugely. She also had hiccups in the uterus which I think was a very early indicator .

Sandcastlesinthesky · 18/10/2022 22:59

Could have written this about my 8 nearly 9 year old. We’re on omeprazole for acid reflux but she’s just had bloods done to check for coeliac disease. Not got them back yet

UmbilicusProfundus · 18/10/2022 23:04

If not gastro, then maybe push for referral to general paediatrics. I think the waiting lists are shorter. And they have more generalist knowledge (as others have said it could be gynae, anxiety etc etc)

Scaredycat259 · 18/10/2022 23:05

Could be H Pylori, I had that at around 13, it was horrendous, took months to be diagnosed, mum took to me to a different gp at the same surgery, he diagnosed straightaway and I was given some antibiotics for a month.

KeepYaHeadUp · 18/10/2022 23:06

My 8 year old DS has the same issue. Not as long as 10 months but it's been weeks since he had a couple of vomiting bugs. The GP did some basic checks and all looked ok and this seemed to reassure him (and us) and he's started eating more but he's still not quite right. I'm following this with interest as we've put it down to anxiety and I'm just not quite convinced.

Houseplantmad · 18/10/2022 23:11

DD had Helicobacter pylori - stomach pain but it can also cause nausea. Diagnosed via poo sample and treated with strong antibiotics. DD had it for years before correct diagnosis.
I hope you get her sorted soon.

kateandme · 18/10/2022 23:16

Have you looked up emetophobia
www.turnaroundanxiety.com/is-emetophobia-an-eating-disorder/

UmbilicusProfundus · 18/10/2022 23:18

kateandme · 18/10/2022 23:16

The whole of bloody Mumsnet knows about emetophobia

kateandme · 18/10/2022 23:19

Particularly you saying it started after sweet foods and feeling sick and is worse now over sweet foods. The associated link is there.
mif itvis this it’s very serious.don’t let anyone tell you it’s not and get help immediately as it’s harder to treat the longer it’s ingrained.

kateandme · 18/10/2022 23:19

UmbilicusProfundus · 18/10/2022 23:18

The whole of bloody Mumsnet knows about emetophobia

Show quote history

What did I say wrong?

justasking111 · 18/10/2022 23:24

Deffo collect a poop sample, Also she'll need bloods. I'd insist on a referral at this point

Neolara · 18/10/2022 23:25

My dd has this. She feels nauseous after eating. It's been going on a few months and started with covid. She's been tested for celiacs which came back negative. Definitely not anxiety. GP was a.bit mystified.

Mannymoomin · 18/10/2022 23:32

Hope you find out soon OP and your DD gets better.

Another suggestion here to get her tested for H.pylori

Scurryfunge12 · 18/10/2022 23:42

To me, it does sound like anxiety. This happened to me where I avoided eating because it made me feel sick, but then ended up feeling sick because I was so hungry, then not eating because of the nausea. Like a vicious cycle.

The fact that it began at a time covid was prevelent might also suggest that it’s anxiety induced but it could also be long lasting effects of some illness so I would definitely get tests to rule out anything sinister.

I’d suggest trying to eat little and often to see if she gradually gets more of an appetite without realising.

UmbilicusProfundus · 18/10/2022 23:42

@kateandme sorry, it was meant more as a wry comment than a criticism. Just I see emetophobia mentioned on MN so often, but never seen it anywhere else!

DixonD · 18/10/2022 23:42

I had this in my early to late teenage years. Every symptom you described, I had it. I was too scared to eat. Felt sick almost all day. I felt sick EVERY day. I suffered for six years.

The GP didn’t know what it was but I knew they thought it was in my head. They prescribed antacids. They didn’t work.

One day, when I was 16, I decided I’d had enough of worrying about feeling sick and I piled my plate with food. I ate it all. After that day, I never had it again. It turns out it was in my head and I know now, looking back, it stemmed from my mother’s anxieties about us having to eat all of our dinner otherwise she would accuse us of being sick. I had no idea what causes it at the time, but it’s obvious looking back. The day it started I didn’t want my breakfast and I was scared to not eat it. After that it stayed for 6 years until the day I had the binge.

I lost three stone during this time.

I’m not saying this is what is wrong with your daughter, but don’t dismiss the possibility that it very well could be anxiety.