Wish me luck, im going to battle my GP!!

[lisad123]

Been countless times to my GP with stomach pains, bowel problems, feeling sick and full. He keeps telling me its IBS and sending me home with tablets. This has been going on for 3 years!! Im tired and not getting any better. Im going this morning to demand a referral.They have only ever done basic blood tests and one for Coliec's.
This is TMI, but symptoms are:
Pain in bowel and now right side
Back pain (but not like muscle just a ache)
sick feeling
feeling full even when i havent eaten
Yellow and mucus diahorra
tired, oh so tired
bloating (I look about 4-6 pregnant!)
dizzy (not often and might not be linked)
and not feeling like i have finished after going for as poo.

Im so tired of it all, but need to be strong to demand a refferal. Im sure if i went every week they would refer me but I dont have time. I have 2 autistic kids and a dh with cancer, I just have to suck it up, but the pain is getting worse :(

I havent name changed (although considered it) as I dont see why I should be embarassed.

I will demand a referal, i will not take no for an answer!! help me stay strong please MN

Blimey, that sounds nasty! How did you find out about that - is there a blood test?

It's a simple stool test. Poo into a bottle and some poor soul has a look down a microscope. Tmi sorry!

Giardiasis is common in India and USA. Can be self limiting, but can also hang around. Often confused with IBS, pancreatitis and other gastric problems. Can be hard to spot because of the lifecycle of the parasite. Mine was spotted by an alert junior medic who was Indian. My (experienced and very good) GP had never seen case in recent times.

It is cured through very potent antibiotics which made me feel worse, but did the job. The environmental health people get excited about it as they have to track down the source.

I hope you get sorted out soon. It sounds like you have your handful already.

Good luck. .

I agree with giardiasis, but surely you should have an ovarian scan and associated blood test as well?

havent been abroad in 5 years and that was only spain.

Was going to tell you about a colleague I had who thought she had bowel cancer, many similar symptoms to those you describe - turns out she had a MaHOOSive ovarian cyst, the size of an orange, that was blocking her bowel on the RHS. Took a while for them to get around to finding that as well.. Luckily, all well now. :)

Hope your referral brings you a diagnosis that makes sense which leads to it being sorted for you. :)

im wondering if gastro team will scan whole lower half including overies? Other thing is, I went for heart EPS study yesterday after 4 years of racing heart, they can find no reason at all for why my heart rate is always so high :( Im begining to think its all linked

Worth suggesting, lisa!

a family friend had had IBS for years but she started going back to GP as her signs had changed and she was told again and again that it was her IBS, but she pushed and they sent her for a scan. She has Ovian cancer but now it spend too far and theres nothing they can do :(
I do wonder why GP dont err on safe side and order scans :(

Costs, Lisa, costs. :(
That's really awful about your friend, so sorry.

Have you been tested for hyper parathyroidism?

No but cardio did a 24urine collection early on to rule out adrenal tumours so guess it would have shown in that. I'm just fed up. Cardio have been pretty good about trying to discover reason for heart rate stuff but tbh I feel worse with bowel stuff, heart rate I'm used to now!
Thunk I will hold out hope for dec appointment with gastro team

Erm, I was googling similar symptoms earlier today, could you have gallstones?

I doubt it's gallstones as I had them four years ago and they whipped out my gall bladder. Wouldn't wish those on anyone, the pain is worse than labour! but thanks for suggestions.
Anyone know how costly it is to see private gastro doc?

I had what I thought was IBS for the last 4 years and then they started investigating bowel with camera etc and found nothing. Eventually I had a CT scan and have multiple kidney stones which were causing the ibs type pain. One doctor mentioned that parathyroid often presents with pain esp one sided and palpitations.

Lisa, I doubt parathyroid abnormalities would have shown up in a kidney/urine test; but abnormal levels of calcium etc. should have shown up if they tested for them, which they might not have.
Again, worth asking anyway...

Hello again Lisa, I've got my appointment on 4 October but its only for endoscopy - just to recap, I managed to get a referral to a gastroenterologist as I have a sort of private insurance. Anyway, I couldn't understand why I got a letter for an endoscopy when the pain is in my side, back and groin, so I asked for a copy of my GP's letter to consultant. She'd put down that I had a bit of a stomach ache - gastritis. She hadn't mentioned the pain in my back or groin at all. When all this time I've been desperate for a scan, and I could easily have had that on my insurance a month ago, this is what she's done. Marking her card to deal with later, but in the meantime, I plan to go on the 4th with DH and explain it all to consultant before I go in and ask him to reconsider and give me a CT scan instead or even an endoscopic ultrasound (but not all hospitals have that facility - I understand its a really good test as they can view organs outside the stomach through the stomach ifyswim).

A standard consultation is around £150. If you can possibly afford it go for it, but the problem then is that the test are really dear - for example, an endoscopy is £1k - if you google BMI Private healthcare their hospitals publish price lists which are a reasonable indicator.

BTW - I know its the Daily Mail, but have a look at this article - explains a lot?

www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-2034914/GPs-told-ration-cancer-scans-bureaucratic-directive.html

Just wanted to put you in touch with others with similar symptoms on this thread:

www.mumsnet.com/Talk/general_health/1195264-Please-help-so-fed-up-and-been-ill-for-months-is-it-an-ulcer-ibs-gallstones-or-what?pg=1

lisad123

your symptoms are EXACTLY the same as mine!, ive had IBS for years (and kinda got used to my bowel movements and urgency etc..) but since having my daughter by c section 8 mths ago my diarrhoea got worse (similar to what you described), extreme tiredness and pain on right side, i actually cried when the gp pressed it.

one question though: do you ever feel faint/sick when needing the loo?

my blood tests did show levels of inflammation, and i was in hospital for 11days with IV antibiotics and IV steroids. this reduced the inflammation and pain. the docs put me on a low residue diet for the time being which has returned my stools back to normal.

they believe i have one of two things (or possibly both):
crohn's/IBD
or a grumbling appendix??? lol fun in the sun eh?

i would be interested to know how you get on, as im in similar position - as my gp's are rubbish! so hopefully my gastroenterologist will speed things up and i get some sort of diagnosis soon.

also, in terms of the fast heart rate, i had that too - but i think that was linked to my inflammation levels? as they dont seem too worried about it

I had a 'grumbling appendix' that nearly burst as it was confused with IBS for so long. Oddly when they took my appendix out I have been left with...you've guessed it...IBS. Fun!

Hope you get some answers soon.

oh dear... i keep worrying that its gonna burst as it is lol!
what happened for them to finally take it out?

It turned into acute appendicitis (or rather I began displaying all the symptoms of it) and I was rushed into hospital where they removed it within the hour.

Have you tried an elimination diet?
This could well be severe lactose intolerance/diverticulitis. Do you drink a lot of milk/ yoghurt etc?
I had similar problems though not quite as bad and cutting out peanuts!!! and dairy products almost completely cured it.
Good luck and well done for standing up to your gp.

I have tried taking out dairy, wheat, gulten and anything with skin on, none worked. I can can diahorra by having a glass of water

They checked bloods when they though it might be appendictis last year, also been tested for coilecs