Digestive problems,but which? Gallstones?Gastritis?Celiac?IBD? any ideas?

[l4k]

Hello there,
this contains TMI so not for everyone!
Could anyone shed any light on my digestive problem? Been to gp,said stomach is inflammed.So,I'm waiting for an endoscopy and ultrasound to check for gallstones.
But - loads of other stuff going on too;

Have always been constipated but occasional diarrhea started last summer and now I have days of violent diorrhea (how the hell do you spell that word?)every week.I even had an accident in M&S last week!!

The upper abdo pain is fairly recent,7 months or so on and off but much more often since gyne op in November.Have had episodes of agonising upper abdo pain with stabbing in upper back.

I have had blood (and moucus)in stools infrequently for at least 4 years,has always been red but past 4 months or so has been dark and mixed in(sorry,gross)

About 16 months ago went on restrictive diet and lost 3 stone but when I tried to eat any wheat containing foods after that I would get pain and major bad wind(smelly farts like you cannot imagine!!)
I try to eat gluten free now.

If anyone can shed any light ,I will be grateful.Sorry its so long.

Forgot to say,get a bad pain in lower left abdo/pelvic area too.When the pain is there it is tender to the touch.I've had that on and off for fairly long time and docs have always blamed constipation but I'm not constipated anymore and it still happens.

thanks for reading.

Bump in hope!!

Hi 14k
I had very similar problems and fixed mine with taking digestive enzymes.
Hope this is of some help to you.

Could be some sort of inflammatory disease. I would be asking for a referral to a gastroenterologist or the gastro surgeons for investigations - I suspect that when the tests are done they will refer you anyway and it could take a while.

But with your pain/inflammation and blood in stools, plus change in bowel habit, the GP should really be referring you for an appt within 2 weeks IMHO, because those symptoms can be seen in bowel cancer. It sounds much more likely to be something else, but your symptoms would justify a speedy referral, IYKWIM.

tried cutting out wheat? I had similar but not as bad symptoms cured by cutting out wheat. Which is a bloody nuisance, but worth it to me

Thanks for the replies,
I'll look into that,thanks kitty.

moaningminnie,I really like my gp but I was surprised she didn't refer me too.

julia,I've not eaten wheat for a year now the results if I do are not pretty.

It could be a range of things. I had similar symptoms for several years then got a massive biliary colic attack (blocked bile duct with a gall stone) and had gall bladder eventually out only after being misdiagnosed by a GP as having food poisoning. Felt a lot better after the op but some continuing symptoms. Cut out all gluten and lactose and feel a huge amount better but still get bad acid problems if I eat spicey food or drink too much alcohol (ie more than a bottle of wine spread over 2 days).

You need a thorough examination from both ends (endoscopy and colonoscopy) and an ultrasound to detect gall stones. Also ask for your 'bloods' to be done to test for liver function.

Don't let it drag on. Doctors in my experience seem to lose interest if they can't find an imediate obvious cause. My mother had years of hell before she was eventually admitted from A&E for an emergency gall bladder op.

Thanks morebeta,
I did go to see a different gp last year about the pain which was a classic gallbladder attack but she was totally dismissive.
I think my nice gp suspects more than one problem causing the symptoms.I don't know why no bloods though.
I did try cutting lactose but found I was fine with that,it's gluten that makes me very smelly!!

I'm really suffering today.Started having diarrhea this morning(before breakfast) and have just been for the 6th time.Three of them were in tesco where I eventually abandoned my shopping because I was in too much pain to continue.Feel weak and shivery too,just like last week when I had a bad day.Can't link it to anything I've eaten.

Hope I get through school run ok.

Are you in pain anywhere?

Just in the belly, abdominal cramps. Just starting to ease now, it was really bad.I'm going to try and get to two schools and back without any episodes now!!!

TBH that sounds more like IBS, or gluten intolerance than a gall bladder problem but the thing is that a lot of gut/bowel issues present with very similar symptoms.

Whatever it is that is not normal and don't let anyone tell you it is or that its just a bit of a tummy bug.

I had Gallstones and you get what's called Bilary Colic, which can cause all sorts of Gastro/gut probs......if it's gallstones, you normally if you have a bad attack are delusional virtually with the pain, I couldn't walk at all. I used to get the runs often too till I found out it was the dairy etc I was eating....
I would limit the amounts of fat, dairy, gluten and anything with caffeine or alcohol in it for the mo and get GP to give painkillers.

my mum was having similar problems and she recently had an endoscopy. For years she has thought she has just had really bad ibs. Turns out she has pockets in her intestines and foods like corn and nuts are getting trapped in these pockets and thats whats been causing the problems. She was given a list of foods to avoid and within the month practically all her problems have cleared up. Tis just a shame she had to put up with it for years before finally getting an endoscopy. Wait till you get yours and hopefully it will shed some light on the matter.

Hi 14k, i'm just popping in from my UC thread.
I must say i am very surprised that you were not referred within 2 weeks as MoaningMinnie said too! You haven't had bloods taken yet, is that right?
Some of your symptoms sound like UC - blood, diarrhea and pain. I read today that you can be consitpated with UC, which i definitely am - as well as having very loose stools which was a surprise.

You could try taking a look on this website to see if any of the symptoms sound like yours: www.nacc.org.uk/content/ibd.asp. Sorry i can't be of more help - it took, and is still taking ages to get treated via the doctors/hospitals and that was after diagnosing myself with the help of MNers.

If you are in that much pain and can't get through the day without accidents, i would strongly suggest visiting A&E or your doctor. They are duty bound to help you if you stagger in in pain.

I wish you lots of luck, i will keep an eye on your thread but something really needs to happen soon, it's been too long to be like you are.

Thanks you all for your input. Am feeling a lot better this evening but there has to be a reason this keeps happening

Think I'll go back to gp and see about getting referred
I really felt terrible earlier, thanks for your replies it meant a lot to read them.

Just keep pestering them and hopefully they'll do something. I have had problems for over 2 years now with Allergic reactions and Fatigue etc it's taken 2 years to actually get a Doc to listen, so I know how you feel. I now have a lovely Specialist who is see me more often and seems to have some ideas of what it is, so don't give up and don't take no for an answer!

thanks,nannipig-I will keep at them.

I haven't had any more diarrhea since friday,it seems to be a day of horrific diarrhea and pain,3 days of no bm and mild occasional discomfort and 3 days of just loose bm(2-3 xdaily) and mild pain, all mixed up randomly to make a week.Add to that mucous with 70% of bm and blood with 40%.

Still feel worn out from friday, that was exhausting.
Hope everyone else feeling ok.

I have had a sigmoidoscopy at the GP's this morning,he said there was nothing to report.He wanted to refer me for a barium enema but I told him I'd had one 2 years ago and I was in agony for 3 weeks after so I'm not doing that again.
He said go back to regular gp and discuss options such as stool sample.
So,no further forward.
Have endoscopy booked for 20th and still awaiting scan for gallbladder.
I presume the all clear from the sig means no colitis?
Any ideas ?
should I bother going back to gp before the endoscopy?
really sick of it tbh.

hopeful bump!

Hi, I have UC. The pain, diarrhoea, blood and mucous are all very suggestive of Inflammatory bowel disease ( which includes Chron's disease and ulcerative colitis) The sigmoidoscopy result could mean there is nothing to see in that immediate area, but that doesn't rule out a problem higher up. You must see a gastroenterologist, and you must get a diagnosis. The more you see the GP, the more seriously they should take your symptoms. You are probably feeling weak from dehydration, anaemia and from being in pain.
You need a blood test for your Hb, and to test your CRP (measure inflammation in the body) You can also be tested for coeliac.

Please go back to back to your GP. Mine is mostly sorted now with the right medication and close attention to my diet. (Wheat is a big factor with me too, but not really looked into by my drs - they are happy for me to sxclude it if i want to ...) There was a time when I couldn't see past not knowing where a loo was.

HTH.

Thanks,plus3 .I did ring the gp's secretary on friday to see if she wants me to do a stool sample before seeing her again but I didn't hear back from them.
When I have a couple of alright days I'm relieved to forget about it all but then I'll get up the next day and start with diarrhoea before breakfast and it will carry on till tea time usually.It's really painful and knackering.I don't always have blood,that's really random but have mucous more often than not.Also,I get really evil farts sometimes.
And to think,before last summer,I had to take linseeds nearly every day to have 3 bm a week.I have been constipated my entire life,not anymore.

Apparently,I will see a gastro on the 20th when I go for the endoscopy(for stomach pain and because I had pyloric stenosis as a baby) but will I actually have chance to speak with him?

I didn't say,but the barium enema 2 years ago was for chronic constipation and blood in bm.

I can't understand why I haven't had blood tests but they won't be able to test me for celiac anyway because I'm not eating any wheat.(apart from hidden in gravey/soups etc)

Thanks again, I do think I should see a gastroenterologist.

I find GPs so random. My symptoms sounded less severe than yours now, (I wasn't aware of the blood) and they more annoyed that I had self diagnosed myself (incorrectly as coeliac!!) my first appointment with the gastro team was frustrating - they just kept repeating that I had to eat wheat again for a month to diagnose the coeliac disease despite me saying how badly it affected me. My symptoms gt significantly worse, but the actual colonoscopy wasn't that bad.

It's all very horrible and embarrassing but ultimately worth pursuing. Good luck.

Thanks again,plus3.
I suppose I'll end up having a colonoscopy at some point.I wonder if an endoscopy(camera down throat) can show IBD?
I have such a sore tongue,all sore and cracked, at the moment.I bet that will have cleared up by the 20th!
Did you reintroduce gluten for the test? was it hell?

Have you checked the symptoms for ulcerative colitis as that also affects the mouth?