Why has my dd1 been complaining of feeling unwell, being tearful for last month! HELP

[haychee]

DD1 is 7.
She is usually full of beans and very lively.

Just recently she has not been her usual self.
No temperature.
No sickness.
No diarrhoea.

Complains of tummy ache, particularly after eating (say an hour later).

Can be her usual self, but 80% of the time is quiet/subdued and just not right.

She has an appetite and is eating well.

Has been so nondiscript that i have continued to send her off to school, wondering if she is just trying to get a day off or increased attention.

Im expecting the school to call me today, as she was complaining again this morning, of "i dont feel well". Yesterday apparently she sat with a sick bowl in class.

She isnt usually one to sit about, and its been going on so long now that im beginning to worry. I dont think she is putting it on because shed of got bored of that by now, because i havnt really given her much extra attention, very little actually.

Id feel daft going to drs with her, and say what, she has no tangable symptoms - but she is just not right.

Could it be teeth?? She has 2 big-uns at the back comming through. Hasnt complained about them, but maybe making her feel rundown?

It seems she never complains when she is hungry or her stomach is empty its only after eating. But having said that she said she was troubled with it in the night the other night (apparently she woke me up to tell me but i must have been half asleep cos i cant remember - lol)
The teacher at school has been taking note of the time of when she complains at school, usually mid morning and after lunch. She has sat at school with a sick bowl on a few occassions (has never actually vomited).

But if i asked her just before her meal she will say it hurts.

The other day she didnt want any thing else to eat after dinner for fear of making her tummy bad. This is unheard of, my dc live for their after dinner treats/dessert.

When she is in pain, she can be either grey/green looking or pale. Or quite normal. She can manage to be mobile and will jump on sofas etc like normal, but if i push on her tummy or cuddle her too tight it obviously hurts.

Its just soooo not muscular, im certain of that.
Im worrying now about the nurofen. With its contraindications for stomachs. I think i might take her back sooner rather than later.
And see a different doctor.

Does the wheat allergy appear suddenly like this? I mean i know the day this all started, she was fine previous to that.

sagger
Ive tried rennies.

Not much effect.

She kept asking for one, but ithink she liked the thought of sucking a sweet.

The in bed business - lying down, heartburn, acid reflux? Maybe try gaviscon Haychee. Can't do any harm.

Your right, i will.

I thought rennie did the same thing though?

haven't read through the whole thread but sounds a bit like me ds1 last year. For nearly 6 weeks on and off he would be very bouncy and happy one moment and tearful and lethargic with tummy ache the next.
I ended up at a & e with him one night as it became so bad and thought it must be appendicitis - eventually was diagnosed with mesenteric andonitus (sp?) The Dr told me that they have glands in their stomach which can become inflamed. He eventually got better, I can't remember very much as having 3 children has mangled my brain!
Hope she is feeling better soon

Ive seen a child suffering with this, mesenteric andonitus.
When he had it it was very severe, he was very unwell.
My dds complaint is incredibly mild/subtle and only really complains after eating.

[[http://www.netdoctor.co.uk/ate/menshealth/206004.html mesentericadenitis]

mesentericandenitis

Oh - I remember ds1 symptoms as being quite random, that's why I didn't think he was really ill as he would forget and carry on playing. I don't remember food being part of the problem.

Gavsiscon liquid may relieve it better than a tablet.

Someone else's dd on here had the mesenteric thingy I think.

She has no temperature, hasnt had throughout.

I dont think its this.

And gp did examine her tummy quite thoroughly, im sure (although he is a bit wrong in his diagnosis) he would of felt anything enlarged. She is very petit my dd, skin and bone and lanky. So quite easy to examine.

Hello Haychee, lot's of your DD symptoms match my DD2 symptoms and after a year of investigtions (including for coeliacs) she was finally diagnosed as having abdominal migraines caused by a sensitivity to wheat/glutten. Now we have a diagnoses it's easy to control her symptoms by "tweaking" her diet when the tell tale signs start again and her pain is now easily controlled with over the counter medication.

My DD1 also suffered from mesenteric adenitus(sp) but has grown out of it now.

Im going to get some gaviscon liquid today and see what happens with that.

I will be keeping an eye (as much as possible) on what she is eating and her bowel movements.

I think i will let her go to dance (against drs recommendation) as she was truly devestated about that and im sure its not a pulled muscle as the gp thinks, so cant see what harm it will do.
Quality of life and all that.
Dance class is before tea so she should be ok. Ill tell her very strict dance teacher to let her sit out if she feels she cant manage - but im sure she will.

What hennipenniinapeartree says about abdominal migraine is worth investigating. My DD had this (so severely she was hospitalized on three occasions before we worked out what it was as she would vomit violently for hours) - but her symptoms would come on when hungry or if she had eaten chocolate or ham after 4.00pm or certain preservatives or additives in food at any time of the day - so to see if this is the problem you will need to use a food diary to plot what she eats and what causes more/less/no pain. Once we avoided her triggers she was fine.

Hi all

I today decided to leave out the nurofen, to see if she felt ok without it.
She was school dinners toaday and she had fish and chips and bread.
She apparently complained twice today rather than the usual once to the teacher. She says she was crying but teacher didnt say this.

So it seems the nurofen is helping, but then as its a pain killer/anti inflammatory i suppose it would help. When she was taking it the last 3days she didnt complain as much but still did complain and described the medicine as helping but only a little.

I didnt get the gaviscon yet, but im going to the shop shortly while she is at dance. She seems ever so subdued today since i got her from school, is cuddling up on the sofa. And has said she feels like she wants to be sick.

Ive not seen her poos today cos of school, so i asked her, she says it wasnt normal, it was hurting her, but not hard. And she says it was green! I dont know how accurate she is, so have asked her to let me see over the weekend.

We will see how she manages at dance - she is adament she wants to go.
Ive just asked her about moving about and the pain - she says its worse when she stands still.
Even more conformation that its not muscular.

hayC - Ibuprofen can irritate the lining of the stomach. If you suspect tummy probs, leave out the Nurofen.

Sorry only read half the thread as pressed for time but have you considered migraines? When I was a kid I used to get them in my tummy. Often affect children there apparently.

If migraines, then she wouldnt be having them daily, for the last month i would of thought anyway.
Migraines come on, you suffer then they go and dont last a month surely?

ARRRGHH

Shes point blank refusing the gaviscon!
Freaking right out about it.

Ive offered her £2 and a glass of sparkling water to wash it down.
She still wouldnt do it, so her younger sister had it and got the £2 and the glass of water. Backfired on me though, cos dd2 pronounced how disgusting it was, so dd1 will definitely not have it now!

This sounds very similar to dd2 last year. She complained of tummy ache and it stopped her doing things sometimes and not others and she was actually sick on one occasion. Got fed up of taking her to doctors, tried Nurofen, Zantac and in the end they referred her to consultant. He examined her and proclaimed her 'sensitive to the peristalsis of the bowel'. He said her pains were very real and just give her painkillers if she needs them and lots of tlc if she needed it (that bit wasn't hard!). He said its very common in this age group and some people are just more sensitive to it than others. I agree that its all food/digestion related - she does get a lot of wind due to her being a very fussy eater and not eating enough during the day when she's at school.

haychee - I had migraines on and off for months as a kid. I imagine that tension could manifest itself in the tummy in the same way. Is there definitely nothing she may be stressed about?

Definitely frosty 100%

Haychee - you could be describing DS2 - in fact you are. He has been crying, weepy, saying his tummy is sore all the time. It happens in the morning, and then after dinner. He is always telling the teacher that he has a sore tummy, and one day got himself into such an emotional state that they phoned me. His teacher is doing a diary, to see if there is a prticular day/lesson that is setting it off. We have long chats about things botheirng him - and he comes up with everything. He msisses his friends in Scotland, he doesn't like the school here, he doesn't like living here, he doesn't like reading/maths/singing/pe.He has no one to play with, he hates his brother. You name it, he's given it as a reason. Tonight for example, DS1 is realy bad with this bug. I have been up and down the stairs like a yo-yo chnaging beds, etc. He has it aboth ends and is really not well. So DS2 has deicded his tummy is sore again. he wants a hot water bottle, he wants paracetamol, etc.
I just don't know what's causing it,. or how to deal with it. The not liking living here, adn missing his friends - well I'm the same but I'm afraid there is nothing we can do about it

Your ds2 sounds sad.
My dd is not sad, shes just in pain/uncomfortable mostly mid morning and after lunch and tea. Dd loves school, has lots of friends and thrives in lessons.

I guess your ds will get used to his new environment after a while.
Or it could be something else, but it sounds as though your ds is suffering due to the move and is presenting with tummy pains.