Anorexia Recovery - Digestive distress - HELP!
Posted , 2 users are following.
Hi there
Im new to the site and am looking for any info please if possible?
Ive recently started a new recovery plan and into week 4 of eating and doing well with Refeeding.
But I hit week 4 and BANG - my stomach won't empty quick enough, apparently its normal part of recovery ??
Anyway after asking my ED team and my GP what can I do / take to alleviate this awful nausea, discomfort and fullness/sloshing feeling - I am at a loss as to what to do.
My GP told me to talk to my ED team and vise versa. I cant take motilium /maxalon or any pro-kinetic stomach emptying meds (as Im on lexapro for anxiety).
So I am at a loss. Is there ANYONE here PLEASE who can help? Im feeling so so rotten and even when my stomach DOES empty (and bowel etc) I feel so sick.
I will PAY someone for help I feel so bad.(joking - im broke on top of everything else).
Again thanks for reading and please if ANYONE knows anything??
0 likes, 3 replies
katlouise1989 wil87982
Posted
Hi Wil,
Sorry to hear about your struggles, but great to hear that you're getting support. I'm afraid I'm not a medical professional (nor is anyone on here) but I am qualified by experience. Are you under a dietitian as part of your treatment team, they would be best placed to help. I don't really know enough about your meal plan, what you were or weren't eating before, how long this was for and so on. These are questions for them.
I know it sounds weird, but is your discomfort in your stomach i.e. on the left hand side under your heart or your abdomen? People describe abdominal discomfort but call that the stomach (which it isn't). The reason I ask is that stomach pain could be the result of adjusting to an increased amount of food and also tolerating having these new nutrients which affect the pH balance. Abdominal pain usually concerns bloating and that is something that with an ED you need to learn to tolerate. Some foods cause more bloating than others as do factors like time of the month (not sure of your gender, so this might not be an issue for you!). To deal with this, drink plenty of water and eat fibrous foods in your meal plan. Your clinicians are correct in a sense that when your body senses danger your organs shut down to conserve energy. As it starts to recognise that the danger is passing it starts to wake up again, and people describe things like picking up more flu bugs in recovery than when they were ill, as well as other things. It is normal.
Without a medical degree I can't really add any more, but I would definitely speak to your dietitian. If you haven't got one, (that's ridiculous if you don't!) demand one. It's pretty essential. Your GP should be regularly monitoring your vitals as well as getting blood tests done.
Hope this helps.
wil87982 katlouise1989
Posted
Still dont have a dietician (I know its crazy) - my team consist of a therapist and psychiatrist and some input from my GP.
Its definitely the stomach that is slow to empty although i do get lower abdominal discomfort too but the nausea, fullness etc is stomach based and affects me from throat-down....
I never (thankfully) completely stopped eating so increasing intake has been relatively okay up to this setback.
I just feel that with the commitment I made to myself to get well and the commitment they clinic made to support me, I feel SO let down and even as I write I am in discomfort. (Im a guy btw).
Thats interesting what you mentioned about picking up more flu bugs etc in recovery - Id never heard of it before - is that a thing? Great.....!
Waiting on blood tests but last ones all came back good.
Thanks again for the reply - just to know there is someone out there. I really appreciate it.
W
katlouise1989 wil87982
Posted
Heya - glad I could help. I'm absolutely delighted to hear how committed you are to recovery. Putting everything in to it will really help. One thing I did was to get myself involved in volunteering as that can be incredibly empowering and help on difficult days. There will be difficult days along the path, and times that you want to give up, but it's important to keep fighting through those days because you can come out the other side and trust me, recovery is so worth it. Here to chat on here if you want to PM me at any point.
Your stomach does sound a bit like acid imbalance, I'm afraid my knowledge doesn't really extend beyond this. Is there a dietitian attached to your eating disorder service? If not, you could ask for a referral to a community dietitian. They wouldn't be an ED specialist, but it's definitely better than having nothing. I've never understood why dietitians aren't included a mandatory inclusion as part of treatment packages, yours isn't the only case I've heard about. To me it's pretty essential having someone to manage your dietry needs when recovering from an ED (not just anorexia, but for all conditions) and also being able to reassure you when your body does strange things. I'd really fight for this.