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Gastritis and being unable to eat- is this normal?

Posted , 85 users are following.

Emily59389
Emily59389

Towards the end of May I started to lose my appetite and wasn't able to eat as much as normal, I also kept feeling nauseous. I didn't think much of it at the time as I was doing a lot of running and thought it was just the exercise.

it progressively got worse to the point where I felt so sick I wasn't eating. I went to the GP and was told it was gastritis and given omeprazole to take once a day. I have stuck to a plain diet and am only really eating plain rice, homemade veg soup and plain omelette but it doesn't feel like I am getting any better.

My my main symptom is that I feel incredibly full after eating the tiniest amount such as half a banana. I have tried to eat little and often but I feel like the food just sits in my stomach and makes me feel sick. I have now lost 1 stone in 2 weeks and the weight is continuing to drop off me but I can't eat enough to sustain my weight. I've gone from being fit and active to being signed off work and unable to do anything.

Blood tests all came back normal so I'm being referred to a specialist, however in the meantime I feel like my whole life is on hold.

Has anyone else been unable to eat with gastritis? And are there any tips for reducing the uncomfortable feeling of fullness after any food? 

3 likes, 190 replies

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  • pippa58442
    pippa58442 Emily59389

    Edited

    Havw you tried a food diary to see if anything is upsetting your stomach?  Sometimes PPIs can make you feel bloated  Ask your doctor about this.
    • Emily59389
      Emily59389 pippa58442

      Edited

      Not tried a food diary yet but at the moment my diet is pretty restrictive and I can't seem to pinpoint any food in particular that makes it worse. It feels more like the quantity rather than the type as generally I feel better in the morning but get worse throughout the day as I eat little bits and pieces.

    • pippa58442
      pippa58442 Emily59389

      Edited

      Try eating little but often to see if quanity is the problem. A food/symptom diary will help to identify if a particular food type is causing trouble.
    • Emily59389
      Emily59389 pippa58442

      Posted

      That's a good idea I will start doing one as it maybe helpful to take it with me when I see the specialist. Thanks

  • mary27278
    mary27278 Emily59389

    Edited

    Hello Emily...yes I know so well how you feel. I have gone through this and still is. I started March and got better for about a month and a half, and returned in June and still dealing with it.

    I was in bed for weeks, I wanted to get up but I just didn't have the energy to.

    I wake up naseau which makes it very difficult to eat. Food is the last thing I want. But like you I have lost weight also. So what I do is drink ginger tea

    In the morning when I wake, or throughout the day. It helps with the naseau.

    My experience with PPIs has not been so great. They usually make me feel better for the moment but later I suffer the effects, it makes me so weak and decrease appetite even more. They seem to pull all my nutrients out of my body.

    Gastritis can be very frustrating but try not to get stressful because it makes it worse. Also, it tends to bring on anxiety.

    In the meantime try drinking warm ginger, chamomile or squeeze a bit of lemon . I hope this helps you some.

    • Sara223
      Sara223 mary27278

      Edited

      Omg I can't stop crying from the burning pain in my belly!!! I Don't mean to get stressed out, but it's extremely frustrating to deal with. I have severe indigestion too which adds onto the pain, and not to mention my IBS! I am at a loss on what to eat, I've softened almost all my foods, and still my stomach hates me. I took carafate the doctor in the ER prescribed me (the pain is so bad I go to the ER a lot). Can someone help me figure out what are some safe foods for gastritis????

    • craig04397
      craig04397 Sara223

      Edited

      After suffering from gastritis for years I fixed it within 2 weeks by introducing daily oats to my diet in the morning and replacing cows milk with organic oat milk.

    • arunkumar91246
      arunkumar91246 mary27278

      Posted

      Hi Mary, i have this same problem. i feel nausea morning not able to eat much and burping after food. can u pls suggest me what medicine should i need to take to control. Much awaited for your response

    • mary27278
      mary27278 arunkumar91246

      Posted

      Hi For the past month my digestion has been horrible and just starting to ease. When I first started this issue 4 years ago gastritis and gerd ..i found this product and it helped tremendously. So i decided to try it again . Again, it is helping me. I will pm you the product because it my message may not post if i put it on here.

    • amanda45011
      amanda45011 arunkumar91246

      Posted

      Hi how are you doing? Like you i get the nausea most in AM. i eat crackers before I get up and it has helped the nausea My stomach pain is gone, but the nausea, feeling full is still present and occasional neck pain . Im taking a prescription for acid. I watch what I eat , no coffee , no milk .

      I drink teas , salads , vegetables , lean meat but still I wish I had an appetite . Its been going on for a couple of months now. Ive dropped significant weight which is great . I definitely feel stronger than I did a few weeks ago. I have energy to do things but I eat little bit throughout the entire day but I'm rarely actually hunger

    • rebecca29928
      rebecca29928 mary27278

      Posted

      Can you PLEASE tell me the product that has help with your gastritis? I'm suffering big time. I've been to the doctor and he wants me to take Omeprozole. At this point, I'll try anything. I've had it off and on for a long time and normally it subsides, but this started when I was put on Flagyl due to a flare up of diverticulitis.

    • victoria_80
      victoria_80 mary27278

      Edited

      please tell me what it is. ive had this for 2 weeks now and im not getting any better. hospital won't help

    • john60164
      john60164 Sara223

      Posted

      Hi Sarah

      i get very similar pains. it's been a while since you posted, have your symptoms gotten better?🙂

  • eaquin
    eaquin Emily59389

    Posted

    Have you done any tests yet such as an endoscopy to confirm the Gastritis? I was diagnosed last year with Mild Chronic Gastritis after an endoscopy, but I was still able to eat (although I don't know which of my symptoms was the gastritis or my other illness). My PCP also told me she has severe Gastritis, but she eats like a horse. I'm sure everyone's symptoms are different.

    Have you found if burping relieves your full feeling? I also get a full feeling after a few bites and feel sick, and burping usually relieves that, but I'm left feeling like food's just sitting in my stomach. I'm glad you're going to be referred to a specialist. Hopefully they'll do tests and find out what the problem is soon smile

    Also with the weight, do thick liquids also make you feel sick? I suggest drinking calorie dense liquids like ensure or boost compacts for the meantime until you can normally eat again.

    • Emily59389
      Emily59389 eaquin

      Posted

      I've not had any tests yet other than a blood test, hopefully the specialist will investigate further.

      I do end up burping quite a bit but that doesn't seem to make any difference to how I feel. How long did it take for you to feel better?

      Thanks for the drink suggestions. I seem to be ok with liquids and I've had a few homemade smoothies but I've been avoiding milk as I wasn't sure whether that was making things worse. I'll have a look into getting some of those drinks as in the meantime I really want to reduce the rapid weight loss!

    • eaquin
      eaquin Emily59389

      Posted

      If you're worried you might be lactose intolerant, I drink Boost Compact and it's fine for people who have gluten or lactose intolerance (at least in my experience + it says on their website) and among other things.

      I'm actually still in the trying-to-get-better state. I have SMA Syndrome, so I have to gain a lot of weight for me to get better, which I'm slowly trying to achieve, but obviously with the fullness and bloating and nausea, it's hard. I get what you meant in your other post about quantity instead of what the actual food is. If I eat too much, even if it's a normal or even a small sized portion for other people, I get this awful flare up and I feel even sicker and more nauseous than I initially was, and it'll last an hour or more in bad days until the food passes into the other parts of my intestine.

      I honestly don't know what you have because abdominal and stomach symptoms are so broad that it can be anything. Please do updates, though, cause I want to know how it goes =)

    • Emily59389
      Emily59389 eaquin

      Posted

      Thanks for the advice I have ordered some drinks which will hopefully keep the calories up until I m eating normally again.

      Sorry to hear to are still not better, I wish you all the best with your recovery. At the moment my portions are just so tiny e.g 4 spoonfuls of soup and I'm full. If I try and eat any more in one go I feel so uncomfortably full and often I wake up the next day and still feel full.

      Thanks will keep you updated!

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