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Help! Does anyone else suffer from these symptoms

Posted , 1 user is following.

jane29413
jane29413

I would love to know if there ‘s anyone else who shares the same or similar symptoms to me. 

I’ve been googling my symptoms and tying myself up in knots, also when I go to my GP, I feel as if they focus on just one symptom.

I feel as if  I have some sort of “ syndrome” or illness and each time it flares up it adds another new symptom  to the list and I’m really getting fed up and very scared. 

I think all of us fear cancer more than anything and we’re all terrified that something might be missed or we ourselves don’t place enough importance on something that does turn out to be really significant. 

However, at the risk of sounding like a complete crank I will continue with my story in the hope that it might “ring a bell” with someone else.

This all started in December 2017 when:- 

Firstly, I started to get get vague feelings of chest pain/ heartburn which definitely seemed to heighten when I was feeling stressed.

Secondly, I cracked my tooth and had to have it taken out which caused me even more stress and to compound issues I ended up with an abscess and a dry socket so had to have loads of antibiotics.

I also took lots of painkillers including Ibuprofen. 

Not sure if the Ibrofen damaged my gastric tract or whether it was a Metronidazole tablet getting stuck in my throat but I ended up feeling seriously ill, waking up in the middle of the night back in January with terrific palpitations just like my sternum was throbbing, severe heartburn and chest pain, left shoulder and arm pain, a vague all over rash and generally feeling very shaky. Also, I was absolutely freezing cold despite lots of clothes, and our house being like the insides of a furnace!! I also developed  hatred for a cup of tea which has been my favourite thing forever in my life!! Weird!! 

I went to A&E and had blood tests and an ECG which were normal.

The Doctors diagnosed gastritis and I started on Omeprazole.

I immediately put myself on a strict eating regime eating fruits, vegetables and avoiding all caffeine and fizzy drinks. These symptoms continued for a while but gradually subsided. 

An endoscopy showed a Helicobacter Pylori infection and I was commenced on the triple therapy. Gradually all my “gastric” symptoms subsided but throughout all of this I felt my mouth hasn’t felt quite right.

I’d have spells of a really dry mouth on the left side and for about two months I had a salty taste just on that one side. I returned to my Dentist  back in April and I’ve been referred to a specialist ( appt July 4th —-3 month wait!!) 

The salty taste has stopped but the dry mouth remains.

Then about 3 weeks ago I started to get a very hot and painful neck on the left side and now a really hot burning sensation ( just like sunburn) in my left arm muscle. Again, the sternal throbbing and chest pains have returned. 

Could this be Sjodrens syndrome?? 

Is this all part of GERD/GORD? 

Does anyone else have anything like this? 

Please let me know and sorry about the long windedness of this!! 

Kind regards

Jane 

0 likes, 2 replies

2 Replies

  • aitarg35939
    aitarg35939 jane29413

    Posted

    The arm involvement doesn't sound like any GERD of mine or anyone I know, but neither I nor anyone else here is a doc.

    You've been through a lot in 6 months. It is completely normal to fear cancer when you have new medical problems. We all do that. Most likely you feared a heart attack the night you went to A&E. If so, that was the 100% correct fear to have, Jane. The palpitations & the arm pain sound like different problems maybe from Sjogren's. I've got a congenital defect that sometimes makes my heart go nuts & get stuck at 188 ,,, for 30-45 minutes til we get it unstuck. There are 7 or 8 kinds of palpitations, some extremely serious all the time & others more benign, like mine. Tho please note: I call my electrophysiologist every single time my heart gets stuck for 10 or 15 minutes above 130, while also beginning the maneuvers that can bring that rate down. If yours continue, you'll need to use the monitors to figure out what kind of palpitations they are. Sometimes they find out with the first heart monitor & sometimes it take 5 months & 4 different kinds of monitors to DX. The arm, I don't know. Maybe they'll scan it.

    If your July 4th appointment doesn't help, or if it gets so you cannot stand it, at least ask for an xray for your neck. If that shows nothing, ask for PT. I have a lot of spots of chronic pain in my body. It so happens that all of my cervical discs have terrible arthritis on the left & equally awful spurs on the right. But what I experience when my Tylenol or ibuprofen wears off is heat on the left side of my neck. I have to medicate w/OTC around the clock for this problem & periodically I get physical therapy. We don't know why I experience the arthritis pain on the left side of my neck as heat & burning, but I do. No where else in my body do I feel pain as heat. But note: I had exrays and then an MRI to detect the problem. At some point they checked the carotid arteries to make sure that they weren't causing the problem.

    It is hard chasing the symptoms. With your mouth, you've been through so much in a short time. I hope that those symptoms will subside as you recover from all this. If they don't, you may be sent to a rheumatologist & tested for Sjogren's. In the meantime take care of your mouth as dryness is the enemy of good oral health.

    Taking meds but especially ibuprofen & tylenol/paracetamol: don't take on an empty stomach. We need some non-acidic food or milk of any source with these. Take more than a sip of whatever the non-acidic drink is for the sake of your system with the ibuprofen. With Tylenol/paracetamol, always drink at least 6 oz of water to help flush it thru the liver.

    Good luck. Sorry that I can't give you a definite yes or no answer. Maybe someone else has had these exact symptoms & will pop up here.

  • jane29413
    jane29413

    Posted

    Hi aitarg35939,

    Thank you so much for taking the time to reply to me.

    Firstly, I hope you’re feeling completely well at the moment because it sounds as if you have health issues to deal with yourself and I imagine no matter how many times your heart starts racing way over 130 for even the shortest of times it is extremely unnerving.   When I’ve had add the “sternal throbbing”   I tend to take my pulse and it’s never over 100, but saying that, my normal pulse is always around 60 so I appreciate how fast 188 must feel. 

    I saw a different Doctor a couple of weeks ago who focussed on my left shoulder pain and she referred me to a Gynaecologist because she said this was sometimes an indication of problems in that area. I must say that I felt  so grateful for being listened to and she was being proactive. Of course I’m worried that they’ll find something but I need to stay calm for the sake of all my famil

    I’m interested to hear that your neck pain manifests as a “heat” which is really unusual isn’t it. I’m taking paracetamol if I need a painkiller as I’m afraid to take Ibuprofen now in case it exacerbates my gastritis but I always took it with milk or with food, never on an empty stomach however I do blame it and the Metronidazole for causing my problems.

    Good health to you and thank you once again for your reply, I really appreciated it. 

    Kind regards

    Jane 

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