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Hiatus hernia front to back pain

Posted , 48 users are following.

bb123
bb123

What a journey I've been on since 2014 and still going strong. Oiiii!!!

In 2014 I had a colonoscopy/endoscopy and I've been diagnosed with GERD, Gastritis and a

Hiatal Hernia. Been having troubles this past year to current with stomache pains, on/off scapula shoulder pains and now a stabbing that started between my breast bone and went through to my back towards the right side under scapula. (I'm minus a gall bladder too). I had a recent endoscopy and ultrasound of liver & kidneys and they were "unremarkable". Well, the pain is VERY "remarkable". I have no idea if this has anything to do with the scary pain of the day, but I drank a cup of coffee and 30 minutes later laid down in bed and got an intense stabbing pain(like a Charlie horse almost) underneath center breastbone that radiated in my back and 3 inches right of my spine. Could a hiatal hernia do this? Pleurisy? I had a chest X-ray in December 2016 and they found nothing at that time except for winged ribs from arthritis.

4 likes, 44 replies

44 Replies

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  • YudhiR
    YudhiR bb123

    Posted

    bb123, endoscopy can't give a full imagination about the condition of your hiatal hernia (like how large the stomach has passed into thorax, where your stomach is placed right now). You need to ask your doctor to do another test, that is "barium swallow test".

    Maybe your hiatal hernia is large and pinch to another body's organ and cause pain.

  • joanna17875
    joanna17875 bb123

    Posted

    Hi there, what I can tell you from my experience for the last two years is that I have been diagnosed with GERD and also gastristis, which was found out through endoscopy. I do take 30mgs of Lanzoprole each day the over acid production.  What I do know is that the pain from gastritis is absolutely excrutiating!!! I have never experienced pain like it, behind my left shoulder, through the middle of my back, many a night I have lay in bed crying. You an help by keeping your diet very bland, cut out coffee, alcohol, cigs, etc. As for the other tests I am really not sure, hiatus hernias can be very painful, try not too stress as scary as this is. Good luck and all the best.

     

    • lornacsr
      lornacsr joanna17875

      Posted

      Joanna, I can see that your post was ten months ago, but I am hopeful that you will see this.   I am at my wit's end with pain similar to yours.   Seven months of test after test after test.   I have had three CT scans, an MRI, multiple ultrasounds, an endoscopy, and they can't find the problem.   Mine started with this what felt like a very painful "knot" in the mid left side of my back in August.   I was on vacation and woke up with this pain in the middle of the night.   Doctors treated me for "musculoskeletal" problems with physical therapy, etc., for months.   I started keeping a journal and realized the pain comes with eating.   I wake up each morning feeling pretty good, but by the end of the day, after I've had three meals, the pain is excruciating.   Sometimes it only radiates up into my left shoulder, but other times, depending upon what I've eaten, it radiates all over my entire back.   Oh, yes, and I forgot to mention, I have also had a HIDA scan of my gallbladder and an abdominal ultrasound that both show my gallbladder is fine.   

  • christine12299
    christine12299 bb123

    Posted

    Hi. I was diagnosed with a HH 3 years ago although I have had symptoms on and off for many years. I have found my GP very unsympathetic and recently trying me on anti depressants which were awful so I stopped them. 5 weeks ago I experienced extreme pain which went through to my back, like someone was stabbing me with a knife. This went on for a week and made worse after eating. To cut a long story short I paid to see a private consultant who is writing to my GP to ask her to arrange a repeat of tests on the NHS as privately is a 4 figure sum. The pain and discomfort is awful and hard to live with along with shortness of breath at times and a feeling I am going to pass out. I still work which is tough even though office based. I do worry but only because of the severity of the pain, I take liquid morphine at night. This is an awful thing to have and feels like it affects my heart although tests 2 years ago showed no issues and non with my lungs. It's so hard to cope with

    • bb123
      bb123 christine12299

      Posted

      I so appreciate all the replies on this matter. I swear the thing is growing and my GI told me that it would. Tonight when I stand up it feels like it's squeezing me.

      Wonder what this thing presses on to feel like it's coming out my back!

    • chash59
      chash59 bb123

      Posted

      I had an upper GI done, but found no hiatal hernia even though I am in constant discomfort, from chest to back to arms, and throat, Not sure how you feel about chiropractors, but I see one regularly for maintenance. I mentioned my symptoms and said I thought it was an HH. He said he could possibly manipulate it seeing that its your stomach pushing up through into your chest. So I had him adjust it and I got instant relief. The only problem is your LES muscle gets weak and your stomach pushes up a lot. You just have to be careful in what you do to limit the occurrences. I usually see him every three weeks for my adjustments, but get him to too do that as well. I also got him to show my son how to do the adjustment so when I need it at home he can do it as well.

      Not sure if this helps at all but its worth a try for some relief.

       

    • julie44332
      julie44332 bb123

      Posted

      Hi i have hhis squeezing feeling too the doctor won't listen to me

    • Sparks114
      Sparks114 chash59

      Posted

      Hi, is it possible that you have h pylori. A simple test can detect if you have it.
    • Jane1618
      Jane1618 christine12299

      Posted

      Hi,

      I can sympathise as right now I'm suffering in the same way!

      a week ago i started getting pain in my upper abdomen which hasn't eased and i now have bad pain in my back on the right side which hurts when I breathe in , I saw my Dr who reassured me it wasn't a heart problem but gastritis , I have GERD and a HH too!

      I've had sleepless nights with the pain and taking an extra omeprazole doesn't seem to help ! I love strong coffee but have changed to chamomile tea and stopped drinking wine but nothing helps ,

      I'm feeling so miserable !

  • charlene03055
    charlene03055 bb123

    Posted

    Thank you all for this post. I to have this horrible pain in my back lately and was diagnosed with a hh of 10cm that the Dr says he refuses to operate on because it's so big and bad. He said he would quit his practice before doing that and it needs done that bad. So I am on meds to alleviate gasses from building up in my stomach when I eat but of course they still do and the last week or two it is getting bad and in my back. It used to be in my chest. Thought I would check out the others to see what was happening beforehand calling the Dr again and found you. Now that I know that it is probably the hh again I can try to figure out how to live with it. Change the diet again, more meds, who knows this is achievable. Hang in there we have our lives, maybe not the one we wanted but we do have the ones we were dealt. Play them out.

    • terry10426
      terry10426 charlene03055

      Posted

      Hi Charlene 

      I too would sometimes get the horrendous pain in my chest and put it down to my HH I as diagnosed with a few years ago. I’ve also had troubl with my stomach often woke up feeling very sore. I’ve had a number of tests but nothing serious found doctor just put it down as IBS as they do when they don’t know 🙄. Anyway the reason I’m

      Commenting now is because lately I’ve been getting real back pain on my upper back between my should blades. I put it down to picking my 3 young girls up and constantly carrying them round but been worrying lately could be something else. Do you think this is linked to my HH then? I have no idea on the size of my HH it was discovered when having an endoscopy. Fed up of always having something wrong. I’m a 35 year old male and should’ve running around with my girls not feel like an old man. 

  • Sparks114
    Sparks114 bb123

    Posted

    Hi, I also have a hiatus hernia, an endoscopy showed this on Thursday this week. I also have back pain and shoulder pain on my left hand side, I've always been convinced that the three problems are connected. How is your pain now as I see you posted 8 months ago with similar problems to my own.

    Regards.....Mark

    • ann06939
      ann06939 Sparks114

      Posted

      Hi I have just found out this week through Endoscopy that I have a Oesophageal hiatus hernia after suffering continous heartburn/reflux. I also suffer left shoulder pain/low back pain. Is this all part of it??

      Regards Ann

    • lornacsr
      lornacsr Sparks114

      Posted

      Hi there.   Just saw your post.   Hope you see mine.   I replied to Joanne, who posted 10 months ago, but I see you just posted two months ago.   I'd really like to know if you have learned any more.   I'll go ahead and share here again in the event you don't see my post where I replied to her.   I have been suffering for seven months with this pain in the mid left side of my back.   At least that's where it started, like a deep, aching knot, but as it got worse over the months, it radiates up into my left shoulder.  And depending upon what I eat, it radiates all over my entire back at times.   I feel like I'm living my own personal Ground Hog Day because I wake up okay almost every single morning, but with each meal during the day, the pain gets worse.   I have had so many tests, CT scans, MRI, endoscopy, ultrasounds.   Like you, I do have a hiatal hernia, but my doctor says it is small.    I have some esophagitis, but I guess that's not really bad either.   But this pain I get in my back is excruciating, sometimes where I have to take Norco for the pain.   Can you please keep me posted on what you find out about your condition?   I'm having an endoscopic ultrasound done this upcoming Thursday, so maybe they will find something then.

    • Sparks114
      Sparks114 lornacsr

      Posted

      Hi there,

      Up until three weeks ago, I have been taking 40mg omeprazole each day as I'm told I have a hiatal hernia but found this drug makes me bloated. As a result I get stomach and back pain and also left shoulder pain so I now take emomeprazole and so far had good results. If your doctor has prescribed omeprazole for your condition then maybe you might want to consider trying a different drug. Also cutting out coffee has helped. I think i might be on the road to recovery now so on that note I'm trying to stay positive.

      Hope you get sorted soon.

      Mark

    • peter_0
      peter_0 lornacsr

      Posted

      Hi Lorna,

      I came across some of your posts on the forum from a few years ago about having a deep aching knot in your left back and that you had been diagnosed with a hiatus hernia.

      I was wondering if you ever got to the bottom of what was causing your left back pain?

      I ask as I am experiencing very similar symptoms and was diagnosed with a hiatus hernia via endoscope earlier this year. My doctor is not convinced the back pain is related to the hernia and is treating it like a muscle or spine problem but after many tests over 12 months everything has showed as normal including my other organs.

      As such, I believe it may be connected to hiatus hernia in some way as it can get worse after eating and then sitting, lying down or exercising.

      I found it interesting that you got some relief with amitryptyline. My doctor prescribed the same 10mg tablets, saying i might have a trapped nerve pain somewhere, and it helps a little with the pain. I did not find proton pump inhibitors helpful for my hiatus hernia as I don't think i have acid reflux.

      I hope you will see this message about your posts, despite being a few years ago.

      Thanks in advance for your help.

      Kind regards,

      Peter

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