Loss of appetite, nauseau, upper right quadrant pressure/pain
Posted , 4 users are following.
Dear all,
Maybe some of you can help/reassure me, or tell me if this sounds familliar.
About 4 weeks ago, I woke up nauseous, with no appetite, and the feeling has stayed since. My stomach feels full constantly, and I feel like I just ate a seven course meal, even when I havent had any food in a day. My weight has started to drop radically, approx. 5 kgs. in 3 weeks. During this time, other symptoms have started to show up, like a continual feeling of pressure and pain in my abdomen, upper right quadrant. This pressure frequently radiates to the flanks and to the back where I feel it as pain/discomfort. It feels as if something is growing and pressing against things in my liver/gallbladder/pancreas area. It also hurts when I push there (from belly button upwards and over to the right). Something that I don't feel when I push on the left hand side. This pressure/pain feeling has been on and off a couple of times: it stays a few days, then retreats (with nausea being then more prominent). But after a day or so, it comes back to stay again, and always worse. Currently, it also causes stomach cramps/pains. It's still this feeling of something lodged there (like a stone, as stupid as it sounds). There has never been any collic-y pain, nor have I ever had to throw up (though sometimes close).
Ofc I've had loads of tests:
- blood tests for liver/pancreas: all good, except for high billirubin, which doctor said was most likely due to 'Gilbert Syndrom' that I migh have. He said that because all other blood levels were normal.
- 2 Ultrasounds of abdomen; one with good visibility of pancreas: all fine
- Endoscopy: all ok
- Colonoscopy (some months before symptoms started): all ok
- CT scan abdomen: all ok, escept for a small liver cyst that doc says is cmpletely harmless/normal; apparently lots of people have them
I know I'm a hypochondrias but tests often brought relief. This time its not the case: since the appetite is not coming back, and the nausea/pressure keeps increasing, I'm not so convinced that this ia all in my head. My gp said that they did all the tests necessary to exclude the bad things, and that I should start therapy. She thinks its IBS mixed with my hypochondria.
In my head, though, I'm convinced the tests missed something: gallstones, pancreatitis, liver cancer or, what I really fear the most: pancreatic cancer. I read that a CT and ultrasound can miss pancreatic cancer in the early stages, and that my symptoms is how this cancer starts: nauseau, lack of appetite, increasing abdominal pain/pressure in the upper right quadrant. I know I'm young for this disease (33) but I'm still so afraid that I have it and that none of the doctors are listening bc of my history with hypochondria. I would love to have that endoscopy with ultrasound that apparently is so good at detecting anything bad on the pancreas, but my doctor doesn't want to refer me to have one.
Long story short, my question to you guys: are the symptoms familiar to you? Can IBS really do this? Or what else could be causing the symptoms? Should I push even stronger for that endoscopy with ultrasound?
0 likes, 8 replies
pippa58442 anxiousmat
Posted
Your symptoms could easily be IBS. Do you have change of bowel habit? It also sounds like your pain is moving about which is also a hallmark of IBS along with your nausea, anxiety and pressure feeling. When everything is negative, IBS is diagnosed. Listen to your doctor who has diagnosed IBS; you have had comprehensive testing which has shown nothing. This is good. news for you. Why are your worrying about your pancreas when your ultrasound showed a good picture of your pancreas which was fine?My brother who is a surgeon told me that nasty things show up fairly early on scans. CTs and ultrasounds are highly accurate! Doctors would not be performing them if they were not. Do not google your symptoms. The information is general and doesn't take account of individual cases. Only listen to your doctor and arrange therapy for your anxiety. It doesn't sound like anything has been missed.
I worried about my pancreas because it didn't show at all on my ultrasound. I asked my doctor about pancreatic problems and he reassured me that it was highly unlikely given my age. I was 42 at the time. I chose to believe my doctor and felt relieved of that worry at least. I was thoroughly tested for other things too but believed something was missed because my tests were inconclusive and no one was diagnosing me I repeatedly asked if I had anything nasty because I didn't believe any of my doctors because they hadn't proved it with a firm diagnosis. It took a long time to accept their explanations. In the end, I listed all my other health anxieties I had and asked my doctor to disprove them one by one which he did. I was told that repeating the tests that other doctors had suggested, was not necessary since had I developed no new symptoms. I mentioned the six month bout of stress and anxiety I had had prior to my symptoms and this got me correctly diagnosed with IBS.
It seems to me that your doctor is listening to you because you have had many repeat tests. You will have accept that these tests are negative and learn to listen, trust and accept what your doctor is telling you Without doing this, you will find it very difficult to manage IBS which your doctor thinks you have. IBS can be managed by anxiety control, antispasmodics and sometimes diet as well (this depends in the individual). Since your doctor doesn't want to refer you for further testing, accept this advice and leave it at that. It sounds like your doctor is confident you don't have anything nasty because if he really suspected anything serious, he would have referred you for urgent tests. He has not done so which is another reason to be optimistic and to stop worrying,
My IBS got better when I believed my doctor's diagnosis and started to take steps to avoid stressful situations when possible. If I can't avoid stress and I get a flare up, I take antispasmodics and painkillers which really help.
pippa58442 anxiousmat
Posted
IBS can also lack of appetite and so can worrying.
anxiousmat
Posted
Dear Pippa58442
Thank you so much for your answer, and the time you took to write your thoughts. It helped me calm down a bit.
Unfortunately, my pain does not move around. It is always in the upper right quadrant, and radiates from there. This is mostly why I'm so worried. All I read from IBS is that it is mostly in the lower part, or on the left, but never in the upper right area. This is also why I wrote on here, bc I was looking for reassurance from ppl who have something similar, in other words, IBS symptom that is centered on the right and never changes but is always there, constantly 'pushing' from the inside.
pippa58442 anxiousmat
Posted
If your pain is radiating, this means it moves around. You can get pain just about anywhere with IBS. There are some people who get the pain you describe.
deborah75036 anxiousmat
Posted
Have you had a Hidia scan? All my test ultra sound, ct scans blood work where coming back normal so my surgeon ordered the Hidia scan it sent me through the roof actually made me cry it hurt so much they took out my gallbladder the next week. Not perfect yet still having issues but it has only been approximately 40 days since they remove it.
anxiousmat
Posted
HI Deborah7
I haven't actually. no one thought it was gallbladder since there was nothing on CT/Ultrasound. Also my pain is not (and was never) collic-y. Did you also have constant discomfort? I thought gallbladder issues were triggered/came in waves of intense pain
deborah75036 anxiousmat
Posted
Hi anxiousmat,
my pain would start after breakfast and get worse after each meal. it was on the right side right under my ribs and it would go down my side and to my back. At first it would come and go but the last month it never went away and my whole midsection hurt. I also dealt with bloating and gas and my stools turned yellow . It was very frustration first Dr. I saw put me on an acid reducer even though I did not have acid reflux and said get use to it....not back to normal (what ever that my be) yet still on low fat diet but slowly trying to add other foods back in. Intestine still are not right but my understanding is that it takes time
anxiousmat
Posted
thanks for your answer Deborah. I hope you will feel better soon.
I'm not sure with me its the gallbladder bc its irrespective of eating, and my stools are regular. I'm seeing my gp again tomorrow and will make my frustration known. I'm just very unsure that this is all in my head..... it just feels like something is wrong...