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Does anyone else feel like they've been punched in the gut?

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Ulcerative Colitis
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Posted 6/9/2014 2:46 AM (GMT 0)
I'm still confused because my symptoms seem different from everyone else's.
After a month in the hospital, there's no more bloody poop. For a while there was only constipation. Now I poop several times a day on some days and only once on other days.

My main symptoms are fullness, tenderness and pain. Sometimes lower, sometimes higher near my ribcage. Even touching my skin is slightly painful. The skin feels extra sensitive.
It feels like I've been beat up. 30 years ago, I was in a car accident and I broke the steering wheel with my gut. That's what this feel like. The muscles in my torso feel like they've been hit with a baseball bat.

The last CAT scan shows the same inflammation as before, according to the GI. Why are my symptoms not like everyone else's? I don't get it.

Also have similar feeling in my upper thighs. It's worse closer to the torso right above the "thigh gap" and dissipates as it gets past my knees. I can't walk normally. I hobble. ***?

It seems to get worse when I try to taper off the prednisone.
Also gets worse when I eat.
Posted 6/9/2014 2:59 AM (GMT 0)
The Crohns Colitis Associations motto used to be "The only thing the same is the pain." or something like that. One thing I have learned in all these years is that everyone experiences different symptoms and different reactions. Did your GI Dr do a biopsy of your bowel? If so and he/she says you have UC then you probably do. That does not mean that something else is not going on. Maybe you are reacting to the meds??? Maybe something else totally unrelated. I had pain in my back shooting down my legs and it stopped when I stopped my Asacol. I thought I had a bad back but no it was a reaction to my UC meds. Go to your doctor. Good luck
Posted 6/9/2014 3:41 AM (GMT 0)
Your location of pain (thighs mostly) sounds like maybe you should get checked for another issue too?? Do some research online and see if you can think of anything.

As for pain; not alot of people on this board seem to have it as a symptom. I am one that does.

Extreme pain. Sometimes in my Sigmoid area, sometimes in my transverse colon. But ALWAYS in my rectum. I thought I had sacral joint pain issues - arthritis - sacrolitis, which is a symptom of IBD... or can be caused by IBD. But nope... def rectal pressure. and WOW does it hurt.

Its such an achey overwhelming feeling.

And when it is in my transverse.. its more that acute "punched in the gut" feeling. High up almost to my rib cage.

The pain.. ugh, the pain is so bad. I am envious of those that don't get it. But we all have different versions of the same disease.
Heating pads, ice packs, cool packs (I keep some of my ice packs in the fridge lately too) and pressure pillows are amazing.
I use to just put a heating pad on my belly in bed. With a heavy pillow on top of it. Then my laptop on top of that.
The pressure + the heat is amazing.

Lately my gas is too much though, and the heat seems to increase it. So I've been using ice packs. They are heaven :)
Posted 6/9/2014 4:54 AM (GMT 0)
Blessed,
yes he did biopsies but he didn't need to, it was the worst case of fulminated pancolitis (I think those were the words he used) he had seen in 20 years. I used to think that I had Crohns in remission, before I was officially diagnosed with this.

Embersglow, I've been referred to a rheumy doc but the appt is not til July. Basically, I have inflammation in my gut and it seems to have spread to my arms and legs. I even got blood clots from it in my arms. It seems like the clots hurt when the pain increases in my gut.

There are different kinds of pains that trade places. I don't usually have all of them at the same time.
There is the "punched" pain, which is similar to doing too many sit ups.
There is the "rubber band pain" which feels like someone is squeezing and pulling on my guts.
There are the "achy pains" that move around, they feel like rocks in my gut causing tenderness.
There are the occasional STABBING pains. Those forewarn of worse symptoms coming up.

My doc was stunned that I could have waited so long to go to the hospital. He thinks I have a high pain threshhold. But I don't think I do. It just didn't hurt as bad when I was bleeding with D. Now, pain and swelling is the worst symptom. Do you have an incredibly swollen gut too?

Doc said that my UC is worse on the left but I don't feel like I have too much pain in the rectum. It's the transverse colon that feels most spasmy and painful.

I just took an extra prednisone to try to get comfortable tonight. Seems like I'm never going to be able to taper off.
Posted 6/9/2014 5:01 AM (GMT 0)
Have you tried ice packs and heating pads yet?? Honestly... they have provided so much help to me.
You obviously have something else going on. Good thing you are seeing a Rheumy.
With one auto-immune usually comes another. Hopefully no fibro for you :/


I am on Percocet until my surgery. My pain is ridiculous without it.
But for me its all guts.
Rectum pressure is constant, dull, and actually makes me walk with a limp (as my husband pointed out the other day.) while my sharper pains are all transverse for me. But I also have a stricture in the middle of my transverse colon. So that makes sense for me.

Good luck!
Posted 6/9/2014 5:43 AM (GMT 0)
embersglow,
I did use heating pads during the spring. It's hot now so I stopped. Never thought about using ice.
It's just so hard to tell cause and effect. I can't really tell what is working and what isn't, I think that's because the prednisone masks (overrides) everything else.

Thanks for the ice suggestion. I'll try it.
Posted 6/9/2014 6:12 AM (GMT 0)
Yeah... heating pad sucks cuz you are already warm... but I just keep a fan blowing on me.
Ice packs are GREAT! a lot of people dont think to use them... but just like an other inflammation or pain in my body, I thought, why not try ice?! And it works great to numb the pain and give you some relief for a bit.
Always keep a layer of fabric between the ice pack and your skin.

I also like refrigerated packs, rice bags warmed in the microwave. And also rice bags that I keep in the freezer! They don't stay cold as long, but they are heavier, and so I get that "pressure" again. And they contour nicely, so I tend to use the freezer rice bags for muscle pains in my shoulders and stuff too :) :)
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