Severe upper abdominal cramping and pain

Hi all. I am amazed - and pleased - to have finally found this site, with so many stories that sound exactly like mine.

My pain tends to begin first thing in the morning with a feeling as if my stomach is empty or a tingling sensation. As soon as I feel this, I know what's coming. For the rest of the day the pain will build and build. Late at night the pain will usually reach the point where I can't sit still (I would rate it as a 7+), with my upper abdomen completely rigid for minutes at a time with just a few seconds of relief between each "contraction". The pain occasionally spreads across my back too. The pain continues to get worse and worse, eventually hitting a 10 (if it's not a 10, I would hate to feel pain that is 10!) with almost continuous muscle spasm and swelling of my upper abdomen - it looks like I have a balloon in there. It will stay this way for up to 6 hours, but by then I have eventually gone to A&E (I live in the UK) and been dosed up with IV morphine and IV buscopan. I cannot find the words to describe how severe this pain is. Morphine only just touches it and I have even begged the A&E nurses for an anaesthetic to knock me out so I can no longer feel it.

The pain used to come every couple of months since I was around 17 years old. I'm now 32 and am having an attack at least once per week, with after-effects of transient pain for several days. Needless to say I have visited numerous doctors, had multiple tests (ultrasound, CT, barium meal, gastroscopy, oesophageal function and pH, blood tests, bone mineral scans, etc.) with no abnormalities found, and have tried many different med's. I currently take baclofen (an inhibitor of skeletal muscle contraction), tramadol, and diazepam. A very high dose of diazepam with tramadol really helps to keep the pain at a just bearable level and I haven't needed to visit A&E for quite a while. But I am taking more and more medication to control the pain and I still haven't had a diagnosis - my gastroenterologist currently thinks it's severe muscle spasms of unknown origin.

I've never been able to find a trigger for the attacks. I have tried keeping food and daily diaries, but could find nothing specific that causes the pain. The only thing I have found that sets it off is tiredness and stress - I started my own company last year and since then the attacks have become much more frequent. I had to go to a conference in Barcelona last week and got up at 3am to get my flight. As such, I was tired and stressed about being at this important meeting on my own, and the pain was with me for the whole time I was away. Luckily, I could manage it with a few tramadol during the day as it built, but I had to miss dinner in the evening when it got really bad and I had to take all my med's.

The huge problem for me is that it is obvious that the doc's are getting frustrated and bored with seeing me. It feels as if they don't believe what I am telling them is true and that I am wasting their time or am just after pain-killers. The last time I vistied my GP to increase my dose of pain med's he recognised me and said "Oh...what is it THIS time?". They will never be able to understand how it feels to have this almost constant pain, to lose a couple of night's sleep every week due to pain, and spend the next day feeling with too drugged-up or sick to work (bearing in mind I own my own business, I work hard and long hours, and have a family to support). It also significnatly affects my quality of life - if I have pain I can't eat so miss out on a meal with my wife, I rarely feel like going out with friends, I've given up alcohol in case it's a trigger (we used to enjoy a glass or two of wine together), and whenever we go anywhere I need to make sure I have enough med's just in case of an attack. I suppose that the stress of worrying about attacks could, in fact, set them off.

Put simply, I've had enough of living like this. And I've got no idea what I can do about it.

I would really appreciate any suggestions that anyone can share!

Thanks for listening and it's nice to meet you all.

DrCMI, what kind of procedures have you been subject too? I mean have you ever been injected with gadolinium or some other contrast agent for an MRI. If so, could you tell me when approximately, which dye, and how many times. I'm trying myself to find a common link and so far I only have a few ideas. Thanks much.

 

Posted by Seek2find on 5/19/2010 to original post.

Hi

I have just found this site as I am searching for an answer for the pain I get. This thread and the previous one on this topic seems to represent what I experience. I had my gallbladder removed 3 yrs ago and I had an abcess form on the site of the operation a week later which made me very ill. Previous to this I had a gallstone removed from my bileduct through an ERCP and I had jaundice and was hospitalized for weeks. I still get pains like the gallbladder pains, my gallbladder was porous and I had to have emergency surgery it was v infected also. The pains I get since are v sore in my abdomen and a tight crushing pain in my ribs around to my back. I want to remove my clothes, as if that will help!! I also get v pale and break out in a sweat and I amvery tired as a result. I can't get any relief when it is happening and I am taking Nexium every day which seems to help with the symptoms. I have had ultrasounds and catscans and scopes to see what the problem is and i have been treated for H.Pylori but today I had the worst attach in a couple of yrs. I even lost my breath and I am still sore hrs later as if I have been hit by a bus. I have been trying to stop taking the Nexium due to weight gain that I cannot seem to stop and this is depressing me. I went to see a nutritionist and she gave me mastic gum and digestive enzymes to kickstart my digestion and to try to stop needing the nexium, I think my problem is more than just excess acid though. Does anyone have an answer as to what this is and have they been diagnosed and what are the treatments?? Please help.

Hi Jenzer,

Your symptoms sound very similar to my own. I too have been treated with omeprazole, but had no effect. The only thing that relieves my pain is diazepam and tramadol. I am still 'under investigation' and have had no formal diagnosis.

I also get my pain on an empty stomach, after eating, or after moving in a certain way. I haven't been able to identify any foods that trigger it, though I recently found (completely by accident) that bicarbonate of soda (a raising agent in cooking) sets it off. This is actually NaHCO3 (sodium hydrogen carbonate), which is also found in high concentrations in bile salts.

May I ask which foods you have found trigger your attacks?

Finally a 'diagnosis'! My gastro' has today informed me that because all my tests (especially CRP) have been negative he is 99% sure that I am suffering from acute abdominal muscle spasms. These can be caused by previous infection with certain vomiting-inducing viruses or prior injury to the muscles (I have had/done both). It feels great to finally have a specific diagnosis. Unfortunately, the news isn't so great treatment-wise. There is nothing he can give me to prevent the spasms, so it's a matter of staying on the pain med's and benzo's. I've been referred to a pain specialist who might be able to put in a nerve block. Fingers crossed....!

I asked about Sphincter of Oddi dysfunction, but accoring to the gastro' my symptoms and laboratory results were not suggestive of this. Also, a good test to try is to lie flat on your back the next time the pain comes. Press where the pain is most severe - if it's anything like my pain it will hurt like hell. Next, lift put your chin on your chest (causing the abdominal muscles to tighten) and press in the same place. If the pain is not as severe as before, this suggests that it is originating from structures below the muscles. If it hurts like before, the pain is probably originating from the muscles as in my case. It's something that might be worth asking your doc about anyway.

All the best everyone.

I have had my gall bladder out 4 yrs ago and i get a horrible pain in the middle of my abdomen now. Starts there and it seems it works its way down.
I spent 5000 dollar in catscans and scopes and what nots and they told me I had IBS. I am in extreme pain at times.. Strange it feels like where my
gall bladder was.. :( I just still don't think it's IBS. Now this week I have mucus in my stool. I still wish the doctors could find out for sure. Upsets me
to no end to lay in pain all the time.

Sore Butt

We have a great forum for IBS which may help you understand that disorder better. Stool normally contains a small amount of mucus, but passing stools with visible amounts of mucus can be from a variety of causes. Mucus in the stool is a common symptom of IBS.

As for 4 years of pain, that is a tough one and please don't stop looking for the cause. Try another GI specialist and also some great input here from the members for you to try.

Kindly,
Kitt

Did the PPIs help you?

DrCMI said...
Hi all. I am amazed - and pleased - to have finally found this site, with so many stories that sound exactly like mine.

My pain tends to begin first thing in the morning with a feeling as if my stomach is empty or a tingling sensation. As soon as I feel this, I know what's coming. For the rest of the day the pain will build and build. Late at night the pain will usually reach the point where I can't sit still (I would rate it as a 7+), with my upper abdomen completely rigid for minutes at a time with just a few seconds of relief between each "contraction". The pain occasionally spreads across my back too. The pain continues to get worse and worse, eventually hitting a 10 (if it's not a 10, I would hate to feel pain that is 10!) with almost continuous muscle spasm and swelling of my upper abdomen - it looks like I have a balloon in there. It will stay this way for up to 6 hours, but by then I have eventually gone to A&E (I live in the UK) and been dosed up with IV morphine and IV buscopan. I cannot find the words to describe how severe this pain is. Morphine only just touches it and I have even begged the A&E nurses for an anaesthetic to knock me out so I can no longer feel it.

The pain used to come every couple of months since I was around 17 years old. I'm now 32 and am having an attack at least once per week, with after-effects of transient pain for several days. Needless to say I have visited numerous doctors, had multiple tests (ultrasound, CT, barium meal, gastroscopy, oesophageal function and pH, blood tests, bone mineral scans, etc.) with no abnormalities found, and have tried many different med's. I currently take baclofen (an inhibitor of skeletal muscle contraction), tramadol, and diazepam. A very high dose of diazepam with tramadol really helps to keep the pain at a just bearable level and I haven't needed to visit A&E for quite a while. But I am taking more and more medication to control the pain and I still haven't had a diagnosis - my gastroenterologist currently thinks it's severe muscle spasms of unknown origin.

I've never been able to find a trigger for the attacks. I have tried keeping food and daily diaries, but could find nothing specific that causes the pain. The only thing I have found that sets it off is tiredness and stress - I started my own company last year and since then the attacks have become much more frequent. I had to go to a conference in Barcelona last week and got up at 3am to get my flight. As such, I was tired and stressed about being at this important meeting on my own, and the pain was with me for the whole time I was away. Luckily, I could manage it with a few tramadol during the day as it built, but I had to miss dinner in the evening when it got really bad and I had to take all my med's.

The huge problem for me is that it is obvious that the doc's are getting frustrated and bored with seeing me. It feels as if they don't believe what I am telling them is true and that I am wasting their time or am just after pain-killers. The last time I vistied my GP to increase my dose of pain med's he recognised me and said "Oh...what is it THIS time?". They will never be able to understand how it feels to have this almost constant pain, to lose a couple of night's sleep every week due to pain, and spend the next day feeling with too drugged-up or sick to work (bearing in mind I own my own business, I work hard and long hours, and have a family to support). It also significnatly affects my quality of life - if I have pain I can't eat so miss out on a meal with my wife, I rarely feel like going out with friends, I've given up alcohol in case it's a trigger (we used to enjoy a glass or two of wine together), and whenever we go anywhere I need to make sure I have enough med's just in case of an attack. I suppose that the stress of worrying about attacks could, in fact, set them off.

Put simply, I've had enough of living like this. And I've got no idea what I can do about it.

I would really appreciate any suggestions that anyone can share!




Not sure if you ever found out what was causing it buy to me it sounds like splinter of the oddI or pancreatitis.

Thanks for listening and it's nice to meet you all.