epigastric discomfort/pressure, feeling of fullnes in esophagus, throat,

[missid]

I am 35 yo. mother of 4 children. I had a lap chole. during my last pregnancy in March 2004. This did alleviate problems at that time. However, now, 15 months later, I am experiencing the same symptoms, with a few new ones to boot: epigastric pain/pressure/fullness, the sensation of food or something being stuck in the esophagus/throat, belching, the sensation of being squeezed tightly by a rope or belt beneath the ribs/diaphragm, the inability at times to obtain a full breath, coughing. This has been going on for nearly 2-3 months and they are worsening. These are nearly the same symptoms I experienced while having gallbladder problems, except now there is no gallbladder! I do have an appt. to see my family physician, however, I am completely frustrated and miserable!! Does this sound like a hiatal/hiatus hernia with reflux possibly? Could it have something to do with the gallbladder removal itself? Am I crazy? I know one thing, I am miserable, and I need advice from a professional. Should I question my MD about tests such as upper endoscopy, Hyda scan, etc? Any help/ advice is greatly appreciated! Thank you!

[JackieG]

You can forget the 16th century remedies like "Colon Cleansing", "liver flushes" and "gallbladder flushes".  They have been around for a long time, peddled like snake oil, and have absolutely no benefit whatsoever.  Only quacks and misguided folks push this garbage.  Use a real doctor, not some of the quacks that post here.

[astros18]

I wonder if you have been on any medication lately, such as an antibiotic. Do you take birth control pills. If yes, you may have a systemic yeast problem in your gastrointestinal tract. That is most likely what is causing your excessive gas. Yes, gas can be felt that far up. I have felt gas all the way up my left side to my shoulder before! Extremely unpleasant. Yeast in your intestinal tract works much like the yeast found in bread. It feeds off of sugar and starches and anything unhealthy(but good!) that you eat. I recommend Garden of Life Fungal Defense or you can start taking a strong probiotic and see if that helps rid you of gas. Hope you feel better!

[Juliebrat]

Wondering if someone could help me here.  I am a 35 year old mother of two that was diagnosed with IBS over a year ago.  I always have some kind of lower abdominal pain with excessive gas that is usually trapped, but for the past week, everyday I am getting a horrible pain/pressure/burning "feels like someone stabbed me over and over again" pain in my upper abdomen.  This usually happens in the afternoon and lasts for about 5 hours.  During that time it's all I can do to breathe or move.  I can't get into any position that is comfortable.  I do not have heartburn and have no history of ulcers.  My neighbor rushed me to the emergency 2 days ago because the pain became unbearable.  I was a little tender when the dr did his exam but not too bad.  Nothing was out of the ordinary except I was extremely gassy, yet passing gas would not bring relief.  They ran a complete abdominal u/s on me thinking it was my gallbladder, but it came back normal.  Can IBS cause severe pain in the epigastric area for 5 hours at a time?  Can gas be felt way up there?  Yesterday I ate nothing for 8 hours out of fear and I felt great.  I have no pain yet today, but I have only had a piece of toast.  I am at a loss as to what is wrong and fearful that the pain will come back.  Can anyone help me?

[astros18]

I encourage you as well to consider a systemic yeast connection. Yeast in the digestive tract causes a host of symptoms in the body and on the skin, as well as an inability to lose weight. If you crave sugar or bread and lack energy, you may very well suffer a yeast problem. See above posts to babbles in regards to my recommendations. Hope you feel better.

[fedupwiththis]

Hi

Thank you replying to the comments i posted. You are correct in saying that when i stop the zoton my heart burn returns with in 24 hours.  

After reading your comment i have decided to stop taking the zoton for a while to see if there are any changes and if the symptoms i am experienceing in my throat go away. You mentioned my colon that is one area i have no problems regular as clockwork.

I am beginning to wonder if there could be something more wrong than just reflux.

I am going to go back to my doctor to discuss theses symptoms further.

Thanks for listening.

[astros18]

I just want to reiterate that the drug you are taking has not cured you of your acid reflux. When you stop taking it, it will come back. Many times , these types of drugs make the problem worse causing more symptoms. You can read all my previous posts regarding digestive food enzymes and other therapies that I believe are much better than stopping acid production in your stomach. When you have no acid in your stomach, your food is not digested properly. The reflux you feel in your throat is probably your undigested food coming back up. You must also work on your colon. If your bowels do not move at least 2-4 times per day, you have a backed up colon. A backed up colon causes many health problems including reflux. Once your bowels start moving correctly, your nutrients are better absorbed and you feel less hunger. You will probably start losing weight as well. I wish you luck and good health.