Please Help! Burning sensation in lower right abdomen and tight chest

[Ackbar]

Hi everyone,

I have a number of digestive / gastro problems that I was hoping someone else here has experience of. My doctor is disinterested, and although he has offerred to refer me for an endoscopy, I've read a lot of posts here where the endoscopy doesn't reveal the root-cause? And I've heard some horror stories of people puking up blood after one and not being able to eat for days etc.  

I had suspected-Irritable Bowel Syndrome about 8 years ago at college, and had bad diahorrea one day and then constipation the next day. I also have severe anxiety at times, which would sometimes bring on IBS attacks.
I started eating a bowl of Bran Flakes cereal every day, and that seemed to help in a big way... made my bowel movements virtually normal and very regular.

Nowadays I have 2 major symptoms - a burning sensation in my lower right-hand side.... just about halfway between the bottom of my rib-cage and the tip of my pelvis.
Sometimes the area feels bloated, and if I press gently on it it relieves the discomfort *slightly*
This has troubled me for the last 2-3 years.

I also have a pinching, heavy sensation in my upper-left abdomen, about an inch below my left nipple.... this sensation NEVER moves, always the same place. Feels like someone is poking their finger through my ribcage and pressing hard. It can also feel like a weight is hanging from it or something, but isn't painful.
I have sufferred from this symptom for about 5 years now. My doctor suggested it might be acid-reflux, but if it was that he said the sensation would vary in it's location along my digestive tract.... it NEVER moves and it always in precisely the same spot.

Generally speaking I feel fatigued most of the time and find it hard to get motivated about anything. I suffer from heartburn which I self-medicate with Eno's fizzing salts (similar to Andrew's / Alka Seltzer)

On Monday morning and this morning (Wednesday) I had difficulty going to the toilet. I exerted a fair bit of effort and produced a small stool, followed quickly by a loose motion. I checked the toilet paper on both occaisions and there was some bright red blood on it!
I've had bad constipation before back in my I.B.S. days where I've had a small anal-fissure from too much exertion, and it produced a small amount of blood.... but this seems different as I'm not aware of having an anal-fissure at the moment (or haaemeroids that I know of) BUT I have a dull ache which feels like it's deep *inside* my bottom.

I can't take Bran Flakes (fibre) anymore as it almost always give me chronic diahorrea.
If I had just plain ole' constipation then this would seem to be the answer, but with all these other things going-on I don't want to add diahorrea to the list!

I know the sensible answer is to have an endoscopy and hopefully get a diagnosis but if anyone shares these symptoms I'd love to hear from you, as I'm starting to get really worried about this catalogue of problems that I have  :-(

Sorrry for the long message, and a BIG Thanks in advance for any help of suggestions that you can provide

Cheers
Ack

[Ackbar]

Has anyone else any experience of having these symptoms?

I'm starting to feel really bloated, with loud noises coming from my guts... this evening when I took a drink of Coke (probably not a good idea to drink fizzy drinks, I know ) and I was continuly belching, and each time I felt like I *nearly* vomitted food into my mouth.

Also I went to the toilet this morning and had bright red blood on the toilet ppaer again... although I had difficulty passing the motion and I think that I might actually have a small anal fissure - same site as where it was before.

Please help me...

Ack

[Ackbar]

Hi Nalosch,

Thanks for replying so comprehensively to my message naloush.... very much apreciated for taking the time to answer :-)

You've raised a couple of points that sound promising - I thought I had Thyroid problems a few years back because I was feeling run-down and I sweat excessively, even after light exercise. I can walk briskly for 5 minutes and my shirt is wringing wet, which is not only uncomfortable, but also extremely embarrassing in front of friends or colleagues.
I'm not overweight (about 13 stone, 6'2" tall, slim-build with a belly.

I've had blood-tests done for this which came back negative, and I've also had blood-tests done for possible liver disease, as I was in a car accident years ago, and now have to take paracetomol/Tylenol in large quantities (like 3 X 1000mg. daily)
My painkillers also contain codeine (30mg. per pill... take between 4 and 6 a day) which I know can be extremely constipating for some people.
Strangely enough, I was prescribed the codeine / paracetomol painkillers whilst I had the I.B.S. and it seemed to lessen the diahorrea problem (along with the bran flakes that I was eating daily)
I think my body has adapted to the codeine over the years and isn't contributing to the constipation, but I'm unable to taper off them as the chronic pain I experience without codeine means that I can't function on a daily basis.

Can I ask what made you think it could be thryoid-related? It would be  a massive relief if I found that all these symptoms were caused by one problem, which should be able to be treated.

I understand what you mean about excess waste being stored in my colon, and posibly causing the pinching sensation... it figures that if I'm unable to pass stools on a regular basis, then the excess waste has to go somewhere. Kinda disgusting, but I suppose my insides could resemble a big trash can of rotting food and waste.

Is the colon-cleanse something that someone could do and recover from over a weekend? And how aggressive would the result be? Would it be like a bad episode of diahorrea, and would I expect to be going to the toilet several times or just once?

Is  a  Parasite Cleanse a similar type of enema, and the same for the Kidney and Liver Cleanses that you mentioned. The liver cleanse might be especially good for me because of the high levels of paracetomol/Tylenol that I'm taking.

Thanks again for taking the time to offer some helpful insight - certainly more than the 3 minutes my doctor took to discuss acid-reflux.... and then suggest an endoscopology.
He also insisted on calling the chest-pinching as "your chest pain" and "how often is it painful" etc. etc. despite me continually correcting him, and reminding him that it wasn't *painful* but was a pinching / weighty sensation!!
I think the long-term solution is to change my doctor and try to find one that actually cares :-(

Cheers,
Ack

PS - Are the various cleanse / enema kits available at Health Food stores or Pharmacy's? Not looking forwrad to doing something like this, but I'd at least be doing *something*

[nalosch]

Hi Ack,

I just read your entry and really feel for you. The absence of understanding, particularly from so-called doctors, whose job it is (one might think) to at least try and find out what is the problem, is frustrating and sad. Your situation does sound very, very unpleasant indeed. I'm not an expert, but have done so much research over the years that I connect some dots (because I have a doctor like yours).

Could it be that the pinching sensation (upper left abdomen) comes from stuff sitting "there" too long? Forgive me for being so blunt, but since the colon is so long and winding, isn't it possible that it's sort of giving warning signals as to having reached it's final capacity? Think about this for a moment: You do seem to be constipated most of the time. So, if you can go a lot less than you should, where does the rest of the feces stay in the meantime that doesn't make it out? Sorry, don't know how to explain this better. Imagine for some reason you cannot bring out the trash regularly. Every week you can bring a small bag to the curb, but there are several other bags inside and they get left there. Over a period of time, what will happen? They will accumulate somewhere in the house or apartment until eventually you won't be able to move around, close off sections, etc. Sorry for the simple image, but I find they usually help me visualize something.
Have you ever done/ had done a colon cleanse (enema)? They are pretty non-invasive as long as you take care of your colon afterwards (light food for a while such as soups, etc. and probiotics). At least, your colon could get a much deserved "start-from-scratch" chance at being emptied completely once. It's not a great subject, but once you have it done, it feels great.

I don't have many good things to say about conventional doctors, either, but if he/ she offered an endoscopy, you should take it. It's better than nothing. Maybe from there, you could discuss more with your doctor, i. e. squeeze out other tests, if the endoscopy should not be helpful.

Also, have you ever considered that you might have trouble with your thyroids? It's relatively easy to get that checked.

Last, but not least: Your organs might use a cleanse. It's proven how regular cleanses can rejuvenate our organs and give them a clean, fresh start. In our polluted, stress-ruled environments everyone should, I personally tend to think, in order not to make the work of our organs even more difficult. So, if they can function well, you'll notice from your mental health (memory, clear thinking, better sleep), skin (clear skin, healthy color), etc. how positively the cleanse affects your body. Plus, the cleansed organs probably last longer as well.
The order is important though: First, Parasite Cleanse. A colon cleanse is good, but won't tackle parasites apparently. Then, a Kidney Cleanse. After that, the Liver Cleanse, which personally made me feel like newly born (liver, particularly, is so important for all kinds of body functions) and I have a very sensitive physique that does not take things usually as well.

I hope I have not added confusion, but have been able to give a couple of ideas. If you have any other conditions, talk about those with your doctor or naturopath before you attempt any of this. Especially, if you haven't done them before.

Good luck!

nalosch