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loss of appetite + common GERD symptoms
by Serafym, Jun 25, 2009 08:29AM
Good day. I have recently come a post on this forum, and since I am not quite sure on how to quote it or whether this post of mine will appear in the same thread, I am just going to copy paste it all together, as it is very related to my own condition.
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Here are my symptoms since August of this year and continuing to present: Pain under right rib cage spreading to back (not always and not incapacitating), fatigue, a feeling of general malaise, complete loss of appetite, loss of weight (26 pounds in 2 and half months), on and off diarrhea and constipation, bloating, burping, terrible indigestion, itchy skin, and a feeling in my upper throat of tightness and that it could swell shut (this is now constant). Lately the pain has been going to my upper abdomen and left side as well. Sometimes I feel bone pain in my ribs and back. Day by day I want to eat less and less. I feel there is a terrible problem in my digestive system. The good news is that as of late my bowel movements have been more �normal.� My GP says this is �somatization disorder.� While I know this is very real, I believe there is something very wrong in my digestive system. These are the tests I have had: 2 Sonograms, Abdominal/Pelvic CT Scan, Hida Scan, MRCP, Endoscopy, Colonoscopy, Lung X-ray, EBT scan of lungs, Small Bowl series, an unbelievable amount of blood tests.
No sign of GERD or other diseases. Everything normal except slightly elevated hemoglobin and hematacrit counts, as well as an enlarged spleen. Everything else was perfectly normal. This prompted a visit to the hematologist and I am currently being tested to see if this is Polycethemia Vera might be an issue. I recently had a bone marrow biopsy which I am waiting for the results.
My MD and GI doctor assure me that if it is Polycethemia Vera, that has nothing to do with the digestive problems I am having. While I will not discount stress, I am very scared there is a problem. I have been seeing a psychiatrist, am on paxil, clonozapam, neurontin, and repardal (sp), and aciphex. While I believe my doctors have been diligent in trying to help me in ordering the tests, I cannot believe this is stress. If someone could just feel for 5 minutes what I am feeling, I think they would agree it is not stress. I don�t know what to do now though. My GI says he does not want to do an ERCP because he said the only thing I can possibly get out of it is pancreatitus (pancreatitis).
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From the symptoms mentioned in the first paragraph, I present with everything except for the itchy skin, not that I wouldn't necessarily have it, but I haven't thought about it, and thus never noticed it, and I do not suffer from constipation, only nearly constant diarrhea. Also, I haven't lost any weight. On the other hand, I don't really have any weight to lose in the first place, 1.80 meters height and just under 55 kilograms, I've always been like this and none of the treatments and diets I've tried to gain weight has ever worked.
I have done every single blood test out there, including hormonal, and have also been through an endoscopy and colonoscopy as well as countless doctors who have each presented his own theory on why I am feeling the way I am. GERD has now been completely ruled out, as I have my colonoscopy on tape. Half of the doctors had concluded that it is a matter of diet and sleeping schedule (which was pretty messed up before, I used to go to sleep only past 2-3 in the morning), but I have changed both in the past few months and to no avail. The other half of the doctors have concluded that it must be a psihological issue related to stress, but, like the poster I've quoted, I highly doubt that. I am an easy going guy, in my early 20s, studying at an university that doesn't really require much study or effort and I get along ok with everyone I know.
The only things that have ever come up in my tests have been:
-2x normal cholesterol value on a single blood test, has come up normal ever since
-increased bilirubin, leading to a diagnostics of a Gilbert Syndrome, which seems fairly harmless
Also, a bit out of the blue to be honest, I have been diagnosed with having a ''lazy'' pancreas and there was nothing I could do to squeeze more info out of the nurse who brought my test results, as she was most likely clueless.
It is now 16.15 in my home country and I have neither had a single bite nor am I tempted to have one in the near future, and the only times I really eat anymore is when I feel that my stomach is so empty that I'm going to collapse unless I eat. When that happens, I usually eat 1/4 - 1/2 of a regular meal and then a slight discomfort occurs. If i push myself to eat more, the discomfort increases, eventually leading to regurgitation. This discomfort is quite hard to explain, it starts out as a slight pain in the abdomen, a feeling of nausea and an overall feeling of weakness. I am going to repeat the hormonal tests tomorrow in case they had missed something the first time, but other than that, I really don't know what to do anymore.
I have tried changing to all kinds of diets, some based on rice, others on boiled food, some on raw food and vegetables, some rich in protein. Nothing worked. I have also tried going to the gym, and nothing has changed. As you may well imagine, I have tried taking a multitude of drugs for digestion, growth, nausea, vitamins, proteins, everything that has ever been suggested to me.
This discussion is related to Abdominal Pain/Loss of weight-appetite.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Here are my symptoms since August of this year and continuing to present: Pain under right rib cage spreading to back (not always and not incapacitating), fatigue, a feeling of general malaise, complete loss of appetite, loss of weight (26 pounds in 2 and half months), on and off diarrhea and constipation, bloating, burping, terrible indigestion, itchy skin, and a feeling in my upper throat of tightness and that it could swell shut (this is now constant). Lately the pain has been going to my upper abdomen and left side as well. Sometimes I feel bone pain in my ribs and back. Day by day I want to eat less and less. I feel there is a terrible problem in my digestive system. The good news is that as of late my bowel movements have been more �normal.� My GP says this is �somatization disorder.� While I know this is very real, I believe there is something very wrong in my digestive system. These are the tests I have had: 2 Sonograms, Abdominal/Pelvic CT Scan, Hida Scan, MRCP, Endoscopy, Colonoscopy, Lung X-ray, EBT scan of lungs, Small Bowl series, an unbelievable amount of blood tests.
No sign of GERD or other diseases. Everything normal except slightly elevated hemoglobin and hematacrit counts, as well as an enlarged spleen. Everything else was perfectly normal. This prompted a visit to the hematologist and I am currently being tested to see if this is Polycethemia Vera might be an issue. I recently had a bone marrow biopsy which I am waiting for the results.
My MD and GI doctor assure me that if it is Polycethemia Vera, that has nothing to do with the digestive problems I am having. While I will not discount stress, I am very scared there is a problem. I have been seeing a psychiatrist, am on paxil, clonozapam, neurontin, and repardal (sp), and aciphex. While I believe my doctors have been diligent in trying to help me in ordering the tests, I cannot believe this is stress. If someone could just feel for 5 minutes what I am feeling, I think they would agree it is not stress. I don�t know what to do now though. My GI says he does not want to do an ERCP because he said the only thing I can possibly get out of it is pancreatitus (pancreatitis).
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
From the symptoms mentioned in the first paragraph, I present with everything except for the itchy skin, not that I wouldn't necessarily have it, but I haven't thought about it, and thus never noticed it, and I do not suffer from constipation, only nearly constant diarrhea. Also, I haven't lost any weight. On the other hand, I don't really have any weight to lose in the first place, 1.80 meters height and just under 55 kilograms, I've always been like this and none of the treatments and diets I've tried to gain weight has ever worked.
I have done every single blood test out there, including hormonal, and have also been through an endoscopy and colonoscopy as well as countless doctors who have each presented his own theory on why I am feeling the way I am. GERD has now been completely ruled out, as I have my colonoscopy on tape. Half of the doctors had concluded that it is a matter of diet and sleeping schedule (which was pretty messed up before, I used to go to sleep only past 2-3 in the morning), but I have changed both in the past few months and to no avail. The other half of the doctors have concluded that it must be a psihological issue related to stress, but, like the poster I've quoted, I highly doubt that. I am an easy going guy, in my early 20s, studying at an university that doesn't really require much study or effort and I get along ok with everyone I know.
The only things that have ever come up in my tests have been:
-2x normal cholesterol value on a single blood test, has come up normal ever since
-increased bilirubin, leading to a diagnostics of a Gilbert Syndrome, which seems fairly harmless
Also, a bit out of the blue to be honest, I have been diagnosed with having a ''lazy'' pancreas and there was nothing I could do to squeeze more info out of the nurse who brought my test results, as she was most likely clueless.
It is now 16.15 in my home country and I have neither had a single bite nor am I tempted to have one in the near future, and the only times I really eat anymore is when I feel that my stomach is so empty that I'm going to collapse unless I eat. When that happens, I usually eat 1/4 - 1/2 of a regular meal and then a slight discomfort occurs. If i push myself to eat more, the discomfort increases, eventually leading to regurgitation. This discomfort is quite hard to explain, it starts out as a slight pain in the abdomen, a feeling of nausea and an overall feeling of weakness. I am going to repeat the hormonal tests tomorrow in case they had missed something the first time, but other than that, I really don't know what to do anymore.
I have tried changing to all kinds of diets, some based on rice, others on boiled food, some on raw food and vegetables, some rich in protein. Nothing worked. I have also tried going to the gym, and nothing has changed. As you may well imagine, I have tried taking a multitude of drugs for digestion, growth, nausea, vitamins, proteins, everything that has ever been suggested to me.
This discussion is related to Abdominal Pain/Loss of weight-appetite.
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I also have an intermittent feeling that I have not excreted everything there was to excrete.