Eating causes pain, numbness, blurred vision, brain fog. Majorly worsened by alcohol

[Andygamer]

I'm 25, 5' 11'' and down to 110 pounds because I can't eat without widespread problems. Nothing has shown up on CT Scan of my digestive system, endoscopy, colonoscopy or endoscopic ultrasound of my pancreas. Blood tests for things like thyroid, heavy metals, celiac disease, vitamin B levels, blood sugar etc. show nothing abnormal except slightly high inflammation. My gastroenterologist says there is nothing else he can think of to test for.

The symptoms I experience after eating are: widespread abdominal pain, nausea, numbness/tingling of the hands, feet and face, muscle soreness (especially in the legs), blurred vision and pain in my right eye, and "brain fog" type symptoms (can't think clearly). If it gets really bad I get very fatigued as well. The larger and more frequent the meals are, the worse the symptoms get. If I do not eat the symptoms improve but I can no longer avoid eating because my weight is dangerously low. The most I can eat without aggravating symptoms is about 750 calories a day.

The problems seem to have started with a single drink of alcohol about a year ago. I knew that drinking caused problems for me, similar to what I'm experiencing now except much milder and they would always go away within a few days. In this case I immediately felt very ill, could not think straight and felt like acid was flowing through my veins (burning sensation everywhere). I felt negative effects for a month, which seemed to subside before coming back and slowly getting worse over several months. Now I am on short term disability because I can't eat enough to get the energy to work.

I don't seem to have any specific food allergies. I've tried eliminating things from my diet without luck. Currently I am taking omeprazole (Prilosec) and pancreatic enzymes but they don't seem to help much. I take vitamin B12 supplements also because I thought that might be the problem but apparently not. I am not nutrient deficient in any way that I know of. My diet consists mostly of liquids like Boost/Ensure and now Peptamen (prescription Ensure).

Some other info that may help: I have never vomited and I do not get diarrhea with this problem, only nausea and pain. It seems that smaller more frequent meals help with the symptoms. I seem to get more problems with foods high in fat but even soda will make the problem worse. I have no problems with appetite or bowel movements.

I'm in a horrible position where I basically have to make myself sick to get enough calories to gain weight. The symptoms that I tried to avoid by limiting food consumption are starting to come back and I'm terrified of what the long term repercussions might be. I don't want to damage my nerves or vision or anything. I can't find anyone with similar problems. I feel like I'm in a life threatening situation and any help would be a Godsend.

[Andygamer]

mklarson: Thank you for your input. That sounds similar to a condition I read about called postprandial hypotension. Unfortunately a lot of symptoms don't really match what I have but I will keep it under consideration.

I forgot to mention in my original post that I have had abnormally low blood pressure ever since the beginning of my issues, but I don't normally feel lightheaded or anything.

[whisperwolf]

I feel for you! I wonder if this is your gallbladder malfunctioning. Did they do a HIDA scan on you to test the gallbladder function? An ultrasound will only show gallstones and tumors.

[mklarson]

The only case that came to mind after reading your post was a patient that had developed an over active blood supply to the gut after eating.  This caused the blood to move away from the rest of the body at a far greater level than normally occurs when you eat. The symptoms he complained of was feeling faint, flushed, and muscle cramping throughout his body.  He also complained of not being able to focus mentally after eating.  We confirmed via Doppler Ultrasound after having him eat a yogurt and a banana what was happening.  We referred him out to a specialist and I did not see the follow up so I cannot tell you if or how they resolved the problem.  But, if nothing else we found the cause.  

I am also hoping that your gastroenterologist checked you for H-pylori as I have seen that cause some similar problems in rare cases.

I hope this helps at some level