For the past 12 years I have had a progressively worsening stomach problem where eating makes me nauseous and gives me pain in the upper back and under the ribs on the left side; often followed by heartburn. It started with just a few foods but now I hardly eats anything. I have been eliminating one food after the other and went on a strict vegatarian diet with no fats whatever about a 2 years ago. I have lost 25lb. since then but my weight has remained the same for months now. I've also tried eating small meals frequently but that also had no effect.
I've been to a number of doctors and GI guys and all tests come back negative except for the pancreatic enzyme which is elevated. The specialist says that that doesn't mean anything. I've had a colonoscopy, endoscopy, ultrasounds, a nuclear study of the gall bladder, ulcer tests, etc. A few years back the hearburn medicines were tried and made me feel worse. I also took antibiotics for the ulcer bacteria.
Now the back pain is almost always there. Sometimes mild and sometimes much worse. When I feel sick and nauseous from eating the wrong food it doesn't go away until several hours later when I eat again -- as long as I eat the "right" food.
I'm also hungry all of the time whether I feel sick or not.
Some of the foods I can eat (that is, they only make me a little bit sick) are: Poppy seed bagels,lemons, plain salads with fat and milk free dressing, most vegatables (steamed, boiled or roasted with nothing added), sweet potato, white potato (sometimes) and sugar. The list of what I can't eat is basically everything else. I can't eat any fat of any type, soy, meat (beef, poultry or fish), eggs, nuts, fruits grains, dairy, garlic, tomato sauce, breads, pastas (most).
To make matters worse my HMO won't let me go to any places where there are specialized programs and groups of GI doctors.
I need some direction and help on what this is and how to treat it. It is getting so hard.