Left side Pain SEVERE!!!!!

[jsgoodale]

Since about 8th grade, i have off and o experienced severe lower left side pain.  I am 23 now, and 5 years removed from high school and now I am in college.  It was progressed over time from hurting just once or twice every few mnths to hurting just about every day.  This pain does not get better or worse regardless of my body position.  However i have found that if i roll up a pillow, fold it in half and lay on it, the pain becomes far worse, but it makes it feel beter much faster.  I have noticed that prior to the pain i am somewhat gassy, and before the pain is gone, i become VERY gassy and the smell is different than before.  ?I have also noticed that alcohol, and chicken wings almost always result in this pain.  Prior to the past few years it didnt hurt often, but if i drank any alcohol, regardless of how much, itd begin to hurt later that evening.  I have had xrays that showed nothing, had h pylori tests that showed nothing and kidney tests that showed nothing.  It hurts now just about everyday and no doctor seems to have a clue whats going on.  

[LivingInHope]

Kind of a vicious cycle, because worry can tend to aggravate problems more!  Occult blood testing I believe is not very expensive and if you have cancer, early detection they say holds the best rate of cure.  If they don't find it early, cure rate is pretty dismal.  Sigmoidoscopy would be less expensive than colonoscopy.  

Making life adjustments is hard, and we who make them don't always eat perfectly.  I know, I still eat offending foods, particularly with my gastroesophageal reflux disease, not as much with my interstitial cystitis and migraines, and I mostly stick to my soft diet that I was told in my early thirties I need to be on the rest of my life due to TMJ arthritis and dysfunction.  

You do need to be diagnosed, and if possible treated.  So, the question is, how dedicated are you to getting help with this problem that is so disruptive to your life- is it enough to try and get the best professional help in deciding what would be the best tests to run?  A knowledgeable GI doctor with years of experience and hopefully a decent bedside manner who is willing to order the best tests to give you the lowest cost may be just what you decide to do.

[jsgoodale]

unfortunately i do not have any insurance, so the afformentioned tests are out of the picture until i can pinpoint which one will most likely provide me with an answer.  i rartely drink, and rarely have wings.  its frustrating because it alters every aspect of my life.  i cant workout like i used to, i cant eat like i used to, and i worry every day that its going to hurt.

[LivingInHope]

They should do at least a sigmoidoscopy with the area you describe if not a colonoscopy to look at your bowel.  Have they done any scoping of the area?   Did they run an occult blood stool test?  Have you altered your diet to eliminate offending agents, such as the alcohol and chicken wings?  Soda, cabbage and beans are just three of gas producing offenders.