4 days in hospital and still no answers
 

I spent the last four days in the hospital and I still have no answers.

I've got major pain in my right abdomen that hits for 5 or 6 days and then fades. This happens every few days. The pain in intense and focused in one area. This time I'm crapping some major blood.

I had gyn workups inside and ultrasound. I've had colonoscopy, stool cultures, cat scans, celiac panel. Everything is negative. I'm supposed to go have a barium enama as soon as I can get it scheduled. I was on a clear liquid diet the whole time I was in the hospital. There are no signs of hemorrhoids.

There was a comment made by my xray tech. She said she had the same episodes every month for 9 months or so. They found out it was her appendix. My appendix looked fine in the cat scan. However the dr said my pain is centered on my appendix, a celicac something and something else I can't remember.

To confuse things, I started my period at the same time. This caused them to wonder about endometriosis that might have eaten through my bowel. They rechecked my colonoscopy and there is no sign of that. The period stopped but the bowel blood has not.

One dr mentioned the pill camera but they don't do that here so will have to travel for that. One dr mentioned a laporoscopy and but not to vehemantly. One dr mentioned that barium enema. My family dr now takes Friday afternoons off as well as Wednesdays. I couldn't call her yesterday when I got out to discuss this stuff with her.

So my dear internet experts, what do you all think? The drs are stumped but are you? What do you know about long term appendix attacks? If it blows and I don't know it I'm sunk. What do you know about any of this other stuff. This has been going on for almost 7 months. I'm pretty desparate.

Thanks.

Marcia

I would hope that the appendix is something they keep checking on...just to be sure.
But other than that I don't have any ideas...
I hope others will have something more to add for you soon.

(((((((((Marcia)))))))))

A long time ago on another forum a man was writing about his wife having intense abdominal pain, and it turned out to be from having taken a lot of Advil, or some other over the counter pain medication.

If I remember correctly, Epsom salts baths helped some, and so did Methylcobalamin lozenges, but neither was a complete, quick cure.

I tend to have bleeding when I'm low on B12: gums, nose... when I was younger I would get my period, very heavily, even though it wasn't time for it.

You're probably in overwhelm, but it would be good to keep a few notes, every day, to record what's happening so that you can go back over the notes and see what things might have changed that could have an affect. For instance, were you under more stress and did it get worse? (I would think that you are under tremendous stress from these episodes alone.)

(((((((((Marcia))))))))

Thanks guys for keeping up with me.

I did follow one advise I was given and started to take B12 pills. The reason being that diarrhea can lead to malabsorbtion of B vitamins. I probably didn't take it long enough for it to work cause another attack hit. I will keep taking it. I had hoped it would pep me up some but it didn't.

I guess the only consolation is that when my abdomen almost has me doubled over, my tos and back don't hurt as much. That is so stupid.

I can't see that this is stress but it could be. I'm on SSD so I sit around the house alot. I do laundry, make dinner, take care of my now teenage kids and husband. I've gotten to the point that if I don't feel good, the house doesn't get done and we order out. We eat a few scorched meals at times too. No one yells at me thank goodness. I've been miserable for almost 8 years with the tos and back stuff. What's one more problem that no one can find a cure for???

Thanks for all those hugs. I can use every one.

Marcia

Hi Marcia,

when you say, "pills" it worries me that you got some cyanocobalamin and took the pills by swallowing them whole.

That is not the most efficient way to take B12.

For years I've been telling people about B12, and those people who get the cyanocobalamin most often tell me that it does nothing so they stopped taking it.

Actual B12 does work, it is very effective, but you have to get it to your body and swallowing it puts it in line to not be absorbed. If you use sublinguals the B12 goes right into your system. and if you use the methylcobalamin it does not have to be converted to methylcobalamin because it already is methylcobalamin.

((((((((Marcia)))))))))

Hi again, I forgot to mention that stress is slightly more complicated than the obvious stress of being yelled at.

It can be stressful if you want to do things and can't because of your health.

There was a book a couple years ago, The Status Syndrome, that talked about how people who were unable to lead fulfilling lives died younger... I forget exactly how it was stated, but if someone could not do or get things they wanted over a long period of time, then they had reduced life expectancies.

It's a good book, I should go find it and quote to you exactly.

But, my point is that you may be leading a very stressful life and not giving yourself credit for surviving all that stress.

(((((((Marcia))))))))

I can definately see your point about not living my life. I've been frustrated for 8 years. I just can seem to accept that this is me. I can't seem to smile on the way to the bank to get my SSD money. I can't seem to be grateful that I'm at least able to put money into the family finances. I've spent 8 great years raising my kids cause I could stay home with them due to the SSD. However, they've had to put up with all my problems. So, yes, there is tons of mental stress in my head!

Yes, I think it must be very hard on you. I've been sick since 2004 and sometimes, well, sometimes it's hard.

But see, on the whole I don't mind being alone. I like to garden and work on my website and I have these horrific legal problems.

I'm really sorry, but I don't know what TOS is. I thought you were a computer geek and it meant, "Terms of Service" -- but I take it that it's a disability of some sort. What is it?

One thing that's helped me a lot is to garden. The improvement in my health is so slow that ... well, I tend to be tempted to give up hope of being able to drive again and stuff. When I garden, then I can take a horrible bit of my back yard and change it, and it makes me feel so good to see the difference. The difference comes so slowly as the plants grow that it gives me hope that my body is slowly healing. (Methylcobalamin actually regenerates nerves, but not very fast. I mean, yes, fast, but not overnight.)

Do you have ridges on your fingernails? or are you losing your moons? Those can be signs of low B12, and if you have those signs then possibly you're not feeling happy because of the depression that's often a part of low B12.

It sounds like you have a lovely family, so it would be good if you could enjoy them more and not be down because of a deficiency in a simple vitamin.

I really could not believe that it was that effective, but now, with all my experience, I wish I'd had a LOT more earlier on. I think that would have made an enormous difference.

(((((((((Marcia)))))))))

Thoracic Outlet Syndrome.......if it is on her dominate side, it will interfer with all ADLs.....and any crafty sort of thing....non dominate, maybe not so bad, but the pain in and of itself, interfers....even with sleep......

Yep, that's me. Severe bilateral thoracic outlet syndrome. Had the left rib and scalene muscles out about five years ago. Also have three herniated and two bulging discs in my lumbar. So unfortunately gardening is out for me. Can barely run the sweeper and fill the dishwasher some days.

Man, my side hurts tonight! Can't sit, lay down, nothing. Just took two vicaden about 8 and it's not touching it.

Had good news to cheer me up though. Our library had a tree decorating contest. We put in a tree with the proceeds to go to the SPCA. I knitted a bunch of minature ski hats and we decorated the tree with them. Also put on a few scarf/hat sets as garland, assorted sizes. We started our bidding at 20$. Some little girl loved it so much she talked her grandma into paying 50$ for our tree.


M