Abdominal pain

[mconlon]

Hi all

I'm really quite scared at the moment as I have had constant abdominal cramping for 2 weeks now. They occur below the belly button in both sides. Been to the doctor who had a feel around and took a urine sample which came back clear. After a week I went back and he said it was just stress. He doesn't think it is IBS cos my bowel movements are regular. I have no fever.It is slightly releived when I eat a meal.

I can't get to grips with it being anxiety cos I don't feel anxious and I do a daily relation routine. I'm scaring myself that it is something serious to do with circulation or cancer (I do have health anxiety). I'm finding it hard to not think about it cos its always there and I'm becoming tired and uncommunicative.


Any ideas or experience out there?
Lots of Love
Michael

[cattttt]

Don't know about circulatory things, but not cancer if your bowels are regular, first thing is you get constipation followed by diarrhoea. Sounds just like stress to me, you're a teacher ay? Really stressful job, I used to be one, so did my husband, we both found it really stressful, especially if you do a good job.
Are you holding all your abdominal muscles tight? Be aware of them and feel what they are doing, I bet that's what the problem is, so try some relaxation, it might help.

[nicktaylor]

Hi,

I've got something similar. For the past couple of days I've had a dull ache just below my ribs. Whenever I eat I'm getting cramps and my stomach gurgles for a bit afterwards - I can feel everything moving around.

This morning I got what felt like being kicked in the stomach. I thought it might be an ectopic heartbeat (I've had those before), but this felt down below my ribs, where the aching was coming from - like my diaphragm or intestine.

I'm feeling queasy all the time too - I can't get out of my head that I've burst my intestines or something weird. Seems unlikely, but you never know.

I reckon it's the same sort of abdominal muscle tension - just have to stop worrying and it'll go away. Perhaps. :)

Nick.

[nell1965]

Nick no way have you ruptured your intestines...and i think deep down you know that, more likely to be anxiety or you have eaten something that has disagreed with you and you are tensing up because you are stressing over it. mconlon, believe me when i tell you that anxiety can do anything, remember its your brain that we are talking about and it rules your body, but our minds can programme our brains into doing really weird things to our body, and sometimes its just our brain that does it automatically. Remember there are loads of cases where people suffer from exam paralysis and really believe they cant move their arm and people who cant talk after a traumatic experience etc etc. thats the power of the brain. We just have to learn to reprogramme it and thats the hard bit, when we can do that we have our health anxiety and other anxiety more under control. I really believe in CBT to help us to do this, to help us to slow down our thought processes so we dont jump straight to pushing the panic button. The problem with us guys is that this response becomes a learned behaviour and we do it without thinking and by the time our rationale brain has caught up its too late we are off in panic mode and nothing will stop it. A lot of people think that people with health anxiety/anxiety are stupid but the opposite is most often true, we are usually very quick thinkers with brains that can work at speeds which would blow most ordinary people apart, we tend to like to work things out and dont like not to have answers to everything ( hark at me blowing all our trumpets) we just need to learn how to do this to our advantage.
sorry for rambling on folks
hope this helps

[nicktaylor]

Sigh so after a few days of worrying and being all cramped up, I went to the GP. Before I'd finished explaining my stress (I'd been to court for my nuisance neighbours the week before), she didn't even examine me, just gave me 'antispasmodics' to make my intestines work like they're supposed to. Without wishing to give too much detail, my 'bowel movements' have been decidedly varied, and every now and then I check to see that blood isn't coming out! Stupid anxiety. After a week of the tablets (and less stress), I've been pretty much back to normal.

Had a weird weekend though - I think time to relax over easter made it all come out in my mind, and I felt like bursting into tears on Saturday night. Yesterday I felt pretty tense and didn't sleep well - today at work it was like the bad old days of my anxiety, dizzy and fuzzy head and all. I even had to get off the tube on the way home because I felt claustrophobic and sick.

Ah well. At least I know it's all just stupid anxiety and it'll pass after a while. That's what I keep saying in my mind, anyway :)

[nomorepanic]

Sounds like classic acid reflux/indigestion to me.

The stomach pains are awful and so scarey!

[nicktaylor]

Thanks Nicola!

In the context of how I'm feeling generally, I know you're right. Just posted a long rant into the General Anxiety forum, cos I've been feeling a bit rough today. Must...do...better :)

[203david]

Hi Michael

I suffered was from very sore abdominal cramps around Xmas and honestly thought I had something serious wrong with me given the pain level. The doctor thought it was stress related and told me to come back after Xmas which I did as the pain and discomfort continued through festive period.

After seeing specialist and having a Colonoscopy I was diagnosed as having mild Diverticular Disease. My specialist advised a high fibre diet and a short course of anti-spasmodic drugs which have helped as I no longer have pain.

Hope this helps
David

[clickaway]

Hi Michael, I have experienced similar in the past - I went to the docs and she did an 'inspection' and was just another anxiety symptom. It's a fairly common one.

I also often get tension around my right hip - the pains get everywhere!

[mconlon]

So . . .

Did two weeks on stage in the lead role of a musical topping myself up with buscopan to get rid of the spasms. I then went off the buscopan to go back to work(school teacher) and then my guts went crazy with pain - cramping, then either constipation or its opposite. Back to the doc who has now decided it is IBS and given me Colefac and Fibogel fibre drink for two months.

No Buscopan 4 times daily(2 pills a time) really helped but fibogel has made the cramps worse and after a week colefac hasn't helped at all with the cramps - anybody experience better medication?

Cheers
MC