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tag
02-08-11, 09:47
Hello everyone,

If somebody can maybe help put my mind at rest just a little bit I'd be really grateful.

For the last week or so I've been getting pains/twinges in my sides (often the left), between/below my shoulders and have also noticed acid in my throat, causing muck from, presumably, post nasal drip, triggered by stomach acid. I'm belching a lot too and my voice feels a little bit different - almost as if it's a bit higher than usual, again, presumably because of the acid.

The symptoms don't seem to be there in the morning - or if they are, they aren't particularly pronounced - but within 5 - 10 minutes after eating something, there they are.

Occasionally I get the 'lump in throat' feeling but that I think is more down to me becoming more & more anxious about my symptoms & it often goes away within an hour or two.

I am on 10mg of Omeprazole & have been for the last few months - this was prescribed to relieve PND which was suspected as being caused by mild reflux, although I've never had acid reflux (if that's what this is) as badly as this as it seems to come and go all day.

I do suffer from Irritable Bowel Syndrome too although this doesn't seem to be too bad at the moment so I'm not sure if these are linked.

I have been very anxious in the last week or two about my job security, so wonder whether this outbreak of whatever it is could have been exacerbated by worry?

My mind is doing overtime & I'm trying to ignore all my very real fears that this is cancer of either stomach, pancreas, bowel, oesophegus etc.

On the plus side, I do actually have a pretty good appetite at the moment so that gives me some hope that this isn't neccesarily anything sinister.

Anyway, if someone might be able to give me a bit of reassurance I'd be very, very grateful.

Thanks in advance,

Added: I'm now incredibly worried that I might have Pancreatic cancer as the pain I'm getting after eating is in my left side, underneath my ribcage. I've also had a pale coloured 'movement' (apologies if too much info) & darker than normal urine - both apparently symptoms as well as sweating a lot, although this might be due to anxiety and the fact that it's very warm at the moment.

ItchyOne
03-08-11, 04:11
This sounds almost like my situation many months back. It started when I felt my voice is slightly different, the pitch was lower (instead of higher like yours). An ENT took a look via an endoscopy and told me I was having a mild acid reflux.

I was put on Omeprazole twice daily for a month. During this one month, I have had occasional pains/discomfort on my sides too. About a week into taking Omeprazole, my stool became yellowish. I tried to google to see if it's a side effect of taking PPIs like Omeprazole. Bad idea... I diagnosed myself with pancreatic cancer instead. :( Needless to say, I got worried so I rushed to see a specialist. He took some blood and asked for stool samples. The blood work and stool turned out ok. He also ordered an ultrasound on my gallbladder. That turned out fine too.

I felt reassured, went home, complete the course of Omeprazole. And within a month, my bowels goes back to normal, no more pains/discomfort on my sides, and my voice regained its normal pitch. No problem with acid reflux since.

I guess it was my anxiety that caused the pains on my sides, and the poor stools. Or it could even be the Omeprazole. And I believe you're fine as your situation sounded quite like mine. :)

tag
03-08-11, 15:40
Hello,

And thanks for the really helpful reply.
It all got a bit too much for me this morning & I went to see my doctor as I was utterly convinced that I had Pancreatic cancer.

She was very good & told me that I appeared to be displaying none of the 'red flag' indicators of something nasty - my urine sample was fine, my chest was clear, etc.

She's bumped up my dose of Omeprazole 4-fold to 40mg for a month which she says should alleviate the symptoms of indigestion & reflux so I guess we'll see how we go with that..

I'm still getting aches in my chest & back but I believe that they are as much to do with my terrible, anxiety-induced posture at work as anything else.

I've been given all the good advice re diet for reducing reflux - ie, avoid caffeine, booze, eating just before bed etc so will be abiding by this advice as much as I can.

Here's hoping that it nails this soonest..

I think that from what you've said about Google we'd both be wise to try & resist the urge to consult the online medical fraternity in future as all it seems to do is scare the living cr*p out of you (the correct colour or otherwise) :doh:

Anyway, good to hear from you - many thanks for sharing your experiences. :)

Em.ma
03-08-11, 23:15
Just thought id say sweating a lot is proberly because your anxious and it is more warm than we have been used to in the UK for a long time :)

ItchyOne
04-08-11, 07:38
You're welcome! :)
Oh and fyi, I've sworn by that anti-reflux diet ever since. I don't want a relapse. And I've also noticed that cutting off caffeine completely has a positive effect on my health anxiety. I still salivate whenever I see my friends gulping down their cocacola though.
One more thing you can try is to raise your bed head by a few inches. The gravity will help to keep the stomach acid where they are while you are sleeping.



scare the living cr*p out of you (the correct colour or otherwise)

:roflmao: Hahaha!

tag
25-08-11, 12:43
Hi,

Further to my original post my GP got a full blood count/liver function/amylase level done which turned out normal, apart from a 'slightly raised inflammatory marker' - something I was told I didn't need to worry about unduly.

I went back because I started experiencing a nasty attack of globus/tight throat & the doctor diagnosed a combination of anxiety & acid reflux, prescribing the thickest Gaviscon you can buy..

Now, for the last couple of days when I eat, I feel quite queasy & have pain again in the middle/left under ribs & my appetite is not great, although I guess not feeling hungry could well be down to my anxiety levels being extremely high at the moment. I've just turned 40, am male and now, because I made the mistake of consulting Dr Google again, increasingly worried that I now have stomach c**cer.

It seems that the Omeprazole isn't really doing an awful lot (other than temporarily turning my stools a scary colour - sorry, maybe tmi) and the Gaviscon isn't really a whole lot better either to be honest.

It was great to hear that some of what I experienced originally was also successfully overcome by others but if anyone could possibly help ease my mind again regarding my latest symptoms I'd be really glad to hear from you as otherwise I think I'm going to have to make yet another return trip to my GP with the possibility of a camera down the throat to follow. :weep:
Would I be right in thinking that I should be taking some reassurance from a 'normal' blood test for example?
Thanks very much indeed & so sorry to go on but I'm reaching wits' end & having real trouble keeping things together now.