Pain, stress, lost a pet - bad week!

[ErinKC]

ItÂ’s been a stressful week or so, which is making my anxiety flare for the first time in a long time. IÂ’ve had right middle back pain for several weeks now. I canÂ’t put my finger in when it started. I assumed it was after a long drive last month. It seems like intercostal pain (mid back, wraps around my rib cage, worse when twisting and deep breathing).

Then I took a bunch of nsaids to held and that flares up my GERD, which seemingly also made the back pain worse from bloating and referred pain (IÂ’ll get GERD pain in my back when itÂ’s really bad).

I started with Pepcid (fomatadine) last week and itÂ’s helped the GERD, but the pain has not relented. Then today I had a light stool and started to worry maybe itÂ’s not muscular! I definitely have had stool weirdness with Pepcid in the past, but not in a long time. I am taking more than usual. So IÂ’m mostly thinking thatÂ’s it. But the pain area along with that has me a bit worried about gallbladder or liver. IÂ’ll get little tinges of discomfort that feel gastrointestinal on the right side as well.

We lost our 18 year old cat last Wednesday, so emotions have been really high and I donÂ’t want to fall into a spiral!

The pain seems to get worse when IÂ’m sleeping and IÂ’ll wake up stiffer and be sore when I turn onto my side or move around. It will seem to get better one day and then be worse the next. I ate very little for two days because of GERD and it seemed better. Then I ate more yesterday and itÂ’s worse. I canÂ’t place if itÂ’s correlated with or caused by the eating.

And wisdom?? Thanks!

[.Poppy.]

I think you're right about the source of the pain, and it's a bummer that NSAIDs flare your GERD as those help me a lot when I have costo flares. Have you tried heat at all? My doctor told me heat, especially wet heat, would help a lot with the pain, and it seems to.

I'm sorry for the loss of your cat. I can completely understand; I won't spill my woes on your post but my dog is in the throes of health issues and it has caused my own anxiety to majorly flare. It's such a hard thing to experience.

[ErinKC]

Thanks so much, Poppy! One of the joys of being in my 40s is no longer being able to take NSAIDS! I took them with abandon in my 20s (though maybe that’s the problem now!). I’m sure it’s exactly what I think. Lingering pain is so annoying. I’m sorry to hear about your dog!!

[NoraB]

ItÂ’s been a stressful week or so, which is making my anxiety flare for the first time in a long time. IÂ’ve had right middle back pain for several weeks now. I canÂ’t put my finger in when it started. I assumed it was after a long drive last month. It seems like intercostal pain (mid back, wraps around my rib cage, worse when twisting and deep breathing).

Then I took a bunch of nsaids to held and that flares up my GERD, which seemingly also made the back pain worse from bloating and referred pain (IÂ’ll get GERD pain in my back when itÂ’s really bad).

I've literally just posted about this on another thread, but I'm in the same position due to having to take Ibuprofen in August for an MSK issue...

I started with Pepcid (fomatadine) last week and itÂ’s helped the GERD, but the pain has not relented. Then today I had a light stool and started to worry maybe itÂ’s not muscular! I definitely have had stool weirdness with Pepcid in the past, but not in a long time. I am taking more than usual. So IÂ’m mostly thinking thatÂ’s it. But the pain area along with that has me a bit worried about gallbladder or liver.

Nah, it'll be the Pepcid. (My reflux medication does all sorts to my poo)

We lost our 18 year old cat last Wednesday, so emotions have been really high and I donÂ’t want to fall into a spiral!

I'm so sorry to hear this. It's always so hard to lose a pet... (hugs)

The pain seems to get worse when IÂ’m sleeping and IÂ’ll wake up stiffer and be sore when I turn onto my side or move around. It will seem to get better one day and then be worse the next. I ate very little for two days because of GERD and it seemed better. Then I ate more yesterday and itÂ’s worse. I canÂ’t place if itÂ’s correlated with or caused by the eating.

And wisdom?? Thanks!

Re eating with GERD, they reckon little and often, and it does seem to be good advice. (I stop eating about 5pm so that I can sleep without the reflux)

Muscular pain can tale a long time to rectify. In my experience, holding the body in a different position to alleviate pain causes more symptoms...

Yours started after a long drive (body position correlation), but lifting or even a decent sneeze can cause muscular issues like this. Then, you took NSAIDS which you know flare up your GERD (as with me)

I would be using heat pads/cool pads for the muscular issue (lay off the NSAIDS or use gel)

And try some back exercises, but for this you really should be seeing a physio who will give you the right exercises for the injury as doing the wrong ones could aggravate the situation, rather then help.

Hope you start to feel better soon.

[BlueIris]

Erin, I'm so sorry for your loss. Sending love and good wishes.

[ErinKC]

Erin, I'm so sorry for your loss. Sending love and good wishes.

Thanks, Blue!

[ErinKC]

I've literally just posted about this on another thread, but I'm in the same position due to having to take Ibuprofen in August for an MSK issue...

Thanks so much for this reply, Nora! I'm still having pain and GI symptoms, but I'm hoping they are slowly improving. I went on a girls' weekend this past weekend and we did a TON of walking. I ate kind of a heavy dinner and got horrible gas and bloating and my back seemed a bit worse I think both from that and the walking. I'm home now and my stomach is doing better and I picked up a probiotic to try and get things set back on course. My back pain is like wrap around rib pain, which does seem muscular, but I keep getting little twinges of nerves that it's something else.

I've decided that if it's not improving by the end of the week I may pop into my doctor to get her recommendation since it'll have been about a month at that point. It's not getting worse and there are signs of improvement, so fingers crossed!

I really need to just once and for all decide I cannot take NSAIDS.

[ErinKC]

IÂ’m still dealing with all of this. The back pain has gotten mostly better but the GERD symptoms are worse. It will seem like itÂ’s improving and then bam - pain again. IÂ’m basically only eating eggs, yogurt, banana, and pasta. IÂ’m taking Pepcid. I can increase my dose, which I need to do, but that always makes me anxious.

A few days ago I was mostly having the acid in my throat. That lasted for like 2 days and then improved. Then on Tuesday I was feeling good all day. I ate an omelet and some crackers, and then around midafternoon I made a boxed stuffing. A few bites in and it was like swallowing rocks. It hit my sternum and pain spread around my back like a band.

I got up and walked around, drank some water, and after a short time it subsided. The throat acid came back and I sipped water and eventually it felt better.

Yesterday I also felt good all day. I had another omelet, then a yogurt for lunch at work, and drank alkaline water all day. I came home and made the same pasta IÂ’ve been eating for weeks and again, as soon as it went down I had horrible pain in my sternum that spread around. This time it didnÂ’t totally go away. After a while when it was less I had some yogurt thinking it would help, but it also hurt doing down. Like a dull ache. Even my chamomile tea was hurting.

I woke up at like 2:30am and still has the pain. By the morning it was almost gone and I had a banana about and hour ago and it didnÂ’t aggravate it any more, but I can still kind of feel it.

IÂ’m getting nervous itÂ’s my gallbladder. The symptoms done really match, but my anxiety is taking me there and after I saw my doctor last week she ordered me an abdominal ultrasound just in case. I havenÂ’t scheduled it yet because I canÂ’t stand the worry hanging over me right before Christmas.

IÂ’m starting to catastrophize that IÂ’ll need my gallbladder out or that I have a strangled hiatal hernia and IÂ’ll need surgery for that. Anyone whoÂ’s been here a while knows my history with fibroids and hernias and my fear of surgery and long history of having conditions that hang over my head with impending doom.

I just started the best job and I really donÂ’t want all this dragging me down!!

IÂ’m trying to keep telling myself that I messed up my stomach with NSAIDs and itÂ’s not healed yet. But itÂ’s hard!! I have a call with my doctor later to see what she thinks I should do next. All this has been going on for about it a month now.