i can't eat anything anymore

[Jena]

so, at what age does this you have to watch what you eat thing occur?? is it 40? cause I"m telling you the past mos. i have to watch everything i eat or i am literally in pain and up all night long. it's the oddest thing.

tonight i made waflles with my belgain waffle maker for kids and I it was just us tonight, guess what that's no good either.

anyone else go through this?? it's so strange. i'm just eating regular stuff too nothing crazy or fried or bags of chips or anything.

me clueless. is my body rejecting me? LOL

 

[smallworld]

What kind of pain are you talking about? Heartburn?

 

[TerryJ2]

That was my question.
Where does it hurt? Inside the ribs with-sharp tiny pains ... gas?
Up higher in your chest, like reflux?
Way down, between your navel and your pubic bone ... IBS?

We need more info.

by the way, I've had all 3. Getting old is obnoxious.

 

[Jena]

you guys are great, like doctors......

I have all of those things. not so much with the heartburn. wow i was up and down like 3 times last night it was insane cause of the pain

 

[Jena]

ok yea the pelvic bone thingy you named terry and yes gas and just like i'm afraid to eat anything anymore. i start eating and think hmm what will this be like for me later?? LOL. it's crazy. i gues it is the getting old thing, huh..?? oh joy.

 

[smallworld]

Jen, my dad's a retired GI doctor so I know a fair amount about this stuff (plus like Terry, I'm a chronic sufferer of reflux and IBS). But I'm really not getting a clear sense of what's going on with you. I suggest making an appointment with your internist and going from there.

 

[Jena]

you are very insightful smallworld. I'Tourette's Syndrome sort of like i eat, than a few hours later my stomach starts to hurt, i have terrible gas pains yet just that. no running to bathroom or anything just totally uncomfortable. i used to be able to throw down anything with-o a problem crunchy cheese doodles, hot dogs you name it. those days are soo over. now the simple foods get me totally going.

i'm 30 days till insurance. i can't wait!! i'm going to spend a week at doctors lol

 

[Jena]

it's gotta be IBS. i just looked it up on line and that's me.

 

[Josie]

Have you considered gluten intolerance? Most food that "regular" people eat has gluten (wheat, rye, oats, barley, including malt and possibly natural flavoring) in it. If you ate, for example, plain grilled chicken, a baked potato, and steamed veggies would you feel the same?

 

[susiestar]

If it is actually IBS, increasing your fiber intake should help. It may take a week or so for that to work. Try benefiber, also try mini wheats. I kept my IBS in check for a long time by eating mini wheats. But if you have developed gluten intolerance then mini wheats won't help. You may need to eat brown rice instead.

I am sorry you are hurting.

 

[muttmeister]

It's not an age thing. If you have those kind of symptoms you should be getting medical help.
I'm 61 and my mother is 94 and we both eat whatever we want with no bad side effects. Of course, I do get uncomfortable if I make like a pig and eat too much but that is another problem entirely.
Just because you reach a certain age does not mean you should be suffering from some kind of digestive problem. It can happen at any age, and should be treated.
Good luck.

 

[TerryJ2]

One thing I tried in the last yr that worked very well, but is a bit costly (but well worth it!) is buying acidophilus and digestive enzymes. I take two acidophilus b4 every meal, and 2 digestive enzymes after every meal. It must be done with-o fail, no matter what you're eating, because it's too hard to guess what's in the food. There are so many additives. As someone pointed out here, even soy sauce can contain gluten. And hotdogs can contain anything (probably car parts, too! LOL).
The acidophilus isn't too expensive but the digestive enzymes come from health food stores and are very expensive. I'm going to look online to find better deals.

Also, massage will help. Do you know where your upper GI, colon, etc. are? It basically runs in an oval shape in your lower abdomen, so you can lie on your back and massage just below the navel all the way to the side, then down, next to your hip, then across above the pubic bone, then up again, almost like a circle. If you do it right, it can sometimes relax you and get rid of the pain, and sometimes, be prepared for a run to the bathroom!
There's a certain direction you're supposed to move in--I can't recall if it's l to r or r to l but frankly, any massage works!

The medications that are dispensed for IBS in my humble opinion, don't work.

I also use Metamucil. I like the orange flavor. Drink it at least 1/2 apart from taking any medications or vitamins or you will simply poop them out and waste them.

 

[Jena]

hi

thanks for all the great info. i'm going to pick up a fiber supplement this weekend and I actually already take that acillo.stuff terry that you wrote. i had blood work done a while ago for allergies, etc. and i was all good.

i just pop advil it's not the worst thing in the world. the other stuff i have going on is worse, this is minimal in the list of stuff lol.

i'm telling you my first week of insurance i am spending week at doctors

 

[trinityroyal]

Jen, one other thing that you might keep in mind...

Advil and other ibuprofen-based pain medications can be very harsh on your stomach. If you're taking a lot of advil or motrin, or other similar pain medications, then that might be contributing to your abdo pain.

I like Terry's suggestion about the digestive enzymes. If the good bacteria in your digestive tract are out of whack somehow, digestive enzymes (It actually says Digestive Enzymes on the bottle) will help set things to rights. If food is not being fully digested for some reason, it sits and rots in your intestines, causing lots of pain and, sometimes, horrible gas.

Feel better soon!

Trinity

 

[DaisyFace]

Hi Jena--

So sorry to hear of your stomach aches. I second the warning to stay away from the ibuprofen. Bad, bad on your stomach.

I have IBS myself...and I have found over the years that I have to watch for certain triggers. Food triggers are basically anything that would irritate an ulcer--I have to stay away from anything too acidic or salty [I know, there goes my salt-n-vinegar french fries--I LOVE those!!]...and if a food trigger has set me off, then I usually treat with Pepto-Bismol or Tums or whatever.

Stress Triggers are when it makes no difference at all what I eat--my intestines are going to twist into knots anyway. That's when the anti-spasmodic medications will help. I've also had good results by going to an area alone and blocking out all forms of stimuli until I can completely calm myself. I might go to a corner of my bedroom and bury my face and ears in a pillow. I know it sounds stupid--but that "time out" really does wonders.

See a doctor--and let us know how it goes. In the meantime, try and relax...

--DaisyF

 

[Star*]

Maybe the baby doesn't like it.........

OH an AUGUST baby! ............(ducks for cover) lol

 

[Josie]

There is not a reliable test for gluten intolerance other than trying to eliminate it. difficult child 2 had constant stomach problems until she was 8 and had blood allergy tests and celiac tests which were all negative. But now that she doesn't eat gluten (or milk or soy), she doesn't have stomach problems. If the suggestions above don't work, don't let your negative allergy test convince you that eliminating gluten won't help.

 

[susiestar]

I strongly suggest cutting the advil WAAAAYY back or out. No aleve either.

Then get some GasX, some dairy digestive enzyme, and some prilosec or zantac. WalMart has a generic GasX, the dairy digestive enzyme is generic Lactaid, prilosec generic is avail, and Zantac is sold in generic as "acid reducer". Can ya tell I have dealt with-stomach problems??

take the GAsX according to schedule. The dairy enzyme before you eat anything with dairy of any kind, and either prilosec or zantac every single day.

I hope you feel better soon. I also hope these help you make it to the date your insurace kicks in!

 

[KTMom91]

Jena, have your gallbladder checked. I had no typical gallbladder symptoms, but I had the occasional "tummy troubles" that sound similar to yours.

According to my surgeon, I was lucky I had my gallbladder out when I did. It was packed full of stones so big he had to break them to remove the gallbladder, and I was looking at some serious health issues. The gallstones were found completely by accident...I went to the ER with a kidney infection, and they did both a CAT scan and an ultrasound, looking for kidney stones.

 

[Jena]

Star - I am sooo not having a baby!! LOL. oh, that made me laugh!

wow gallbladder i never thought of that.

Does this mean I can't eat the crunchy cheesedoodles anymore at all? triggers makes sense. yet even turkey sandwich is a problem.

yea totally will go to the dr. for multiple things april i'm insurance ready!!!!!!

Trinity!!! i hope your belly feels ok