Still having digestion issues

[engy]

I am having a lot of digestion issues.  Nausea, diarrhea, constipation, stomach cramping, achy, fatigue, you name it! It is causing me to have anxiety again too.

All my bloodwork has been normal.  Normal urine tests.  Normal for hpylori, normal for other bacteria in the small intestine.  Normal gastric emptying test...

I did have an ultrasound yesterday and don't have the results back from that.

I'm starting to wonder if I could be intolerant to some foods?!

I do have celiac disease and the feeling is similar to when I have gotten glutened.  But I haven't gotten glutened at all and we even checked my antibodies to make sure.

I have cut out coffee, eggs and dairy for the passed few weeks.  I ate some dairy a week ago and had zero problems.  Yesterday, I had my gastric emptying test and guess what I had to eat? Eggs.  I ate them fine, didn't seem to have any issues and later in the day wanted coffee so bad that I drank 1/2 cup.  By the evening I had nausea and anxiety and felt bloated and miserable.  I slept 12 hours and still feel horrible.  So it kind of seems like eggs and/or coffee could be the culprit. 

However, I have felt horrible for 3 months now with just a little normalcy when I started cutting foods out.  Ugh.  I also have a scope scheduled in 3 weeks.

Hope I get some answers soon. I need relief from this! Luckily, I have today and tomorrow off to eat gently and relax.  I need to stop worrying too Engy

[Joe S.]

Stop worrying is the first step. The second you have started with taking your own action. Coffee seams to be a problem. What about Tea? What about Gluten?

It takes about 3 weeks to get off caffeine. They will seem like the worst 3 weeks of your life. I took aspirin / Aleve when I was withdrawing. I found that pop and Ice Tea was too strong for me. Currently, I mixed ice tea and Lemon aid 50/50 (Arnie Palmer). It seems to provide the caffeine and helps with moisture when I eat. I mix it in bottles with caps so I do not have to take it all at once. I sip it with each bite. Then I go back to sipping water. What is left of the tea mix goes back into the fridge. This has helped me. I hope it helps you.

[engy]

Joe,
You must be the calmest person!  You always do a good job at telling people to relax, don't worry!  It's great.

I've been off coffee for 2 months now but convinced myself I was fine with it but apparently I'm not. 

Also struggling to eat any red meat and fried or fatty foods.  I can eat fruits, veggies, turkey and chicken.  Some gluten free bread. 

I found some Traditional Medicinal tea for soothing stomach and that seems to be okay right now.

Thanks for the pep-talk.  Hoping to get answers sooner rather than later.

I am seeing my holistic psychologist again to help keep my nerves/worries in check.

[irish]

Have you lost weight with this?? If you are following your gluten free diet things should remain pretty stable. My hubby had Celiac as do one son and one grandson so have 39 years of cooking gluten free. Have you been eating oats? These days they say that there are oats that can be eaten by people with celiac disease. Many people still can't tolerate them. Also soy oil and canola oil are both oils that give people trouble. Check out what your cooking oils are made from.

The other thing that is possible is that your colon issues aren't causing the anxiety but the anxiety is causing the colon issues. I had lots of colon issues and times with many months of diarrhea and could hardly eat anything but the poached eggs, rice, potatoes, etc. Many years later my new immunologist asked me if the doctors back then had tried prednisone burst and taper to see if things settled down. Sometimes we can get autoimmune attacks on our gut without bleeding. Sometimes it is even hard to get a biopsy that will prove inflammation. Just a thought to present to your doc.

Then there is the fact that the colon/brain relationship is very close. The brain secrets serotonin and the colon secretes serotonin also. Most of my colon issues settled down when I was put on an antidepressant for depression. I was not expecting that to happen but I was really happy not to have all those stomach cramps, etc. anymore. If your anxiety is bad be aware that autoimmune diseases have a very high incidence of depression and anxiety and the latest info is saying that depression can be an autoimmune issue in itself.

As a side light I would also advise you to be super vigilant about reading labels and keeping a log of your food intake. It may be that there is one food additive that could be causing you problems. Also, deodorant and toothpaste can also contain gluten.

The website   http://www.celiac.com   is really pretty good about covering all aspects of life as far as gluten exposure. Also, makeup can also have hidden gluten. Good luck. Irish

[Jenny]

I see that you are taking magnesium. I went through a period of about six months last year feeling similar to you. I would have uncontrollable diarrhea some days and constipation other days.  I finally realized it was the day that I took magnesium that I would have diarrhea. Unfortunately I still get constipated, but it's better than diarrhea almost every day.

[engy]

Jenny, magnesium hasn't been a problem for me.  I'm looking into all of my supplements and medicines again just in case though.

Irish, we are really careful about gluten as my entire family is gluten free so I don't think it's that.  Plus we check my gluten antibody levels and those aren't elevated at all.  I do think it's possible that another food is bothering me (intolerance) so I am keeping a food journal. I have lost about 6 pounds so far.

Most of my pain/nausea is high, right between my ribs and even goes to my upper back.  My doctor wants me taking Prevacid now even though I do not feel any acid or heartburn at all.

I don't think the diarrhea is from my anxiety because the anxiety has been just once in a while and the yellow diarrhea (TMI-sorry) is multiple times a day.  I feel the anxiety only when the pain/uncomfortable gnawing is bad.

I agree that it could be inflammation and if everything comes back negative then I will ask for a short cycle of prednisone.

Thanks for your ideas/suggestions/thoughts!  I appreciate it more than you know! 

There are really educated people on this site (more than some of our doctors) and it's a blessing!

[Deb 27]

Did they do an ultrasound of your gall bladder? I'd be interested to see what those results show.  If that doesn't show anything, I'd press really hard for a CT scan.

[irish]

I am an old retired RN and the symptoms your describe sure sound spot on for a gallbladder issue. THe gallbladder is on the right side under the rib cage and if a doctor places his and slightly up and under that right lower rib cage there can be some discomfort that could be the gallbladder. Pain can radiate to the back either right or left side. Watch for orange urine or tinge of orange skin cause the stones or infection can plug up the bile duct and cause the color of bile to end up in the skin.

I would run, not walk and ask for scans, dye testing, etc or whatever they are doing to check out gallbladder. Be aware that many times the testing for gallbladder can be negative but when they remove the gallbladder there can be lots of stones and often infection in the organ. It can be a tricky thing to diagnose but keep at them and even get a second opinion if necessary as if a bad gallbladder is left to simmer it can cause huge problems with bad infections, and has been known to occasionally be fatal.

Don't be scared, just be persistant. Good luck. Irish

[engy]

My ultrasound I had on Wednesday was looking at pancreas, gallbladder, stomach, and liver.  I haven't heard back from the doctor yet, which is unusual for him.  I will put a call in today.

Thanks!

[Scottietottie]

Hi 

Check out all the meds you are on. Read the information leaflets and see if any of them can cause the symptoms you mention. Some meds have alternatives.

I've been bothered by awful hot sweats since menopause. I read that Omeprazole could cause sweating so I asked if my doc could switch me to something else. She did. The sweating stopped - which was bliss - but unfortunately Ranitidine didn't 'do the job' and I had to go back to Omeprazole. Sweats back - but I know now its a choice between sweating or stomach acid. so I feel more in control cos it's my choice.

Also check if any of the meds interact with each other. Some meds shouldn't be taken close together.

Take care - Scottie

[irish]

I came across my notes for serotonin production in the body. The notes I had said that the intestinal tract produces 95% of the bodies serotonin. This is amazing. It will be interesting to see what your gallbladder tests show. The amount of pain you have in the back is significant I would think. I wish you luck. Irish

[engy]

I checked my meds and a lot of them could be causing my issues but I've been on them for years so I'm not sure it's the meds.

My gallbladder has a small polyp on it, no stones.  My gastro. Isn't worried about the polyp because of its size and he doesn't think it's causing my pain. 

My liver does show fatty liver disease, which I've known about.  My liver enzymes are perfect so he doesn't think that is the issue either.

I had found some foods that didn't irritate me and I had a few "almost normal" digestion days. Then yesterday I had stomach issues all day and now diarrhea today.  UGH. I've been keeping a food journal and the only things I had different were cilantro and quinoa. 

So, the mystery continues...

2 weeks until endoscopy...

Wishing you all well!

[quietdynamics]

I have gastric issues and came across information regarding digestive enzymes in some Sjogren's patients.
The New Sjogren's Syndrome Handbook, Dr. Wallace. p. 74
https://books.google.com/books?id=gs-IupKFYmIC&pg=PA74&lpg=PA74&dq=sjogren%27s+digestive+enzymes&source=bl&ots=u0Q7Tezz0F&sig=xaoWMp707n5MjdCzuDqMNfx3_hQ&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwjF4avzrvLSAhWKNiYKHSoxBAkQ6AEIWzAJ#v=onepage&q=sjogren's%20digestive%20enzymes&f=false

older post on enzymes;
https://sjogrensworld.org/index.php?topic=19022.0
https://sjogrensworld.org/index.php?topic=24723.0

[williak]

I had similar issues.  A dietician suggested taking a probiotic.  This works about 95% of the time.  I take one everyday.

[gurs]

When Im flaring, my stomach is a nightmare..its always a nightmare it seems. Also, you could have yeast overgrowth, which is hard to test for. Maybe your doc can let you take diflucan for a month to see if it helps. I take 100mg everyday for last 5 years. I take tons of probiotics and about 4 different digestive enzymes, which are a godsend.

I hope you can find some answers. It just maybe the SS unfortunately. I have to say, the stomach issues are my #1 issue. My gastroparesis is just horrible.

Gursie