New to the message boards and need some advice
#312063 - 07/26/07 07:11 PM
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I am new here and hope that maybe someone has an idea of what I've been dealing with for almost 4 years. I am also not sure if this is the right place to post this. After the birth of our 3rd child almost 4 years ago, I started having problems with extreme pain above my bellybutton after eating pasta. It was so extreme I would hold onto the counter next to me while using the bathroom to prevent falling off the toilet! At this time I was learning that a new friend of mine had been diagnosed with celiac sprew. So I picked her brain and thought maybe that was my problem. I tested myself by eliminating wheat for a week, then for one day I purposefully encluded wheat in every meal and almost died from the pain.
I don't have insurance, but finally saw a doctor this past February and he did an Upper GI. He took biopsies of my stomach and ruled out wheat allergy, along with other more major things. My problem still exists and he says it sounds like IBS, but usually the pain is in the lower left side, while mine is above my bellybutton. I haven't eaten wheat or gluten in over 3 years and it helps, though I still have times when my stomach won't let up or my bowel movements aren't very "normal."
If anyone has any advice or can relate to my upper abdominal pain, I would appreciate hearing from you. I do take fiber on a regular basis and it seems to help. I also drink peppermint tea when I have a bad day.
Again, thank you for listening!
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IBS pain is not only on the lower left side, it can basically be anywhere in your abdominal area, including above the belly button.
It's good that your doc ran upper GI tests but did he run other tests including a colonoscopy to rule out other illnesses that can mimic IBS symptoms? He should it is very important to be properly diagnosed.
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Unfortunately, you are not going to know if you truly have celiac disease unless you get the blood test performed. Did you have this done when you saw your Doctor? If not, maybe you can find out how much that test alone is and determine whether you can afford it.
You may very well have celiac disease since eliminating gluten containing products from your diet eased symptoms and they returned with the reintroduction of gluten. But does it really matter if you have a diagnosis? I think you're absolutely right in staying away from gluten products even if you don't know for certain you have celiac disease. Why eat something that you know triggers pain?
As for upper GI problems, are you referring to pain above the bellybutton but in your stomach region or some sort of acid reflux/heartburn issue. I wasn't clear on that.
I sometimes experience upper tummy aches which feel like they're about at my belly button when I eat things that I cannot tolerate. I really can't do much to alleviate the pain once it kicks in besides to lay down or walk (whichever feels best for my body) and drink some chamomile tea. Most of the time I just wait it out. The best way for me to avoid those types of tummy aches is to avoid the foods I know triggers them. It's frustrating, but after a long process of elimination, I have a pretty good idea of what not to eat.
Sorry I can't be of more help  I think it's great that you got an upper scope done to rule out ulcers and other upper GI problems. That should provide some relief!
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Thank you for your responses. I guess you're right in saying it really doesn't matter whether or not I have a diagnosis. I know gluten products bother me and all in all, I'm okay when I don't consume them.
I did tell my doctor that wheat allergy and gluten allergy are 2 different things and that I'd like to know about both! He tested for wheat only and it came up negative.
So, I thought about people who are lactose intollerant, not allergic, and maybe my body is just intollerant to gluten. Anyway, I rarely have troubles with my stomach unless I eat something I didn't know contained gluten. I just wondered if above the bellybutton pain was different than left side pain. And the pain is in my abdomin, not like reflux or anything. The only time I had reflux problems was during pregnancies!
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