Lower left abdominal, left pelvic & other random pains

[xcalibr]

I’m hoping someone might have had similar issues so I’m reaching out for help. I’ll be as brief and as concise as I can. I’m 47, male, 6’1”, 260lbs and have never had any major medical issues, accept 2 kidney stones, one last year and one 25 years ago, nor have I ever been to the ER. This all started around Thanksgiving, which was the worst. After having eaten a large meal, of everything typical, by the time I was finished it felt like I had eaten 5x times as much. I was seriously bloated and in allot of abdominal discomfort all over, not ER pain per se, but seriously uncomfortable. Since then I’ve not been able to shake these symptoms, though they have been constantly changing. I started drinking only water in December and a few weeks ago I saw a Doctor (PCP). He ruled out dozens of things, including a hernia, and was puzzled as to why I was having these pains. He ran blood work and it was all good accept for a serious vitamin D deficiency. I do work on a computer all day but he thought this was more than just that lack of sun but he didn’t know what yet. The Celiac test has yet to come back. Besides the abdominal pain I basically don’t have any other symptoms and I don’t take any OTC or prescription medicine accept the new Vitamin D meds. My pain is localized to my lower left abdomen where my belly overhangs and left pelvic area sometimes. It feels like there’s something inside but the Doctor said he didn’t feel anything nor did the blood work detect any cancerous flags. The pain moves around too. Sometimes in the lower right abdomen. Sometimes these deep finger poking pains diagonally about 3” above my belly button, left & right. Sometimes these burning sensations at the very bottom/last rib in the front left & right and on both sides. Sometimes left & right flank pain, but no like kidney stones. Sometimes right pelvic pain. These pains all seem to come and go, but the lower left abdominal pain never seems to disappear. It’s worse when I’m sitting. Standing is decent and while sleeping I almost don’t feel anything. I have had some light brown/tan solid stools as well. I have started a food journal because I ate allot of bread, pizza, bread crumbs & noodles one day and I got incredibly bloated again which made me think it might be gluten related. I started eating gluten free about 5 days ago and don’t seem to have any more bloating but I still have that constant lower left abdominal discomfort and the random other issues, which have lessened, but the lower left abdominal pain still haunts me constantly. It’s a dull ache more so than a sharp pain. My mother suffered from Diverticulitis, but the Doctor did not think that was the issue. Does this sound similar to anyone else’s experiences? Does it sound like a gluten sensitively? Celiac disease? Something else? IBS? Strain related to being obese? I appreciate everyone’s patience, compassion, suggestions, questions & thoughts. Thank you.

[kareng]

I'm surprised he didn't suggest a colonoscopy!  And I would see if I could add on the endoscopy ( top part of the GI system) even if the celiac blood work is negative. Seems like that would be the usual sayandard of care for something like this.  I am assuming this isn't a GI doc.

[xcalibr]

Correct, this was a PCP, sorry I did not include that info. I was told to visit them first otherwise it might cost more without his referral. They didn't think a colonoscopy was needed. He said that if the Celiac test was negative that he is going to refer me to a gastroenterologist. Would that be the correct next course of action? Thank you.

[leej91]

I had these symptoms and got a GI scope, and was diagnosed with Gastritis and GERD Grade B; I never really had heartburn symptoms in spite of obviously having a big acid reflux problem. So, perhaps you could investigate that? The symptoms went away swiftly after treatment. Now, though, I'm wondering what CAUSED the GERD and some other symptoms not explained yet by it: my guess is gluten but I've not been checked yet. 

I did have that lower pelvic pain on my left side, it comes and goes; mostly, I don't have it any more since taking a fiber supplement. 

[cristiana]

Hello - strange you should post this as my pain symptoms are identical, except they are all on the left side.   I have left hand sided lower abdomen, left groin, left pelvis and left hip pain, on and off for many months, and have had it again since the autumn.   The pain is worse when I sit down all day or do exercise, particularly walking up slopes or uneven or hard surfaces. I also get pelvic pain/ lower abdominal after a BM - sometimes all day.  It is a dull sore pain.  I go to bed with it but it wears off as I sleep.  I feel it could well be to do with the pelvic muscles not working properly sometimes.  I  also do have a sacroiliac problem and my chiro says pain refers to the lower abdomen from that joint, something worth considering?

Went to my gynae for ultrasounds at Christmas who saw nothing but a lot of gas!   I saw my gastroenterologist this week and he  thinks dairy might be the culprit behind all this pain and has told me to give it up for three weeks. If that doesn't work he is going to give me a sigmoidoscopy in another three weeks.   I think I will take it, no matter how I feel in six weeks, just for reassurance.

Anyway, apart from dairy which clearly causes me a lot of wind, he says I could just have IBS too.   He didn't seem unduly worried but I think the rule here in the UK is if you have a pain for 6 weeks, it is worth getting it looked at. 

I am a celiac and have been gluten-free for 3 years now.  

[frieze]

what vitamin D? little green footballs?

[xcalibr]

Hi leej91, thank you for sharing. I had also wondered if GERD could be another issue I have. Who diagnosed that, your gastroenterologist? Thanks!

[xcalibr]

Hi cristiana, thank you for sharing. My issues are also on my left side, sorry for the confusion. 

I get worse worse while on the potty too basically because I’m bending over which hurts the worst. 

I also had another person suggest visiting a chiropractor. Interesting. 

I actually had cereal yesterday, which I had not had for quite some time, and I like allot of milk and I was hurting really bad afterwards so I also wondered if I’m now also lactose intolerant too. Ugh. LOL

I only started my gluten-free diet about a week ago and the general bloating has subsided but the lower left dull aches are still there. Guessing it might take 2-4 weeks like everyone says to really know?

Yeh, I thought a couple decades ago that I had been suffering from IBS but I never got checked and the symptoms seemed to disappear. Should have gotten looked at I guess

[xcalibr]

Hi frieze. D3-50 Calciferol/Drisdol 50,000 Unit Capsule. Take 1 capsule by mouth every week. Then RA Vitamin D3 Calciferol/Drisdol 5,000 Unit Softgel. Take one capsule by mouth once daily after high dose therapy complete.

[cristiana]

Hi again - don't panic about lactose intolerance as a lot of celiacs (if that is what you have) find it passes after a while gluten-free and the villi heal.  I gave it up for a while and found it helped with the bloating but I missed dairy so much and started to bring it back in.   I have had some relief in the past going lactose light for a while, drinking peppermint tea and taking probiotics (gluten-free).   Before my dx I had been on a couple of hefty courses of antibiotics so I do wonder if I depleted too much of the good bacteria and need to work on getting that right again.  I have been googling IBS forums recently and see that some sufferers have pain after going to the loo that lasts for hours, so maybe it is that too- the empty gut spasms?  I hope you get some answers and let us know how you get on.   And you are right - maybe give the dairy free a couple more weeks to work.  My dairy fast starts on Monday, I couldn't face it this w/e because of two birthday parties!

[xcalibr]

Hi cristiana, thank you for the suggestion on the dairy. I also just bought some peppermint tea this past weekend. It does seem to help, thank you. I just don't understand how food can damage your body so much like this to cause abdominal pains for so long. I can't even imagine what people used to do before this was discovered. Those poor people. 

[leej91]

I was diagnosed with GERD and Gastritis initially based on the symptoms that appeared in an acute way following alcohol consumption; also, I probably had the subset of acid reflux: LPR -- in that the acid had damaged my throat/breathing and mouth rather than simply the esophagus. Symptoms: heartburn, throat discomfort, difficulty swallowing, inability to eat for two days, feeling full quickly, excess burping/gas. However, the first symptom was sharp pain in left part of groin/pelvis before anything else happened. 

This was followed up by a GI scope which found GERD Grade B (moderate damage to sphincter) and mild antral gastritis (damage to bottom part of stomach -- the atrium) and H.Pylori bacteria present after 24h. 

 

[xcalibr]

Thank you leej91. It's weird because my only constant symptom is the lower left abdominal pain and sometimes the left pelvic pain since I cut out all gluten. Prior I had bloating almost every time I ate something. I just wasn't paying attention or even thinking I could have developed a gluten intolerance. Still don't understand the biggest difference between Celiac vs Gluten-Sensitivity vs Wheat Allergies when it comes to symptoms per se. About 5 years ago I did take Prilosec for 1 year before stopping cold turkey and losing 80lbs, 50lbs of which I’ve put back on in last few years. My Mom died & we moved which I think were the main stressors. I wonder if the Prilosec could have damaged me to eventually lead me to this point? The pain is just so freaky because it’s like nothing I’ve ever experienced. It feels like there’s a golfball under my pot belly on the left side when I sit down. Standing is decent and sleeping is still not bad at all. I would have guessed I would have experienced the pain all the time no matter what I was doing. Guess that’s not the case?

[leej91]

I used to drink a lot of red wine, lots of black coffee [often on empty stomach], eat spicy food all the time and as much dairy and wheat as I wanted. I'm otherwise a fit and healthy 24 year old and this is literally the first health problem I've ever had.

I'm a newbie and really I've only joined this forum recently to see if my symptoms may be related to gluten, but that's totally unconfirmed by GPs or anything yet. 

So far, I mean I got the GERD/Gastritis under control almost immediately with PPI/Antacids and diet changes. My main symptoms now are related to a milder form of what you have (discomfort in left pelvic/groin), shortness of breath, fatigue, differences in stool/urine movements. I wouldn't say any of it is painful but it is concerning for me and I'd love to get it back to normal, if possible, through diet. 

[flutegal64]

It seems weird a primary doctor would think Celiac and not refer you.  The first thing I thought was go see a GI doctor.  The moving pain may suggest intestinal, but you are also describing a specific location which could be an organ.

Speaking from experience, I have the same pain you are having for about a year now, but my pain is pretty bad but it's on the right side.  Go see a GI doctor... primary doctors can't do much but referrals.

I've had a ton of tests and nothing- colonosocopy/sigmostomy, laproscopy., CTs, ultrasounds. You are a male so you should have better luck (I've had appointments where men have gotten the same day tests with less symptoms while I have to wait a month/I often get brushed off/told just get pregnant and you'll feel better).  Really being a guy you are in shape because they will take you seriously. My pain is sometimes intolerable, but the ER won't do anything but pain meds.  My doctors are stumped/meaning it's in my head according to them- I don't take that for an answer.

I did not test positive for Celiac, but I had already stopped the gluten... I was diagnosed 10 years ago when Celiac wasn't a thing so I just figured out that when I eat gluten it equals bad intestinal cramping.  After you have the Celiac testing (you have to be eating  gluten to test positive), go gluten free for a month.  Then reintroduce gluten... you'll know when you reintroduce it!  If you get a colonoscopy make sure they do a biopsy for gluten (again, you should be eating gluten).

Be careful of the meds because doctors push those and I've had everything from withdraw to worse pains/intestinal cramps.

Good luck!  I'm going to follow this thread.

[joce511]

I have been having similar symptoms myself, but I would feel the pain in the middle and it would feel like I had swallowed a sparkler aka Morning Glory (fire crackers). No pelvic pain, but it does hurt when I'm in a fetal position. I read that it's supposed to be indigestion, but never have I had indigestion like this before. I have noticed that this would be my downfall after accidentally consuming gluten. It's worse when you accidentally consume 2 days in a row. Peppermint tea has helped a big deal. Ginger is supposed to help also. I have been gluten free for almost 3 years now, so I guess when your gut has been healing well and it comes in contact with gluten you get bad reactions. I had just attended a wedding last week and one of the foods was apparently seasoned with some sort of gluten because that's when I started getting my abdominal pain. 

I hope your results will be something minor. Try not to take so many prescribed meds to as they effect your gut and other parts of your organs. After switching to a gluten-free diet, I've learned to take alternative and more natural remedies. Good luck.

[frieze]

On 1/29/2016 at 5:19 PM, xcalibr said:

Hi frieze. D3-50 Calciferol/Drisdol 50,000 Unit Capsule. Take 1 capsule by mouth every week. Then RA Vitamin D3 Calciferol/Drisdol 5,000 Unit Softgel. Take one capsule by mouth once daily after high dose therapy complete.

good!  those little green footballs are a no go.

[xcalibr]

Thanks for the update leej91, it’s very much appreciated. 24? Wow. I read stories of young people and I couldn’t imagine suffering at that age. So sorry to hear and I hope this forum can possibly help.

[xcalibr]

On February 1, 2016 at 3:04 PM, flutegal64 said:

It seems weird a primary doctor would think Celiac and not refer you.  The first thing I thought was go see a GI doctor.  The moving pain may suggest intestinal, but you are also describing a specific location which could be an organ.

Speaking from experience, I have the same pain you are having for about a year now, but my pain is pretty bad but it's on the right side.  Go see a GI doctor... primary doctors can't do much but referrals.

I've had a ton of tests and nothing- colonosocopy/sigmostomy, laproscopy., CTs, ultrasounds. You are a male so you should have better luck (I've had appointments where men have gotten the same day tests with less symptoms while I have to wait a month/I often get brushed off/told just get pregnant and you'll feel better).  Really being a guy you are in shape because they will take you seriously. My pain is sometimes intolerable, but the ER won't do anything but pain meds.  My doctors are stumped/meaning it's in my head according to them- I don't take that for an answer.

I did not test positive for Celiac, but I had already stopped the gluten... I was diagnosed 10 years ago when Celiac wasn't a thing so I just figured out that when I eat gluten it equals bad intestinal cramping.  After you have the Celiac testing (you have to be eating  gluten to test positive), go gluten free for a month.  Then reintroduce gluten... you'll know when you reintroduce it!  If you get a colonoscopy make sure they do a biopsy for gluten (again, you should be eating gluten).

Be careful of the meds because doctors push those and I've had everything from withdraw to worse pains/intestinal cramps.

Good luck!  I'm going to follow this thread.

Hi flutegal64, I’m not sure if he thought Celiac per se right off the bat, but I was surprised he didn’t refer me to a GI immediately. Guessing he didn’t think it was anything serious? It’s serious and it won’t go away. I made an appointment with a GI but they can’t see me for another month. All 4 that I called were the same thing. This is insane. Thank you so much for your advice and sharing your story with me.

[xcalibr]

14 hours ago, joce511 said:

I have been having similar symptoms myself, but I would feel the pain in the middle and it would feel like I had swallowed a sparkler aka Morning Glory (fire crackers). No pelvic pain, but it does hurt when I'm in a fetal position. I read that it's supposed to be indigestion, but never have I had indigestion like this before. I have noticed that this would be my downfall after accidentally consuming gluten. It's worse when you accidentally consume 2 days in a row. Peppermint tea has helped a big deal. Ginger is supposed to help also. I have been gluten free for almost 3 years now, so I guess when your gut has been healing well and it comes in contact with gluten you get bad reactions. I had just attended a wedding last week and one of the foods was apparently seasoned with some sort of gluten because that's when I started getting my abdominal pain. 

I hope your results will be something minor. Try not to take so many prescribed meds to as they effect your gut and other parts of your organs. After switching to a gluten-free diet, I've learned to take alternative and more natural remedies. Good luck.

Thanks joce511, I keep forgetting to drink my perppermint tea, thanks for the reminder. Only taking my meds for the vitamin D deficiency currently. Thank you!

[xcalibr]

6 hours ago, frieze said:

good!  those little green footballs are a no go.

Awesome! No little green football for me! Thanks frieze.

[kareng]

I haven't read all this....but ...just wondered.... Has anyone looked at the anatomy of the GI  tract?  Lower left pelvic....  

[xcalibr]

16 minutes ago, kareng said:

I haven't read all this....but ...just wondered.... Has anyone looked at the anatomy of the GI  tract?  Lower left pelvic....  

I'm sorry. What exactly are you referring to? Has anyone looked at my GI tract yet? No. My GI appt is at the beginning of March. Debating if I should go to the ER instead. Probably be very expensive though. Ugh. 

[flutegal64]

I've done the hospital thing.  They won't do anything unless it's an emergency (like your heart rate is off, appendix, ruptured organ, gushing blood).  They will give you pain meds (which will get you constipated a few days later making GI issues worse).
But use your judgement.  If you think it's ER worthy then go.  If you think it's appendix, or ruptured organ then go.

[xcalibr]

1 minute ago, flutegal64 said:

I've done the hospital thing.  They won't do anything unless it's an emergency (like your heart rate is off, appendix, ruptured organ, gushing blood).  They will give you pain meds (which will get you constipated a few days later making GI issues worse).
But use your judgement.  If you think it's ER worthy then go.  If you think it's appendix, or ruptured organ then go.

Good to know. PCP found nothing serious with organs. Pain fluctuates between 1-5. I'm still confused to how it could possibly be Celiac or gluten intolerance because I don't really experience any pain while I sleep. When I stand or walk it's like a 2-3 and when I sit it's about a 5. Is this common among suffers? I would have assumed it was pain all the time no matter you were doing. Thoughts? Thanks!