Pain under both ribs left and right

[Legend13]

I was diagnosed celiac around 5 years ago, but I’ve stupidly never followed the gluten-free diet very closely as I never really experienced any symptoms that were too bad. I’ve been 100% gluten free for 3 months now though. My pain started below the right rib around 5 months ago. It’s like a tight burning pain. Around two months ago it spread to the left side as well. No pain in the middle. The pain is always there but it generally is worse on one side than the other. It’s about a 3 or 4 out of 10 pain. I’ve had ultrasound, endoscopy, liver function test, and h pylori test and all came back clear. I can’t find a relation between food and the pain but excercise seems to make it slightly worse. My bowel movements vary between 1 and 3 times a day and are generally soft but not diarrhoea. 

 

Anybody else experienced anything like this or can shed some light on what it is? It’s reakky starting to get me down now. Not sure if it’s related to my celiac or not. And I’m not sure if my insides should have settled down by now with my strict gluten-free eating.

[GFinDC]

Hi, your pain could be related to celiac disease, or something else.  There is no way for us to know for sure.  Recovery from celiac damage can take 18 months or more though.  Just learning the gluten-free diet can take 6 months for some people.

Maybe try being very strict with the gluten-free diet and see if it helps.  That means not eating any processed foods for a while and not eating out at restaurants either.  The safest way to eat gluten-free is to stick with whole foods you prepare yourself.   You may also find that removing dairy from your diet helps.

There is a "newbie 101" thread in the "Coping With" forum area.  It has getting started tips.  I hope you feel better soon!

[Legend13]

Many thanks for ur response. Yeah I know it’s hard to diagnose, but just wondered if anyone else had similar pains for so long after going gluten free. It’s really starting to get me down.