General Stomach Troubles

[Toria]

Good morning!

I know that this has been mentioned in passing on a few occassions - that stress can cause stomach problems - but I'm just wondering if anyone's OH has ever had an actual diagnosis for anything or any treatment?

Husband, every so often, will get a ridiculously rumbly tummy - so bad that you can hear it in another room! Sometimes it's just the rumbles, sometimes he's poorly with it too.

He said this morning that he was planning on going to the Dr, but if it is stress-related then I'm not sure what they can do... other than de-stress him!

I did buy him Mintec tablets a few months back, but he didn't get on so well with them - he never actually said why... perhaps some things are best left unsaid?!!!

 

[p-no]

Hi Toria,

I have PTSD and irritated bowel syndrome. Sure sounds like it. I am at a lack of English words to describe further symptoms, but maybe check online and ask Other Half whether he has any of those.

For me, it is absolutely stress-related; problem is, knowing it doesn't change anything and there is only so much I can do. What has helped is eat one yoghurt per day and add some powder from the drugstore. Here it's called "Darmflora Plus".

Sometimes, e.g. camomille tea helps, but sometimes it's as if camomille tea were an enemy. Same happens with prescribed medication. You can never tell what will work. Hot water bottles are mostly good, if they're not too hot. Decrease in sugars and drinking a lot of water/cold tea helps generally to stabilize, I find. Try lactose free products, if possible. Has helped me (although often I can eat products with lactose).

I think it's a very individual thing and he has to try certain things. From my own experience I would say, encourage him to try things he's tried before again another time, as it may help one day but not another. After a while, I have developed a good feel for what will help that day.

Oh, and alcohol and bubbles (soft drinks, etc.) are bad!

Good luck.

 

[Meadowsweet]

Yes, I have PTSD and IBS (Irritable bowel syndrome) and this is one of the symptoms. I was told to just take over the counter medicines to relieve symptoms. I've used mint tea, and have some IBS tablets, but I'm not sure if they really work, or if it's just placebo.

 

[Kas_Can_Fly]

For me I get what can only be described as words; Its so intensely painful I curl up and physically can straighten out, it's like my inside seize and pull everything inwards, my body temperature drops massively and I get goosebumps and chills, I can't see properly and am sensitive to light and sounds like a migraine but instead of feeling the pain in my head, I feel it in my abdomen, I get dizzy - yep, in my abdomen too - I'm pretty sure that's not possible!

It's not related to food (either a specific type or something bad, like food poisoning), I don't have any kind of IBS (apart from these, my stomach is up for anything), or apparently stress (negative or positive, although maybe something I don't consider does it?! I have no idea), I never get it consistently.

The only thing that eases it temporarily is deliberately throwing up - though this just speeds up the process, if I don't do it deliberately 10-60 minutes later it happens anyway (two times I've tried medication one worked the other just delayed it, the whole thing was prolonged for days), I get an immediate sense of pain relief and feel suddenly better. But I've learned not to trust this as usually it all starts up again after a few minutes to half an hour. I can try a tiny amount of water and both paracetamol and ibuprofen (although often bring it up and the water seems to hit my stomach like a cold rock - even if it's warm inducing the sickness (and the bringing up of the pain relief) immediately. It seems to be a case of repeat as necessary, though usually I give up, the most important I curl up and sleep.

If I hadn't survived an allergic reaction to Citalopram, that was slightly similar but substantially worse, I would be sure I was going to die with these. I now recognise them and try my best to speed up the whole thing so I can sleep it off. Though a new medication prevents sickness in the first place so I can get the pain relief in more reliably. Typically I only get these two or three times a year, though one year I did get them almost fortnightly for months.

Good luck!

 

[Toria]

Thank you both - that's really interesting. The Mintec tablets were designed for IBS and I think it's mint tea in a tablet! I will give him a call and make sure he gets an appointment - at least if he gets a diagnosis then we can make a plan.

Prime-no, your English is superb :) and thank you for the recommendations - not sure I want to be the one to tell him no coffee or alcohol... :wideeyed:

 

[Toria]

Sorry Kas Can Fly - we posted at the same time! No offense - but that sounds awful! It actually sound like when Husband had Kidney Stones and they started to move - he was cold, clammy and sick with the pain. I am so glad that you have medication now and hope that the bouts get less and less x

 

[DMerish]

I eat yogurt daily, and if I stick to a FODMAP diet, my tummy troubles don't get in the way of daily functioning.

The further I go away from the FODMAP diet, then :confused: within an hour or a day, and I'm unable to function for a few days until I get things straightened out again. My gastroenterologist says that I won't have to stick to the FODMAP diet forever.

 

[amethist]

What's the FODMAP Diet DMerish ??

 

[therapybankrupt]

Hi Toria

If all your tests show nothing then you can always try probiotics. With four strains of good bacteria. The Cleveland Clinic recommended them to me 8 years ago and I take 1 every day. My problems gone in a month and have not reappeared. The belly is where we hold stress. Products such as Align the brand name or Simply Right Wellness and Nutrition 4X probiotic which I use cause its 27 dollars for 6 week supply. I purchase at Sams Wholesale.

Ingredients. Does contain Soy and has 25 mg of Sodium.
Biifobacterium infantis SD-5845 10m
Bifidobacterium lactis
15mg blend Bifidobacterium longum
Bifidobacterium bifidum

Aids in regularity of bowel also. I hope this helps!
TB

 

[amethist]

A few months ago my husband was having stomach issues, so may things he was eating upset him, to the point of some of them making his sick. We put it down to the medication as this was giving him pains most days.

He went and talked to the Dr who put him on Lansoprazole 30mg every morning. This seemed to have sorted him out, but he knows about it if he forgets to take it.

 

[Toria]

Thank you all - he had his appointment yesterday - the Dr did mention IBS but said he should have more pain with it. She ruled out the nasties, which to be honest hadn't occured to either of us! She did suggest it could be very low-grade food poisoning, and because he's not been ill as such his body has absorbed the toxin and now can't get rid of it... not sure on that one.

So he's gone off to work this morning with a flask of peppermint tea, a brown rice salad and a probiotic wholegrain yoghurt - that was as good as I could manage at the supermarket last night!

TherapyBankrupt - thank you - I will certainly be looking in to probiotics a bit more. I did once hear that the yoghurts etc aren't much good as the acid in the stomach destroys the good bits before they can get in to the system. It is the tablets (like you say) which are the best. So... lots more research today - good job I just got paid!

Amethist - Dr never mentioned medication. Did suggest blood tests though if there's no change after a week :(

Thank you for all the suggestions :inlove:

 

[DMerish]

What's the FODMAP Diet DMerish ??

FODMAP is the acronym for Fermentable, Olido-Di-and Monosacchrides and Polyois. These are types of sugars found in foods, primarily short-chain carbohydrates and certain sugar alcohols. A FODMAP diet reduces the amount of certain sugars people ingest, and in some people alleviate GI symptoms.

Sue Shepard of AU was working on her PhD a few years ago when she discovered a correlation in people who had functional gastrointestinal disorders (FGIDs) when they ate foods that contained FODMAPs. As my GI doctor explained a few months ago, it's hard to pinpoint why people get FGIDs. They can be due to a physiological problem, or start because of an illness, a parasite, genetic chemical imbalance, prescriptions not meshing well with a person's system, or due to chemical imbalances brought on by mental or emotional conditions, i.e. PTSD, depression, etc. In any event, for people with FGIDs food is not assimilated in the small intestine properly when they eat FODMAP foods. The FODMAP diet is strict to begin with. After a while, folks "test" foods to see what they can tolerate. In the "FODMAP_Foods" attachment, you'll see apples listed under two types of sugars. I can eat apples but if I eat stone fruits (peaches, plums, apricots, etc), I'm gunna pay for it.

My tummy troubles have subsided a lot since I went on the diet despite having PTSD issues this year. I'm going to add the probiotic and see what happens.

Lansoprazole is a proton-pump inhibitor (PPI). I'd like to stop using taking my PPI. They stop stomach acid production, and that seems counter-intuitive. Mr doctor said that part of my problem now, i.e. not being able to tolerate many FODMAP foods may be due to having taken a PPI for so many years.

Well, hope this helped.