Ok so I have no idea whats wrong with me.?

Question

March this year I had the stomach flu , since then my stomach hasnt been the same. I'm confirmed to NOT have the following :

Any thryoid problem (Hypo, Hyper, Hyperpara)
Pancreatitis (The head of my pancreas is large)
Gallstones
Cancer
Celiac Disease

I've had over 4 thyroid tests (bloodwork for levels 3 times) including scan and uptake, normal.
CT scan of pancreas along with testing of Lipase, normal.
Ultrasound of abdomen, only finding was a large pancreas, no gallstones.

I have absolutely NO idea whats wrong with me NONE at all and its so frustrating.
I refuse to believe its all in my head because it is not.
The day after I had the stomach flu (which was incredibly violent) my stomach ( in between and below breastbones ) felt so nauseous in such an odd way.
A month later I got acid reflux that hit me after drinking Gatorade and that started me on Protonix. Ive had a history of LPR but never literal reflux I could feel. I was COMPLETELY fine before I got that stomach flu.

Its affecting me functionally almost daily at random times where Im nauseous and just feel weak and in discomfort and if ANYONE has ANY idea what this could be that'd be great I'm only 18 years old too so these problems arent very common for someone of my age group. It's been 5 months and whatever it is hasn't healed or gotten better and I dont know what to do anymore.

Answer 1

Ask your doctor for tests to rule out a "stomach ulcer". I am surprised that you hadn't mentioned it. If it is a "stomach ulcer", it can be treated and the sooner the better. If an ulcer is left untreated, it will get worse. After a while, it will bleed and more serious ulcers can be life threatening. However, as you haven't mentioned blood, only acid, it is still at an early stage, if that is what the problem is. Get checked for it and if the results are negative, I would suggest that you have tests for "liver" problems as liver trouble can also be related to excess acid. If you are sick, it burns and the liquid is green, that is liver bile and needs to be investigated. That's all I know about those type of symptons.

Answer 2

You say you're confirmed to not have Celiac, but you do not list how this was proven. Was it bloodwork and which tests? Endoscopy with biopsy? Or both?
Keep in mind that the gold standard would be to have both, as bloodwork can be false positive or negative (especially if they don't run the whole Celiac panel {4 or 6 tests in all I believe}), and most doctors rely on the biopsy but even that can be false negative, if they do not take enough samples from all over the small intestine as damage is usually spotty, not throughout.
My doc was not sure, my blood and bio were only borderline, so I started the GF diet (with dairy free to help heal) then after 4 months, he redid all the tests, and I had much improvement. Also, anytime during and since then, if I got "glutened", I would suffer my previous symptoms, only more quickly and severely. So I would stay GF, even if he told me after second bio that it wasn't CD, as I have never felt better (and never sicker when glutened)!
He also told me I had GERD and I take protonix, but I didn't really complain about heartburn prior to that. I did however occasionally have bad reflux once in awhile, up in the throat in the middle of the night! That has mostly cleared up, unless I skip my protonix for more than a few days.

By the way, Celiac can be "triggered" by very high amounts of stress, something like pregnancy, surgery, or illness, or just work and family stress. 1 in 133 people have the gene for CD, but they won't necessarily trigger the disease, some have it and don't know the damage is going on because they are asymptomatic, and the rest of us end up taking a while to decide we can't live with what's killing us and get a delayed diagnosis, or docs don't know what it is and take along time getting dx'd. I was lucky it was quick once I finally looked into my tummy troubles. Anyway, I hope that gives you some help.

Answer 3

I feel for you. I had my gallbladder removed Feb 06 and have been in constant pain ever since. Had tons of tests, blood work, etc. Seen lots of doctors who don't have a clue. They tell me it's because I am depressed, ha! Wasn't before, and am not now. Frustrated yes, a year and a half of constant pain with no answers is too long. Now I lost my job, and my insurance and can barely stand the pain. So I do not know, it sounds like you have ruled out the normal things. Is it possible that the protonix is making you sicker. You don't get acid reflux fronm Gatorade. Like you I was completely fine before surgery. Don't we love the medical community.
I hope you find some answers, and if you do, feel free to email me.

Answer 4

Have you been checked for Hepatitis A, B,C,D, or E? If not I would at least ask the physician why not. It is possible to contract Hep A through eatting food that was prepared by someone who didn't wash their hands after wiping themselves. I would also ask to be referred to a physician that specializes in gastrointestinal issue, a gastroenterologist. It is possible to have pancreatitis and labs not reflect it, those levels start to decrease within 12 hours of being elevated. You may never find the cause of your problem, it most likely will disappear before you find the cause, if not be consistant and keep seeking someone to help you. Be diligent.

Answer 5

i have a wegroup in yahoo health called sphincterofoddi_pancreatitis. i hope its not your pancreas, however, subtle changes takes years and in the meantime, one suffers the symptoms you describe.
my first pancreatic attack occured after a vacation in which i too thought i had caught a stomach flu. but it never went away. then i suffered all the symptoms of irritable bowel syndrome, which turns out was because of my pancreas. the strange thing is all labs can be normal during this phase of the illness. (i also have a normal gall baldder).
the fact that the head of your pancreas is enlarged does say something-not nothing. im thinking that u need to see a good gi md who knows how to perform and eus-endoscopic ultrasound of the pancreas. this may show damage, biut again since its on the cell level it may take years. please try out my webrgoup, i would love to help u in your search and i pray its not your pancreas.:)michele ps reflux is also a sign with pancreatitis

Answer 6

Same thing H\happened to me 2 years ago. I had a 'stomach flu" that just wouldnt go away. I eventually had to be hospitalized for two weeks. I had a myriad of tests including MRI and ultrasounds but they couldnt find anything and they discharged me saying it was a prolonged stomach flu. Well it happned again this year and again had to be hosptalized for dehydration. So finally they did a GI series and found an abnormaility that they say could be Crohns Disease. They have to do a colonoscopy to be sure and i'm still waiting on that. I dont mean to alarm you but your symptoms sound very similar to mine. If you have not had an upper and lower GI I suggest you go for one ASAP. Good luck.

Answer 7

My recommendation - get a second option (take along all your test results) from a gastroenterologist. Try to determine who's best in your area by checking with friends or contacts in the medical community, the internet, your insurance company, state records. etc.