Ask MetaFilter questions tagged with stomach

Help with an IBS flare-up.

Anonymous — Sun, 29 Nov 2009 18:15:33 -0800

How do I deal with a IBS flare-up? (kind of gross) I'm about 95% sure I have IBS. I know YANAD or MD and I have an appointment for a visit with a gastroenterologist, but that's not for several weeks. This is after a visit with my PCP.

Essentialy, what happens is that I will wake up one morning with an upset stomach and have diarrhea several times in a day. If I eat ANYTHING, bam, I have to run to the bathroom. These attacks usually last two to three days. I thought at first I was lactose intolerant, and I don't think dairy helps, but on Thanksgiving I ate food made with milk products and I was fine until today.

I have read older threads about how to prevent flare-ups and I will definitely put that information to use, but what do I do now, when I'm in the middle of one? I'm in a challenging grad program and of course the next few weeks are the most stressful time. I have a day job on top of that and, while it's the cause of a fair amount of stress, the pay and the atmosphere can't be beat in this economy. Yet I cannot spend the next three hours, let alone the next three weeks, on the toilet. I've even had to run out of class, which was embarrassing and could be detrimental to my progress in my program.

My stomach was absolutely fine from Wednesday through the time I woke up this morning. I wouldn't say I overindulged on Thanksgiving but I definitely ate food I'm not used to (the dairy). I was back to normal eating by Friday. I've spent most of today camped out in the bathroom or asleep. This doesn't help my stress level, as my homework won't do itself. I don't know what to do now.

What can I eat? How can I make an IBS attack less severe, so I can at least be functional? I am a woman in my early thirties and otherwise my health is pretty good.

Thanks for any help. I'm sorry if this sounds disjointed.

Throwaway email: ohgodmystomach@hotmail.com

Help me stop stomach sleeping.

Thrillhouse — Sun, 11 Oct 2009 04:59:20 -0800

How do I stop sleeping on my stomach? When I go to bed at night I try my best to fall asleep on my back but it almost never works so I move on to my side and sometimes that works but more often than not I find that I wake up having been sleeping on my stomach. Whether I'm consciously doing it or not I need to stop sleeping on my stomach. It hurts my back when I wake up and I have to learn to sleep on a wedge pillow for reflux.

What can I do to train myself to sleep on my back?

Anybody have a stomach flu horror story? How long did it last?

burlsube — Tue, 29 Sep 2009 18:40:39 -0800

Does any one have stomach flu (gastroenteritis) horror stories? I am going day 5 and I have never heard of anyone having it longer than 2 days.

Could you get cancer by eating a cancerous tumour?

Sully — Tue, 25 Aug 2009 14:11:10 -0800

Not that any human would ever do this, but what would happen if someone ate a cancerous tumor? Like, if they waited around a surgical room, and it was removed from someone's breast, or pancreas. Would the stomach acids kill it? Could the person get cancer by eating it?

I want to free my brother from his stomach issues.

stormygrey — Mon, 13 Jul 2009 07:55:24 -0800

What could be wrong with my brother's stomach? I come from a rather "robust" family, the kind of family where my size 10 makes me the skinny one and when I got to an 8 they thought I was sick, yet my youngest brother has always been very thin and a picky eater.

For the past year, he has had a severe digestive issue and has dropped an alarming amount of weight, its almost like his peristalic wave is severely retarded. I am going to give you a lot of back story in case somehow, somewhere, you can see a connection.

He started taking vitamins regularly at a very young age and has never seemed malnourished, however, he had the hardest time catching up in size and weight to his peers, he was a tiny, tiny child, until perhaps middle. He is currently 5'7 and normally weighs around 135 or so, so smallish, but in the realm of normal (I am 5'8 and my father is 5'9) We are also all academic, all of us (me and 3 brothers) were all star students, scholarshiped to death etc. My other brothers and I were diagnosed with ADD as young adults(19-21). He and I suffer from Asthma. I am allergic to shellfish, iodine, and wheat. He doesn't have food allergies that I know of, but he hasn't had the battery of tests I have.

I am going to give you a lot of back story in case somehow, somewhere, you can see a connection. I used to babysit an autistic child who also had horrible digestive problems, so there might be a connection. My brother had early signs of some manner of Autism (he is currently 27), the high pitched squeel, non verbalness etc. After lots of speech therapy, handwriting therapy etc. He is an awesome young man, not the most communicative, but awesome.

He received a double degree in French Horn perfomance/composition and physics, he understands the world in waves and is really a wander to behold, I had to learn about harmonics to talk to him more often. He ended up moving back home when he graduated to find a job. He ended up as a special needs teacher, one of his students said "I love Mr. Tim because he's just like me". He also started taking classes at night to get a teaching masters. He would drive almost two hours after school got out to get to his college. He understandably was a little stressed.

He doesn't show stress. He will nap as much as he can, etc. so when he started having stomach issues, everyone including the doctors thought it was stress. However, he finished his masters up, he transferred to a low stress small school and its still happening.

The biggest symptom that affects his life is that if he eats anything after 4 and then lays down around 10, it all just comes back up. Its not like he's throwing up exactly, its just rises back up into his mouth. The food that he does keep down takes a very, very long time to come out and he ends up painfully constipated. They tried laxatives, but that provoked some kind of crazy reaction that put him in the hospital (I am not clear on this, he doesn't exactly want to elaborate on his poo problems to his sister). He has done all kinds of research on his own, trying all manner of probiotics, supplements, etc. He has had scopes going up and scopes going down, contrasts etc. The doctors still almost blow him off, give him some antiacids and tell him to take it easy. It blows my mind. He is 27, 112lbs, and is now losing hair. He lives on yougurt, ensure, and vitamins. He is living a life dicated by when and how he can manage to get enough nutrition in him.

He's in the Chattnooga area, I am in the Atlanta area, I have want him to come live with me and see if any Atlanta specialist might have better luck. So wow, sorry, that was long and crazy. I am worried about him, worried about heart problems and quality of life. Hive mind, what can we try, what should he eat, who should we see?

Gassy stomach and chest pains

lwclec072 — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 19:38:25 -0800

Gas/Chest Pains?? I've been having chest/gas pains the last several days, I've tried taking ultra strength tums and gas x and nothing has seemed to help. The pain goes up to my breast bone and I feel a really sharp pain behind my breast bone nothing specific brings this on it just comes about suddenly. I've had a very gassy stomach and I can feel it into my back/shoulder, neck as well. No burps, just a very gassy upset stomach feeling. Has anyone else experienced this, if so what helps to relieve this pressure? I also have been having sweaty palms and all of a sudden get hot when this happens. I have anxiety, so I think that explains that. I'm hoping it's nothing to do w/ my heart, I'm young (25 yo) so for the most part I think that's out of the question, I just want to find something to make this less miserable for me.

How to turn an apple into a banana

cloudsandstars — Sat, 23 May 2009 10:15:40 -0800

I'm an apple, but I'd much rather be a banana. How can I get rid of my middle and reshape my body? Unfortunately, my lofty goals at the beginning of the year turned out to be an epic fail for me. I have managed to lose about 7 pounds over the last 7 weeks, but I remain around 50 pounds overweight. I am the textbook "apple" shape, with most of my extra weight around my middle. I know this is unhealthy, and it is starting to look bad, too. Not to mention the effect it is having on my emotional state of mind and confidence level.

I've already cut way back on my sugar intake and portion sizes, and have simply started moving more. That is helping, but I'm afraid that with my slow metabolism, it will take years to get this harmful weight down to a manageable level. I'd rather it take months.

So, what I'm really asking here is: Are there any specific foods should I eat, foods I should avoid, and which exercises would be most effective in helping me get rid of this particular type of stomach/hip/back fat?

I'm a busy girl, I work a lot, am trying to save money, and would prefer to do any exercising in the privacy of my own home.

Thanks.

Help with a stomach problem?

Anonymous — Sat, 11 Apr 2009 06:20:01 -0800

I need help with a stomach problem I'm having. Okay, first, I know you're not a doctor, and if you are you're not my doctor. I do have an appointment with a gastroenterologist but, lucky me, I can't get in for more than a month. Plus, this has been going on for a while but due to several factors, including finances, I haven't been able to deal with it. But I can now, so hooray.

In a nutshell, I have a burning pain at the top of my stomach. I just assumed that it was heartburn, until I had a conversation with a friend and figured out that heartburn goes more into the chest. This pain never does. It's not a constant pain; it comes in waves. It seems to be worse if I don't eat for a long while. It does not seem to be inflamed by spicy food -- I eat a fair amount of Indian/Thai/Chinese and the pain doesn't get worse after any of it. The pain does not get worse if I lie down.

I dealt with it for a long time by taking Pepcid Complete once a day. I talked to my doctor who suggested I take OTC Prilosec while waiting to see a gi doctor. That was six months ago.

I stopped taking the Prilosec maybe a month ago because I was wigged out by the warnings not to take it more than two weeks at a time. The stomach pain came back unabated, except now when I take the Pepcid it only lasts a couple of hours instead of all day.

Some other possibly relevant factors: I am a female in my early thirties. I don't drink anything but water and very occasionally (less than twice a month) a glass of tea. No alcohol. I am overweight but get regular exercise. I take a birth control pill and glucophage. I am not diabetic but I have something called polycystic ovaries and take the glucophage as a preventative measure. The stomach pain predated my use of both of the medications. My, ah, poo habits don't seem to be affected. I have vomited after eating twice since this started, which I'd never done before in my life.

Also, I do have a family history of gallbladder problems but my symptoms don't seem to match up with gall stones. I have never experienced anything like I'm told a gallbladder attack is like.

All the background info aside, I am looking for two things: one, an idea of what this could possibly be, and two, some things I can do to mitigate my pain until I can get in to see the doctor. I don't want to take something that could make the problem worse, you know? My primary care did contact the gi doctor to see if they could see me earlier but it didn't work.

I appreciate any assistance. Yes, I know I should have dealt with this earlier, but I didn't, so please, no lectures about it. Thank you so much.

Help me heal my tummy...

kitcat — Fri, 13 Mar 2009 11:22:42 -0800

I'm feeling seriously bummed out about some stomach problems that have flared up (again). Have you experienced this group of symptoms (probably GERD or something similar)? What resolved them for you? These are my symptoms:

- feeling that my throat is trying to jump out of my mouth (acid reflux)
- bad taste in mouth
- feeling that my stomach is swollen
- feeling of being uncomfortably full after not eating very much
- coldness in the extremities and sometimes, chills
- constipation
- abdominal bloating
- not being able to burp, even when it feels like I need to
- not passing gass, even when it feels like I need to
- stools with mucus on them (i know, yuck)

It all seems to start with a little bit of stress (and it doesn't help that I deal with stress by going for long periods without food, drinking lots of (acidic) coffee, and smoking). Then the symptoms present, pretty much in the order I've listed them above. I find it strange that I never experience hearburn through all this. Anyhow, the symptoms last for about a week, taper off and then resolve into somewhat regular bouts of acid reflux. These larger episodes seem to come along once every 6 weeks or so.

This has been going on for almost four years - ever since I went through a period of very severe stress. I have seen doctors about it and I still am, but there are no conclusions yet. I've had a baruim swallow recently but it turned up nothing. I was on Pantaloc, which helped, but didn't make this go away completely. Now I'm off it because I'm supposed to go for a pylori bacteria test (which apparently could be causing all this) and can't take Pantaloc or any actacids prior to the test. I haven't gone for the test yet because I can't seem to go for more than a few days without having to pop Tums and Pepcid AC for the acid reflux (this is background info. yes, i know i must go and get that test done asap!).

Online research suggests that this is GERD, but not all of the symptoms fit (specifically, the coldness, the unproductive gas issues and the constipation) Which is why I'm asking:

Have you experienced these symptoms? Did you receive a diagnosis? How did/do you treat your symptoms? Any wisdom to share about stomach issues in general?

PS. I am not overweight and I follow the "eat until you are 80% full" rule, so these are not factors in the acid reflux. Also, I avoid sleeping right after I've eaten.

Will the real owner of the tummy please stand up?

grumblebee — Wed, 21 Jan 2009 10:31:38 -0800

This is a dumb question about long-term relationships and stomach gurgling. Yes, you read that right! When I'm in bed with my wife and her or my tummy rumbles, we can't agree on whose tummy it is. Anyone else experience this? What's the cause? I keep thinking about posting this and putting it off, because it seems so stupid. But it comes up over and over, and I'm baffled by it. It's not a problem. It's just a nagging curiosity.

I'll be lying in bed next to my wife and I'll feel and hear my tummy gurgle. Note that I don't just hear a sound, I FEEL that bubbly, fluttery feeling. Sometimes, after it happens, we look at each other and I say, "Sorry, that was my tummy."

At which point my wife surprises me by looking surprised and saying, "No it's wasn't! It was MY tummy!"

"But I FELT it," I say.

"I felt it, TOO," she says.

This happens again and again. We both experience it as coming from our own stomachs. It seems to only happen when we're really close to each other. It never happens when we're sitting on opposite sides of the sofa.

(When it happens, we're not lying stomach to stomach. In that case, it would be understandably difficult to tell the perpetrator. We're usually both lying on our backs.)

Does anyone else experience this? What cause it? Is it really just happening to one of us and the other person is imagining things? Or do long-term couples start to have synchronized digestive issues?

Oh, okay, I wasn't aware that anal bleeding was such a pedestrian concern-- thanks, Doc.

Anonymous — Tue, 11 Nov 2008 20:33:40 -0800

TMI Medical Filter: Previously, I had sometimes crippling stomach pain. That went away. Now I'm, uh, bleeding. Rectally. Um. Yeah. But my HMO doesn't seem to care all that much. MetaFilter is not my doctor, but I can't go to my doctor to ask... should I skip my HMO and go to the hospital? Demographics note: Caucasian male, 20 years of age, only other major prior health problem--familial (?) migraine headaches.

Around August, I started having these awful, crippling bouts of mid-torso (stomach-area) pain in the morning and night, accompanied by abdominal bloating and upper-back pain. This continued for a week until I stopped being a moron and went to see a gastrointestinal doctor through my HMO, who put me on a preliminary regimen of Prilosec and ordered a round of tests.

For awhile, these bouts subsidied (with no word from my doctor RE: my tests), but then mid-September they began again for no readily apparent reason, prompting me to schedule another appointment, which I was not able to get in until October. I learned that apparently turned up negative for my H. Pylori scan (which apparently is predictive of having an ulcer?), though my HMO/doctor lost (!) all of the other related tests (I don't even recall all of them--one of them was an "occult blood" test). My doctor quibbled about perhaps performing an endoscopy, but would not commit to any further orders.

With a significantly increased dosage of Prilosec, the painful episodes had until recently subsided into occasional odd, funny, light pain in my stomach that I had been unaccustomed to feeling prior, but nothing that interfered with going along my day-to-day business. I had largely put that out of my mind until a few days ago, when I started to bleed rectally at almost every defecation. This began as a few drops or a bloodiness of the feces, but in my very subjective perception seems to have gotten steadily worse day-by-day. Accordingly, I've made an appointment with my doctor, but it won't be for another two weeks!

I've been calling for the past few days to try to catch a dropped appointment or see if any doctors at associated facilities have openings, explaining my circumstances, but have had absolutely no luck. Today, my bottom-torso even hurts some.

My own self-diagnosis was Meckel's Diverticulum, but, uh, then I noticed that this is mostly diagnosed at youth, and really, I don't understand anything. The symptoms seem to match me exactly, though (minus the, uh, life-threatening ones, as far as I know).

These are a lot of words to ask: At one point should I say "fuck you!" to my HMO and decide to seek some ER help at one of my great local hospitals? Is this potentially life-threatening in the immediate term? Should I have said "fuck you" the moment I started bleeding? I'm worried about incurring unnecessary hospital costs as my family and I are in a difficult financial situation (though I'm lucky to have healthcare at all, I suppose). If it helps at all or if anyone has any experience working with them, my HMO is Kaiser and I live in the Northern Virginian area.

Is my friend allergic to... food?

perpetualstroll — Sun, 20 Jul 2008 16:49:32 -0800

My friend can't figure out the cause of her digestive issues, it's not celiac, not lactose intolerance, no allergy to caffeine - anyone experience something similar and can offer some suggestions? More details below. Posted for a friend:

With the acknowledgment of YANMD, I have been dealing with stomach and digestive issues for roughly the past six months or so. For a good while I was eating nothing but an egg on back bacon (canadian/peameal bacon) on toast with coffee (1% cow's milk) each morning for breakfast and was doing fine with this - it filled me up all morning and was easy. That worked for me until about maybe two months or so in when I started feeling nauseous every morning after eating breakfast. This nausea was usually accompanied with fairly severe stomach pain/discomfort (feels like someone is squeezing my stomach into contractions) and bloating. I kept gravol in my desk at work. Although it sounds silly now, I couldn't figure out that it was the food I was eating until a few weeks later when a coworker suggested that eggs would be too heavy to have each morning - so I stopped eating that. I switched to oatmeal (with some psyllium fibre cereal, berries and almonds mixed in) instead (with coffee with 1% milk too of course). That works. When summer came along though I switched to cold cereal instead of oatmeal - muffets (whose sole ingredient is shredded wheat) instead. I have been eating the muffets with fresh berries, dried goji berries, raw almonds, cinnamon, and vanilla almond milk (accompanied by the coffee) each morning for a while now until recently it has been making me ill in the mornings again - even worse than with the eggs this time! I had to go home from work early on Friday, the pain was that bad.

Today, I tried replacing the Muffets with millet puffs. Nope. The nausea lasted all through brunch at my sister's and most of the afternoon and the pain and discomfort even longer.

This whole thing seems so random to me and I am beyond frustrated - not to mention running out of breakfast ideas. I'm keeping ginger root in my purse now because I am finding it harder to predict what sets me off. The other night it was beer and nachos, for goodness sake! I know that I am sensitive to eggs, so I try to avoid them and I know that I have always been sensitive to ice cream and hydrogenated oils so I avoid them too, but nachos? Shredded wheat? Millet? What the - ?

I've tried cutting out coffee - no difference. I know that I am sensitive to ice cream but I am not lactose intolerant - I can drink glasses of cow's milk just fine. I am not allergic to nuts - I can eat handfuls of almonds, peanuts, any nuts fine. I can also drink glasses of almond milk with little reaction (maybe a little twinge of indigestion, but I can't figure out why that would be - almond milk is supposed to be easier to digest). My mother has celiac disease, and I have tested (maybe three or four years ago) for the same but the test came back negative so it's not wheat gluten (although I have heard that it can show up later -?), as far as I can tell. I mean, I can eat most other wheat and various grains with no reaction. It's all just weird and frustrating to me.

So, according to my experience it's not lactose (except for ice cream) and it's not nuts, and according to the doctors it's not wheat gluten. Ugh.

Oh, and yep - not pregnant.

Again, I plan to see a doctor and dietitian about this soon but I was just wondering if anyone here might have any insights about this. Also, if you know of anywhere else to direct me, or have any breakfast ideas (with no eggs, cereals or milk) that would also be appreciated! Sorry about my longwindedness and excessive use of parentheses.

Belching, farting and other icky stuff. What the hell just happened to my gastrointestinal system?

Anonymous — Tue, 01 Jul 2008 14:50:22 -0800

Belching, farting and other icky stuff. What the hell just happened to my gastrointestinal system? Disgusting details inside. Starting about three weeks ago, my gastrointestinal system went haywire.

* In the mornings, I often must belch great huge belches that taste/smell like rotten scrambled eggs. Or perhaps an old malted milk.

* These belches often seem to be composed of unusual gases -- the sound of the belch is strangely higher in pitch than usual. I say "unusual gases" because the effect is similar to speaking after inhaling helium.

* I'm farting like a madman bent on suffocating those around me.

* There is diarrhea. There is bloating. There is abdomninal discomfort and gurgling. 'Nuff said.

* This all doesn't seem (to me, at least) to be related to any specific dietary change. I'm eating normally. I'm no health food nut, but nothing has obviously changed.

Just what the hell happened to me? More importantly, how do I make it stop?

Hack Hack Hyeeeuuueegh

Ambrosia Voyeur — Tue, 17 Jun 2008 10:19:18 -0800

What can I do about this empty-stomach retching? When I haven't eaten, like first thing in the mornings, I retch a little at the drop of a hat. Yeah, I know what that sounds like. BUT I'VE NEVER BEEN PREGNANT. So unfair.

I think this has only been the case since I got off the birth control pill, and I probably think that because I had some vaguely hormonal nausea-related issues in the past. When I was on the pill, for example, taking it on an empty stomach or even a relatively empty stomach would give me horrible nausea leading to copious retching and vomiting. Now, what I have feels more like a nervous stomach. If I get up quickly, or see something unsavory, smell smoke, or jeez, encounter a stiff breeze, I cough and retch a little, but it's not a down-on-my-knees-hugging-the-toilet situation. I never actually throw up from this, but I bet if I went down in front of the toilet, I surely would.

If I've eaten a meal, this goes away. Unfortunately, I can't just be putting food on my pain all the damn time. A big breakfast does not jive with my weight loss plan. I think eating too much and drinking too much booze may have contributed to this sorry state of affairs, too. So, I'm making a big effort to put those behaviors in check. I'm also a sufferer of Generalized Anxiety Disorder, so this kind of thing could be yet another creative way my body expresses stress. There are many, after all.

So, that's the whole picture. Please assist. What are good ways to settle my stomach, short off going back on the pill or eating heavy foods? Herbal tea? Pepto Bismol? Old Morning Sickness aids? Any recommendations would be appreciated. Coughing and gagging in front of people is getting old. Thanks.

Why the stomach thump?

fructose — Tue, 17 Jun 2008 07:50:11 -0800

Why does my stomach thump when I lay down? or really Does your stomach thump? Lately, for the past few months or so, I've noticed my stomach/abdomen pulsing or thumping (basically along with my heartbeat). It's so noticeable now that I can't sleep or lay on my back without it annoying me. I can only sleep on my side. It's not painful.
I've read online that this can be a sign of an aortic aneurysm, which itself can either be dangerous or not-dangerous, depending on the size, but has to be monitored.
I've also read that everyone's stomach pulses somewhat. I'm pretty thin and don't have much padding in that area, so it could just be that, but I don't want to let something go that could potentially be dangerous. I also don't want to go to the doctor and have them think I'm a crazy hypochondriac.

Does your stomach pulse when you lay down? Have you seen a doctor for it? What did they say?

my stomach hurts like its never hurt before!

sardonicsmile — Sun, 17 Feb 2008 15:43:44 -0800

i had a spicy meal last night and this morning woke up in so much pain that i couldn't sit or lie down. is this supposed to happen? please excuse any typos, as i have taken two panadols and a codeine forte already.

last night i was at a thai restaurant and ordered the spicy lamb, which although i had ordered mild, was still a bit spicy for me. usually with these kinds of asian dishes the custom is to share them and eat a bit of each, but being with a caucasian family, i was stuck with my entire plate of spicy lamb.

this morning i woke up with terrible muscle cramps in my abdominals, (not to be confused with period pain) and couldn't get back to sleep again. there was no diarrhea or wind, just constant cramping that wouldn't quit. i couldn't sit or lie down or curl up in a ball because my stomach would just cramp up even more, so i got sick of pacing the room and stretching in the hope that it would go away. took two panadols, which had no effect after half an hour, so went to the cupboard in search of pescription medicine which had been given when i had several teeth pulled out. thankfully that has worked so i can even sit here for more than a minute to type this out.

so the theory is that the spicy lamb caused the abdominal pain. is this correct? but how? i also drank a lot of water to go with it, so could this have caused bloating which strained the stomach muscles?

whatever it is, i am never doing it again!

Diluted Acid = Not as Effective?

proj08 — Wed, 06 Feb 2008 16:57:55 -0800

Does drinking liquid during the course of a meal make it harder for your stomach to digest the food? Out of habit, I usually eat the solid food first, before drinking the beverage. I do this because (or so I think) liquid dilutes the stomach acids, making it harder for the body to digest the food properly. Just wondering, is there any basis to this?

Stomach acid and infiltrates in the lungs?

arimathea — Sat, 26 Jan 2008 00:10:11 -0800

When do you need to start worrying about acid reflux and your lungs? I was recently diagnosed with acid reflux (no surprise, family history of Crohn's and all kinds of other GI drama), probably brought on by eosinophilic esophagitis. We're still waiting for the biopsy results and the rest of my upper endoscopy looked normal. I had extremely deep furrows all the way from the distal to the proximal esophagus, and some ringing.

After a couple of days on Protonix, I have been waking up less at night, and felt much better, though tonight I had a really bad episode of reflux with some heavy coughing and almost gagging. I'm told there's a risk of this condition getting so bad that things get into the lungs and can cause pneumonia or other very serious respiratory illnesses. Having never had much of a lung problem, do I need to get screened by a pulmonologist(?), or at what stage do I need to start worrying about side effects from the reflux? After the latest incident, i'm presenting with what sounds like some fluid in the lungs and wheezing, though it's getting better. Monday I go out of the country to South America for about a week.

A very sad conversation.

uaudio — Fri, 04 Jan 2008 08:40:09 -0800

My very good friend was diagnosed with "Gastric Adenocarcinoma, Signet Ring Cell formation" yesterday - a really rare form of aggressive stomach cancer. What is going to happen? His doctor originally thought it was IBS, so he's been losing weight for the last year or so, looks about 10 years older (he's 42), and recently had to go to hospital where they drained 2 liters of fluid (aceites?) from his abdomen. I don't want to plague him with questions right now, but I have many.

He's let me know that it will almost certainly be fatal, and its advanced enough that they aren't really even treating it, just trying to make him comfortable.

What is going to happen to him as this progresses? What can we as his friends do to make him more comfortable?

And, he has no interest in Petromalt. Seriously.

Medieval Maven — Sat, 24 Nov 2007 06:59:09 -0800

What to do for a cat with a sensitive stomach who's developed a new problem with hairballs? (Probably unusually long.) Our four year old Turkish Van mix, Daksha, has recently started horking up hairballs. This is new for him - he's never had hair balls before at all. Ironically, we've switched his food in the last year to Royal Canin Special 33 which has made his fur softer and shinier than it has been ever before.

Complicating factors: He probably has IBS (it's $1500.00 to know for sure) and he spent a lot of his young life at the vet's for very violent barfing episodes wherein he yowled all night. Throwing up the hairballs is clearly painful for him - he does not "shake it off" like other cats I've had over the years - and he hides afterward and shows signs of distress (which pass, and then in about 15-20 mins he's back to normal). He has no interest in Petromalt (his sister loves it).

I've considered feeding him straight oily salmon or tuna - generally unadulterated protein is OK for him - to get some additional oil into his system. I don't really know if it will work. Recommendations for our boy are welcome.

Reccomend Some Good Black Teas

rossination — Sun, 28 Oct 2007 22:09:27 -0800

Help me find some interesting teas that are a bit less hard on my stomach. Recently, I've been drinking more and more black tea; I now have access to a hot water tap during the day and brewing tea is so much more convenient than coffee. Plus, it's delicious.

I usually drink between 2 and 5 cups of tea a day -- when I say "cups", I mean a 14 oz Starbucks mug brewed with just one teabag. I've been drinking plain Lipton, which is fantastic but give me some mild heartburn by the end of the day. Plus, I'm looking for a bit more variety.

Are there any alternatives out there? I'm looking for something that ideally still has a bit of caffeine and tastes good without milk or sugar. Are there other black teas that might be a bit less acidic, or green teas that could fit the bill? [Tea bags are preferred for convenience's sake, but if there's a great loose tea, I could look into a teastick or something].

Black teas that I like: Lipton, most Irish Breakfast and Earl Gray, and some of the Stash "flavored" black teas (like the peach black tea). I also like the Assam tea from Trader Joe's. I do not like Rooibos.

I thought I was a lightweight. Now, I think I'm a flyweight. embarrassed

damnjezebel — Fri, 26 Oct 2007 11:14:08 -0800

Whenever I consume something with alcohol content - be it liquor, beer, or even Nyquil - my stomach feels queasy. This only happens with products containing alcohol. Enlighten me and show me your google fu ways, Masters of the Green. I've always thought that the reason why I don't like alcohol is because I never got into the drinking scene when I was younger. But last night, after I took Nyquil, my stomach felt queasy almost immediately. I then realized that EVERY TIME I've taken Nyquil... or had something with alcohol content... I feel that same queasy feeling. It's not enough to make me want to vomit right there, but it's enough to make me immediately stop drinking or eating and lay down for a bit. So far, this feeling covers any alcoholic beverage - whether I can taste the alcohol or not, Nyquil, and food items containing alcohol (On the Border's Kahlua ice cream cake? Tastes great - makes me sick. BOO!).

So. After a preliminary google search, I've determined that I'm a)sick, b) lazy and c) cramping. Thus, my search was not very thorough. Can you use your google fu skills tell me what's wrong with my gut - or maybe you know firsthand what's up with me. Am I just such a flyweight at drinking that ANY alcohol makes me sick? Is this how you're supposed to feel when you take something like Nyquil? Help!

Pain in the.... ?

fvox13 — Sat, 13 Oct 2007 19:34:14 -0800

Abdominal Pain Filter: My girlfriend woke up last night with an excruiating stabbing pain throughout her lower abdomen. Thankfully, that's gone, but there is still a tender spot about 1 inch up from her belly button, and two inches to the right. I think it's too far up to be the appendix. What could it be?

Should I go get the CT scan or not?

mygothlaundry — Thu, 04 Oct 2007 19:46:56 -0800

Should I go get the CT scan or not? I've had a stomachache for 10 days and my doctor thinks it might be my appendix; the blood tests are all negative; should I still go through with this? I've been having bad stomach pains for 10 days now. Actually, I've kind of had them on and off for about a month, but they settled in 10 days ago and haven't gone away. Yesterday, I finally caved in and went to the doctor (OB/Gyn.) She checked out all my girlie bits & kidneys and they're fine. She thought it was very possibly my appendix getting ready to go. So she gave me a bunch of blood tests, a pain prescription (which I didn't fill) and an appointment for an abdominal CT scan tomorrow. She wanted to do it today but I was looking at a huge day at work and refused. The CT test involves fasting after midnight and then drinking 2 giant jars of barium dye and being in a machine for 2 hours or so. I'm sure it's insanely expensive.

The blood tests came up negative for everything. There's no high white blood cell count, my liver is healthy, I don't have any diseases, my cholesterol couldn't be better and, well, my blood is a vampire's perfect wet dream.

My stomach still hurts, but not as badly. I don't feel well, but I feel okay - as in, I can eat, poo, sleep and walk around: I just don't enjoy much of any of it since my stomach hurts. I want to cancel the test tomorrow. Partly because I just don't want to do it, being afraid of such things and partly because I'm afraid that my insurance (BCBS, NC version) won't pay for it when they learn that my blood is all healthy. I tried to get my doctor's office to find out whether or not they would pay for it all day to no avail. In addition, my mother told me tonight that one of her cousins had a chronic appendix that flared up now and then for 40 years before it blew. I don't want to have surgery unless I'm dying, frankly, so if this is just going to quietly go away, well, hell. And maybe it's a virus?

But on the other hand, 10 days is a long time to have a migrating, moving, usually just bearable but occasionally really. fucking. painful. stomachache. So what do I do? Get the CT scan or cancel it?

I don't feel sick though my body disagrees...

Manhasset — Mon, 01 Oct 2007 13:03:40 -0800

My insides are turning everything to liquid. Doesn't matter what I eat. It's been 5 days now. However, I don't feel sick and have no other "symptoms" of illness. What gives? Due to work, I won't be able to get to a doctor 'til Friday... Should I just fast for a day or two? (Saying that, however, I am *starving* constantly, as opposed to just being hungry.)