Gas pain/pressure, 1 small BM daily....

For the last 2 weeks I've had a bellyful of gas & my BM's are getting less & less frequent & smaller in quantity. I def don't feel like I'm emptying out., even last week when I was going 3-4 times a day. I have gas but it's not relieving the pressure at all. Gas X gives relief for about 20 min or so, if I take 2. Appetite is ok, not great. Getting all of my fluids & vits in. I made a trip to the ER last week w/severe abdominal pain. It was just to the right of my bellybutton. CT scan showed a hiatal hernia nowhere near the pain site but was otherwise normal. Sent home as pain diminished w/the obligatory pain meds & told to come back if the pain meds didn't take care of the pain. They seemed completely unconcerned w/my bowel & gas issues at that time. I'm down to 1 very small stool per day. I've cut out carbs so it makes no sense to me that I have these gas issues to begin with. I KNOW something's wrong-3 1/2 yrs out & this is NOT normal! I'm completely wiped out & emotional & just need someone to see this clearly & tell me what to do.

Hi Lisa. I think I would get all those tests from the ER and send them to your surgeon and ask if you could possibly have a hernia lower down or the beginnings of an obstruction. Explain all your symptoms and concerns. In the mean time are you taking a probiotic or do you notice anything happening after you eat dairy or wheat?

--gina

My surgeon is actually the dr I'm dealing with. I went to the ER at the hospital he was doing surgery at that day, just in case. It took me 5 days to get a call back from his office letting me know that we would just wait it out for now(I'm having  some other tests done for something unrelated in 2 weeks). They're stuck on the pain I was having & don't seem to care about the bowel issues. You know, because labs & CT came back good. I remember reading about asking to have a CT done WITH food but I don't remember the why's & what-for's of that. Is that still something I should look into?

I do not currently take a probiotic but have ordered 1. I haven't eaten wheat in the past couple of weeks-sticking to mainly just meats, eggs, & cheese....a protein shake or bar here & there, alto I had a pc of fried chicken lastnight, hoping to get things moving. Nothing, not even xtra gas. I do have dairy every day. I haven't noticed anything unusual after eating it or drinking it(I use half & half in my coffee). I can't drink straight milk, as that does cause issues.

Maybe a gastro specialist then. I'm sorry you aren't getting anything from your surgeon--that really stinks. :(

--g

Lisa, sometimes, for no apparent reason, I seem to get into a funk with having trapped gas and/or a lot of gas.  I have had success with fixing the problem by taking a  lot of probiotics.  And by that I mean like 10 times the normal daily amount. You might want to look into these (can't hurt) 
http://www.amazon.com/Renew-Life-Ultimate-Critical-23-1-Gram /dp/B001LA1RKU/ref=pd_sim_hpc_3

You probably could find them at a local health food store.

Also If you are eating less, you will have a lot less poop.  Recently I had a couple of days where I just ate broth, yogurt and tuna and I was really surprise at how much less output there was in the bathroom.  Do you think you have been eating less food?

Other than that, it really makes one think of a bowel obstruction.  I am surprised that your BM symptoms aren't catching the attention of your surgeon.  hmm...

when you mentioned a CT with food, were you thinking of a CT  with and without contrast?

Not eating less, just different since I've cut out carbs. Literally, every day is producing less & less stool(down from a full bowl to MAYBE 1 c. total). I don't understand why my surgeon or his PA's aren't concerned w/this either. It's incredibly frustrating. When I hung out here at OH regularly(about 3 yrs ago), there was a lot of talk of bowel obstructions & how they show differently w/DS patients, meaning the DS'ers could still have gas & bm's but still be obstructed & contrast CT's didn't always work to show the blocked area & to ask for a CT w/food. That's all I have in my notes & I wanted to know the specifics of this.

Thank you so much for your help & suggestions!

Lisa, are you on the new board "that must not be named" or any of the private Facebook DS groups?

--g

I'm on the Facebook DS & MI DS boards. Not sure what the "new board" is, so I don't think I'm on that one :)

Sent you a message.

Hey, JG, I owe you a HUGE thanks for your recommendation for zinc picolinate a few months ago! It's working great to get my zinc levels back up(which in turn helped w/my potassium levels) & I've had no stomach issues w/it!!