Question:
HORRID pain under ribs NOT GALL BLADDER

I am 2.5 year post-op. I have had 4 or 5 bouts in the last 6 months of horrid.. HORRID.. pain that is unreal right beneathe my ribs in the center/lower chest area. It becomes so bad that my skin above the area is painful to the touch. On a scale of 1 - 10 it is at least a nine! I don't have a gall bladder and feel that the pain is too high for my bowels to be involved. The pain is only stopped by sudden vomiting. HELP!! What is it?!! please email me at [email protected]    — Tracey A. (posted on August 12, 2004)

August 11, 2004
What does your doctor say about it? Could it be an ulcer?
   — Cathy S.

August 11, 2004
Please do not ask us to diagnose you, if you are in this much pain, call your doctor asap.
   — ChristineB

August 11, 2004
Ya, pain of that intensity needs immediate attention. But, I have had that too. Having a scope again next thursday. :)
   — RebeccaP

August 11, 2004
You need to see a doctor ASAP. This could be many things, some of them serious. I had a herniated intestine that felt like that. On the other hand, they won't necessarily find anything. I've been to the ER several times with intense pain that they couldn't find the cause for. Get thee to a doctor!
   — mom2jtx3

August 11, 2004
I too have gone through the same pain with at nine! It's a pain that lasts 3-4 hours and I feel as if I could die. Even my chest get's numb with pain and it's hard to breathe. I've been to the ER several times and don't even go anymore as it does no good. They just stick an IV in me, put me in a room to suffer. By the time several hours roll by and they get in to see me the pain is gone. Why bother. When this happens I feel a shot gun to the head is the answer. (No I don't plain on doing it but I do fantasize it as the pain is so brutal). My regular doctor does'nt give a bleep. So I tried another doctor. This guy seems to care whereas the woman doctor does'nt. He took time, listened, got my history and seems to think it is "acid reflux or an espophical spasm". The first is what he thinks it is. I find it interesting as only ONCE since WLS over three years ago have I had any acid come in my throat at night. However in my case 95% if the time I get this pain it is a few minutes after I lay down at night. Sooooo... anyway he wants me to take a Nexium at night a few hours before bed for at least 6 weeks. I get these pains around every three months, and sometimes sooner. Now we will see if the pain comes back. It's been a month and so far so good. Perhaps you can do as I did, FIND ANOTHER DOCTOR. ONE WHO CARES. There don't seem to be many out there that do. But I'd rather be dead than to suffer and live in fear of these brutal pains. Keep trying, DON'T GIVE UP.
   — Danmark

August 12, 2004
I too had horrible pain in my upper abdominal area that would not go away. Turns out I had an internal hernia and had to have emergency surgery. Contact your doctor right away as it could be very serious.
   — C. Burns

August 12, 2004
I had that too a few days after my surgery. It was a herniated intestine. Perhaps you need to have a major battery of tests to find out what the culprit is. If it is a herniated intestine, it can become very dangerous, you need to find out right away.
   — missmollyk

August 12, 2004
I was told that even after gall bladder removal, tha tyou can get pain. Something about common bile ducts. I would ask your Dr.. Good luck!
   — Fixnmyself

August 12, 2004
First and foremost, yes, definitely call your doctor. I have had these pains on occasion and have found the only thing that stops them is a sublingual medication called Hyoscyamine (generic for Levsin.) If the pain is a spasm in nature, this stuff will definitely help.
   — Diana M.

August 13, 2004
Tracey, Hello I really feel for you. I was there once. I had the surgery 6 years ago March 1998. I have a few suggestions of what I think it is. 1. You could be eating to fast. 2. Not chewing well enough. 3. Eating the wrong foods. 4. You could be allergic to certain foods. I went through a year on pain pills from Horrid pain to find out after going to every Dr. you could imagine that I was lactose intolerant. My friend is the one who discovered it, not the Dr's. I hear nowadays people eat foods such as rice, potatoes and pasta. These foods were all no, no's. They blow up in your stomach. If you stick to protein, vegetables and fruits in that order you should be fine. Chew your food to a mushy consistency before swallowing and take 30-45 min to eat a meal you should be fine. Also, do not drink for 1/2 before eating, do not drink while eating, do not drink for 1 hour after eating. I could write advise all day on this. Please try some of these bits of advise and feel free to email me anytime. One more bit of advise, TAKE YOUR VITAMINS EVERYDAY. Shana
   — shana1569

October 29, 2009
My Daughter had the same pain she had a RNY 2 1/2 years ago and it is a hernia just above her belly butten. It's now the size of a grapefruit. she did have surgery but it is filled with blood and has to have it suringed out. every 2 weeks. doc said they now correct the problem found out that happens and now 1 and 1/2 years ago they do the correction.
   — jlw_life

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