Punched Feeling in My Stomach

[jfb115]

I was wondering if anyone else has had this feeling and either knows what it is or if they have any suggestions.
My doctors believe that they have my UC under control, but now that the inflammation has died down, my bowels aren't moving as fast so I need to incorporate more fiber and normal food into my diet. I was eating low residue, plain foods before and kept getting backed up and not going for like a week. Every couple days I have to use milk of magnesia and coffee and things like that as well as change my diet. So I've started eating salads and a lot more fruit, less carbs and bread, etc and it seems to be helping things move, but now I keep getting this feeling in my stomach, like right below my breast, as if I've been punched there. Some days it hurts so much and I'll be in so much pain that I can't move. I started taking prilosec twice a day, but I still keep getting that feeling. Sometimes it happens after I eat food that was maybe too hard to digest (like an apple) but sometimes it happens after I've eaten food that I know I'm fine with and that I've never had a problem with. It doesn't happen every day or with every meal, but maybe once every other day. Usually I just drink a lot of water and sit with a heating pad and wait a few hours for the feeling to get better, but I can't keep doing that.

Any suggestions? Or ideas what is causing it?

Other meds I'm on are Cyclosporine (Sandimmune), 50 mg 6MP, and Prilosec.

 

[Jennifer]

The colon makes a turn on both sides under the breast (closer to the breast on the left). You may have some inflammation or a stricture happening there and I think you should tell you GI about your symptoms.

If you eat fruit or vegetables, then taking the skin off may help with the pain some. A lot of doctors tell their patients to increase their fiber when things get backed up but for some people it does more harm than good (what's the point in eating more fiber when there's something blocking the way or making things harder to get through?). Maybe you're feeling food build up at that spot but its not a complete blockage. When was your last colonoscopy? Did you look at the pictures yourself?

Here's a diagram of where the colon is in your body so you know what I was talking about above:

 

[jfb115]

I think it's a little higher up, like where the esophagus passes thru (or behind?) the liver in that picture...but thanks for posting that picture!
Last colonoscopy was in Nov. when I was released from the hospital, and there was some inflammation but it had gone down from the one they did before that, which was in Sept. before they started the treatment, and I did see the pictures from both. I had a sigmoid done 2 weeks ago and everything apparently looked great, no inflammation there.
I'm hoping to avoid a colonoscopy or endoscopy for a little bit, at least until my spring break at the end of april, since I've already missed a lot of school and work from not feeling well.

 

[Jennifer]

Well you gotta do what you gotta do when it comes to your health. I'd still call the GI and ask what it may be and what they suggest. Is the Prilosec for GERD? Maybe that condition isn't under control and you may need to try something else. Could simply be heartburn/acid reflux.

I used to take Maalox for a similar feeling. Was more of a pain in the middle of my chest.

 

[jfb115]

Could be...I'll talk to them tomorrow. I'm also going to see a nutritionist and see if she has any advice for how to get the fiber i need without eating the foods that seem to give me this feeling, since it those foods (apples, oatmeal so far) cause it some of the time.

 

[Jennifer]

Blueberries contain a lot of fiber. Maybe you could try a juice with lots of blueberries in it.