female only Sick in so many ways, need a female's advice.

[meyouus 415]

Hello ladies!

I don't have a female figure in my life to discuss this with, so I'm hoping you ladies could point me in the right direction.

I'm 46, in full menopause. Breast and Colon cancer have taken my Mother and Grandfather, I worry about getting either.

For the past few weeks to a month, I have been experiencing severe bloating and pain in my pelvic region. It hurts so bad that I tuck my underwear "under" my lower belly flab so I can let go of the expansion of my stomach. Wearing pants is pretty hard on me. It's very much like the feeling of pregnancy. (I've never actually had a baby though) It's affecting my every moment

The pain has radiated to my lower back and hurts like a mother. The pain is unbearable.

As I am losing weight, 40 lbs so far, my upper and lower stomach have actually gotten fatter. I notice no change in my size even having lost weight. Is this normal?

I have not been following my diet as close as I did before. I feel nausious when I think of food or attempt to eat. I'm living off Greek yogurt. I get this sensation of heartburn (doesn't last but a minute or two) when I take my first bite of something. I can barely eat. I weighed myself and had gained ten pounds over two days. Drinking is not a problem. I feel sick at the thought of food most days.

I went to see my PCP twice this week. Had a papsmear that came out normal, had a pelvic exam, normal too, but the Doc ordered a CT scan on my pelvic area. That showed nothing too. A few days after seeing the PCP, the pain wouldn't go away so I went to the ER (oh, that's where I had the CT scan) They did a lot of bloodwork, and took a urine sample... fit as a fiddle. They sent me home with Lortab's for the pain.

The hospital ordered a mammogram, a colonoscopy and an upper GI. My Mom died of Breast cancer, and my grandfather died of colon cancer. My PCP and ER docs are looking for cancer.

I can't eat, when I do I get heartburn (esophogeal?) and can't eat the food. I'm walking around feeling very full, but I'm totally empty. When I eat, it's greek yogurt, an apple, hummus, eggs, chicken, veggies, etc. I'm eating right, just barely. I do have good days where I can eat a little something and I don't feel nausious. I'm having normal bowels.

Aside from looking at the test results from the mammo, colonoscopy and upper GI for cancer, I would like to know if any of the things I'm experiencing are signs of something wrong with my band. (i.e. nausea when eating food, or not eating food, esophogeal heartburn) and I'm not noticing it. Are there things that I should go see my WLS surgeon about? I could add him to the list.

I'm very sick, am following up with Drs, I'm so scared.

[Debbie3sons 1,936]

Did the Surgeon fix or talk to about A hiatial hernia , I know I didn't even know I had one till My surgeon said he was going to repair it , so when he did my band he also did the hiatial hernia now I don't get heartburn and I don't have the pain I used to in my pelvic region , I also don't gag at a word my kids or anyone would say which was( coagulition ) I don't know why but I would gag and sometimes even vomit if anyone used that word , now I can deal with it and it doesn't boter me , maybe u should talk with the surgeon that did ur band and ask him cause who knows what could be causing it , well as I have said before this is just a suggestion also let the band surgeon know what u can keep down and what u can't , then go from there I hope this was helpful .

[elcee 3,340]

Not to scare you but some of those symptoms could be symptoms of ovarian cancer. Bloating , a feeling of fullness etc. All vague symptoms which normally mean that the diagnosis is delayed or missed.

I hope that whatever it is you get an answer and a solution soon.

[kll724 3,055]

I have no advice, but want to give you a hug. ((((((hug)))))!!! :wub: Best wishes. (oh, I would include your Lapband surgeon into your search). Karen

[dee257 1,516]

~hugs~ from me also....keep pushing every doctor you can for answers.....

[cat whisperer 127]

I'm so sorry to hear this... but as elcee mentioned above, please get checked for ovarian cancer. My mom had it and those were some of the signs. I hope you get some answers and that you feel better soon.

[willowcat 93]

~hugs~ from me also....keep pushing every doctor you can for answers.....

Yes--keep pushing until they find the reason. Call on the males in your life to support you and be there for you now--your pain and sickness is not a "female problem" at this point.

[☠carolinagirl☠ 18,721]

am scared for you and i am also very sorry you are dealing with this.

your life, your health is what matters...and i know from reading posts on this forum, that stress can make you un-hungry, and the and tight etc..def stay in contact with your dr (both pcp and your lap band dr)

yrs ago, when i was having intense pain, i kept going to the er as it hurt so bad..finally one night, hub told them you are keeping her til you fix her (turns out i needed emergency gallbladder surgery)..like the one poster said, stay on them..its your life and your health.

[firefaerie266 53]

yrs ago, when i was having intense pain, i kept going to the er as it hurt so bad..finally one night, hub told them you are keeping her til you fix her (turns out i needed emergency gallbladder surgery)..like the one poster said, stay on them..its your life and your health.

Those pesky gall bladders! They seem to cause everyone trouble!

I agree with the above - keep after your doctors until you get some answers. If the standard tests aren't showing anything, don't hesitate to ask questions and talk about your concerns of cancer.

[KimberleyP 21]

Hugs - Hugs - Healing Light!

I wish you speedy answers to your questions. You've gotten some great advise from those before me, so I can only chime in with support. There are answers somewhere - keep searching.

I do agree that keeping your surgeon in the loop is important.

[meyouus 415]

Did the Surgeon fix or talk to about A hiatial hernia , I know I didn't even know I had one till My surgeon said he was going to repair it , so when he did my band he also did the hiatial hernia now I don't get heartburn and I don't have the pain I used to in my pelvic region , I also don't gag at a word my kids or anyone would say which was( coagulition ) I don't know why but I would gag and sometimes even vomit if anyone used that word , now I can deal with it and it doesn't boter me , maybe u should talk with the surgeon that did ur band and ask him cause who knows what could be causing it , well as I have said before this is just a suggestion also let the band surgeon know what u can keep down and what u can't , then go from there I hope this was helpful .

Thank you Debbie, I found information about Hiatal Hernia's and I really don't think I fit most of the symptoms. I don't know if you know I am five years out, not fresh from under the knife. The heartburn I get doesn't last that long, and half the time I can link it to nasal drip (allergies).

I will be calling my surgeon tomorrow to talk with him/them about what's going on and see if it's related to my band or not. I haven't had trouble keeping food down, I have trouble putting it in my mouth! Like your "gag word" experience, the thought of eating makes me feel nausious. Not all the time, but still. Though that seems to be getting better, go figure. I'm so confused.

[meyouus 415]

Not to scare you but some of those symptoms could be symptoms of ovarian cancer. Bloating , a feeling of fullness etc. All vague symptoms which normally mean that the diagnosis is delayed or missed.

I hope that whatever it is you get an answer and a solution soon.

Thank you elcee, haven't heard from you in a while! No, you're not scaring me. I'm already scared because I, too, see that my sympyoms signal ovarian cancer. With cancer running in my family, I'm real scared to find I might have OC. But that also makes me more determined to find out what's wrong. My PCP (who is new to me, and very young) gave me a pelvic ultrasound which showed nothing. But my faith in how serious she's taking this is weak, not sure if they're doing enough. I just have this gut feeling, and my gut (no pun intended ) is usually dead on.

Oddly, after all that pain, I'm actually feeling better (could be the Lortab) and wonder if I'm being silly about all this. But my symptoms point to OC. My Mom had to have a hysterectomy a long time ago, but I don't know why. (She passed of Breast Cancer two years ago) So I'm going to look more into OC, then do my colonoscopy, upper GI and mammogram. It's a preventative measure, but it's also now a search for developing illness.

[meyouus 415]

am scared for you and i am also very sorry you are dealing with this.

your life, your health is what matters...and i know from reading posts on this forum, that stress can make you un-hungry, and the and tight etc..def stay in contact with your dr (both pcp and your lap band dr)

yrs ago, when i was having intense pain, i kept going to the er as it hurt so bad..finally one night, hub told them you are keeping her til you fix her (turns out i needed emergency gallbladder surgery)..like the one poster said, stay on them..its your life and your health.

Thank you Carolina, sorry to hear of your gall bladder surgery but sorrier* that your hospital kept sending you home. Your husband was obviously right to make them keep you in their care till they found out what's wrong!

When I was being triaged in the ER, the lady doing it didn't want me to be admitted because "this (CT scan) can be done on the outside", "no ER was needed", but I stood my ground and I got admitted! But, after 7-8 hours, they did the CT scan (found nothing), bloodwork (all my levels are near perfect), and they finally sent me home with a script for Lortabs. I think it was a waste of my time.

From what I read, you can't always detect OC with a CT scan, or even a pelvic ultrasound. My question...How does one find THE test for finding OC?

As I detailed my new diagnostic tests to be done, above, I hope they're looking hard enough for something! I told elcee I had a gut feeling that something's not right. But not right, where?

Thanks for the sweetness that is you, CarolinaGirl!

[meyouus 415]

Thank you, you beautiful women, for caring and sending positive vibes. I breathe all the beauty in and march forward. It helps to know I am not alone.

I feel a little bit better but not completely. I ate today with no problem, and the bloating has gone down. Of course, I haven't left my recliner all weekend and I take one of my four a day Lortab in the morning. Tomorrow is Monday, I'm going to have to put proper clothes on, that's what I'm afraid to do because the elastic on my too big underwear and pants, makes my stomach hurt.

I'm taking this all one day at a time...just trying to speed the process. Maybe it's nothing at all?

Again, bless you ladies for your warmth and caring!

[laurigee 545]

I just had a total hysterectomy 1 1/2 weeks ago. I was having severe pain in my lower stomach that then went around to my back. I could gain anywhere from 5-10 pounds in a week and go up a pants size, and as mysterious as the pounds and swelling would come, it would go! I was in the ER with such pain they thought I was passing a kidney stone, but when they checked they said no stones! I had every test you've had and the all came out perfectly! Finally my gynecologist said she would like to do a total hysterectomy since I was done having children and see if anything was going on in there they couldn't see on tests! She was right, there was a problem the tests could not detect! I went in for surgery and never had to take one pain killer during my hospital stay or recovery. In fact, they removed my IV an hour after I was returned to my room! I was up and moving 2 hours after the surgery! The doctor and nurses kept saying they didn't think I really had surgery! I felt so much better than I have felt in years! The pain I was in on a daily basis was far more intense than recovering from the surgery! I'm not saying this is your problem, I'm just giving you a possibility! You definitely need to explore all possibilities and be your own advocate! I hope you find the answers for your health problems soon! I know how exhausting it is to be told your healthy yet you feel like crap! I will keep you in my prayers!