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Abdominal pain caused by anxiety?
I have been experiencing abdominal pain on and off for almost a year now. My stomach is very tender to the touch, I can’t put any kind of pressure on it (like laying on my stomach), I generally feel like I got the wind knocked out of me (shallow breathing accompanied by chest pain) and the whole abdominal area feels like it’s cramping up. I can’t lie down on my back; in fact the only way I can experience some relief is by sitting up, hunched over. The first 3 times the pain was extremely severe and lasted a long time (all night and well into the next day) but these “spells” happened so far apart (2 to 3 months) that I attributed it to bad foods or even mild food poisoning. However, over the last few months it’s become more frequent but varying in severity to the extend that I worry every time I eat something now. I’ll be ok when going to bed but will wake up in pain in the middle of the night. I can’t detect a pattern, it doesn’t seem to be a certain food that brings on the pain. I cut out coffee and orange juice to no avail. Now that the pain is more frequent it not only varies in duration but also in ways to be relieved. Sometimes I’ll be in pain for only an hour or so (which I have to spend sitting up, hunched over) and Tums plus Ibuprofin will bring relief. Other times, like last night, it’ll last for 6 or 7 hours, antacids don’t help at all and I don’t get any sleep. I’ve been researching acid reflux, dyspepsia, IBS, etc but I can’t pinpoint my symptoms. Even though I sometimes experience heart burn, it usually doesn’t occur with the abdominal pain. My bowel movements are very regular but I have noticed that I’m sometimes bloated or feel a little constipated when I pain but I still don’t experience relief from the stomach pain after going to the bathroom. My doctor kind of brushed me off when asking him about it. I should also mention that I am very stressed at the moment and have problems with anxiety. Could all my physical symptoms really be caused by anxiety alone? PLEASE HELP.
Answer:
Abdominal pain caused by anxiety?
hi, i notice you posted twice and i know how aggravating it can be that no one answers, but dont know if you saw this on the logon screen :
News Aug-17-2007: Please note that the doctors are currently away from this board and therefore individual questions are not answered by doctors Joshua and Sinuhe. You are welcome to participate in the discussions and notices will be posted here once the doctors are back in.
i'm sure if someone had knowledge of the problem they would respond.
Answer:
Abdominal pain caused by anxiety?
Hi,
I certainly sympathize with all your symptoms, it would be hard to know exactly what is what. Anxiety can cause alot of symptoms:
It seems you have real gastro symptoms that need to be evaluated. Things that come to my mind are GERD, irritable bowel syndrome, diverticulitis. Try to pinpoint your symptoms to your Dr. and ask for testing appropriate for your symptoms.
Purple98Lady