Relentless bile reflux / pain

Posted by stephieisabella @stephieisabella, Mar 10, 2017

Hi all,

In short, I've been suffering from the following for the last 2.5 years...

- daily burning in esophagus from reflux pretty much immediately after meals, can last for up to 2 hours
- dull, progressive pain on right side of abdomen just next to belly button and under rib. Can be sharp sometimes and radiate into right shoulder. Longest stint of pain was 4 - 5 days. Worse after eating
- burping and trapped air which causes sharp pain in my back
- Reflux is so bad that food gets stuck on its way down my food pipe and throat hurts a lot in general
- consistently yellow stools - been like that for years now
- Frequent 'IBS-like' symptoms - bloating, sharp cramps, intolerance to fatty heavy foods

I've had the following tests...

- x2 gastroscopy (gastritis and biopsies showed inflammation)
- x1 colonoscopy - clear
- H pylori breath tests - clear
- Fecal elastase to check pancreas function - clear
- Parasite testing - clear
- x3 ultrasounds - all clear
- HIDA scan - around 78%
- various blood tests (LFT, renal profile, CBC etc etc) - all clear apart from a slightly high white blood count during my worst time of pain
- food intolerance testing (celiac, lactose etc) - all clear
- MRCP - all clear

Here's what I've tried...

- lifestyle changes: I've cut out fatty, fizzy, acidic and spicy foods, eating smaller and more frequent meals, elevating pillows at bedtime, not wearing tight clothing, not bending down after meals, not eating too close to bedtime, stopped drinking alcohol, chewing food properly and thoroughly
- omeprazole, esomeprazole, rantidine, gaviscon advanced - no help at all
- cut out gluten and dairy for months - no help
- digestive enzymes, ginger tablets, silicolgel, cold milk, ginger beer
- apercap, colpermin, mebeverine, amitriptyline, prozac, buscopan
- apple cider vinegar, ginger tablets, chamomile tea, milk thistle
- good strength probiotic
- beet juice, potato juice, parsley and all the good stuff for gallbladders

Sooooo totally running out of options here. Seen two specialists, been told I have bile reflux and IBS and that there isn't much else for me. Can anyone shed some light? I've just started charcoal tablets today.

Note... I never get the right dull ache in my abdomen and the reflux at the same time. It is always one or the other. Been told NO to gallbladder removal and that I am too young to have problems with it (I'm 22).

Interested in more discussions like this? Go to the Digestive Health Support Group.

Maybe have dr Try stool analysis . It might help.

REPLY
@saucy

I cut out fruits over 2 years ago! I loved them! Some vegetables that were really fruit like peppers and cucumbers really anything with seed, I cut out over a year ago but started carnivore about 6 weeks ago and don't have that gas and blasting after eating. As a side note I don't eat any carbs including breads, pasta, cereals ect. It's a great sacrifice but when I start feeling better it's worth it. When I cheat I pay the price for several days but it takes till the next day before I feel the effect. You can go online and see the carnivore diet or go to Dr Wolfson's website he talks about it.

Jump to this post

Hi Saucy. It's been 3 years since you made this comment... i'm wondering how you are feeling now and if you've remained on a carnivore diet, or if you've been able to reintroduce some plant foods without symptoms. I have had similar symptoms to the original poster above for years. Even had my gallbladder out last year due to low HIDA scan result. Gastritis is worse now. I know that gas buildup and/or slow motility in the S.I. is the underlying cause of my bile reflux, but I haven't been able to find a diet to fix it. Pure carnivore is tough for me because my stomach is already inflamed. High protein and fat stimulate more acid and bile which then irritates the tissue. PPI, sucralfate, DGL, eating small meals often have all helped take the edge off the pain but aren't actually fixing the issue.

I even went to Mayo a few months ago and they ran a bunch of breath tests and an Esophageal Impedance test on me. Zero useful results and zero guidance from them other than "maybe constipation is playing a role in symptoms"

REPLY
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