Experienced any lower left side grabbing type pain w/diverticulitis?

This is what I have been experiencing for over a week. I had a bout of diverticulitis about a month ago in the lower left bottom of my colon now it’s on the left side. I have started a soluble diet where the food melts before they get to the colon. It is helping. My body is low tone and I feel the muscles in my colon don’t work like they should. I do take linsess also. I’m not eating anything that may get caught in my colon to cause inflammation. I hope this helps.

Hi @debbyg, and welcome to Connect. That random grabbing or twisting feeling you describe sounds difficult to make sense of, especially when you can’t reproduce it and you’ve already had a hernia ruled out.

Diverticulitis pain is often described as more persistent pain and tenderness, commonly in the lower-left abdomen, and can occur along with symptoms such as fever or changes in bowel habits. What you’re describing sounds different from what you recognize as your usual diverticulitis symptoms.

You also mentioned having had several abdominal surgeries. Both the conditions that led to previous surgeries and changes that can occur after abdominal surgery may be important for your doctors to consider as they evaluate a new abdominal symptom.

As other members consider sharing their experiences, it may help them to understand a little more about what you’re experiencing. When the grabbing sensation happens, how long does it usually last, and do you notice anything else happening with it, such as a change in your bowel movements, nausea, tenderness or bloating?

Have your doctors given you any thoughts about whether your previous surgeries could be related to what you’re feeling now, or what they plan to look at next?

What about the tenderness and pain I am having g on the left side where my descending colon is.?

I had an access on my descending colon from my first bout. Still feel it when having trouble with BMs

@russellcardozo - welcome to Mayo Clinic Connect. Since autocorrect can be helpful or troublesome, just wanted to check that you meant an abscess on your descending colon?

What kinds of troubles with BMs are you experiencing?

@jlharsh My gi dr ordered an ultra sound and ct scan looking for a hernia. That was negative. He thought it might be scar tissue but removing scar tissue is tricky and can cause more scar tissue. The pain started about 8 years ago, before I was diagnosed with diverticulitis. It lasted less than a minute. It was very painful and out of the blue and very weird. A twisting pain. Felt like something was caught inside. The area was tender for several hours. It didn't happen again for probably 6 months. Very random. I mentioned it to my internist and she just shook her head. It wasn't happening very often and the pain was over with quickly and wasn't effecting my life. In 2020 I had a colovesical fistula. I had absolutely no symptoms before. It caused a severe bladder infection and that was how it was discovered. I had blood in my urine The colonoscopy I had 2 years previous to this showed diverticulosis. The sigmoid was very diseased to the point of creating the fistula to my bladder. As far as I was aware I never had a fever, and definitely no nausea or other common symptoms of diverticulitis. I have had that grabbing pain maybe 7 or 8 times. in the last 2 years Two days ago I was sitting on the screened porch floor trimming my dog and that pain happened again. I will say I was in an awkward position with my legs akimbo and I was bent over. This time it happened twice in a row in a few minute span and that area of my lower left abdomen is still tender to the touch and I have a mild discomfort. I exercise 3 times a week in a class and it never triggers this pain. My previous abdominal surgeries were for 2 ectopic pregnancies, one of which ruptured, 2 c-sections and open surgery to remove my gall bladder.

@lisalucier
Yes abscess on sigmoid colon on first bout of diverticulitis. I take up constipated. Takes some walking and moving hips to be able to have a bowel movement. 9 weeks since second flare up. Still can't introduce too much fiber without cramps.