GI Disorder and Internal Shaking

Posted by gigiraj @gigiraj, Feb 15, 2019

Hi all. I'm a 21 year old South Asian female and I have been having GI issues for about five years--mainly along the lines of constipation. I do have bowel movements every day but it takes a long time & I am rarely fully cleared out. These GI issues are always accompanied by other health issues (gas, pressure in head, etc). Recently, some scary new conditions have manifested: In the past few weeks, there have been times where my heart starts beating wildly and very fast. Sometimes, when I'm tired and constipated, my entire body feels like its vibrating internally; the shakes aren't visible but it feels like all my muscles are quivering. At this point, I feel a constant shaking/quivering within my body, especially in my heart cavity.

I have had TWO EKG's and both came back normal. All lab tests for diabetes, hypertension, cholesterol, etc came back within normal limits. I am very concerned about this internal shaking. My dad says he found something about how GI disorders can impact muscoskeletal system and since the heart is a muscle, it's contracting and being affected. But I wanted to know if anyone here can help!!!!!!! If anyone knows anything at all please please please let me know!!!!!

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

@debbie0985

Yeah, I was prescribed several tummy meds and one of them causes the shaking. I’m not sure if it was the famotidine or the domperidone but my GP said it’s most likely the domeridone as it can cause that kind of side effects. Anyhow, I stop taking both and just increase the dose of my omeprazole if needed. It seems to help.

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I’m so glad to hear you’re doing better! I still have the internal shaking and am not on any medications ugh. Do you mind me asking what kind of stomach problems do you have?

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The doctors didn’t give me a definite diagnosis since they could not find anything wrong. I had endoscopy done, abdominal CT and all sorts of blood test but everything seems ok. So I feel like it’s more of GERD and Irritable bowel since I’ve been trying to rule out my diet too. If I eat high carb, oily and spicy foods it makes my tummy play up again.

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I read your story and we have almost same issue before. I also went to see a cardiologist had ECG and 2D echo, did a stress test and they even monitor my heart function for 24hrs. But it’s all normal. But everything went away once I manage to settle my stomach. Thought at times it comes back especially if I have not been watchful of what I eat. Hormones seems to trigger it at times too.

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Ive had constipation issues all my life, &every xray ive had turns out normal. Over the years it got worse.
But when it gets cold everything stops moving. The only way i can get any relief is go to the hospital most of the time. Please can anybody give me any advise?please i need help.

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@rickrager

Ive had constipation issues all my life, &every xray ive had turns out normal. Over the years it got worse.
But when it gets cold everything stops moving. The only way i can get any relief is go to the hospital most of the time. Please can anybody give me any advise?please i need help.

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try Iberogast for gut motility. it is a combination of 9 herbs. it might help.

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Thank you, i dont believe ive herd of that but im sure gonna try it.

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@kanaazpereira

Welcome to Connect, @gigiraj. I did find some information that studies the link between digestive disorders and internal tremors:
– The bowel and beyond: the enteric nervous system in neurological disorders https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5005185/
– Tremor in Patients with Inflammatory Bowel Disease https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3582861/

I’d encourage you to take a look at this discussion in the Brain & Nervous System group on Connect, where @tigertoo, who has been diagnosed with POTS (Postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome) and Vitamin B deficiency, talks about similar symptoms:
– Monthly shaking episodes that continue to progress https://connect.mayoclinic.org/discussion/monthly-shaking-episodes-that-continues-to-progress/
I’m also tagging @hopeful33250 to see if she might have some more thoughts.

I can imagine your worry, @gigiraj; how is this shakiness affecting your day-to-day life? Have you considered causes other than GI disorders?

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Thank you for the information! About 8 months ago I broke my tailbone. Since then I have also been having difficult large, but regular, hard-to-pass bowel movements. I started having shaking upon waking up. At first I thought it was my heart. But I have a heart rate monitor and it was never irregular or in sync with the tremors/vibrations. It was rapid and I was breathless. I was hospitalized when I also turned out to have had very low hemoglobin and low iron and needed transfusions and iron infusions. As I recovered the tremors kept happening, so I thought it might be bladder cramping that triggered other internal tremors/vibrations, since it happened when I awake and bladder was full. I also thought it might be related to pelvic floor dysfunction or my broken coccyx but I just don’t know and nothing stops it, not any muscle relaxer or any other med tried. It progressed to happening throughout the day. I have noticed a connection between bowel movements, and having stool sort of stuck in my anus (I do have hemorrhoids). Now it is happening almost constantly and I’m sure it’s related to bowel movements but I don’t know who to tell or where to go for help since my heart rate is fine and it’s complicated by all my other medical issues including pelvic floor dysfunction, fractured coccyx, chronic pain, bowel surgery years ago due to peritonitis from diverticulitis which lead to a temporary colostomy bag and then repair surgery which went fine and I recovered well but have also had back issues including herniated discs and sciatic nerve problems and chronic pain. I’m now having numbness and tingling with the tremors/vibrations and it is ascending up my chest and neck to even sensations around the lower half of my face. I don’t know where to turn or how to even explain this to anyone. Thank you for your information!

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Same here, I was informed i have diverticulitis, bloating and cramping, no constipation. I used to have IBS-mixed and now it's mostly constipation due to high blood pressure medication. They also claimed that my hbp medication can cause the tremors, in very rare cases. I am going to see a neurologist to ensure its nothing else.

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So sorry to read this about you! I read covid has caused some issues like this, along the lines of persistent covid intestinal infection preventing the synthesis of serotonin. No serotonin affects the vagus nerve and can cause dysautonomia. A possible fix is taking SSRIs. Other complications from covid include reactivation of latent viruses or gut dysbiosis. Autoimmune diseases including celiac or even non-celiac seem to have similar effects. I hope you are able to get to the bottom of this!

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This sounds exactly like what I have currently the shakes internally are scary I had four ekgs and CT scan of chest with contract iv fluids and now I’m running through allergy testing at Mayo and a stress test. I believe after investigating its food allergy and or histamine flare up related but can’t be certain. Seven years ago I was diagnosed with Pan colitis and cured myself from that with a healthy diet . To book with the internal shakes that only happen at night when I’m trying to sleep I had a uti so I have been on antibiotics for nearly 10 days. The d dimer levels were high so everyone thought possible PE but that God that wasn’t the case. It was a uti… anyway as soon as I figure this out or Mayo I will let you know the out come. If anyone else has feed back that would be great.

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