upper back and chest pain with gastritis? HELP
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free skin care · Wed Jan 27, 2010 7:03 am

Hi all, since this is a group of women in a similar age group i thought someone else might be experiencing these symptoms. Diagnosed with gastritis after a trip to the ER thinking heart attack!! Everything checked out fine so they put me on the usual meds. Nexium, Zantac ect. Nothing seems to be helping and the pain can be crippling. Comes and goes. Comes mostly when I am active, maybe just walking across the street. No other health problems. Tried all the natural stuff. Chiropractor thinks it might be referred pain? Myofacial massage helps a little. This is ruining my life, can't sleep, worried about everything i eat, can't do the same physical stuff i was used to. I am 49 and been under alot of stress lately. Job loss ect. Seems also to be worse at certain times of the month? Don't get crazy, I'm not an alchy, but the only thing that always takes the pain away so that i can function is a couple sips of vodka!1 Any ideas? Thanks, LD

free skin care · Thu Jan 28, 2010 3:46 am

Is the pain on the left side or right?

I spent nearly 4 years with pain under my right breast and in my right upper back. It would come and go and at times would leave me balled up on the sofa or floor it was so crippling...it almost felt like someone were taking a long blade and shoving it through my back...
I went through ultrasounds, physical therapy, trips to the ER, Endoscopes, diet changes, pills you name it...I pretty much went through it all and no one could figure out what was wrong with me.

Eventually it got to the point where I couldn't eat much of anything except pudding, jello, noodles, mashed potatoes...(to this day I want to barf when I see jello Laughing

) and lost about 20 lbs....

Low and behold it took a small town doctor (and I live in a bigger city with highly trained Docs that couldn't figure it out) to take one look at me and say, you have all the symptoms of gallbladder issues...I told him no because I had an ultrasound done and had a doctor tell me that it wasn't my gallbladder seeing I had no stones, he said that didn't matter...the gallbladder can still be faulty without stones.....and eureka!! He was right...I had a HIDA Nuclear Medicine scan that revealed that my gallbladder wasn't contracting properly therefore causing extreme pain when I ate higher fatty foods...and all this without the traditional gallstones...
In the end, I had it removed and it was the first time I was pain free for 4 years...I seriously cried I was so happy....

Anyway, that is just a thought if your pain is on the right...and if it's not, don't give up on trying to find out what the cause is...pain is such a terrible thing to live with! Go to doctor after doctor if you have to and eventually you will get your answers..I had the pain for so long and so many doctors told me this or that, I was beginning to think it was all in my head...just don't give up, it's a valid pain for you and eventually your "eureka" doctor will come along....

free skin care · Thu Jan 28, 2010 4:01 am

LD wrote:

Hi all, since this is a group of women in a similar age group i thought someone else might be experiencing these symptoms. Diagnosed with gastritis after a trip to the ER thinking heart attack!! Everything checked out fine so they put me on the usual meds. Nexium, Zantac ect. Nothing seems to be helping and the pain can be crippling. Comes and goes. Comes mostly when I am active, maybe just walking across the street. No other health problems. Tried all the natural stuff. Chiropractor thinks it might be referred pain? Myofacial massage helps a little. This is ruining my life, can't sleep, worried about everything i eat, can't do the same physical stuff i was used to. I am 49 and been under alot of stress lately. Job loss ect. Seems also to be worse at certain times of the month? Don't get crazy, I'm not an alchy, but the only thing that always takes the pain away so that i can function is a couple sips of vodka!1 Any ideas? Thanks, LD

I have a condition that sounds similar and mine was diagnosed as esophageal spasms. It is not acid reflux in the beginning but can cause it once it gets started. Mine is caused by stress and some forms of exercises. All the acid reducers don't help but alcohol helps relax the muscles....I know it seems crazy. I went for years before it was figured out. Somthing that also helps is drinking a hot cup of water that has had ginger root cut up and boiled in it.

free skin care · Thu Jan 28, 2010 6:54 am

Bren and Toby, Thanks so much for sharing. This has been going on for 9 months and seriously ruining my life. I used to be very into fitness. Ate nothing but healthy!! Walker, swimmer, biker. Now everything causes pain. Thought for sure it was a cardiac thing but all the tests show I'm fine. Did the upper endoscope which showed gastritis. Could barely get through it for the pain I was in laying down for so long because the hospital screwed up their scheduling. My pain is more central radiating in chest and back with some wierd pressure in the left lower arm. Sounds cardiac right? But they say no. All test come back fine. Gas pain? Vodka is the only thing that gives me some relief so I can sleep for 2 hrs. at a time. All the gastro drugs just seem to just make my stomach worse, constipation or the reverse. My stomach never hurt before these drugs, just back and chest? Been trying all the natural things as well. Aloe, Lemon water, Manuka honey Lots of spinach. Can't quite narrow it down. Any and all ideas would be helpful. Thankk again, LD

free skin care · Thu Jan 28, 2010 8:15 am

Toby, I first noticed this pain a few years ago when I was on one of my power walks,scared me but blew it off. I have always been into really gourmet dinners, with a bottle of red wine(which I have totally given up) and always after 8:00. The pain wasn't chronic so i didn't worry. Life went on as usual,but for the past year noticed it happening more and more. At night especially. A glass of wine always made it go away. Then my husband lost his company in the recession and we had no health insurance. My condition worsened (probably hastend by stress) We went from the high life to nothing overnight!! I have always been one to handle stress really well, keeping everyone else grounded and supporting him emotionally while he rebuilt our future company. I have always been in really great physical shape. i was the mom everyone wanted on their team. Now I can barely get to the grocery without the pain stopping me in my tracks. It has become a daily plague that is only relieved with a little vodka. I am on my way to whole foods for some ginger and a call to the doc for some more answers. Are any of you having this kind of excruciating pain? All thoughts please, LD

free skin care · Fri Jan 29, 2010 6:59 am

On my way to get the ginger Toby recommended I stopped by the book store to get "The Kind Diet" by Alecia Silverstone. Saw her on Oprah the day before and it looked interesting. Vegetarian lifestyle stuff. It got me thinking so at Whole Foods i picked up an all veg. dinner. No meat. I never do that. Last night was the 1st in months that I have slept more than 2 hrs at a time and woke up with no pain! No dairy either, replaced with Hemp. Too soon to know what to think, but I am excited to try this. Maybe I can go back to my green smoothies that i have been drinking for years! Sorry to keep going on about this but I am just hoping you all have some thoughts. Thanks, LD

free skin care · Mon Feb 01, 2010 7:15 am

Please! anyone with any ideas? I will try anything. My husband is out of work. I can't work because of this. My insurance is just a small private policy that doesn't cover alot of expensive testing, so really trying to figure this out without going through all the doctors wasteful, money making tests before i try to narrow it down. TIA, LD

free skin care · Tue Feb 02, 2010 3:42 am

Maybe visit a health store with a naturopath? Not sure if they have them where you are but it's a cost effective way of getting good advice and the right products. I'm a chiropractor and it sounds like referred pain and gall bladder was my first impression too. Not all presentations are textbook. I work with an acupuncturist and he has all sorts of connections that aren't in the western way of thinking, maybe a visit to an acupuncturist would help. Pain is always worse with stress. I hope things work out for you.

free skin care · Tue Feb 02, 2010 5:49 am

Miss Mercy, thanks so much for the advice. i am seeing a Chiro that I love and he too thought it was referred pain fro trigger spots in my left shoulder and back. After 3 costly months of mayofacial and accupuncture I still had the pain. Checked out gallbladder and so much of it doesn't fit. Wish it did. That seems a simple fix. No pain in my stomach, or under rrib cage just upper back and chest with lower arm involvement? When I am active or sleeping. Will talk to doc soon if I can't get this under control. Any ideas are great though, so I can avoid too many useless, costly tests that my insurance won't cover. Thanks to all, LD

free skin care · Fri Feb 19, 2010 6:08 am

OK, for anyone interested it's been 3 weeks since i asked for input on my condition. This is what I've done. No meat, No dairy but for the occasional bit of cheese. Tons of veggies. Miso soup every morning for breakfast, gave up Nexium (just seemed to constipate and make things worse) Still doing Zantac, Manuka Honey, lots of wierd grains and pastas, Aloe Vera Juice and Pear Juice when I remember. I think that covers it. Anyhoo, things seem to be better, getting more sleep and less pain during the day. I still think this is somehow related to my monthly cycle so hoping I'm not feeling better just because of the time of month. LD

Mon Oct 18, 2010 6:36 pm

LD some of your pain is very similiar to what I have. I have been through the gambit of medical specialists which have helped alot. 5 months ago I have extreme joint, muscle and pins and needle pain and stomach, back,neck and chest pain. I went to the dr and he ran a series of bloodtests. I ended up having a Ferritin level of 3 (which meant that I was profoundly iron deficient). I went to a Hematologist/Oncologist and immediately started Iron IV treatment and was given Gabapentin for my neuropathy. Then I had an Ultrasound, CT and MRI (all showing that I had a tumor on my liver). The doctor believed this was benign but wants to do a new MRI this month. Then I had a colonoscopy and the dr said I had gastritis. My stomach, chest and back pain is really bad at night, especially if I eat ANYTHING. I have always been in shape and I eat healthy. I run marathons, 5k's, swim, surf, windsurf but I cannot do any of this now. Today I went back to my hematologist for blood results and told him that the pain I am having in my chest (under my ribs), back and stomach is so bad that I will not eat any solid foods.I can only eat, fruit and juice vegetables. And I do not eat anything after 4pm. This is the only way I can sleep (for a few hours). My Dr believes I could have Gallbladder disease now and is running more bloodtests and is scheduling an MRI for my Gallbladder and Liver. I would appreciate any thoughts or views anyone can give me.

free skin care · Tue Oct 19, 2010 6:34 am

I really don't think trying to self-diagnose helps. I say this after spending the entire weekend looking up my own set of symptoms on the internet - which include, bloated stomach, fatigue, nausea, irritable bowel, headaches, aching joints etc etc! So far I've come up with cancer, diverticulitis and gluten intolerance!

Anyway, today I went to the doctors and organised a whole lot of blood tests. So I really advise you to seek more medical help - you need to get everything checked out by a medical professional rather than second guessing.

Tue Oct 19, 2010 6:45 am

Thanks Kelin, That's exactly what I am doing. I guess I just need to wait for the blood results later this week and the mri to follow.

Hope you feel better soon. I understand about the problems with self diagnosis. I too have done research and came back with the worse. The only thing that kept me from this was test results from my hematologist that did not state the worse. I truly hope you find out what is causing your health issues so you can work on getting better soon. Thanks again.

Sat Sep 03, 2011 5:50 am

Hello! Don't know if you are still on here. I read your post and wanted to let you know that I have gastritis also. Mine is chronic, so I'm not sure it will ever go away. I do have some good days though, and than I will get a flare up. If you're still on here please update me on how you are and maybe we will have advice to share!

free skin care · Sat Sep 03, 2011 7:00 pm

I had several months of severe stress last year when my mother died and all this pain started. I have a hiatal hernia so thought it was acting up. I was told I have GERD and a pre ulcer condition. I had to stop drinking red wine which I was doing for me heart. I was also taking apple cider vinegar in water but stopped that because my chiro said it would be like pouring vinegar on an open cut. I didn't want to take drugs. I've noticed that when I eat dairy it sometimes feels worse, I guess because dairy is acidic. Eating fruits and veg helps. When I lie down, I swear I can feel the stomach acid sloshing around. I eat too much sugar so I need to stop that. My guess would be an alkaline diet would work but I haven't been serious about it. I still workout regularly though, thank God. I think cleaning up my diet would be helpful.

I've noticed the pain is less when I sleep on my left side and read that is what people with GERD should do because the acid doesn't spill out. I guess we have to figure out how to stop manufacturing so much acid in our bodies.

I plan to try the ginger in water again. You might try unsweetened coconut milk. I buy mine at Trader Joe's and it's quite tasty and soothing. I stopped drinking coffee but have black tea and green tea.

Thu Aug 22, 2019 6:06 am

I wonder if anyone here ever had relief with theirs. I'm new to using this forum but I have suffered with gastritis and general GERD for years with no respite. It's been rough, although I tend to know my trigger activities and still it can be tough to avoid them all

Wed Sep 04, 2019 1:15 am

I am also suffering from the gastric and lower back pain for the last 3 months. I have tried so many things.

free skin care · Wed Sep 04, 2019 8:21 pm

I just developed painful gastritis this last month. I’ve been getting relief with daily aloe Vera juice (about 1-2oz) taken first thing in the morning. Sometimes if it’s a bad day, I’ll have it a couple more times during the day before eating. Has to be pure—no weird ingredients and not powdered. My dad who has suffered for years w very serious gastritis requiring medication is now trying it.

free skin care · Tue Feb 16, 2021 9:08 pm

I know there’s so many reasons to suffer with stomach pain and distress but thought I’d share my success. I had severe pain distress nausea heartburn for 17 years. I had severe stomach pain that felt like starvation so I always had to try eating at night when I didn’t want to. Had the usual bad luck with gastro dr. (After ton of painful expensive tests he said “I’m out of ideas”) Taking PPIs helped a little but they’re so bad for you. I wanted to find something else.

Every night I was up and down trying to doctor myself. I’d heard about low stomach acid but it sounded dumb. One night out of desperation I swigged some vinegar. It wasn’t miraculous but it helped enough for me to think yeah there something to this. I started taking Betaine hcl and enzymes with everything I ate no matter how small a snack. Took about 2 weeks to get really under control and then I continued doing that for about two years. Now I only take the betaine if I’m going to eat something that I know is really hard to digest. My stomach went from World War III constantly to just feeling pretty happy.

Apparently mainstream medicine doesn’t know about low stomach acid which feels pretty much like heartburn GERD and gastritis. And PPIs feel like they help a little but most people start losing acid production not having too much. It’s really common. My son and daughter in law take betaine now too. We pass the bottle around on thanksgiving and other major digestive dinners. Bad Grin

I seriously hope this helps someone because I know the hell of stomach issues. My dose is 600 mg with normal meals but I took 1200 mg plus enzymes most of the time during the first 2 years. It’s super easy to figure out. If I start to feel heartburny now I take a 600 mg. Capsule. I know it seems weird to take acid for what feels like acid but it changed my life.

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