Vague undiagnosed lower abdominal pain we thought was ovarian cysts...what next?

[6packofun]

OK, so dd had an ultrasound a few months ago, I gave in to the dr's suggestion to try birth control pills, and, while they do help dd's periods be less gross and way more regular (and help her acne) they do nothing for her pain after 3 months.  No endometriosis, no ovarian issues so now I'm wondering about IBS or just a food intolerance.

 

We're going to start her on a probiotic--suggestions for liquid or chewable, please?  But I'd like to start eliminating food categories.  She avoids dairy and know that bugs her a bit. Pain still there pretty much daily even without dairy, though. Any suggestions for what to eliminate next?  We don't have any known food sensitivities or allergies in either of our families so this is new to us.

 

This is so bizarre!  I refuse to believe that she just has to live with it.  We need to get back to the dr. since her 3 month birth control pill trial is over--she may just stay on them, but she's had breast pain/tenderness every since starting them.  It's up to her to weigh the pros and cons at this point.  (She's 17.)

[Guest]

Is it just pain or does she have GI issues as well?

[Guest]

So, did you/she think the pain was all in the reproductive organs and not in the digestive system, but now you/she are considering that it may be located there. Does she have other digestive system symptoms that can pinpoint it there; i.e., gurgling intestines, flatulence, bloated gassy abdomen, bowels changing in consistency and loseness?

 

I used to have chewable acidophilus tablets, so presumably a vitamins/health store has a chewable probiotic that may help. I quit dairy and gluten, but also carbonated drinks are a big problems. Just in the last week, I quit coffee and I hate to say, I think coffee is a worse offender than I wanted to believe. :( My stomach has had zero problems since no coffee, although it is too early to say if that will remain true.

[ktgrok]

I'd also consider bladder pain...either infection, or cystitis. 

[Um_2_4]

I would consider kidney or intestinal problems. DH thought it was his kidneys once and turned out to be inflamed colon. Another time he thought it was his colon acting up again and it was a bladder infection.

Could she step up the water intake big time? If that helps it might be kidney/bladder related. 

 

[6packofun]

So, did you/she think the pain was all in the reproductive organs and not in the digestive system, but now you/she are considering that it may be located there. Does she have other digestive system symptoms that can pinpoint it there; i.e., gurgling intestines, flatulence, bloated gassy abdomen, bowels changing in consistency and loseness?

 

 

 

Yes, I'm just wondering if she wasn't able to pinpoint *where* the pain was, you know?  It didn't feel like period cramps but she does have some gas AND a feeling of fullness after eating only half of her meals.  (This was a possible symptom of endo or cysts, I think,  too?)  Her dairy intolerance seems to be more related to uber-phlegm production and sinus issues more than affecting her gut, though.  We charted the feeling to see if it felt worse at a specific time of the month, but nope.  Now I'm wondering if she should keep a food diary...we loosely tried to see if it was related to specific foods but we weren't consistent about it.

[6packofun]

I would consider kidney or intestinal problems. DH thought it was his kidneys once and turned out to be inflamed colon. Another time he thought it was his colon acting up again and it was a bladder infection.

Could she step up the water intake big time? If that helps it might be kidney/bladder related. 

 

Hmmm, this is a distinct possibility.  I forgot that she told me she does have to pee a LOT, in her opinion.  Water intake could definitely go up, too!  (They did a urinalysis with nothing found, btw.)

[Garga]

Oh, I hate to type this sort of thing, but has ovarian cancer been looked into?  I had a friend who had that at age 27.  One of the symptoms is feeling full after only eating part of a meal, along with other abdominal issues that would seem food related at first (indigestion/nausea.)

 

Here's a website of the symptoms.  (I hate to post about cancer and scare you, but the feeling full too soon thing made me think of it.)  http://www.cancercenter.com/ovarian-cancer/symptoms/?source=BNGPS01&channel=paid+search&invsrc=Non_Branded_Paid_Search_Bing_Cancer_Search&utm_device=c&utm_budget=Corporate&utm_site=BING&utm_campaign=Non+Brand%3ECancer+Type%3A+Ovarian&utm_adgroup=Symptoms%3EGeneral%3EExact&utm_term=ovarian+cancer+symptoms&utm_matchtype=e&k_clickid=c8ab64db-962c-4c83-a3fb-0733b15edf56&k_profid=422&k_kwid=69075

[Garga]

I posted when you did.  Another symptom is frequent urniation.  Oh, I'd get that checked out right away.

[Guest]

Oh, I hate to type this sort of thing, but has ovarian cancer been looked into? I had a friend who had that at age 27. One of the symptoms is feeling full after only eating part of a meal, along with other abdominal issues that would seem food related at first (indigestion/nausea.)

 

Here's a website of the symptoms. (I hate to post about cancer and scare you, but the feeling full too soon thing made me think of it.) http://www.cancercenter.com/ovarian-cancer/symptoms/?source=BNGPS01&channel=paid+search&invsrc=Non_Branded_Paid_Search_Bing_Cancer_Search&utm_device=c&utm_budget=Corporate&utm_site=BING&utm_campaign=Non+Brand%3ECancer+Type%3A+Ovarian&utm_adgroup=Symptoms%3EGeneral%3EExact&utm_term=ovarian+cancer+symptoms&utm_matchtype=e&k_clickid=c8ab64db-962c-4c83-a3fb-0733b15edf56&k_profid=422&k_kwid=69075

If she was at a stage to have those issues the ultrasound would've picked something up most likely if ovaries were involved.

[Guest]

Yes, I'm just wondering if she wasn't able to pinpoint *where* the pain was, you know? It didn't feel like period cramps but she does have some gas AND a feeling of fullness after eating only half of her meals. (This was a possible symptom of endo or cysts, I think, too?) Her dairy intolerance seems to be more related to uber-phlegm production and sinus issues more than affecting her gut, though. We charted the feeling to see if it felt worse at a specific time of the month, but nope. Now I'm wondering if she should keep a food diary...we loosely tried to see if it was related to specific foods but we weren't consistent about it.

I would suggest going to see a good Gastroenterologist since gyn issues seem to have been ruled out. I imagine they'd scope her and get a better idea of what's going on. She could have inflamed lining, an ulcer, who knows.

[Garga]

If she was at a stage to have those issues the ultrasound would've picked something up most likely if ovaries were involved.

 

Oh good!  I don't know anything about it except that my friend had it young and just posted today about the symptoms for it as an "awareness" thing.  When I saw the "full when eating" and then the "frequent urination" along with the bad periods, it sent up an alarm.

[Katy]

I'd have a urine culture done, and take her to a chiropractor at least once.  Tight hips can cause all sorts of problems in the pelvic region.

 

If neither of those help, I'd start an elimination diet.  First, she should stop all soda.  It causes bladder spasms in many women - which can feel a lot like a UTI.

 

Then, I'd have her consume water, tea, brown rice, quinoa, beans, lentils, berries, melon, and green leafy vegetables and nothing else except natural spices and seasonings (cinnamon, ginger, turmeric, garlic, onion, etc - no chemical spice blends or modified food starches) for a couple days and see how she feels.  If it's much better, a food diary and slowly adding one food per day and journaling exactly what she ate and how she felt afterward might help.

 

If there is no difference after a couple of days, I'd schedule a second opinion with a different OBGYN and consider a surgical evaluation for endometriosis, and possibly a different birth control pill.  If her doctor implied they can determine she doesn't have endometriosis without surgery...  well, she needs a different doctor.  Ask around to your friends for who they like the most locally.  A woman is typically liked better by younger women.

 

If it is endo, a low-fat vegan OR a low histamine diet might help a great deal (both lower estrogen levels dramatically).

 

Similarly, cinnamon, ginger, turmeric, and black strap molasses have all been shown to be strong anti-inflammatories and can fight menstrual pain. Don't have her start with turmeric during her period (it can act as a blood thinner and increase bleeding).  And I wouldn't buy the pills - they are mostly starch.  Just add them to foods.  A pinch of cinnamon and ginger and apple can make oatmeal taste delicious.  A little of both in tea sweetened with unsulphored blackstrap molasses with some almond milk tastes a lot like a chai latte. A little turmeric in rice or beans gives them a nice yellow color and the taste is barely noticeable.   If they seem to make a big difference and she doesn't like the flavor of these spices you can buy empty capsules and a capsule filling machine very cheaply at a health food store or online and make pills without fillers yourself.  Don't go overboard with these though - a couple of teaspoons of each per day, maximum, should be very safe.  Beyond that there could be side effects. Cinnamon has a lot of oxalic acid, as an example.  It would not be good to successfully lower her pelvic pain but trigger kidney stones.

[ktgrok]

FYI, tea aggravates my bladder more than anything else. And if it is GI, things like beans may make it worse. 

 

I'd do a food diary for a few weeks and see what you find. Call to see a GI doctor, and while waiting for the appt, make the food diary. 

[J-rap]

You've had some great suggestions!

 

It sounds like doctors haven't figured out if it's in the reproductive organs or the digestive system.  My dd began getting a strange, vague pain when she was around 14 or 15.  It wasn't constant, but usually occurred several times/week, sometimes every day, for a little while (it rarely lasted more than an hour or two).  Most of the time it was more subtle, but at times it would be very severe, to the point where she would need to sit down or lie down.  I suspected an ovarian cyst early on, and brought her in to our general practitioner.  (That's all we have in our town.)  The doctor was able to press in certain areas and believed that it was in the digestive system, not the reproductive organs.

 

So began two years or so of specialists, various tests, diets, meds, herbs, you name it.  She had an endoscopy, various x-rays and MRI's (not just of the abdomen area), and a boatload of other stuff.  We tried a very strict elimination diet.  Nothing.  

 

Maybe a year or so after that, the symptoms started improving on their own.  It would come back maybe a couple times a month instead of several times a week.  When it came back, it wasn't as severe.  She is now 21, and she only gets those pains a couple times/year now.

 

I suppose we may never know what it was, but it seems to be slowly resolving itself.  

 

I was curious that the poster above recommended seeing a chiropractor for tight hips.  That's interesting, and something we never looked into.  My dd is very petite and I wonder if there could be something to that?  

[lauranc]

Have you taken her to a urogynecologist?  That kind of dr. can look at both urology and gyn issues.  Look into pelvic floor spasm as well--- can cause symptoms like you're mentioning.  A urogyn can diagnosis that as well.  

[6packofun]

 

 

I was curious that the poster above recommended seeing a chiropractor for tight hips.  That's interesting, and something we never looked into.  My dd is very petite and I wonder if there could be something to that?  

 

My dd is very petite.  She is 17 and is 5 ft tall.

 

I had a similar issue--including vag. ultrasound--with nothing being found as well.  I was overweight at the time and as I lost weight, started to exercise, it pretty much completely disappeared!  But dd is NOT overweight and she is fairly active.  I think her diet sucks, so that's kind of where I was going to start.  We'll do a follow-up with her dr. and ask a bunch of questions.  I almost don't know what to ask but the suggestions here will really help me have a starting point!

[AnniePoo]

This was me! It turned out to be celiac.

[jojomojo]

I had lower abdominal pain several months back. It was almost like period cramps, but not quite, dull and achey most of the time, other times, bad enough I just wanted to curl up into a ball in bed. I went to the doc to talk about the same things - reproductive issues, digestion issues, etc. It turned out to be musculoskeletal and some physical therapy did the trick (or rather, physical therapy exercises I did at home after ditching the PT).

[fraidycat]

For probiotics, I only recommend Natren brand. They are the only in-house produced probiotics and very high quality. They can be opened and sprinkled on food, if she can't swallow capsules. Healthy Start system. Most probiotics are mass produced and sold for packaging to other companies, so quality is iffy.

 

As far as lower abdominal pain, when I have a "cheat" with wheat and to a lesser degree other grains, my first symptoms are headache, lethargy and upper stomach pain/bloating on the first day. The next 2-3 days is all lower intestinal pains, either shooting, or feeling like period or bowel cramps, or both.

 

Sometimes I decide it's worth it, but for the most part, I stay away from grain, especially wheat because 3 days of pain is usually NOT worth it.

[fraidycat]

So, did you/she think the pain was all in the reproductive organs and not in the digestive system, but now you/she are considering that it may be located there. Does she have other digestive system symptoms that can pinpoint it there; i.e., gurgling intestines, flatulence, bloated gassy abdomen, bowels changing in consistency and loseness?

 

I used to have chewable acidophilus tablets, so presumably a vitamins/health store has a chewable probiotic that may help. I quit dairy and gluten, but also carbonated drinks are a big problems. Just in the last week, I quit coffee and I hate to say, I think coffee is a worse offender than I wanted to believe. :( My stomach has had zero problems since no coffee, although it is too early to say if that will remain true.

I had to give up coffee years ago. I double over in serious bloating pain if I have more than 1 cup every few months. I'm here to say, it can be survived. :) I drink a lot of strong, black tea... (PG Tips)

[Sara in AZ]

This was me! It turned out to be celiac.

This was my daughter, too. Just vague abdominal pain that went on for at least two years before I finallly took her in to the pediatrician. No vomiting, no bathroom issues. Just this vague pain that she couldn't really describe (she was about 5 when we started noticing), but didn't seem bad enough to interfere with her daily life. The blood test is really non invasive, just to rule it out.

[MaeFlowers]

For tight hips, there are yoga poses that work really well. The goddess pose really loosens the hips when you lie down on the floor to do it. I don't know the name of the other one I do. You lie on the floor with your arms straight out to your sides, bend one leg and roll toward the opposite side (basically, across your body.) You want your bent knee to touch the ground, if you can. The second really stretches the lower abdominal muscles. I use it when I have ovulation pain/cyst pain. It makes a world of difference for me.

 

As for diet, how much fiber is she getting? I was diagnosed with IBS in my late teens/early twenties. As long as I get enough fiber, no pain. My dr original started me on Metamucil but I knew I couldn't maintain that nastiness for long and started high fiber cereals. However, if she has a lactose intolerance, cereal probably wouldn't work. Maybe fiber bars? Might be something easy to try until she can get into the Dr?

 

I hope you can find the answers she needs and that she feels better soon.

[Katy]

Just want to add that endometriosis can cause IBS symptoms.

[jewellsmommy]

Did the doc do a diagnostic laparoscopy to rule out endometriosis? I saw that you mention the ultrasound, maybe I missed it if you said it. I was scanning quickly. Just wanted to make sure that you knew that endo can only be ruled out in surgery. It doesn't show up on ultrasounds or scans. I was diagnosed with endo at 17 through a laparoscopy after years of generalized pelvic pain and GI issues were aggravated by it.