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Since sometime late Wed, I've been experiencing what I would describe as mild abdominal pain--on a scale of 1-10, I'd probably put it at a 3 or so. When I'm sitting it's fine--more like a 1, but when I stand, and especially if I stand fully erect, the pain level rises to about a 3. The pain is localized--it's on the left side, fairly close to my hip bone, maybe an inch or so up and toward the center. It is sensitive to the touch, with the pain level rising to a 4 or 4.5 when I probe the area. I've tried feeling around in the area while coughing, and haven't been able to detect a hernia or anything. Any thoughts? I've had my appendix out, so it's not that (I know, I know, wrong side for the appendix, but I have a family history of the appendix being on the wrong side, oddly enough). I've had a kidney stone, but I doubt that this is that, since there is no pain in my back at all, and the pain from this doesn't come in waves (and like I said, the area is sensitive to the touch--that wasn't the case with my kidney stone). Plus, this isn't the most agonizingly painful thing I've ever experienced, which rules out a stone fairly conclusively, I think.
Posts: 16059 | Registered: Aug 2000
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Arrggh -- abdominal pains are about the MOST difficult thing to diagnose. Because it can be so many different things. When I used to work on an ambulance, it was always so frustrating because it could be anything from stones, to cysts, to hernia, to infections.
My ex recently experience pain very much like you are describing -- not really sharp enough or in the right area to be stones, but definately very painful and tender. They ran all sorts of tests on him and finally a MRI and found he had an irritated bowel. (I don't know if this was true chronic IBS, or just a one-time thing). You could also have twisted bowels or impaction or polyps or a bunch of other possibilities.
I advise you have a doctor check it out.
I had a similar pain several years ago (however, I'm female) - it was only tender to touch, but very tender to touch, and sometimes an ache or small pain, but not extreme. Turns out I had a benign (but very large) tumor. Would have never caught it at all except for a routine physical.
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Yeah, I'm thinking about making an appt. with a doctor. I need to find a new primary care physician--I had one I liked a lot, and had enormous respect for professionally, but my insurance dropped him. I switched to a new one, and I'm not impressed by him--he seems scared of me (!), and I get the impression that he's just guessing when he diagnoses me with something. I have very little confidence in him. I wish there were a site where you could read reviews of the doctors you have to choose from.
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Hmmmm.. well, I usually get my best doctor referrals from co-workers and friends/family. If they have someone they are really happy with and would recommend, it might be better than this one that you have no confidence in...
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The problem is, I'm on a different insurance plan than almost all of my co-workers, so their list and mine aren't necessarily the same.
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My thought is that it's counterproductive to come to Hatrack for a diagnosis for something and that you need to go to a doctor. Posts: 13123 | Registered: Feb 2002
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Nah Storm, it's often a step in the process of getting around to making an appt. Which I just got done doing, actually--I'm seeing somebody this afternoon. I was really shocked to be able to get in to see somebody so quickly (I found a couple of doctors who were on both my and my coworker's insurance plans who were very highly recommended).
Tick, what was your medical emergency?
Posts: 16059 | Registered: Aug 2000
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Yeah Farmgirl, it does seem to be pretty quiet around here today, doesn't it? There are a couple of us posting, but nowhere near as many as usual.
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Off topic (or least tangential to it), but I didn’t feel like making a whole thread for it –
I had my annual appointment with my allergist yesterday. He’s the only doctor I see who talks to me for more than 2 minutes at a time – seems to think that what’s going on in my life (including diet and exercise, how about that?) might actually effect my health. My “regular” doctor is fairly useless, but my allergist fills in for what I would expect from a GP. Anyway – in the conversation, wedding plans came up, and we’re going to start transitioning all my asthma/allergy meds to pregnancy-safe varieties. Not that Bob and I are planning anything in that area real soon, but this way we can make sure the asthma is well controlled with the new meds before it becomes an issue. Posts: 9866 | Registered: Apr 2002
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*giggles like a school girl* You two are so great with kids, I can't wait tosee some little Scopatz's either.
Why are there so many bad doctors?! I had a cardiology appt and the guy not only seemed intimidated by me, but didn't tell me anything! And now, unrelated to doctors advice, my mom is having a fit because she is sure we have some hereditary condition that she can't explain.
Tick, are you okay?
Hope this doc is a good one, Noemon. Glad they were able to get you in so quickly.
Posts: 1777 | Registered: Jan 2003
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I think that with pretty much any profession you can name, most of the people doing it are going to range from uninspired to downright bad, and that medicine is no exception. As I've gotten older, one of the biggest shocks for me has been the realization that just because someone is a professional X doesn't mean that they'll be good, or even competent at X. The world that I thought that I inhabited when I was younger was quite a bit more reassuring that the world I think I inhabit now.
One of my co-workers swears by this doctor, though, so with any luck she'll be good. Excellence does exist--we don't really need to look any further than Sara and Theca to see that--so I'm hopeful.
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I think part of the “bad-doctor” thing might be caused by “bad patient” thing. I mentioned to the allergist that in over 20 years of being treated for asthma he’s the first doctor that’s ever discussed the fact that being overweight can contribute to breathing problems. (Not that I didn’t know that, but no other doctor has so much as mentioned it.)
He said that the clinic sends out a consumer satisfaction survey every year, and he gets slammed by patients for mentioning their weight, and for telling them to stop smoking! Hello? – you’re seeing a doctor for breathing problems, and you get mad when he tells you that smoking is part of your problem? Depending on what kind of relationship the doctor has with the clinic where he or she works, they might be pressured to keep their “customer ratings” high. Which is insane. If something is affecting my health, I want my doctor to tell me, even if it’s not necessarily something I want to hear.
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That's...utterly strange, dkw. Why on earth would a person be upset with their doctor for telling them they're overweight, or that they need to quit smoking?
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I think, too, many people have different things they look for in a doctor. I was discussing with a coworker who was a bit uncomfortable addressing her doctor in an outside volunteer setting. She had always addressed him as doctor and wasn't sure how to talk to him normally. That sort of formal relationshi has never worked for me and I've found my care to be worse in that type of setting. I need a more conversational setting and one that encourages questions and personal research.
Posts: 1777 | Registered: Jan 2003
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Could the pain possibly be muscular? I have a lot of problems with my back, and one of the things that causes is pain in the abdominal muscles, usually the ones on the side. When I stretch, the pain gets worse--it's very sharp, almost like a cramp that you might get while running. I'd still see a doctor if I were you, but if there's nothing wrong, you might just have a muscle that's acting up.
Posts: 3546 | Registered: Jul 2002
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When you press it, does it hurt more as you press or more when you let go (rebound pain). I agree you should go to a doctor, but pay attention to that because it can be important AND I've had doctors not ask about then when it was relevant.
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It hurts more when I press; the rebound is relatively painless. I just got back from the doctor, and she said that it was a muscle problem. It feels pretty much exactly like what Shigosi suggested actually, and I have been exerting force from some unusual angles lately, since I've been scraping wall paper off the ceiling of my stairwell in preperation for painting it. It's a relief to know that it isn't anything to really worry about.
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I've done the easy part--now I'm up on a step ladder that has too big a footprint to be fully opened on the landing, blanacing on it, scraping at the ceiling. I had *thought* that the ceiling in the stairwell just needed to be primed in a few spots that had old water damage and then repainted, but it turned out that what I thought was water spots was actually wallpaper showing through the paint. The plaster underneath the paper is in relatively good shape--I can't imagine why someone would have papered the ceiling to begin with!
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I probably shouldn't bring this up again, but I will.
You know, the other day somebody made a comment about one of the Hatrack medicos having turned out to be not such a paragon of virtue after all. I wonder who else has stopped to imagine the dollar value of all the free medical advice that has been given away so generously on Hatrack for so long.
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Theca's still here, although she isn't quite as active as she has been in the past. Sara is here too, although she's maintaining a much lower profile than she did when posting under her CT username. Neither of them seem to be in *today*, but they're around.
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Yeah, I know, Noemon. But there's no denying that they both are less present than they used to be, and that both had their feelings hurt. But I'll stop now; sorry to bring downers into your thread.
Posts: 13680 | Registered: Mar 2002
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Hey, don't worry about it at all Icarus. You're right, and I miss both of them quite a bit, completely independently of wishing that I had their medical advice. Hell--I'd happily see them never offer medical advice again here, if they'd just post regularly.
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I'm glad you had a formal evaluation, Noemon. A lot of questions can be answered with a good physical exam, and it's extra important with abdominal pain. I hope you feel better soon.
Icarus, your kindness and caring really is overwhelming. I promise that what I have on my plate is mine and not Hatrack's, though, and my own upset here had boundlessly more to do with how I live my life in general than anything anyone here had to offer to the mix.
Thanks, regardless. I really appreciate it. For my fortieth birthday, will you take me on a tour of Walt Disney World? That will be 2010, BTW, and if you say "yes" now, I'll hold you to it.
[ August 28, 2004, 12:41 PM: Message edited by: Sara Sasse ]
Posts: 2919 | Registered: Aug 2004
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quote:For my fortieth birthday, will you take me on a tour of Walt Disney World? That will be 2010, BTW, and if you say "yes" now, I'll hold you to it.
I didn't know we were the same age...
Posts: 26071 | Registered: Oct 2003
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Personally I'm a much bigger fan of 1971, but yeah, 1970 was a good year for babies, I think.
Sara, yeah, I'm glad I got it checked out too--now I haven't had to sit around with a gnawing yet barely perceptible background worry about what it might be.
Actually, it hurts a lot less today than it has since it started. I've spent all day scraping that damned ceiling though, so we'll see how I feel tomorrow.
The good news is that the wall paper has all been removed. Now I can proceed to cleaning the plaster of all wallpaper glue residue. Then I'll patch holes and gouges, then prime, then paint. Hopefully I'll get it done this weekend, but I won't be terribly hard on myself if I don't manage it.
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Thanks Farmgirl! Somehow I missed your post until just now. You'll be pleased to know that I didn't fall of the ladder or anything either. So far I've been able to escape serious injury completely on this project. Cross your fingers for me! Posts: 16059 | Registered: Aug 2000
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You know, Noemon, as you were saying what you were up to, I thought, oh great, his tummy feels better, and now he is going to break his neck, or get asphyxiated on fumes. So be careful, would ya?
Posts: 10890 | Registered: May 2003
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I'm being very, very careful actually. I'm home alone at the moment--Christine doesn't get back for a week--so I'm making a point of always having my cellphone on me when I'm working, so that if I were to fall and hurt myself, I could call for help. I'll be careful about fumes too--the primer is the only thing that'll have fumes to speak of, though, and I've used Kilz plenty of times before, so I'm not too concerned.
You know, I'm tempted to do something creative with this ceiling, but I'm not sure what. If I had more time to spare I might try making bas relief tiles or something--there's a place here in town that would fire them for me, I think--but honestly I've never done that before, and I expect that my first dozen or so would be both time consuming and fairly unattractive. And I really want to get this done before Christine comes home.
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Not that Bob and I are planning anything in that area real soon, but this way we can make sure the asthma is well controlled with the new meds before it becomes an issue. ![[Group Hug]](graemlins/grouphug.gif)
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Stormy
