QuestionHello Munir. I'm hoping you can lend some insight into a problem I've been grappling with for a year. I'm a 26 year old female and I've been having moderate to intense pain in the middle of my chest and down to my navel for over a year.
I've had a complete cardiac workup and had anything of that nature ruled out.
In March of last year I was moving a heavy box of paper and dropped it. As I dropped it I tensed my stomach muscles and felt immediate aching pain. I've had the pain off and on ever since.
I also have GERD and am on a PPI. I had a endoscopy 5 months after dropping the paper, and the only thing they found was gastritis.
The PPI has not been working as well, and I need to take an antacid to get through the night now. I've also been waking up coughing. I only mention this because I don't know if it relates to anything else.
To get back to the pain, I had an abdominal sonogram that showed nothing and I've had more than one barium study but none since 2008. During the sonogram, I was asked to hold my breath while the techinician pressed the wand against my abdomen to look around. The pain of her pressing against my abdomen in the center was almost unbearable. Even now, if I press on my abdomen between my ribs and navel the pain is quite intense.
I've had bloodwork done to rule out a pancreatic problem and H pylori. I've had my sugar tested. I've had my gallbladder looked at through sonogram. I've had a chest Xray. All normal.
I am incredibly discouraged and afraid. It's been a year since my endoscopy and I'm considering asking for another to rule out some problem with my esophagus. I don't know if the pain is coming from there or not. The chest pain is very scary but now that I'm convinced it's not cardiac I just deal with it.
I recently tried taking some Aleve and I think that just irritated my stomach as it's been very upset. Can offer any suggestions? Is it possible I just have a an injured stomach muscle or a hiatal hernia that developed since my endoscopy in August of 09? Or is it possible the GERD is damaging my esophagus?
Thank you,
Erin
AnswerHi Erin,
according to the relation of the pain with the incidence of dropping the box, it is probably an injured stomach muscle. There is quite clear evidence for it. So you need to focus on it to get relief fully. Now we have to let those muscles have least stress as possible. so watch this site for ab exercises and AVOID movements as much as possible similar to these exercises- http://exercise.about.com/od/abs/ss/abexercises.htm
you can simply also carefully watch which movements of our routine make the painful area of abdomen more tense. avoid those actions.
It will take at least 2-4 months before you see results.
give me feedback after a month at khalid2277@rediffmail.com
