Changing pain

[Guest guest]

Hi Zoie,

Sorry to hear about your pain. I am 59 and had my first panc attack

when I was about 5. Over the years, as you can imagine, I had many

changes of pain presentation and other symptoms came and went or

stayed as the case may be, as time went on.

That said, it's always worth mentioning a new pain to the doctor so

that it can be checked out.

I started in childhood and youth with bouts of very severe upper

abdominal pain (never diagnosed) lasting for several days at a time

and coming once or twice a year. Fine in between! Then, in my 30's,

malabsorption started, each bout of uppper abdominal pain now being

followed by lower pain and terrible diarrhoea and/or steatorrhoea. I

have the complication of also having coeliac disease so when that

was diagnosed in 1988, the malabsorption symptoms improved a lot but

never went away. Then, in my mid 50's the upper abdominal pain began

to come much more frequently and severely making think again about

giving up work. Finally, my very advanced, hereditary CP was

diagnosed and the treatment since has helped to control things

better. I also had, in later years, a few attacks of very severe

pain in the upper right quadrant of my abdomen and back, different

from anything I'd previously experienced.

So you see, the situation can change and develop as it has done for

me over several decades and worrying new pains can arrive. The pain

of pancreatitis can be felt in many different ways. Nevertheless, I

still think it always worthwhile discussing a new pain with the

doctor, preferably your gastro, as the GP probably won't know much

about pancreatitis!

Good luck. I can sense that you're worried and I do hope the

situation improves soon.

Take care,

Fliss (UK)