LC: Does anyone suffers from constant nausea?

wmonique2 · Post by **wmonique2** » Sun Aug 05, 2012 8:12 pm

I have been diagnosed just a year ago and a newbie on this forum...One of my symptoms is nausea. My doctors are baffled that I have nausea. I am baffled that THEY are baffled. Apparently it is not a common symptom since mine is very debilitating. Does anyone on this forum suffers from it? If so, what remedies you take? I am back on steroids now (entecort) because I have a flare-up which is mostly nausea with no other symptoms. I am on mesalamine as well...Thank you all

Christine. · Post by **Christine.** » Sun Aug 05, 2012 8:26 pm

Monique
I wonder if the mesalamine is causing or aggravating your nausea. Some people dont tolerate it well. Some of us do suffer from nausea but I think it is unusual for it to be the prime symptom. It also seems like overkill to be taking Entocort and mesalamine.
Christine

wmonique2 · Post by **wmonique2** » Sun Aug 05, 2012 8:34 pm

Hi Christine,

Thanks for your reply. I wondered about that too. Even the doc wondered. The only reason I don't think it is the culprit is because when I tried to lower my daily dose of 2 to one a day, within 2 days I was so sick with nausea, I pretty much was in bed...Yes, both mesalamine and entecort seems like an overkill but since the doc added entecort 4 weeks ago, I am improving...not completely out of the woods, but improving. I also went to back to 3 mesalamine a day...what a pain this condition is! I still haven't figured out how to keep it leveled...I am so glad I've found this online community :-)

Post by **tex** » Sun Aug 05, 2012 9:14 pm

Hi Monique,

Welcome to the board. I had serious nausea problems back when I was still reacting. Some days it was so bad that I had to lie down most of the time, because if I tried to work, I would vomit. I never took any drugs for my MC, though -- I just toughed it out until I finally got my diet fine-tuned and my intestines had time to heal. The nausea went away with the rest of my symptoms.

I would guess that overall, almost a third of us have anywhere from occasional to major problems with nausea. Are you taking any other drugs? There are a lot of drugs in various groups that can generate the inflammation that causes MC, and it's impossible to achieve remission without avoiding those drugs if you are sensitive to them.

Again, welcome aboard, and please feel free to ask anything.

Tex

Polly · Post by **Polly** » Mon Aug 06, 2012 7:05 am

Hi Monique and

I am not one who had continuous nausea, thank goodness. It must be miserable! However, when I was in an active flare, I would often notice times throughout the day when I felt nauseous. It seemed to occur when my gut would be most active - gurgling, rumbling, and/or just before an attack of D. I am wondering if Imodium might help. IMHO, the gut loses its ability to contract and move food along normally during a flare. And I think the Imodium helps to slow down ("retrain") those gut muscles to work more effectively. It's something simple you might try. It helped me, I believe.

Also, as I'm sure you've read here - with MC it is possible for anywhere along the GI tract to be inflamed - not just the colon, but the esophagus, stomach, etc. Have you tried a safe antacid, like plain calcium carbonate?

Good luck. Hope it is not long before you are feeling much better.

Hugs,

Polly

JFR · Post by **JFR** » Mon Aug 06, 2012 8:23 am

I spent many years nauseous a good deal of the time. I never received any treatment for it but I did learn to sit very still and repeat to myself the mantra "don't throw up" over and over again. It's not a fun way to live. When I look back on it now I think I had mild gastroparesis because it felt like food just got stuck in my stomach and didn't move along. Now I am only nauseous occasionally, so things are definitely better. Like Polly I believe that the ability of my gut to move things along in a "normal" or effective way is impaired, both in my stomach and in my intestines. I am definitely getting better by strictly controlling my diet, gf/df/sf/ef and more. It is hard to be patient when you feel so bad so much of the time, but patience has been a key ingredient for me. Hope things get better for you.

Jean

wmonique2 · Post by **wmonique2** » Mon Aug 06, 2012 8:35 am

Hi Tex and Polly,

Thank you both for welcoming me in this wonderful community. I feel grateful that I found you. I have felt like I was living in a dark tunnel for this last year.
Well, finally I find others who suffered from nausea! I thought I was fighting this demon alone.
Tex, I don't know how you toughened it out alone but bravo, I was sick like 5 months (in bed) when I was finally diagnosed last year and this last year has been the most difficult one I had ever had. Nausea was the prime symptom together with D and vomiting. Mesalamine stopped the D but nausea came back after the first six months slowly at first then with a vengeance a couple of months ago. I increased my mesalamine and went on steroids. I can't wait to get off the steroids.

Polly, thank you for the suggestion of Imodium. The doc mentioned it too. So when I get off the steroids, if I still have nausea I'll try it.

I have a burning question for both of you. Does anybody EVER gets off meds or is healed from this thing? Or is this pretty much a FOREVER condition?

Again, thank you for your wonderful support. I feel blessed to have found you.

Monique

wmonique2 · Post by **wmonique2** » Mon Aug 06, 2012 9:00 am

Hi Tex,

Oh, I forgot...You asked if I take any other kind of meds. No, I don't. I got off wheat and dairy of my own volition knowing that those two are major irritants. I have no idea what else I am allergic to. Nausea is pretty much an equal opportunity offender--I never know what triggers it, if anything. I can't pinpoint to anything in particular...It just comes on whenever it feels like it...

Thank you all for your feedback.

Monique

Post by **tex** » Mon Aug 06, 2012 9:23 am

Monique wrote:I have a burning question for both of you. Does anybody EVER gets off meds or is healed from this thing? Or is this pretty much a FOREVER condition?

Once triggered, the disease is forever, but the symptoms can certainly be controlled by conscientious effort and constant vigilance of everything that we put into our mouth. You can definitely get your life back. Read these Member Success Stories

As Jean mentioned, gastroparesis is probably the primary cause of the more serious cases of nausea when nausea is associated with MC. When nausea was a problem, I typically felt too full, and eating usually made it worse, if I felt too full to begin with.

Sometimes, I could actually feel when the pyloric sphincter opened and my stomach began to discharge chyme (partially-digested stomach contents) into the small intestine, and when that happened, the nausea would usually resolve reasonably quickly. I never noticed that effect however, until I was well on my way to recovery, and my gut was making progress healing after extensive diet changes.

Gastroparesis is normally associated with diabetes, and diabetes is strongly linked with celiac disease, so I have a hunch that the gastroparesis that we experience with MC is connected with gluten sensitivity, though other foods besides gluten may be involved, by way of molecular mimicry.

You're most welcome,
Tex

wmonique2 · Post by **wmonique2** » Mon Aug 06, 2012 9:40 am

Thanks Tex, Jean. Thank you for sharing your personal experiences and knowledge.

Tex, like you when nausea is in full bloom, I feel full and the last thing I want to do is eat. Well, seems like I experience the same stuff you did. I was tested for gastroparesis and they didn't detect it, so go figure.

I'll keep fine-tuning the diet, see if that helps. And I'll read your success stories ;-)

Tex, I love your tag line. So true!

Monique

GRB · Post by **GRB** » Mon Aug 06, 2012 8:08 pm

Greetings Monique

I'm so glad you found us. I too had very serious nausea and vomiting. I would start with terrible hiccups, nausea, bloat, gut cramps...and D...I kept something near the throne in case I had both ends working at the same time. Most of the time I just had nausea that I'd fight but when it progressed to vomiting it came on strong and fast. I didn't eat as I couldn't keep anything down or in. Once I started eliminating gluten and casein I began to get better. Later I found out I had mast cell involvement and made more changes in my diet. I was able to carefully reduce my entocort and don't take it at all now. I occasionally get hiccups and I did vomit a few weeks ago due to too much bacon grease. I craved southern style beans and used some bacon grease...won't do that again

I used clear chicken stock when I could get something down. When I became a little better I added small pieces of carrot. That was my food for several months but I got gradually better. When I could I added dried minced onion and sometimes some summer squash. Good luck.

You aren't alone, we've all been there but it's so much easier to live with when you have such wonderful company.

Welcome!

Leah · Post by **Leah** » Mon Aug 06, 2012 8:57 pm

Welcome Monique. I don't suffer from nausea very often. It's usually when I eat too much food at once, but I did want to say that when it is time to "get off" Entocort, DO IT SLOWLY! Just take one pill out every 2 weeks or so. It seems that many people here have had the same experience. You are much more likely NOT to flare again if you do it gradually.
I hope you feel better soon.

Leah

wmonique2 · Post by **wmonique2** » Tue Aug 07, 2012 3:58 pm

Thank you, Leah for all the good tips. Yes, in due time when I go off Entecort, I'll go very sloooowly.

Monique

carolm · Post by **carolm** » Tue Aug 07, 2012 8:46 pm

HI Monique,
Constant, intense nausea is something with which I am waaaaaay too familiar. I would wake up extremely nauseated every morning-- pretty much for the entire last year. One thing that seemed to make a difference to me was if I took Dexilant when I was on Entocort. I know generally PPIs are not helpful (even problematic for some) who have LC. For whatever reason, if I'm off the Dexilant the nausea gradually returns.
I struggled very much with nausea and motion sickness in May. I had to start a short course of Entocort at the end of April. At the end of May my GI and I made some decisions that have made all the difference.
1. I got off the Entocort. It was time and I think I was really have side effects. This was the 2nd time I'd been on En
2. I started back on Dexilant.
3. I decided to start getting acupuncture for nausea and motion sickness.

With the second acupuncture treatment the nausea subsided for the first time in a year. I began to feel stronger and more resilient (not so shaky and weak). I have continued to get acupuncture, spreading the treatments further apart. I have been nausea free since early June. I'm eating a bigger variety of safe foods (based on MRT testing), I've been able to travel some, and I've started working out last week.

I also felt that my nausea was affected by sluggish motility and intestinal contractions. My GI talked to me twice about 'silent reflux' and I've decided, after getting back on Dexilant, that I am having some kind of gastritis and irritation. I'm just relieved to not be dealing with that every day. It's so life-limiting. It was so intense I couldn't even move at times.

I hope your nausea resolves soon. But you are definitely not alone in dealing with this particular symptom.

Hang in there.
Carol

wmonique2 · Post by **wmonique2** » Wed Aug 08, 2012 2:23 pm

Hi Carol,

Thank you for taking the time to answer me. I am reading your post for the third time and thinking that your situation mirrors mine. I've had nausea for several months now and although it got better when I went on entocort 6 weeks ago, it hasn't left me. So I am both on mesalamine and entocort right now. I never know what triggers it. I got up with it this morning and it is still here even though I did something I had never done before---I took Pepto since the doc and others have recommended it.

Never heard of dexilant before but now I know that it is a PPI.

How often did you go to the acupuncturist? and for how long did you do it...

Monique