# Unexplained pain on left side



## jjsobey (Oct 15, 2004)

I'm new to this site so here's a brief history - I am 26 and was diagnosed w/ IBS about 1.5 years ago. About 3 years ago I became violently ill with severe stomach pain, nausea, and bowel movements everytime I would eat. Eventually I became afraid to eat anything and at my lowest point I was down to 85 lbs(I'm 5'6), my hair was falling out, and I barely had enough energy to get out of bed. There was a minimum wait of 10 months to see a GI doctor in my area and both my primary physician and the emergency room had done everything they could, they were baffled. Finally, after going through every medical test I could possibly imagine w/ everything coming up negative I was diagnosed w/ IBS. I've managed to gain some control through the use of medicines/vitamines and changes in my diet and lifestyle. I am on a restricted diet and can have no fruits, vegetables, grains, dairy or meat(just to name a few!). The problem is that for the past 3 years I have had this constant irritation in my left lower abdomen. The symptoms vary but I often feel pressure, numbness, throbbing, etc. Sometimes the pain feels close to the surface while other times it seems much deeper. No medication has helped, a change in my diet has made no difference, and it is completly unpredictable. It can last for 5 minutes or 5 months and is not relived by a bowel movement. They have done every test to rule out all possibilities and have concluded it must be somehow related to IBS. My doctor is now considering exploratory surgery because it is such a problem that affects everything I do and all tests come up negative. I am feeling frustrated with that answer because I can gain no control over this and don't particularly want to go thru surgery. Has anyone else ever experiences this type of pain on their left side?


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## sparkle13 (Nov 2, 2004)

I noticed too that I had pain on the left side. It happens though mostly at night. I'm not really sure what it is. It just feels like someone is stabbing me. It also just goes away by itself and I have no idea what causes it?


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## TatumBrynn (Dec 4, 2004)

Hi I am brand new too. I am 25 and think I must have IBS. I had a baby in May 2003, and in November 2003 I started having my first pains. I was just starting a new job, and away in training, so I concluded it must have just been stress. Then it popped up again right before a big event I had to do. It came back the end of September, and hasn't gone away since. I forgot to mention that my gyno sent me to have an ultrasound this last March, which came up normal. I have also had pap smears, but my pain seems to be in my lower left abdominal region mostly. It does feel like it can be all over sometimes. I have been to a gastro doc, and he has me on IBS medicine. I have been constipated. I have just been so worried it is a female reproductive problem.


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## Sarah Akerman (Dec 21, 2003)

I think i've posted about a stabbing pain on my left side recently, it varies between on the surface twinge to a much deeper agonising pain. i have a gastroenterology appt. on tues as my doc has been unable to help with all my stymptoms. his suggestion to the pain was that it's my colon spasming as when i located the pain he said that area was my colon. the pain is normally about 9cm left from my belly button but sometimes goes right around to my back. for this he suggested it was trapped wind from my colon spasming. maybe i'll get a better diagnosis for the pain on tuesday, as i feel wind cannot be responsible for such incredible pain, but i guess its a possibility.Hope this is of help jjsobey,


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## dsweettreat (Dec 5, 2004)

I am 30yrs old and I was just diagnosised with IBS because of the pain you are describing. I get the pain on both sides, most of the time on my right side. It feels like a constant ache which turns into a sharp pain. I've had the pain for a couple of years but not as bad as recently, because I do remember mentioning it to my Gyn. I thought it might be my ovaries but she said that it wasn't. I must have been about 20 at the time. My doctors didn't really have any answers for me. They told me to change my diet and lose some weight, which is exactly what my GI doctor told me recently.


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