Nausea has become a part of my life

[j_mbest]

I apologize in advance if this becomes long and winded, but I'm getting tired of living my life according to how my stomach feels and just wondering if there's anyone out there who has similar problems or may know which direction to point me.

I've always been fairly nervous person. When I was little, my stomach would act up and become queasy if presented with social events such as public speaking in class or anything similar. As I got older it would get better, but I every now and then, it would pop up and surprise me. During most of 7th grade (I'm 25 now) I would frequently have a kind of morning sickness before going to school and it would slowly dwindle away as the day went on, usually after arriving at school I would be fine. For a while it went again. Around eighteen, after having moved away from home and living away from friends and family, I seemed to have developed a form of social anxiety and something as simple as entering a grocery store would set me off hyperventilating and feeling extremely sick. For a while i simply associated all of my stomach issues with social anxiety and shyness. For as long as I can remember I've always had a very hard time eating in public, or even sitting around a table with a group of people. It's gotten so bad that days before a dinner party I will begin feeling nervous and nauseous.

It's gotten to the point where if I walk into a food market or grocery store, I usually end up leaving before buying anything and on the verge of vomiting and having to dash out of the store. This never happens when I enter other stores, but mostly (or so it seems) when I enter places with a lot of different smells. I know this is a bit all over the place, but it's the first time I really try to narrow it all down for others to analyze and shed some light on what might be wrong with me. I went to the doctor when I was younger and was always told it was "just in my head" and I'm sure that anyone who has been told this by doctors or family knows how frustrating this can be. I haven't gone to a doctor yet, though I'm getting to the point where I think I need to. I've looked up symptoms for all kinds of things: IBS, ulcers, stomach cancer, lactose intolerance, and despite the nausea and vomiting, I don't have any of the other symptoms. Never any burning or pain or diarrhea. I don't know if I should think it's all stress related (the more and more it foes on I'm starting to think it is), just in my head, or if it's some kind of strange eating disorder that is rather rare (I never have met anyone who is similar to me in this) or if it's actually something physical. Sometimes it seems like drastic temperature changes affects it (going outside in winter from a warm place or vice versa).

Anyone who has any idea at all on what exactly is up with my stomach, or if I should see a doctor or a psychologist about it, please let me know. After 25 years of this, I'm starting to get tired of it! Thanks a lot for reading..

JM

[justontime]

I am sorry that your situation has become so difficult, I recognise some of what you describe as similar to the problems experienced by a family member. The doctor who said it was all in your head should be ashamed of him/herself. These symptoms are blighting your life and they must be investigated. Go back to your doctor, (hopefully not the same one as before) and ask for tests to establish any physical causes eg IBS, food allergy etc. If nothing shows up find out what other help is available to help you deal with the symptoms. I suspect there may be more than one cause. You recognise you have social anxiety issues and these are making your life a misery so you need to get help with this anyway (more likely you would see a psychologist rather than a psychiatrist).

Just one last thought, migraine can be triggered by smell and by temperature changes, there are many forms of migraine and it just makes me wonder if that may be a factor in your case. I hope you get the help you need, I know how horrible it can be when you feel that your digestive system controls your life.

[mollyL]

I'm sorry for your stomach troubles; it is miserable to be nauseous. When I was in high school I couldn't eat breakfast because my stomach wouldn't take it, but that's faded with time, but I remember how bad it felt to be nauseated and faced with school.
It seems to me that you have some symptoms of social anxiety; nervousness and nausea are certainly symptoms of this. I can't remember the name of the medicine they advertised a year ago or so that was supposed to help that. I think you should speak to your doctor very frankly; he may be able to help you with medication.

[Lyndsey]

It may be stress. People store stress in different parts of their bodies. I know of one who stored it in her bones, so she thought she was geting arthritis. Once she learned to manage the stress, the symptoms disappeared.

Do check for other food allergies as well. There are others that are common besides lactose. I'm gluten-intolerant, for example, and allergic to sesame seeds, so no humus etc. Until I knew, I had stomach upsets almost every day.

[HealthNiche]

You should definitely see a doctor and get tested for multiple problems including Celiac disease which is an allergy to gluten that can cause serious damage to your stomach lining.

Some things that can be really good for your digestion include apple cider vinegar (organic) and drinking hot lemon water each day.

Hope you get to the bottom of this and feel better soon!