Digestive issue.

[Guest guest]

Hi Bee. Hope you had a good vacation.

You may remember me telling you about my digestive issue and how it isn't

getting any better? I knew it was not retracing because it has been going on

way too long.

Well, I think I have finally hit on the problem. A bit of research flagged this

up the other day.

I believe I have a bezoar in my stomach. I suspect it has been there quite some

time, gradually growing.

A Bezoar is an agglomeration/concretion of undigested or partially digested

matter that gets stuck in the stomach - or even in the gut, and cannot get out.

They can consist of things like hair, vegetable and fruit fiber, pharma drugs -

anything that won't break down and digest properly. Persimmons are apparently a

common cause!

Risk factors include previous stomach surgery, Diabetes, reduced stomach acid

secretions and impaired gut motility amongst others. I obviously have the low

stomach acid, impaired motility and Diabetes so am a prime candidate. Mind you,

I suspect that the impaired stomach motility may well be caused by the low

stomach acid and the bezoar rather than being the cause of the issue.

It seems they can be broken down sometimes by upping the acid levels in the

stomach - I read that some have been successfully dissolved with Coca Cola,

which is similar in acidity to the stomach!

So I am in a dilemma. I ought to get this checked out. It would mean having to

have a CT Scan to find it - and that would probably need to be followed by a

gastrostomy and I REALLY don't want one of those! I can up the acid levels and

try to dissolve it, but I don't know how long it has been there or what damage

is underneath it. I don't want to successfully dissolve it and end up with a

hole!

It certainly would explain a lot of things - why generally I am getting better

but my stomach issues are not improving. Why most of my detoxing has been

coming from my left armpit. Why my energy levels are not improving. Why I have

this pressure inside my ribs on my left side and middle back and why my breath

always smells as if something has died!

I have been taking the betaine and digestive enzymes to help try and break it

down and if I lay down on my left back there is certainly stuff going on so I am

fairly confident in this.

I suspect I may have had it for years but it was probably exacerbated by some

pharma drugs I was taking for my blood pressure up to three years ago when I

initally went gluten free and my BP dropped to normal. They were awful things

that used to get stuck in my throat, so I wouldn't be at all surprised if there

is a heap of those stuck to my stomach wall too!

Apparently fats can get entangled in them too and make things worse, as can

Lecithin which is of course, in eggs - of which I have at least four a day! The

lack of stomach acid probably means that there could be undesirables living in

it, and that would have contributed to the awful gas and bloating that has

bugged me most of my life. The Candida seems to be relatively well under

control as far as I can see. Certainly i am no longer a walking fungus-factory.

I am torn between wanting to deal with this myself, but needing to know that I

won't make things heaps worse.

Ali.