Ongoing, un-diagnosed abdominal problems

Digestive health
1

Symptoms: Nausea, bowel cramps, abdominal discomfort and pain, trouble using the restroom, night sweats, insomnia. 

Tests done: Endoscopy, gastric emptying, CT scan, gluten intolerance, H Pyroli, blood tests.

These are the symptoms my boyfriend has been having for the past 9 months. They seem to disappear then re-appear. In April, his symptoms got severe but calmed down till the beginning of June. From June through August, he still went every day with mild discomfort but it was tolerable. 

Now his symptoms are back again. I started to believe it was IBS or food intolerance to something, so I kept a food diary for him, but it's not really helping. I can't find any correlation between what he's eating and his abdominal pain. Also, his symptoms are happening every morning now, and getting progressively worse as the day goes on. This contrasts to the first few months where his symptoms only really appeared during the night. 

I know he needs to go back to a doctor, but he's in the middle of a big move, so it will probably be around a few weeks to a month until he can get in. So I just came on here again wondering if anyone has experienced the same symptoms or what they might think this could be. Thank you. 

2

It could be IBS since he he has trouble going to the loo and that his symptoms come and go.  Does he experience constipation or diarrhoea or both?  Does he experience temporary relief of pain after a bowel movement?    He may not have any food triggers; I have IBS and don’t have food problems.  Stress will keep fuelling the flare ups.  Some flare ups are worse than others.  IBS can be mild, moderate or severe and this pattern can change.

Was IBS ever mentioned by doctors when he had these tests? Negative test results suggest IBS because IBS doesn’t show on scans.

Try to see a doctor as soon as possible to get a definitive diagnosis, reassurance and peace of mind. The constant worry of no disgnosis will make symptoms worse.  Ask for an antispasmodic at least to control the pain.

3

A dietician should put him on the right track. Many are covered by insurance.

4

My own thoughts on this are get him a full blood count, test for parasites, check gallbladder and appendix, perhaps pancreatic enzymes. There’s symptoms there that don’t correlate with IBS, like night sweats. Though I had insomnia with gastritis, and experienced low blood pressure due to the nausea after eating. Good luck, keep us posted!