FAQ

1. What does the pain feel like?

Its a sharp pain thats in the same place as heart burn. Its a very high intense heart burn feeling. When the pain starts it's about the size of a toonie. It doesnt move and its only in the front not on the back but it is also very very tender around the rest of the mid section. Any type of movement HURTS, literally:( even breathing and talking hurts. When the pain is too much thats when I go to emerg, it's just too much to handle. But I always know it will end, not sure when or for how long but I always know the end will come for the pain. Morphine is the best med that works for the pain. 5 - 10mg works best at every half hour or hour to keep things comfortable for me. Talk to your doctor about dosages right for you. The morphine also helps to eliminate the vomiting due to getting rid of the pain, which is KEY!

1. Does GP and Diabeties effect the eyes?

YES. Living with GP and diabetes is very tricky, complicated, and very hard to manage. Due to the GP, food digests much slower than a normal stomach, therefore, blood sugars are bouncing off the walls from extremely high sugars with numbers like 35 - 40 down to 1. I had a record high blood sugar at 60. It should be between 4-8 so 60 is NOT good. I have had 11 lazer surgeries which for me was extremely painful. Each laser I got a needle 2 inches long in my eye. It's very painful. Twice I was put under for work on my eyes, and once I got a new treatement, a needle directly in the pupil. The others were right above the cheek bone and below the eye. Now after all that my eyes are 100%!!!! These surgeries didnt correct my actual vision. They go in and cut out blood vessels from behind the eye. Thats why its painful, its not the vision. I still wear contacts and glasses and I could get laser for that but I dont wanna do any of that unless its needed. This is all caused by poor blood sugars and can be from having diabeties for so long like me, 24yrs. Gastroparesis causes vomiting which in return causes pressure on the blood vessels in the eye. Vomiting can cause these blood vessels to erupt and cause floaters and fluid build up infront of the retina. This can cause temporary blindness in that eye. When this happens the fluid has to settle so sleeping on an incline is reccommended, not bending over, and not lifting anything over 5lbs. The fluid (for me) takes a couple weeks to settle. This has happend many times to me in the first three years with GP but now I have that under control.

1. Is GP cureable?

Diabetic GP is not reversable although from what I have read and heard, if you can control the blood sugars you can possibly eliminate the problem. Except that its almost nearly impossible to do so, but there is hope!! Idiopathic GP however, can go away over time.

1. Do I always have pain?

Thankfully no I don't always have pain. When I'm home I'll sometimes get a little discomfort and if and when it turns into full blown pain I'll head to the ER. Some people with GP do have pain most if not all the time and then theres some people that don't get pain. It's different depending on the individual.

1. What causes Gastroparesis?

It's hard to determine an exact cause for GP but here's some that are out there:
-Diabetes (mostly type 1)
-Postviral syndromes
-Surgery on the esophagus, stomach, or vagus nerve
-Anorexia/Bulimia
-Medications that slow down the contractions in the intestine such as narcotics
-Gastroesophagal reflux disease
-Nervous system disease
-Metabolic disease
-Thyroid disease
-Neurologic disease

1. What type of tests have I had done?

1. Here's a list of tests and procedures that I have had done:
2. -Numerous amounts of blood tests
3. -Countless x-rays, ultrasounds, and E.C.G's
4. -2 nuclear breathe tests
5. -Exploratory laparoscoptic surgery
6. -5-6 endoscopys
7. -2 procedures to place temporary stimulator
8. -Implantation of neuro electric stimulator
9. -MRI's
10. -CT scans
11. -2 gastric emptying studies
12. -Gastric accomodation test
13. -Autonomic nervous system testing
14. -Paraneoplastic serological testing
15. -E.G.G.
16. -Gastroduodenal manometry
17. --13 laser eye surgeries
18. -2 other eye surgeries where I was put under
19. ...plus a few others which I can not remember what they were called. I had 2 weeks of testing at the mayo clinic and its a few of these that I cant remember the names of.