What symptoms did you experience that lead to your diagnosis of acute pancreatitis?

Patients with acute pancreatitis describe the symptoms they experienced that led them to their diagnosis. They also describe the sudden and intense pain that they experienced, and discuss when they realized that their symptoms were serious.

[@fmar.8311]

I just got out of the hospital last night after about my 15th bout with acute pancreatitis. This is absolutely the most painful thing I've ever experienced in my life. I was on IV for 5 days with no food, with dilauded every two hours, and gravol. Luckily I'd I'm home now with pain about 2/10 where I was at 10/10. Since you can't really eat and drink much, I was several dehydrated the first few days. My pancreatitis is the result of alcohol abuse. The funny thing is that I only drink lite beer and never drink any hard stuff or even wine. I've made the decision that that was the last time, I'm ever going to have to return to the hospital with that pain. I'm staying the hell away from any alcohol. The irony is that I have some drunk friends that drink the hard liquor daily and have never suffered from any of this. While in the hospital, the person that was in bed next to mine in the hospital room where I was being taken care of was in there also for an alcohol related problem and had psoriasis so he was in a lot of superficial skin pain. We had sat and chatted for a bit and he had never heard of pancreatitis before and even commented that he had been drinking since he was 16 and he was now in his mid-60's. The nurses even had to bring him 35 ml of alcohol every 4 hours so he wouldn't go into withdrawal, which he found somewhat funny. That didn't last long when the next day or two days later he had gone for a test and came back. A few hours later the nurse returned to tell him that he had advanced liver cirrosis. Joke wasn't so funny anymore. Alcohol is no damn joke, don't abuse your body. I'm honestly considering myself officially allergic to alcohol and will never touch it again because I know that the fun times aren't with the week or two of unbearable pain that comes with that drink.

[@aunr6670]

I got mine from being an alcoholic

[@daisyself6201]

So did I

[@bradmckenzie6963]

I spent seven days on life support and 2 months in the hospital from pancreatitis and drinking...it was serious enough that they called my family in to make funeral arrangements

[@invertexyz]

It's so crazy she mentions eating goldfish crackers.... I looked up this video wondering if I have pancreatitis, and my pain seems to come whenever I've had goldfish crackers before going to bed recently. I end up waking up early with extreme stomach pain...

[@stellaverd7192]

Currently in the hospital for acute pancreatitis. Worse pain of my life

[@ticktock3678]

Hey, how many days you feel pain, i was heavy drinker and after 2 years of killing whit alcohol i was have panvreatitis but only 15-20 minutes and pain was mild, if i continue drinking can cgronic pancrwTitis devlope?

[@Aquaairintuitive]

Sending you prayers my daughter is Gabby 2 and is in the hospital now for this.

[@Charlotte-tl6ci]

Extreme stomach pain... extreme yellow diarrhea... extreme vomiting....it sucks.

[@TheDotty40]

I suffered with pancreatitis one time only...I woke in the morning with my 1 and 3 year old daughters....my hubby was at work on a Saturday...I woke up fine....fed the girls their breakfast...had a cup of tea.....then suddenly pain was radiating around my stomach and back....I thought it was my bowels as I suffer with bowel disease...ignored it and tried to carry on....then it came time to change my baby’s nappy again...I had to crawl towards her on the floor...within an hour I was on the sofa...in complete agony.....throwing up....my elder daughter phoned my fella cause I refused for her to phone an ambulance....I also have two elder girls....at the time aged 9 and 10...it was the 9 year old that wanted to get an ambulance...I still thought it was my bowels.....after that point I don’t remember a lot...remember my hubby coming home vaguely...after this point I was put into an induced coma for 6 days....nil by mouth...obviously.....they had put me in ICU because the infection was so severe.....I ended up months later getting my gallstones ....all 76 of them removed with my gall bladder removed 22 months later...it took that long for my body to recover and have never looked back!...would just like to say that I have two home births without pain relief... before this....so I know what pain is.....but his was horrendous....my hubby says that when the blues lights rushed me to the hospital I was leaping off the bed in agony!

[@razorsharpbt124]

It's the worst pain I've ever experienced and I knew I had to get to the hospital or I was going to die. Like the woman in the video, I was also lying on the bathroom floor in a fetal position in agony. It started early in the evening and I was pacing the floor for hours (couldn't sit still) and it just kept getting worse. I finally got that impending sense of doom and knew I had to roll. My wife drove and I was flailing and thrashing around the entire way. She said I had to wait in the waiting area for almost an hour before they took me back. I was in so much pain that I don't remember much of it - it's kind of a blur. I remember them pushing the dilaudid and thanking God for that and I went out. Even while on pain meds, it was very difficult to stay still for them to take x-rays. I was in the hospital for 8 days and it was a terrible experience. They pumped me full of IV fluids until I was 3rd-spacing it and about to burst (that was very painful), catheter, NG tube...it sucked. I was exhausted and just wanted to sleep but they will not let you. It was maddening. I was so weak when I got released...even my voice was weak. It took quite a while to get back to normal. This was years ago and I recovered and I haven't had any further problems. I don't wish this on anyone.

[@brookeallen5204]

I'm pregnant n I'm diagnosed with this .... I'm going through pain now from it as I write this. Going on 2 days of pain. I've been hospitalized for 3 days couple yrs ago. It's thee worst disease alive

[@lstruggy]

Stay away from alcohol, sugar, spicey foods, no sodas drink lots of water and avoid fatty foods more plant base and look into Cbd 🙏🏽

[@majorpizza383]

I’ve been admitted into the hospital every month since January ‘21 (7 months) for pancreatitis. It’s one of the worst pains I’ve ever had and I’ve had 7 ACL surgeries. My pancreatic levels at one point were 4,000 (normal is 40-300). That one almost killed me

[@meaghanhalkett3495]

I had acute pancreatitis attacks for many years. Started about when I was 11 years old, but I didn't get diagnosed until I was 20, because I couldn't get a family doctor here in Canada. Eventually it got so bad the pain never went away and I was having 4 - 6 attacks every week. I guess the E.R. was fed up seeing me that often, as I couldn't get a family doctor, so they assigned me a family doctor, who helped me get a diagnosis and treatment. I would get blood work tests done when I went to the E.R. hospital to check for acute pancreatitis, but the results were never positive despite me having had it for years. Anyways... My symptoms were suicidal pain, and I don't use the word suicidal lightly. I'd be so dizzy I couldn't get to the bathroom because I couldn't walk, but I'd be both puking, and shitting, at the same time. Countless times I was pass out from the pain and wake up in my own vomit and shit hours afterwards, still in so much pain I couldn't understand how I slept through it, and or didn't choke on my own vomit and die. If I didn't pass out from the pain, often the 5 or 7 hours of awake pain were so severe I often thought of scuicide, because it was just sooo painful, all the time, It felt like the only option for me. I can't tell you how many times I went to the E.R. and they would threaten to put me in Mental Health for making a scene, when the blood work came back negative for acute pancreatitis. I was told it's all in my head, that I'm faking it for attention. For me the pain would last for many days. I was very underweight, the years before my diagnosis. I was 6 feet tall, and weighed under 100 pounds. People always thought I had an eating disorder. Other symptoms I would include are, constipation, burning and itching from your rectum because it's leaking fat all the time, floating stool in the toilet, constantly soiling yourself with leaking fat from your rectum. Floating gobs of fat when you go to the washroom. Also craving fatty foods, which make you sick. For me my body craved the foods and vitamins it was missing, so I would eat fatty foods, example, I was deficient in vitamin A so I'd love to drink Salmon oil, but the Fat from the salmon oil would cause my pancreas to flare up,my malnourished body was craving it vitamin A , but that fatty oil, was the same food that would make my pancreas sick, so it was a vicious cycle. Also another symptom is swelling of your abdomen. Even though I was underweight, I was swollen in my belly area. I never had a flat stomach. I was super thin, with a swollen belly I hated it. One good thing that came out of this experience, is I do not have any fear of death, and I also have an unbelievably high pain tolerance. For example when I go to the dentist, I don't get freezing or anything, because it doesn't work, and I can just take it because my pain tolerance is so high, from the years of pain, with acute pancreatitis. One negative thing would be I could possibly injure myself and not realize it's more severe, because my body doesn't recognize pain properly.

[@mostafaadel9504]

Meaghan Halkett be strong and will be improve

[@oleviam2908]

I'm sorry to hear your story and i hope that you are much better today. i have one question for you, how did your doctor finally decided that it was pancreatitis? Hope you are well!

[@ayushiakhawat1003]

same story I am just 20 and suffering from pancreatitus ..it's the worst disease. ..I want to ask you that how is your condition right now.

[@ayushiakhawat1003]

Ayushi Akhawat

[@TasteMyBlackSkittles]

Man, that sucks..feel for you😔.

[@msxmurda2385]

It’s excruciating pain...and doctors are too scared to prescribe pain killers now. So basically you’re in the ER with severe pain 10/10 without pain killers. Then they’ll tell you they need to remove your gall bladder...that’s when the real pain starts. I’m talking 12/10 off the scale.

[@valeriesanchez3074]

I had severe pancreatitis after having my stones removed from the colon. Horrible, excruciating pain. In hospital two weeks on morphine

[@maudestephens7086]

I just realised my son has this, the doctors never mentioned this at all.

[@valentina4896]

Hearing this i know i have gastritis...Poor people

[@amberwright701]

it is very pain full . iv had it and still have i was in hospital for 9 to 10 days .

[@DaWoWzer]

i was worried I might have had this, but after hearing their stories, sounds way worse than my little bit of side pain.

[@jennym2826]

Oh you would know if you had it. It's excruciating! Comes with sweating, possibly dizziness etc.

[@thierryorella7017]

When it comes u know what pain is

[@steffanybarbon3724]

Yeah, me too. I’m having a bit side of pain in my upper left abdomen. Maybe it’s just because yesterday I ate Spicy canned tuna and rice around 2pm that was my breakfast and lunch then I had it again around 11pm my dinner😹 then after 3hours I felt a slight constant pain on my upper left abdomen up until now 9am morning.

[@JewelsFromVenus]

I am having mild pains in my pancreas too..I feel it at night, feels warm and a bit stabby..I wonder if it is my diabetic meds....I had a headache that made me throw up and was covered with sweat yesterday but pain on my side is still mild..I have a feeling mine is slowly on the way to becoming much worse

[@abigailtrejo7255]

Helps when ur studying medical emergency

[@sarahamzenejady8544]

thanks so much

[@johnmilton2077]

thank you for doing this and sharing

[@ADRXTRM]

Had my first experience in 2008 when i was 23 years old. Symptoms i had where nausia an vomiting. My doctor send me to the hospital and kept me there for a week. 4 days nothing to eat or drink and 3 days on toast and light meals. I've had it a couple of times since then. including going to the hospital but i'm doing better now. Having pills to lower my level of triglycerides. it's been 5 years since my last visit to the hospital in 2015. Occasionally i don't feel well and think i have it again. then i just eat less and have lighter meals, drink water instead of soda drinks and the day after i'm fine again. And sure... hoping that it's not going into vomiting and nausia because then i know... its straight to the hospital.

[@jennym2826]

I had been experiencing a daily burning pain in my upper abdomen just below my sternum for about two years before I had a full blown attack. It would happen every morning when I stepped out of bed. I would end up in the bathroom w/ steatorrhea for about an hour every morning. I went to see a Gastroenterologist during that time and was repeatedly told I had acid reflux. One evening, I was out at an Italian restaurant and had a few bites of a very heavy/fatty meal - filet mignon in a port wine sauce, smothered w/ Gorgonzola cheese and bacon. After a few bites (maybe 2), my stomach became incredibly distended and I started to feel that same severe burning pain I would get every morning when I awoke. I decided to leave the restaurant because it was intense and in the car ride, I started to sweat profusely. By the time I got home, 5 minute drive, my clothes were drenched with sweat. Once I got home, the pain because incredibly severe. I started to have projectile vomiting. There was no position that would help the pain, it was unrelenting. I remember rolling all over the floor in the bathroom and kitchen. I honestly thought I was having a heart attack at 33. When my husband got home, he put me in the car and rushed me to the ER. They did heart tests first and eliminated the possibility of a heart attack. They then decided to check my gallbladder via sonogram, where they said I had a lot of gallstones and that it was probably a gallbladder attack. After having my gallbladder removed, I developed EPI. I have vitamin A, D and B12 deficiencies yet I continue to gain weight. This part I do not understand. Has anyone else encountered this? I will say that a pancreatic attack, is the most awful pain. I had an 18 hour labor and delivered a 10 lb baby naturally and it was a breeze compared to a pancreatic attack! With EPI, I am also very tired all the time.

[@sandradalton1611]

I have this too

[@BigSoul29]

What's EPI ?

[@calebgilbert7573]

@@BigSoul29 Exocrine Pancreatic Insufficiency

[@tinger3575]

Feels like a softball rolling around in your abdomen with spikes , Will throwing up coffee grounds

[@xdsaladass4061]

Guess I gotta go to the hospital

[@mamashanshan2772]

It’s the second worst pain ever to me.

[@mamashanshan2772]

That’s pain.

[@johnboon5330]

Everyone says it's painful and radiates to the back but no one says exactly where the pain is located or starts at. I'm still wondering if it starts at the upper left, middle or right side of the abdomen

[@tannerhuskins330]

Had this in November. It really is this bad

[@ChristopherBrunsdon]

The pain was so bad that the morphine only took the edge of it, I could still feel the pain and was only able to sleep for 1-2hrs until my next shot. Was in hospital for 5 days. Pain was so sudden that the first symptom was at 18:07, shortly afterwards ARDS kicked in then by 18:15 I was asking my wife to rush me to ER. Every inch of my body was in pain but my abdomen was the worst. Took me 3 months to recover where I no longer needed pain killers for the discomfort in my abdomen. Was told it would take 6-9 months but I took the advice of my doctor who told me to walk it off, exercise till it hurts. That was not hard as it would hurt if I walked more than 10 steps.

[@icon.2158]

Christopher Brunsdon hi, have you recovered? If so, how soon did you recover from it?

[@humbleone6405]

Christopher Brunsdon do you have chronic or was it an acute attack. Hope your better

[@kvs7876]

Is flatulence a common sign?

[@BruhWhyDidTheyChangeThis]

I woke up and started vomiting and was shivering and sweating it was a terrible time. I’m still recovering, do you guys know if the diet change is permanent? I’m only 24 and that would suck.

[@letigidou8660]

Had this from gallstones. I actually fought off several attacks over the course of one year not knowing what it was. Just that the pain was intense and it was squeezing my chest. Sometimes come on strong it would last 5 minutes sometimes it would build slowly and last all day. On the final one it was very bad and I was very nauseous, vomitting and was also jaundiced. My bowels had also shut down. It was pretty bad. Had to have the gallbladder removed. Was in the hospital for a week on anti biotics through iv and could not eat or even drink. Started hallucinating after about 48 hours. Don't know what caused that but between the antibiotics, the sickness, not eating or drinking, the pain and the Dilaudid I guess it's not all that surprising. If a pain of 10/10 meant dropping dead or passing out this would have to be pretty damn close to a 9. Not cool at all.

[@jonjoylab1841]

What test fod pancreatitis?