Stomach/GB issues w/palpitations and head/neck pain

[Lana7]

Hello, just posting my problems here, hoping someone might be able to give me a little nudge in the right direction.


Back in October 2011 I started randomly having attacks of nausea, the worst around dinner time or as soon as I started eating dinner. It was that bad I had to sit there and stare at something, not move or talk, until it went.

My GP put me on Nexium for 3 weeks. During that time I got all the symptoms of GERD: sore throat, hoarse voice, burping, acid taste in mouth, heartburn, nausea at any time. I also started getting upper abdominal pain and distension, gas and bloating. None of these were at any specific time or after any meals etc.
After eating McDonalds for breakfast one morning I ended up with a very bad aching/pressure pain in the centre of my chest and a fast heartbeat so bad that I drove myself to the ER. EKG was fine.
Another thing is my heart thuds once very hard every now and then. It feels like it skips a beat and then thuds hard to make up for it.
I was taken off Nexium, it did nothing, nor did any antiemetics like Zofran wafers. Was referred to a gastrosurgeon.

Most of those GERD symptoms have gone since then. At the moment I am still getting nausea, upper abdo pain/distension, sometimes diarreah/sometimes constipation, some gas (burping and the other end), sharp pains around the gallbladder area and other random areas in my abdomen, as well as random heart thuds and a couple of times it has felt like it's beating a little too fast. The chest pain has happened about three times since October.
Lately I have been having some headaches (more than normal) and a stiff/aching neck. These headaches are mainly at the back/bottom of my head.


I have had blood tests for a few things, all negative. No lactose intolerance.
An ultrasound showed I do have polyps on my gallbladder.
A HIDA scan showed my gallbladder is not emptying properly (unsure what my ejection fraction was).
Gastroscopy and biopsies were negative, no celiac's, H.pylori, cancer etc.
Not diabetic, no other health problems. Blood sugar, blood oxygen and blood pressure are always fine.

My surgeon has suggested get my gallbladder removed, it is booked in for three weeks time. He also suggested that the heart problems and headaches/neck aches could simply be stress and to go back to my GP as he was unsure about anything outside of his specialty. He's also unsure if removing my GB will fix everything, but he has no other tests he can do.

I have an appointment this afternoon with my GP. I want to ask him if it could be stress, though I don't think it is. Or if it could all be related to something else - and this is where I need help.
COULD something be causing all of this? What could it be?
I have read about vagus nerve problems, gastroparesis, thyroid problems etc and am still unsure what to ask him about.
At the start of October 2011 I had a bad case of bronchitis, bordering on pneumonia. I have been in two minor car accidents at the start of last year that gave me a sore neck for a while. Other than that I'm healthy, there's nothing else I can think of.

Any help is appreciated, and sorry for the life story!

[Lana7]

Thanks for replying. I'm not sure if he's only a GI surgeon, but the next closest gastroenterologist is 4+ hours drive away.
I am booked in to have my gallbladder removed in 3 weeks.

[patient915]

Welcome to the gastroenterology community!  I would recommend that you see a gastroenterologist not just a GI surgeon.  I would also recommend that you get a second opinion about getting your gallbladder removed.  However, it does sounds like it could be your gallbladder.