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Upper Left Quadrant Pain below left breast

I've had this upper left quadrant pain below my left breast for nearly a year. It comes and goes, but it seems to be a chronic condition. It became severe around Christmas and last nearly every day ranging from 15 minutes to several hours. It feels like a sharp stabbing pain in which movement may or may not exaccerbate it. Sometimes it stays local - other times it radiates around and within the breast and has even radiated to my back at times.

Warm compresses, hot baths are my only release, but upon sessation, the pain starts to return. Antacids (Rantididine 150) don't work, GasX doesn't work, Advil does not work. Been to Doctor and GI and have had chest x-rays, ultrasound, CT scan with contrast and blood work all indicating I'm a completely healthy individual. Even had EKG, D-Dimer blood test - stayed in emergency for work-up and tested negative for any heart condition. No H-pylori... Did routine yearly breast exam which came out negative...nothing! It is exhausting! I can only say, I seem to urinate more often with this pain and have had mild bouts of diarrhea after mild constipation (but not consistent enough with this pain to correlate). I sometimes feel lower gastric pain while this is happening.

Wondering if digestive issues in my GI tract/colon could be putting pressure on my upper organs. Could it be my kidneys? I always seem to have to pee badly with this pain and more often. Or is it simply trapped gas in which my body builds up so much gas which somehow becomes trapped in this very spot due to pinching of my organs.  

My diet is quite healthy - I eat lots of vegetables (enjoy raw kale salads, spinach, and other leafy greens) which leads me to question whether or not oxalates is an issue. The pain began in Spring of last year just following a 3 day juice cleanse and I thought perhaps I was having issues digesting raw veggies. So I stopped. And after a few weeks it was gone -- only to return in Dec. and last for several weeks - dissipate -- and now it has returned and lasted on and off for the past week.

I would love to find out it is something I'm eating -- every time I'd gone in for a test the pain magically disappeared (was it lack of food for precedural purposes or Murphy's law). I had stopped drinking coffee as well and drank Camomille tea instead. Also ate very slowly, carefullly and so little I had lost 6 lbs. But have since gained it back.

When the pain-free and feeling normal again for several weeks,  I gradually returned back to coffee daily (only one cup). Can that one cup be causal? Really. Never had a problem before. I'm afraid to juice because I'm concerned about a high concentration of raw veggies. But would love to remove all the toxins from my system. I see there a quite a few indivs. describing similar pain and being put off by Doctors who think it has to be in our heads. My regular doc chalks it up to anxiety and prescribed my anti-anxiety meds which I use only when in extreme state of anxiety.

I'm 44! Should I really be in such pain at such a relatively young age, and when I've been told I'm very healthy (and living a heart-healthy lifestyle - excercising 4-5 days/week, doing yoga and a balanced diet. I'm a dietitian for G-d's sake. I tell myself to relax, release the anxiety and not concentrate on the pain, but it can become unbearable at times like NOW.


This discussion is related to Upper LEFT quadrant pain.
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Avatar universal
MEDICAL PROFESSIONAL
Hi, if there is tenderness when touched, then it could be due to trauma or a superficial infection of the skin. The other causes could be gastritis, peptic ulcer disease and GERD. Disorders of the spleen and colon could also cause pain. Kidney disorders too produce colicky and sharp pain. Sometimes anxiety with flatulence can cause this pain. You will need to consult your primary care physician for proper evaluation of pain and therapy. Regards.  
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Avatar universal
Thank you. I'm leaning toward anxiety at this point. Lots of stress in my life. In fact I was describing my pain -- as it was localized at that point as it typically is - to a friend at the gym who suggested ask Dr. for camera down throat to r/o ulcer. (But I'm terrified to undergo that procedure). Then 10 minutes into Zumba class, it disappeared. Strange how it can be so uncomfortable and sharp, and then go away like nothing happened at all.
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