Whipples stomach pain/discomfort

[RoyBoy]

I have started to suffer from relatively minor discomfort/pain after eating. I am sure I read on here some advice about buying some herbal mint substance to ease this ? I will get some in reserve.

I thought it said available from Holland & Barrett.

Does anyone know what this may be ?

[Robert_H]

All my stomach issues were sorted out by taking more Creon. As the Doctor told me, you can't overdose on Creon, just take more with every meal. I did and the difference has been amazing. Until then I assumed that istomach related discomfort was something I just had to get used to.

[RoyBoy]

Hi Robert,

Thanks for that. Roy

[Go green sue]

Hi Roy, I have just read your post from 20th October.

I wondered if you have sorted the discomfort after eating?

I had a distal pancreatectomy in August and have done well but the last 2 or 3 weeks I have had heartburn and for the past few days have been bloated after eating. Tonight I feel so, so uncomfortable and have not eaten since 5.30 and then it was only ham sandwiches. I take omeprazole, gaviscon , buscopan and of course creon.

Have you any ideas for me.

Sending warm wishes to all the forum family.

Sue

[Robert_H]

Hi Sue,

Excuse me for jumping in on your question to Roy.

I had a total pancreatectomy in May this year and have been though some of the symptoms you describe. I haven't had the heartburn but suffered with bloating, wind and the unpredictability of the far end of the digestive process if you know what I mean!

I got to a stage where things were "OK" and I just thought that considering the seriousness of the surgery that wasn't a bad result but on a follow up consultation I was advised to increase my Creon intake until these symptoms went away. I did, and it has worked really well. I think it's possible that as you recover from surgery and your appetite returns, you start trying a few more different foods and eating more in general without increasing the amount of Creon from when you first started with it. That was definitely the case for me. Similarly if you eat a meal high in fat and/or protein it's worth taking a few more. I also started taking Creon with small snacks, a piece of cake for example, where I'd neglected this before.

I very quickly started feeling much more comfortable, slept better because the bloating went away and felt better overall. More Creon means you digest your food more effectively which means you get more benefit from it. I've had to ask for my prescription amount to be increased and I also asked for both 25000 and 40000 size pills so I don't have to take a huge pill with a snack which I know discouraged me before. The GP didn't really understand Creon - my label still says "6 per day as required" but I just told him what I needed and wouldn't take no for an answer. Typical I will now take 2 at breakfast, 3 with lunch and 4 with dinner. I get them out at the start of the meal and stage them as I eat rather than have them all at once before I eat.

You can't overdose on Creon so it's worth a try and maybe it will help the heartburn too. I don't take anything else except Creon and pretty much feel as I did before surgery. If I do feel uncomfortable I can always traceit back to not having taken enough Creon.

I promise I don't have shares in Creon but also I'm not a doctor so please speak to one of the nurses if you're at all worried about taking more.

I hope this helps and please let us know how you get on. Apart from the discomfort, eating well is so important for general health and recovery so it's a high priority to get it right.

Best wishes.

Robert

[Go green sue]

Hi Robert, thanks for the advice. I spoke to Dianne last week about the heartburn and the unpredictable visits to the loo if you know what I mean but I failed to mention the horrible bloating which has been so uncomfortable this weekend.She told me to increase the creon which has helped the cramps and running to the loo but not the bloating so I probably still need more as it don't take as many as you. I'm seeing my GP in the morning so I shall ask him for more- he is young and very keen to help even if he has to research the answers.

I will give it a few days trial and let you know how I am getting on- I think you are most probably right because my appetite has gradually improved so I am eating bigger meals than when I first had my op.

Thanks for your help.

Best wishes

Sue xx

[jonnie]

Good morning All,

Like many other posts I see here, I am not alone with my own Creon issues!

I am 8 weeks after my Whipples operation, and although the surgical side of my operation has recovered well,

like everyone else it seems, the only issues I have are regarding my extreme stomach pains.

What I am trying to determine is: is it still too early days for my bowel to have settled back into being comfortable again? - or have I got my Creon dose wrong?

I have had a three day run of no pain at all, but other than that I constantly have extreme discomfort in my lower abdomen area which I guess is my bowel?

I have a creon 40k with cereals and a yog at bfast, a 40k with a sandwich at lunchtime, a 40k with a Complan milk drink in the afternoon and a 40k with my dinner, which is usually a children's portion of whatever is going i.e. lasagne spag bog, roast dinner, chinese etc...

Despite my Creon intake I still have bad stomach cramps and bloating.

I understand you can't take too much Creon, which i am happy to increase, but won't I just get more and more bloated?

My Dietician said I should see how I get on, 'its probably just the bowels settling down after your op'

My Gp pretty much says the same.

I am on Zomorph morning and eve, with paracetemol in between and I have just started buscopan, but that doesn't seem to help much.

Shall I just continue the same way I am and wait for things to 'settle down" given that in some cases it may take months, even a couple of years?

Am I trying to rush things, does the bowel genuinely take months and months to return to normal ?

I would appreciate any input at all please and I would just like to say that I don't feel so alone in my recovery since I have visited this site - THANK-YOU!

many thanks

JON

x

[sandraW]

Hi Jon, and welcome to the forum, were you will get lots of help and support. My husband had an operation on the tail of his pancreas, they also removed his spleen, that was in September 2013. He had pain in his abdomen mainly on the left side, the specialist nurses said it was his nerve endings, after being cut finding a new path/healing. He suffered with flatulence badly and when we increased his Creon that increased too until his bowel/intestines got used to the increase. He tends to take 2 x 40,000 with each meal, if he was having a 3 course meal spread over a period of time he would have 3 especially if the meal was rich, and 25,000 with snacks or milky drinks.

It is a case of playing it by ear though I think, as your bowel will take time to settle down again for sure.

The nurses are available Monday to Friday and are exceptionally knowledgeable, and also very approachable give them a ring, then you can explain all your symptoms and I am sure they will be able to help you, please let us know how you get on, and it would be great to hear your story if you are willing to share, take care sandrax

[Didge]

Welcome Jon, I think everyone has different after effects from the various types of ops. My fella has never taken creons and has suffered no bad effects from his distal panreatectomy but I understand he is in the minority. It's very early days though - 8 weeks - so I am sure things will begin to settle but as Sandra says, the nurses give really good advice so give them a ring if you don't get enough info from the posts. x

[Pete12]

Hi Jon and welcome to the group. I think you will find someone on this site can answer most questions that you may have as the we all have one thing in common, just at different stages. The specialist nurses on this site are also able to offer valuable advice as I have found out myself. Regarding Creon intake, I struggled for some time getting the quantity right since my Whipple in June 2014. I now take upto 5 x 40,000 tablets with a fairly large main meal and 2 x 40.000 tablets with breakfast (toast or cereal). It's important for me to take Creon with even a small snack (except fruit) otherwise I suffer.

Cheers

Pete

[NikkiDUK]

I'm four weeks out from my Whipples (PPPD) and have been suffering with bloating and discomfort too so it's good to hear I'm not alone. As others have said, my dietician and nurse told me to tinker with the Creon and see if it helps - I'm beginning to suspect I'm not taking enough after reading these posts. It seems worse in the evening so may be culmative over the course of the day as my appetite is good and I'm eating well. I'll try increasingbmthe Creon and see what happens. To be honest, I'm happy to be alive and some discomfort seems a small price to pay for that but it would nice not to have it!

[raun cesar]

Creon will be a good relief, healthy appetite is healthy recovery. I hope this helps my best wishes.

[Cbewsh]

Hi All

I'm taking the 25000 size of Creon as the chemist can't get hold of the 40000 size. I had two whipples first in 2008 then the cancer came back in 2010 and they had to take all the pancreas the Doudenum and Gall bladder out in the XX hospital, by Prof XX. I wasn't taking enough creon at first then the Prof said to increase it to 6 pills with every meal and some with snacks, so I'm on over 21 a day now, and I'm a lot better.

I used to take 30mg of Lanzsoperasole but reduced it to 15mg due to the side effects which the leaflet said 1 in 10 people get. Fully agree with other posts about increases to creon, a big help.