Great_Ave
Active member
Hey everyone!
So, I started on a sema med (through an online source) around mid-January. Began with .25mg for about a month, then upped it to .5mg on Feb 6th. Things were progressing smoothly...until February 17th.
I injected on Friday, and the following Wednesday, I grabbed a burger from a fast food joint because I was super hungry. A few hours later, intense abdominal pain kicked in. At first, I thought it was just a bad case of constipation, but it persisted. It was consistently around a 5/10 on the pain scale, but when my stomach would spasm, it'd jump to a 10/10 – felt like my insides were being twisted. I ended up in the ER on Feb 20th. They checked for pancreatitis, but that wasn't it. The ER doc just said, "Yeah, this happens sometimes. Don't inject again until your follow-up."
The pain's been decreasing in severity and frequency each day, and now it's mostly hunger pangs. I've been using antacids and a heating pad, which helps a lot. I saw my regular doc today, and he wants me to continue at the .5mg dose this Friday, focusing on diet and hydration. He doesn't think the dose is related since the pain started 5 days after the injection. I did mention that I've been under a lot of stress and my eating habits haven't been great. He said if the pain returns after my injection, we'll stop the sema. If the pain persists after that, we'll schedule some tests to check things out internally.
Has anyone else experienced similar side effects and continued the medication without being totally wrecked? Am I setting myself up for more pain?
I'm going to address my diet. We're dealing with serious family issues that have created a lot of stress, and I admit my diet wasn't great before that burger. I wasn't very hungry, so I'd just snack on small things to get by since I was losing weight fast. (Started in January at 360lbs, now at 340lbs.) Maybe the burger was the final straw, and my stomach's just rebelling until I improve things!
Since then, I've been eating pretty bland foods. I didn't eat for almost 2 days because of the pain. Now I'm mostly on rice, yogurt, steamed veggies, and lean protein. It's helping a lot, and I feel much better, even if it's still occasionally painful. The worst pain is definitely hunger pangs now.
Thanks for any advice!
That level of abdominal pain is worth taking seriously — a thread documenting severe GI episodes has accounts from people who pushed through similar episodes and when they decided to get checked out.
So, I started on a sema med (through an online source) around mid-January. Began with .25mg for about a month, then upped it to .5mg on Feb 6th. Things were progressing smoothly...until February 17th.
I injected on Friday, and the following Wednesday, I grabbed a burger from a fast food joint because I was super hungry. A few hours later, intense abdominal pain kicked in. At first, I thought it was just a bad case of constipation, but it persisted. It was consistently around a 5/10 on the pain scale, but when my stomach would spasm, it'd jump to a 10/10 – felt like my insides were being twisted. I ended up in the ER on Feb 20th. They checked for pancreatitis, but that wasn't it. The ER doc just said, "Yeah, this happens sometimes. Don't inject again until your follow-up."
The pain's been decreasing in severity and frequency each day, and now it's mostly hunger pangs. I've been using antacids and a heating pad, which helps a lot. I saw my regular doc today, and he wants me to continue at the .5mg dose this Friday, focusing on diet and hydration. He doesn't think the dose is related since the pain started 5 days after the injection. I did mention that I've been under a lot of stress and my eating habits haven't been great. He said if the pain returns after my injection, we'll stop the sema. If the pain persists after that, we'll schedule some tests to check things out internally.
Has anyone else experienced similar side effects and continued the medication without being totally wrecked? Am I setting myself up for more pain?
I'm going to address my diet. We're dealing with serious family issues that have created a lot of stress, and I admit my diet wasn't great before that burger. I wasn't very hungry, so I'd just snack on small things to get by since I was losing weight fast. (Started in January at 360lbs, now at 340lbs.) Maybe the burger was the final straw, and my stomach's just rebelling until I improve things!
Since then, I've been eating pretty bland foods. I didn't eat for almost 2 days because of the pain. Now I'm mostly on rice, yogurt, steamed veggies, and lean protein. It's helping a lot, and I feel much better, even if it's still occasionally painful. The worst pain is definitely hunger pangs now.
Thanks for any advice!
That level of abdominal pain is worth taking seriously — a thread documenting severe GI episodes has accounts from people who pushed through similar episodes and when they decided to get checked out.
Not trying to diminish your pain, but I had some GI issues but it wasn't excruciating. I think I'll avoid that place for a while. It doesn't seem to sit well with me on this medication.
