Bad abdominal cramp and fainting?

Hi all

I am not sure where this question fits in the topics but:

This morning I awoke about 6am feeling the urgent need to go as I had really bad abdominal cramp as if wind was trapped there. I very soon felt strange and it felt as if the blood was draining from me - a kind of sapping of energy down the back of my neck and a cold sweat. Then my vision disappeared and instead there were a billion grey dots - then I passed out and found myself on the bathroom floor face down! It was very scary and the first time it has ever happened. My nose is bruised :-(

I am just wondering if anyone else has had this happen? I have had this before a couple of times but never passed out with it.

Thanks!

Replies

  • Alatariel75
    Alatariel75 Posts: 18,341 Member
    I think a doctor would be a better bet than an internet forum!

    Seriously, it's one thing to ignore dizziness and whatnot but passing out hard enough to bruise your nose required a medical opinion.
  • LishieFruit89
    LishieFruit89 Posts: 1,956 Member
    It amazes me that people ask a forum full of unqualified strangers instead of going to a doctor
  • CynthiaT60
    CynthiaT60 Posts: 1,280 Member
    Doctor. Even in the weekend.
  • Hi - I am going to my GP tomorrow for something unrelated so will mention it then and book an appointment - but in the meantime I was just wondering if anyone else out there has suffered anything like this.

    Thanks for your posts - I was just wondering that was all...
  • CynthiaT60
    CynthiaT60 Posts: 1,280 Member
    I really would at least call your doctor's emergency substitute (does he/she have a substitute service? Otherwise the ER) and at least ask their advice. They may tell you tomorrow's fine, and they may want to see you to be sure.
  • annekka
    annekka Posts: 517 Member
    Are you still of an age when you could be ovulating?

    The reason I ask is because I had a chocolate cyst the size of a grapefruit on my ovary. The only reason I found out I had it is because once a month around the time when I would ovulate I would get extreme pain that would cause me to double over in pain. I never passed out, but I had cold sweats etc. I ended up having to have surgery to remove the cyst. Before I could have surgery I was put on BCP to prevent ovulation and thus pain.

    Please do see your doctor, and mention is first thing as opposed to the other reason you are going in. Especially since it has happened more than once. Be prepared that it could open a can of worms. Hopefully it is something easily discovered and fixed.

    If you are not in pain and it has not happened again, you probably will be find waiting until Monday, but don't quote me on it.
  • Thanks Cynthia - I will do that just to be on the safe side.
  • CynthiaT60
    CynthiaT60 Posts: 1,280 Member
    Good luck; let us know. Hopefully it's nothing serious. :flowerforyou:
  • Dugleik
    Dugleik Posts: 125
    Hi all

    I am not sure where this question fits in the topics but:

    This morning I awoke about 6am feeling the urgent need to go as I had really bad abdominal cramp as if wind was trapped there. I very soon felt strange and it felt as if the blood was draining from me - a kind of sapping of energy down the back of my neck and a cold sweat. Then my vision disappeared and instead there were a billion grey dots - then I passed out and found myself on the bathroom floor face down! It was very scary and the first time it has ever happened. My nose is bruised :-(

    I am just wondering if anyone else has had this happen? I have had this before a couple of times but never passed out with it.

    Thanks!

    I agree with the go see your doctor advice. Possibly take your blood pressure after/while it's happening.
  • herblackwings39
    herblackwings39 Posts: 3,930 Member
    Go see your doctor, or visit the emergency room if someone can take you. You passed out at home this time. What if it happened while you were at work or driving?
  • hmaddpear
    hmaddpear Posts: 610 Member
    Definitely see your doctor. As you hit your head on the way down, possibly an emergency room - concussion is no joke. There's lots of things it could be, but the fainting was because your blood pressure plummeted - caused by whatever is causing the severe cramps.

    Get well!
  • grace42d
    grace42d Posts: 156 Member
    First, this needs to be evaluated by a physician.

    Second there is a response from the vagus nerve, which can be triggered by bearing down to have a BM, that will cause you to pass out. It is called vasovagal syncope.

    Second, if you suddenly loose a lot of fluid from a BM or have a large fluid shift after moving your bowels, this can cause you to pass out.

    Finally, there are tons of other reasons this can happen, so speak to your physician.
  • wilsoje74
    wilsoje74 Posts: 1,720 Member
    Hi - I am going to my GP tomorrow for something unrelated so will mention it then and book an appointment - but in the meantime I was just wondering if anyone else out there has suffered anything like this.

    Thanks for your posts - I was just wondering that was all...

    Fainting can be a heart issue and is something you should go to an ER for not make an appt for later.
  • knittnponder
    knittnponder Posts: 1,953 Member
    First let me just say, go to the doctor. I know you said you are going to but I wanted to make sure I said it again.

    Now, so you know it might not be anything super scary at all I will tell you that something similar happened to my daughter. She'd gone in to use the bathroom, sat down and woke up on the floor. She'd had no indication that anything was wrong and obviously it was super scary for all of us (she was about 17 at the time and healthy). We took her to the ER and they poked her so many times that she felt like a voodoo doll. They ran a gazillion tests and came to the conclusion that she'd just compressed her vagus nerve when she sat, it constricted the blood flow and she passed out. The change of position allowed the blood to flow again and she regained consciousness. Fortunately, she didn't whack her head or anything. It's apparently a pretty common thing! The only thing they commented on for her was that she was a little dehydrated so they pumped her full of fluids and sent her home. It's been a few years and she's had no recurrence.

    But go get checked out just to be sure.
  • soupandcookies
    soupandcookies Posts: 212 Member
    Obviously no one here is going to be able to "diagnose" you, but I am wondering if you think the fainting and the cramping were related, or if you think the fainting may have been because you jumped out of bed and ran to the bathroom, or if you may have panicked?? A year ago, my son (he's 3) woke up in the middle of the night screaming his head off (he had thrown up), and I came running to his room, because it really scared me. Within a minute, I woke up on the floor, having collapsed/fainted. I went to the doctor, and he told me that it was most likely an episode of orthostatic hypotension - basically very low blood pressure. It can happen when you get up too quickly, and don't slow down to let your BP catch up. When it happened to me, it scared the bejeezus out of me. It hasn't happened to me before or since then, but now I know that if I wake up in the middle of the night, I can't sprint to the bathroom or one of my kids' rooms, because my body can't handle it. I'm not sure if this is what happened to you, but it does sound somewhat similar to my experience. Good luck! Hope you feel better!
  • Hi all

    Thanks for your posts! I got checked out yesterday and my BP had returned to normal range, my nose fortunately just bruised and no concussion.

    He suggested that the combination of getting up suddenly from being asleep and being bent over in pain in the bathroom could have caused a further reaction which resulted in the sudden drop in BP and caused me to pass out.

    He did say I should make appointment with my regular GP to talk through it and to find out if there are other issues.

    Thanks again..
  • CynthiaT60
    CynthiaT60 Posts: 1,280 Member
    Thanks for the update; glad there's no concussion etc. Hope you're feeling better and won't have this again. :flowerforyou:
  • Alatariel75
    Alatariel75 Posts: 18,341 Member
    I went through a stage for 3-4 weeks where I'd pass out in the shower if I got in it too soon after waking up. Really freaked me out, and the Doctor just said that it was low BP from just waking up and I should eat breakfast before my shower. It passed and has never happened again. Weirdness!
  • Thanks for the update; glad there's no concussion etc. Hope you're feeling better and won't have this again. :flowerforyou:

    :smile: Thanks Cynthia!

    :flowerforyou: