5 Things People Get Wrong About Gastroparesis
If you live with gastroparesis, you have probably heard a version of these — from family, friends, coworkers, or even people who mean well. Here are five misunderstandings worth clearing up, in plain language you can share.
- It’s not an eating disorder.
Gastroparesis, also called delayed gastric emptying, is a disorder that slows or stops food moving from the stomach to the small intestine, even though there is no blockage. It is a problem with the nerves and muscles that control stomach emptying — not a choice about food. - It’s not rare, and it’s not always visible.
Gastroparesis is more common than most people think, and it is diagnosed far more often in women than in men. Because it has no blockage and often no outward sign, someone can look fine while dealing with serious daily symptoms. - It’s not just vomiting.
Vomiting is one symptom, but far from the whole picture. Symptoms can also include feeling full shortly after starting a meal, feeling full long after eating, nausea, bloating, stomach pain, and lack of appetite — and they vary from day to day. - Changing your diet doesn’t cure it.
What you eat can help relieve symptoms, and eating smaller meals or liquid foods is sometimes part of managing them. But dietary changes manage symptoms; they do not fix the underlying nerve and muscle problem. - It’s not one cause.
In most cases, doctors are not able to find an underlying cause, even with medical tests — that is called idiopathic gastroparesis. Diabetes is the most common known cause. Other known causes include injury to the vagus nerve from surgery, hypothyroidism, certain autoimmune diseases, certain nervous system disorders such as Parkinson’s disease and multiple sclerosis, and viral infections of the stomach.
If someone in your life does not yet understand what you are living with, send them this post. And if you are traveling for gastroparesis testing or treatment, GSSI helps with non-medical needs — hotel stays, food and grocery cards, local rides, and gift bags when funding is available. GSSI does not provide medical treatment itself.
Gastroparesis Support Services, Inc. (GSSI) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit based in Louisville, Kentucky.
Source: NIDDK – Gastroparesis, https://www.niddk.nih.gov/health-information/digestive-diseases/gastroparesis
General information only, not medical advice.
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