A mum who lost almost half her body weight due to a mysterious medical condition said she feels like her intestines “are wrapped in barbed wire”.
Sharon Hollingsworth is desperate to find out why she has been living in constant pain for almost five years, as doctors have been unable to provide a definitive answer.
The 45-year-old said she has been given several diagnoses, including gastritis, oesophagitis and kidney stones, after countless visits to the doctors but the underlying cause remains a mystery, reports the Liverpool Echo.
The unrelenting agony has left her feeling suicidal, unable to work and struggling to eat. She has also lost six stone in just eight months.
“I wake up every day and go to bed every day in severe pain, from my rib cage down to my groin and it goes straight through to my back,” she said.
"It's a clawing feeling, like your intestines are wrapped in barbed wire."
She added: “I don't know the real answer to what's going on.”
Ms Hollingsworth, who lives in Newton-le-Willows in Merseyside, first went to see her GP in January 2018 after she fell over at home and hurt the left side of her body.
She first went to the doctors about the stomach pain in April 2019, and after undergoing tests she was diagnosed with gastritis, oesophagitis and small sliding hernia.
Since then, she has been given a range of different medications and undergone an operation to remove kidney stones, but the pain remains.
During her last hospital appointment, Ms Hollingsworth was told the only way forward was pain management.
She had several sessions with a physiotherapist, but a few months later her nagging ache turned into “a burning, gnawing pain” that would not go away.
But she is still searching for answers and has set up a Gofundme page with the hope of raising enough money to seek private treatment.
"I've had suicidal thoughts because I'm in such extreme pain. I've tried every pain killer going and they're not working,” she said.
"It's been life changing. I can't work anymore. I want my life back. I'm sick of crying in agony. I'm sick of having no quality of life. I'm only 45.
"I know my body and I know something is wrong."
