Gastroparesis

What is Gastroparesis?

Literally translated it means "paralysis of the stomach". What it actually means is that the stomach doesn't contract in the way that it should and food sits in the stomach for too long.

How do you get it?

Well, in most cases there is never a definitive answer to that question. The largest patient group to suffer from gastroparesis is those with diabetic neuropathy (damage to the nerves caused by irregular blood sugars).
However, the second largest patient group is idiopathic gastroparesis. Idiopathic meaning no known cause… this does NOT mean it is all in your head! It just means they haven't done enough research into the causes. 
Then we have post viral gastroparesis, this is caused by a viral infection such as severe food poisoning which causes damage to the nerves controlling the stomach…when we consider this one it shows that it CAN happen to anyone!
Gastroparesis may also be caused by surgical complications where damage to the vagus nerve is sustained.

These are the causes you will se on every website detailing causes of gastroparesis, however…

There are other causes, not spoken about in most of the online literature. There are probably far more causes than are currently recognised, for instance a high percentage of patients also have other underlying health conditions (co-morbidity) such as connective tissue disorders, autonomic dysfunction and auto immune disease.