Stomach Pain: Is it normal to experience it?
Stomach pain is not severe in most cases. But in some cases, it can depict some underlying health condition. However, everyone can experience stomach ache. But some studies show that in 5% of people, stomach pain causes medical emergencies.
What is stomach pain?
Stomach pain can occur anywhere between your ribs and pelvic region. Stomach pain may be normal, but abdominal pain is not. Stomach pain and abdominal pain are not similar. Because the abdomen consists of the complete digestive system containing large and small intestines, stomach, liver, gallbladder, and pancreas. So, sometimes experiencing stomach pain can result in more severe conditions. Otherwise, one can also experience pain in the abdomen muscles.
What can stomach pain feel like?
Every ache can be different indicating various problems. So, stomach pain can be:
- Mild or severe
- Dull or sharp
- Constant or intermittent
- Localized or generalized
- Crampy or colicky
- Burning or achy
Causes for abdomen pain
There is a long list of causes of stomach pain. As it can indicate various problems. But we have divided the causes into the type of pain.
Acute Pain causes:
- Appendicitis
- Cystitis
- Injury
- Heart attack
- Kidney stones or infection
- Pneumonia
- Spleen infection
- UTI (Urinary Tract Infection)
- Viral gastroenteritis (Stomach flu)
- Pulmonary infarction
- Shingles
- Pancreatitis
Chronic pain:
- Endometriosis
- Irritable bowel syndrome
- Ovarian cysts
- PID (Pelvic Inflammatory Disease)
- Gallstones
- GERD (Gastrointestinal Reflux disease)
- Gastritis
- Peptic ulcer
Progressive pain:
Progressive pain is when it worsens with time. Also, the symptoms worsen with time and so often due to some severe health condition.
- Gallbladder cancer
- Hepatitis
- Liver cancer
- Lead poisoning
- Stomach cancer
- Pancreatic cancer
- Cancer
- Crohn’s disease
- Enlarged spleen
- Uremia
- Tubo ovarian abscess
However, this list might stress you, but most of the time stomach pain goes away on its own and is not a cause of worry. So, it can be due to:
- Digestive issues like constipation, bloating, and gas
- Diarrhea
- Menstrual cramps
- Ovulation pain
- Infection
Usually, this pain goes away and does not require medical treatment.
How to know if stomach pain is severe or not?
Most of the stomach pain due to digestive issues is not severe. However, if the stomach pain is accompanied by other symptoms, it needs medical care. Symptoms of indigestion are:
- Nausea
- Heartburn
- Bloating and gas
- Farting
- Foul-smelling breath
- Hiccuping or coughing
- Belching
These symptoms indicate ingestion that causes stomach pain. One can resolve these through simple home remedies.
How to get relief from stomach pain?
Mild stomach pain due to indigestion can get better with home remedies. Therefore, you can try the following remedies:
- Stay hydrated and drink enough water
- Try the BRAT diet, especially for diarrhea and vomiting
- Take ginger or ginger tea for nausea and vomiting
- Avoid smoking and alcohol
- Beverages like lime and baking soda for heartburn
- Anti-inflammatory things like aloe juice, basil, or licorice
- Figs for constipation and bloating
- Avoid high calorie or slow digestive foods
- Eat clean and light food
- Try a warm water bath or bottle for pain relief
Prevention Tips
To avoid stomach pain, one should follow a healthy lifestyle. Also, if you are facing indigestion, try these prevention techniques to get rid of stomach pain:
- Eat slowly and chew properly.
- Take a healthy diet avoiding fatty and processed foods.
- Stay hydrated
- Manage stress as stress has a great impact on gut health
- Be aware of food allergies and tolerances.
- Fiber-rich foods are great for regular bowel movements
- Eat according to the requirement and avoid overeating
When to contact a doctor?
If the stomach pain is consistent for weeks or months and feels like something unusual, one should take professional help. Also, visit your doctor immediately if you notice these symptoms along with ache:
- Fever
- Sweating
- Vomiting blood or looking like coffee grounds
- Chest pain
- Breathing problems
- Jaundice
- Weight loss
- Change in feces color
- Pain in other body parts
- Difficulty passing urine, feces, or gas
- Nausea and vomiting
- Pain while touching stomach
Diagnosis
The diagnosis will start with a general physical checkup and a series of questions. Your doctor will ask questions about the severity, location, and occurrence of pain. Also, your bowel movement history and current state. Apart from it, you may be asked about your diet change or other lifestyle changes that may have caused problems with your digestion.
In addition, doctors can also ask females about their sexual and mensuration details. However, if the doctor does not get a clear picture, they will prescribe some tests for you. These tests can be MRI, ultrasounds, X-rays, colonoscopy, endoscopy, and Upper GI X-ray tests. Additionally, urine, blood, and stool samples are normal for your doctor to collect.
Treatment
The treatment will depend on the cause of stomach pain. Some problems can be easily treated with medications. However, conditions like gallbladder inflammation or kidney stones may require surgeries. Therefore, your doctor can prescribe you the best treatment according to your stomach pain condition.
However, in case of severe pain, a person may need painkillers for relief. Therefore, doctors can prescribe medication like Tramadol or hydrocodone containing acetaminophen. Also, one can buy Tramadol online from Rite Aid Pharmacy with overnight delivery. Also, buy hydrocodone online and other prescription medicines.
Last Words
Abdominal pain may look normal to people, but sometimes it gets severe without warning. So, if you are experiencing pain that is interfering with daily activities then you must take advice from your healthcare provider. Lastly, take preventive measures along with medications for better recovery.