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stomach swells till i look 9 months pregnant..anyone else?

hurtingallthetimet

Senior Member
Messages
612
hello, i have been told i have reflux and ibs...my stomach will sometimes swell till i look 9 months pregnant...it is very depressing and very painful....is this normal with ibs? ive asked the doctor and was told probably the reason...but i know so many things go along with these illness....i use to be so thin and active and exercised now a ton of weight gain from medications and cant exercise like i use to because of pain and fatigue.. i hate it..
 

richvank

Senior Member
Messages
2,732
hello, i have been told i have reflux and ibs...my stomach will sometimes swell till i look 9 months pregnant...it is very depressing and very painful....is this normal with ibs? ive asked the doctor and was told probably the reason...but i know so many things go along with these illness....i use to be so thin and active and exercised now a ton of weight gain from medications and cant exercise like i use to because of pain and fatigue.. i hate it..

Hi, hurting.

I know how that feels. The stretch receptors in the gut go wild. Not fun.

I would suspect a yeast infection. If that's what it is, cutting out sugars and starches should help. And there are a number of herbals and enzyme supplements that can knock out yeasts. It's also important to have enough stomach acid to kill those that come in with the food, especially fresh food. Allergy Research Group diluted hydrochloric acid, betaine-HCl, and lemon juice are possibilities for raising stomach acid if it is too low. If you take lemon juice, use a straw and flush your teeth with water afterward, to protect the enamel.

Best regards,

Rich
 

RustyJ

Contaminated Cell Line 'RustyJ'
Messages
1,200
Location
Mackay, Aust
hello, i have been told i have reflux and ibs...my stomach will sometimes swell till i look 9 months pregnant...it is very depressing and very painful....is this normal with ibs? ive asked the doctor and was told probably the reason...but i know so many things go along with these illness....i use to be so thin and active and exercised now a ton of weight gain from medications and cant exercise like i use to because of pain and fatigue.. i hate it..

Try ranitidine, it's a H2 antagonist or blocker. Over the counter stuff commonly used for reflux. But it works a treat on bloating. Don't use the use the proton pump inhibitors, they don't work the same way. In my case as in many others with me/cfs, the histamine (H2) reaction in the stomach seems to be part of the problem, just like the H1 reaction in nasal allergy. It should come as no surprise that immune system irrregularities are involved.
 

justy

Donate Advocate Demonstrate
Messages
5,524
Location
U.K
Hi Hurting, i have to agree with Rich. I was diagnosed with IBS long before i got my M.E diagnosis and over the years the bloating got wrose and worse (especially after eating white rice) Mine finally went away entirely after a long anti candida programme (you need to do it for about 6 months to a year) You can find plenty of info on the net about it but it basically involves:

Diet - no sugar AT ALL (including honey date syrup etc) no yeast, no fruit for the first month then only one piece a day. No caffeine, mouldy cheese, black tea, dried friut or anything that carries molds. No refined carbs so use wholeweat pasta etc (if you tolerate gluten)

After 1 month of diet introduce supplements that kill the yeast/fungus eg caprylic acid, garlic etc ( i used one for one month, one for the next etc) Anti fungal mediactions are not going to work long term for various reasons -caprylic acid is from coconut.

Use a high stremgh probiotic to recolonise with friendlies. I grow my own kefir in soya milk and have that once a day -at first i had it 3 x a day, its chaep and easy to do.

Avoid medications such as steroids and antibiotics if possible -eat organic eggs as all other chickens are fed antibiotics - same goes for non organic meat.

All the best, Justy.

P.S i just tried the Bicarb test for HYpochloridia (low stmach acid) and it seems thatr may also be a rpoblem for me, although i no longer get the bloating my stomach is never happy.
 

Sparrow

Senior Member
Messages
691
Location
Canada
I have this too, and know well how unpleasant it is.

My gastro diagnosed it as IBS too, but like you I suspect there is more to the story than that, and that it is likely treatable. I have plans to try to tackle possible candida issues and see if that helps any.

In the mean time, I've coped by cutting out most of the foods I used to eat. At first I didn't think the problem was related to specific foods because it happened every time I ate, but it turns out that there were just so few safe foods that I was almost always eating a trigger food. For me, anything sweet or carb-related tends to set it off, along with some other food items. So any fruits, some vegetables (esp squash, sweet potato, etc.), rice noodles, etc. will blow me up like a balloon ready to burst. I still eat some of my problem foods (like nuts) just because I need to eat a certain amount of food per day and am low on options, but the reaction to them seems less severe so I can manage it. It's not a pleasant way to eat, but it has given me a lot of relief.

Good luck to you in working things out. I do think it's connected to the ME/CFS issues. And I feel your pain.
 
Messages
50
Location
australia
hi hurting,

Another area to investigate could be fructose malabsorption. That is the sugar found in some fruits and vegetables. A hydrogen methane breath test would diagnose this. I have this plus an intolerance to the protein in dairy and eggs. That bloating feeling is awful - hope you feel better soon.
 

Gamboa

Senior Member
Messages
261
Location
Canada
Hi all,

I had this problem for years and finally got rid of it by going gluten free. I'm not super strict with this and notice that when I do eat gluten my abdomen swells up and I look like I've just swallowed a basketball.

This had been suggested to me before but I loved wheat in all forms and absolutely did not want to go gluten free. After testing positive for the gluten antibodies (anti-gliadin) this past summer I have gone gluten free and find not only is my stomach flatter, but I have also lost about 5 lbs and have a clearer head and less headaches. I am now reading "The Wheat Belly" and it explains why gluten is such a problem for so many people.

The yeast problem could also be a part of it. I am now not eating muffins and bread all day like I used to so maybe I am also now not feeding the yeast in my guts. I also tried berberis for one month at the recommendation of my naturopath at the same time as cutting out gluten.

Gamboa
 

hurtingallthetimet

Senior Member
Messages
612
thanks everyone for all the info and advice..i will look into the suggestions..

gamboa how did you get the test done for the gluten antibodies? did insurance cover it? or is an over the counter test?
thanks again everyone
 

Countrygirl

Senior Member
Messages
5,429
Location
UK
Hello Hurting,

I also had this unpleasant problem for years, and by midday couldn't wear any of my skirts as I looked 9 months' pregnant; however, the 'pregnancy' vanished rapidly when I started a very, very low carb diet...............and I really do mean very low............no more than 15 gms of carbo a day. :( . This, of course, also excluded gluten and just about all suger. Excluding fruit was also important. Now I can tolerate carbs to a limited extent without the serious bloating.

I must give you one word of warning though :) : It also nearly made me disappear from view within a month as the weight drops away at an incredible rate, even though the increase in fat in the diet tripled my calorie intake.

I hope you find a way of solving this inconvenient :cry: and painful problem asap.

Best wishes,

C.G.
 

Misfit Toy

Senior Member
Messages
4,178
Location
USA
I have done the whole yeast protocol and agree that yeast is an issue. The problem is, I can do all of those things but yeast keeps coming back, pointing to the immune system..again and again. Gluten free is a good suggestion. Our immune system is the real problem though and I for one don't want to never have sugar again, which is basically what I have to do because my yeast flares from even a tiny amount of sugar.
 

Countrygirl

Senior Member
Messages
5,429
Location
UK
C.G.
Have you contacted Dr. Kenny de Meirleir in Belgium,
or Dr Uta Santos Koenig
www.santos-koenig.at
All the best
GcMAF


Hello GcMAF,

No, I haven't. The cost and the distance involved is too prohibitive for me, unfortunately, and I now have another condition........rare and autoimmune (I think:redface:).............which is more of a challenge to me than even the ME when it is severe because of the degree of pain and the other damaging consequences.:cry: There is no medical help for that either.:ill: .

I have concluded that doctors are only interested in a condition that is acute and simple........................straight forward cook-book medicine.................anything more challenging and the patient is...........to use a very technical term........................:).............................stuffed.

C.G.
 

cigana

Senior Member
Messages
1,095
Location
UK
Hi Countrygirl,

Well, I am seeing KDM and I have stomach bloating/distention. If he ever manages to cure me of it I will be sure to share the details with you...
 

shannah

Senior Member
Messages
1,429
I've been getting some relief recently from the severe bloating with NAG - N Acetyl Glucosamine. I'm also doing the LOD - Low Oxalate Diet.