What could be the cause of my distended stomach?

Distgustingly enough this is often one of the signs of having parasites! But hey, don't worry, we all eat a variety of foods, so it's only understandable that we too need a good 'housecleaning' once in a while! Just do a GOOD cleanse/detox for a few weeks cutting out ALL sugar, grains, and dairy during this time. Takes some self discipline, but it's worth it! See a nutritionalist for further info.

i have the same problem. it started after I had my 3rd child...i'm small framed to begin with and i noticed i slowly started to gain this stomach that makes me look about 4-5 months pregnant. i'm embarrassed to go out in public. I wear shapeware, but that only an illution for the strangers I pass on the street...I don't even like undressing in front of my husband (even though he tells me I'm "not fat")

I've done a lot of research online and pretty much everything has suggested that I need a colon cleanse. I wouldn't recomment store shelf brands, but I would definitely look into prescription medications to help.

I have no pain attached to my problem, just the constant feeling of being bloated and constipation.

Hey
I had the same thing as you are all describing. Though not for nearly as long as some as you. But I was looking up some things that caused stomach distension, bloating, abdominal pain, etc...And I came across Irritable Bowel syndrome. Everything I have read about it fits what I am feeling. Also, you can't diagnose it from image testing, or anything of the like, so a doctor wouldn't see anything from tests. These are some good sites that explain it well:

Hope this helps a little.


***edited by moderator*** web addresses not allowed

I have had the same issue for so many years and have seen so many doctors and they just ignor it it's very frustrating. I had a friend who gave me a book on homopathic remedies and I tried several of them and surprisingly they worked but you have to be willing to go through the book and see what works. I'm afraid I can't find my book right now it was done by a doctor in the US and he has a herb garden you can also find the book online.

I used several and I made sure I gave each time to work.
I used Alfalfa tablits
Cook a stew and use the skin of a onion once done you take the onion out
I went off bread that had wheat luckly i wasn't a big bread eater - potato bread seemed to work fine
no cheese

as soon as I figure out where i put my book - it used to be by my bed each night- I will post the name and website

Later I found a doctor who diagnosed me with
diveticulius
hiatus hernia
reflux
I'm also lactose intolerent
diabetic

I have had stomach distention, horrible gas that gets trapped and does not come out, and chronic constipation. I was tested for Small Intestinal Bacteria Overgrowth (SIBO), and tested positive. It is a breath test, look it up on-line. I hope this helps someone out there who is sufferring. It is treatable with antibiotics. Neomycin taken WITH Xifaxin. I had to take 8 pills a day for 10 days, but it helped.

I am going through the same symptoms. It started out as just one side of my stomach. It felt like there was a stress ball shaped thing on the side of my stomach. This was in december. In just one month, I gained 20 pounds!!!!!!! Everytime that it acted up it hurt soo bad. I went to my doctor finally and they ran a blood test, a gall bladder test and a MRI. Nothing. Everything came back clean. So, I just have been dealing with it. Well, now it's worse. it's not on one side of my stomach but all over now. I still get the excruciating pain though. I have gone from 155 to 195 since Christmas, and my diet and exercise has not changed. I went back to the doctor recently, and she says it may just be either IBS, or get this, "Maybe you're just gaining weight" WHAT!!!!! I have never heard of gaining that much weight in such little time. I am getting a thyroid test done soon(simple blood test). Also, if it is IBS, they say to try to stop eating caffeine and dairy products.....We will see how it goes. I am glad( not that you have to suffer) but that there are other people with these symptoms.

Hi eveyone I have had all of these symptoms that you are all talking about and been thru the medical ringers too!!! I advise all of you to be tested for food allergies... My stomach is now flatter because im avoiding all the allergies I have had for many years and never knew. Doctors couldnt explain it. Find yourself a naturopathic doctor spend the money and its painful but you will feel better. There is so many toxins going into foods right now its no wonder we all have stomach issues.

I was going to say exactly the same thing. DO an allergy elimination diet. You can find one on the web, or from a naturopath. That is a diet where you start by eating only a few non allergenic foods for a brief period of time, than you add back in foods one at time in order to see which ones give you a reaction.

I have the same issues. Pain, severe bloating, constipation, diarrhea, nausea, indigestion, acid reflux. Have also been diagnosed with IBS and had my gall bladder removed. Two years after my operation I am still having same issues. Hang in there to those of you feeling hopeless! I recently have found it helpful to take enzymes before I eat meals. These are relatively inexpensive and available at some drug stores but definitely at health food stores. However, these helpful little tablets don't cure it all.
Food allergy testing isn't really pushed by most doctors. Not all food allergies result in having a reaction like Will Smith in Hitch. Sometimes these symptoms that we are all experiencing can cured/reduced by something as simple as cutting certain foods out of your diet. Food allergies can cause you to have what appears to be "seasonal allergies". Also, I have struggled with depression for years and sometimes I wonder if I wouldn't be so depressed if I felt better physically.
"I cut bread out of my diet and that didn't help." Tried this too. Until I found out that the allergy is from the gluten in the bread and gluten is in almost every kind of food imaginable. But since gluten allergy diagnoses are on the rise, you can find gluten free products everywhere- Grocery stores, Restaurants, etc. Even Papa Johns pizza has gluten free crust!
"If I have a food allergy, how come experience symptoms when I consume anything, even beverages?" Well, according to my chiropractor, once your intestinal wall can become so irritated from exposure to these problem foods, your digestive system can't metabolize anything properly because it is ANGRY. My chiropractor has actually done a simple blood test to see if I am allergic/sensitive to certain foods. It tests sensitivity for 23 different foods/food families. Results will come back in another week so I am not for sure.

I have a dear friend who was recently diagnosed with a gluten allergy. She said after eating differently for 1 week she saw results and felt "normal" again!!!

I hope some of you can find hope in all of this.

HAVE ANY OF YOU HAD YOUR THYROID CHECKED? IF YOU HAVE OTHER SYMPTOMS BESIDES JUST A STOMACH EXTENSION, IT'S POSSIBLE IT'S CUSHINGS DISEASE - SEE GOOGLE IMAGES - CUSHINGS DISEASE IS AN AUTOIMMUNE DISEASE WHICH CAUSES HYPOTHYROIDISM. THAT WOULD MEAN THAT YOU ARE HYPOTHYROID. THERE ARE OTHER SYMPTOMS SUCH AS FATIGUE, WEIGHT GAIN, ETC. AND AN ENDOCRINOLGIST IS BEST DOC FOR DIAGNOSIS. WISH YOU ALL WELL!

I have been to so many doctors for years and they found nothing,i am in constant pain cant go to the bathroom,gassy but cant pass anything its horrible so i know what you all are going through but i finally found a doctor who took me serioisly and he gave me a diagnosis of "gastroparethesis" and i had a gastric bezoer he helped me realize it was not all in my head.After all the test i just think people dont care about the patient anymore its all about the money.I live in kentucky and the doctors name is Dr. salzman hes the best!

Hey everyone-
I too have suffered the exact same symptoms you are all talking about for almost seven years now. The best years of my life have been spent hiding my belly and not wearing clothes that fit. Never going swimming, dreading dinner dates and the like. I just wanted to share that I took a picture of my belly at it's worst and took it to my doctor. The picture really shocked him into realizing that I was having serious problems when previous visits had somehow not convinced him. I seriously recommend everyone do this. i just took it on my cell phone and showed him when I came in. He ordered a CT scan the for the same day! I had already had a CT before along with a million other tests, but guess what? They found something this time! Best news of my life. It's called intussusception and mine is in the colon. It's pretty rare in adults and the distended stomach is a rare seeming symptom of the disorder. Also they can sometimes come and go so they may be missed on CT scans one time and caught another. You should look it up and talk to your doctor about it and bring a pic of your stomach!! It might not be the answer for everyone, but it might be a good starting point. Good luck to everyone, I know how hard this is.

dana

Hello all, I was just looking into the same symptoms of being bloated and I am going to get tested for celiac's disease. It seems to explain a llot of what is going on in my life right now. I urge you to take this into consideration. The first test is a blood test:

"Serological blood tests are the first-line investigation required to make a diagnosis of coeliac disease. IgA antiendomysial antibodies can detect coeliac disease with a sensitivity and specificity of 90% and 99% according to a systematic review."

"How is it confirmed in the doctor’s office: Three key tests include the anti-endomysium antibody (lgA EMA) and anti-gliadin antibody (lgA & IgG), and tissue transglutaminase (tTG IgA) or anti-reticulin. A gastroenterologist can also take a small intestine tissue biopsy, if necessary."

The second test, if the first isn't conclusive for you, is a biopsy performed during an endoscopy. Now that I've read lots of the information on the disease I am sure this explains my distended stomach. I am going to get the blood test tomorrow to see if I'm right. I hope this helps some of you. Good luck.

I had a problem with an extremely bloated stomach as well and after extensive tests it was discovered that I had several food allergies. When I stopped all dairy and white flour it disappeared in days. I hope this gives some of you a direction to check out.

I responded previously. It turns out I did not have celiac but am gluten intolerant. Within days of getting off gluten I am my normal self (the distended stomach took much loner to get rid of). As soon as I eat anything more than a tablespoon of breadcrumbs 9like on a single chicken cutlet), i notice the difference. First sign is my stomach immediately goes back to being bloated for about four days. Good luck all.