I don't understand

[Jennifa]

My stomach has been hurting for about 2 days now. No one in my family knows why. I don't have diarrhea, I haven't been throwing up, I don't really have a loss of appetite either. It comes and goes, the pain. I took Tums and it went away but it comes back. Can anyone help me? I plan on going to the doctors if this pain doesn't go away, however I rather not go if it is nothing serious and/or if it doesn't need a prescription or anything.

[Jennifa]

Ok, thank you for everything.

[Sickboy1]

i would still put it down to trapped wind even if it was in your intestines, but with things like this you really need to see if any additional symptoms develop, or if living healthier makes it go away, digestive transit can be very temperamental, even if you get anxious can upset the digestive system and when you get pains and you do not know what they are this often's makes you worry and that affects the digestive transit making the problem continue.
My advice is don't worry, this does not sound anything more than a bit of indigestion, get a healthier diet and drink plenty of water between meals, do not drink while eating, just basically follow the rule book on healthy eating, no big meals, no eating late, no fatty foods, you know what to do :)

[Jennifa]

Thank you. :D However would it be a different story if it was in the intestine area? I dunno I was looking at a diagram and I have my doubts of it being just my stomach but its so hard to tell.. D:

[Sickboy1]

If the pain is upper left, this part of the stomach is called the Fundus, look at a diagram of a stomach and you will understand why you are more prone to getting trapped wind here, this part is like the top of a balloon, basically the stomach empties to the right, so if you lay on your left, the fundus acts like a pocket to catch the stomach contents to stop them from being pushed towards the esophagus, some people are lacking this curvature and therefore are more prone to acid aggravating the esophagus.

All you need is a cleansing week, cleaning out the system, with fibre sure, lots of water, and a healthy diet, no fatty foods, no sweets, and small meals regular, you are just having the start of a indigestion problem, do not use indigestion remedies, cut out dairy products for a while.Your digestive system will be running like clockwork again in no time.

Trapped wind can be very painful, so i understand why it has prompted you to enquire further, but i really do not think there is anything sinister going on here, especially with tums relieving the abdominal pressure, some people are more prone to trapped wind than others and it all depends on the shape of the stomach.
If you get any additional symptoms let me know :)

[Jennifa]

Um the pain seems around is in the general area above my belly button and from the center to the left side if I put pressure on it. My stomach at the moment doesn't hurt, however from what I remember I can't really pin point the pain except that it is more in the upper region.

Btw thank you for all the info.

[Sickboy1]

http://www.a1articles.com/article_180022_23.html

Some more articles for you to read, i have just spent 5 years being misdiagnosed with excess acid only to find there is no such condition, the only time acid is a problem is when it gets into the esophagus with needs a neutral PH, the stomach actually thrives on acidity levels of PH2, that is acid enough to turn a piece of steak into soup under 1 hour, imagine what would happen if that piece of steak can not be broken down, you will get belly ache and delayed gastric emptying.
There is more of a chance that this is a motility problem, i.e. the stomach not emptying into the intestines properly, the only reason you get relief from TUMs is because they help disperse the excess gas, but the excess gas is caused by the acid levels being too low not too high, they only relieve the problem until the stomach empties, which you have just delayed by taking the TUMs, the truth is that taking something acidic like betaine before you eat will help break down the food faster and empty the stomach faster, then you will not get belly ache and will not need to take TUMs after.

[Sickboy1]

Sorry to pick you up Greg, but how it it possible to have too much acid in the tummy? High acid levels in the tummy are good and would not cause pain, stomach acids only cause pains when they go outside the stomach.
Jennifa, can you please tell us more, where is the pain, lower abdomen, upper abdomen, the esophagus, right of left side, burning sensation in the stomach, is normally due to bile not acid.
Do not take any more Acid neutralizers until you get some more information, acid neutralizers can cause delayed gastric emptying which causes more problems than it cures.Please read the below article and you will understand why taking tums is not a solution, excess stomach acids is more rare than low acidity levels, more people get stomach pains and symptoms from low acidity levels, i know it sounds backwards, but please get educated before going down the wrong route.

http://www.aim4health.com/stomachpains.htm
http://www.doctorsaredangerous.com/illnesses/stomach_acid_illnesses.htm

[ggreg]

You've probably got gas and too much acid in your tummy, for a variety of reasons.  Take an alka seltzer when your stomach hurts like that, and it'll release gas, which causes pain, and it'll return your body to its normal pH.  It's like a tums only better.  Drink some Acidophilus milk from the grocery store, try it on Cheerios, it helps break down waste, which if waste stays in the bowels too long, it'll give off gas.  Don't eat huge meals, instead eat less more often.  Drink plenty of water in the day, and don't rush around right after you eat...you're supposed to wait a half hour before you do stuff.  But I think the alka seltzer will help you more than anything, until this tummy ache passes.