Post Punk Kitchen Forum

I have been dealing with this for a long time (at least a year) and can't decide if it's normal or not. My stomach appears to be perpetually bloated/pregnant looking and I don't know why. I am generally pretty skinny, but my stomach is big and round and pokes out. I don't get super gassy or crampy - although I used to but it seems to have gone away for the most part.

My stomach feels hard when I press it, and while there is a small layer of fat/skin, it is hard under that. I would go to the doctor but I do not have health insurance. Does anyone have any inkling as to what it could be?? I have been vegan for almost 7 years and my diet has not changed drastically in that time.

Bezoar.

gluten intolerance?

Is it normal to have a gluten intolerance but not have cramps and pain or any other (obvious) symptoms? Gluten is one of my main suspects but when I've researched it people seem to have other symptoms associated with it.

I have a friend who didn't have pain or cramps (don't know what the other obvious symptoms you are considering are), but had what you describe and cutting out gluten really helped her. Try cutting it out for three weeks and see how you feel....

Ok, thanks - I will try that. I was also not sure if it was gluten because nothing happens directly after I eat it, but maybe it's because I eat it regularly and the bloating is my only symptom (bloating doesn't get better or worse in relation to when I eat gluten).

A food diary could help too - I had similar symptoms that turned out to be sesame intolerance, which I'm not sure I would have spotted without the diary as the things that have sesame in are quite dissimilar so I wasn't spotting a pattern (sesame seeds in bakery items/sesame oil in chinese food/tahini in middle eastern food...)

my sister cut out gluten yrs ago due to "looking pregnant" all the time and with good results.

I know you said you can't go to the doctor, but just assuming its a gluten intolerance is making me uncomfortable. If you think maybe its a food allergy, I think keeping a food diary is a good idea. Make sure to note your symptoms in it, too.

I hope you can figure out a way to get this checked out by a professional.

Umm, not wishing to be a scaremonger, but I would really get that checked out if it's been there that long. Not saying in any way that your swollen stomach is the same thing, but this was the only symptom my friend had of a growth.

Yeah, that's sort of what I was thinking. :/

I don't know where you live, but I've found the cheapest way to see a doctor has been to go to urgent care/immediate care. The actual visit costs the same as a doctor's visit, and they have their own x-ray machines and ultrasounds so it winds up costing less than going to a regular doctor and having to get a referral for imaging somewhere much more expensive (like the hospital).

Hope you're able to see someone soon, this would freak me out.

Do you eat a lot of starchy food or salt? They can both cause you to retain water.

Water retention, though, would be unlikely to be so specifically located, and unlikely to last for a year.

Thanks, I think I am going to do this soon. The best thing is probably to get it seen to professionally.

Be sure to let us know how you're doing!

Or cause a hard lump.

Can we stop with the gluten intolerence talk until the OP has seen a medical professional?

I've got an appointment with a naturopath tomorrow. I'll update then.

I will be interested to hear. I had a similar problem for awhile after I stopped the depo provera shot and then never restarted my cycle. That bloated/hard belly feel finally went away like 10 months later when I finally got my cycle back.

Oh and by the end of the day, I always looked pregnant. I am a really small lady, with a petite frame, so it was very noticeable.

So the naturopath was somewhat puzzled but thinks that it may be a buildup of gas caused by eating a lot of carbs and fiber and not digesting them properly. She is having me take probiotics and digestive enzymes as well as a homeopathic remedy called carbo vegetabilis. She also said I should eat more fats and suggested adding more coconut milk to my diet. She was really nice and seemed to know what she was on about, so I was relieved about that (my first time going to a naturopath).

Well, since she was puzzled and there is always a chance that it could be something serious, I would urge you to see a medical doctor. It could be a whole lot of things but you will need a doctor to sort out what it is and to rule out something of concern. I would hate for you to delay getting treatment because you wandered down this path. There are walk-in clinics which might be able to help you if you are in the USA and without insurance. I know that it's scary to contemplate medical bills but your health is not something you should place in the hands of faith healers. Homeopathy is not really a substitute for medical care as it is not based on science but belief.

Naturopaths are not substitutes for seeing a medical professional. It is also based more on beliefs about the world than science.

No one should ever substitute guesses by people on message boards for seeing a doctor. Ever. Anecdotal evidence about what some stranger across the web believes cured them or believes about their health is not really what you need to get a diagnosis.

This. Please get this checked out by an actual MD to make sure nothing more serious is going on.

I think I'm going to try what I've been given first and see how that goes. I realize a naturopath is not the same thing as an MD, and if it doesn't work I will see a doctor. I realize she might not be an expert, but the naturopath did say there was no evidence that it was anything serious. I just saw a friend of mine who has really similar symptoms and she went to an MD and they gave her basically the same diagnosis. I promise if it doesn't get better in 2-4 weeks I will go to an MD!