We’ve all experienced the mild Stomach distress that comes from overeating or a stomach virus. Some of us regularly get “butterflies” in the belly or feel a tightness or ache due to anxiety. While abdominal pain is often brief and relatively harmless, it can also be a primary symptom of serious conditions. Whether your pain is mild stomach upset or something else, here’s how to stop stomach pain.

How to stop stomach pain: The basics 

From childhood on, we often say our stomach hurts without really knowing exactly where it’s located in the body. Your stomach is higher in the abdomen than you might think, located up and to the left. Many times, we think of the area behind our belly button as where the stomach is located, but that’s actually where the ropy mass of large and small intestines nestle, below the stomach itself.

But abdominal pain can occur anywhere in the abdominal organs, and it’s sometimes connected to pain that originates somewhere else.

The first step in learning how to stop stomach pain is to talk to your doctor. Many people dismiss their symptoms, but if they persist and don’t respond to common at-home treatments (more below), give your primary care physician a call.

What causes stomach pain?

Gas pain is probably the most common cause of stomach pain, usually accompanied by a feeling of being full or bloated. In some cases, this is related to chronic conditions, or it may just be the result of a meal with many gas-producing foods (e.g. brassicas like broccoli or legumes). Indigestion comes in a close second, with excessive acid joining the uncomfortable triumvirate of gas, burping, and bloating.

Other common causes of abdominal pain include the following:

• Stomach virus: Stomach viruses are usually fleeting but can be painful
• Gastritis: This is the name for irritation and inflammation of the stomach lining
• Intestinal obstruction: An intestinal obstruction occurs when something is lodged in the small or large intestine, which can cause abdominal pain
• Diverticulitis: Pouches in the stomach lining can harbor bacteria that becomes infected and painful
• Gastric ulcers: These small sores usually form in response to excessive amounts of stomach acid
• Gastroparesis: A slow-emptying stomach (typically a symptom in people with nerve damage from diabetes) can cause pain, nausea, and vomiting
• Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD): Ulcerative colitis is one of the most common types of IBD (Crohn’s disease is the other) that causes devastating stomach pain and other debilitating symptoms

Stomach cancer is a rare but serious cause of stomach pain that warrants immediate medical response. In the U.S., just under 27,000 people are diagnosed with stomach cancer annually. Many people don’t experience any symptoms until the tumors have grown and spread. Symptoms of this type of stomach pain can also include a feeling or fullness or lack of hunger, dark stools, and an overall feeling of fatigue.

Bottom line: if you are concerned about abdominal pain or something just doesn’t feel right, talk to your doctor.

Even though the list of causes of abdominal pain is long, it’s crucial that you advocate for yourself if your pain is persistent and does not respond to at-home treatments. The most serious conditions can be more effectively treated when they are caught early.

How to stop stomach pain at home 

A stomach ache after a large meal or during a stomach virus can generally be eased in the comfort of your own home.

Here are 11 tips for how to stop stomach pain at home.

1. Hydrate

Many people with stomach pain from viruses struggle to keep enough fluid in their body. Take small sips of water or a sports beverage as you can. In general, being properly hydrated is good for your whole body, so don’t wait until you are sick.

2. Drink herbal teas

Herbal teas such as ginger and peppermint are research-based stomach soothers and digestion helpers. Drinking a cup after meals can help with digestion in general.

3. Don’t lie down

Lying down after a big meal may seem like a good idea, but it can actually make pain worse. If you need to recline, prop yourself up on pillows to keep your stomach just above your intestines.

4. Get BRAT-y

The BRAT diet is a well-known solution to stop stomach pain. BRAT is an acronym that stands for “bananas, rice, applesauce, and toast.” These starchy foods can help with diarrhea and provide lost nutrition. They are easy on the belly and don’t require much work to digest.

5. Add probiotics

The gut biome contains trillions of beneficial bacteria that help our stomachs stay healthy and pain-free, and it may be the most neglected system in your body. If you have recently taken a course of antibiotics or had a stomach virus, add kefir, fermented foods, or an approved over-the-counter probiotic to bolster the good guys.

6. Consider OTC help

Over-the-counter treatments for stomach pain can help with symptoms. These include things like acid reducers (famotidine), anti-foaming agents (simethicone), or antacids (bismuth subsalicylate). These can help reduce stomach pain and other symptoms in the short term.

7. Reach into the pantry

A simple mixture of one tablespoon of lime juice, one teaspoon of baking soda, and one cup of water can help ease the symptoms of indigestion and gas. These ingredients work to neutralize stomach acid and aide with digestion.

8. Add some spice to your diet

Yes, you should avoid spicy foods when you have an upset stomach, but there are some spices that can actually treat mild stomach pain (instead of causing it!). Cinnamon, clove, and cumin all help speed up digestion, reduce cramps and nausea, and decrease inflammation and irritation in the stomach.

9. Have a mocktail

Bartenders know best: bitters in soda water is a time-tested recipe for all sorts of stomach complaints, including nausea, pain, and gas. The herbs in bitters — cinnamon, fennel, mint, and others — are well-known home remedies for abdominal pain.

10. Apply heat

Sometimes the best thing to do is to prop yourself up on the couch with a heating pad. The dry warmth relaxes your muscles and can reduce nausea. Plus, it can be very comforting to have gentle warmth in this area.

11. Take a good, long soak

Warm baths with Epsom salts can also help relieve stress and stomach pain. The magnesium in Epsom salts triggers the production of serotonin in the brain — the feel-good chemical. If your abdominal pain is undiagnosed and related to anxiety or digestive issues, a bath can help you relax.

Lifestyle strategies to stop stomach pain

Your doctor will know best how to stop stomach pain after a complete exam (and a diagnosis if possible). If the home remedies above are not providing relief, pain is worsening, or it is occurring with additional symptoms, do not delay — call your physician.

Chances are good that any treatments for abdominal pain will also include some (or all) of the following five lifestyle strategies.

1. Make long-term dietary changes

When abdominal pain hits, many people are okay with a limited diet for a short period of time, but with chronic digestive upset, more change is needed.

For those suffering from irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), sticking to an IBS diet is a crucial part of treatment. This includes:

• Limiting dairy
• Removing gluten
• Eating only healthy fats (e.g. olive oil)
• Not drinking alcohol or eating spicy foods
• Focusing on soluble fiber sources (fruits and vegetables)

Many people with IBS have been able to repair their stomachs and prevent flare-ups just by changing their diets.

Other IBS sufferers have found relief with the FODMAP diet. This diet eliminates any of the foods that are FODMAP-heavy carbohydrates. Carbohydrates that make up the acronym FODMAP are:

• Fermentable
• Oligo-saccharides: Wheat, beans, peas, and onions
• Di-saccharides: Dairy of any kind
• Mono-saccharides: Fructose, like that found in in apples and sugar snap peas (and honey)
• Polyols: Sorbitol, xylitol, peaches, plums, mushrooms, cauliflower, and sugar-free food

This is a dramatic nutritional change that should be supervised by your doctor.

2. Exercise

Truly, exercise is one of the keys to health of all kinds. Exercise relieves stress, improves overall mood, and keeps your body systems functioning normally. You don’t need to participate in rigorous, sweaty, high-impact aerobics every day. Talk to your doctor about gentle, full-body exercise that might help improve your abdominal pain symptoms.

3. Consider therapy

As part of your comprehensive treatment plan, therapy can help you better deal with the reality of daily pain. Does therapy relieve symptoms? Most likely not. But it can improve overall mental health and your outlook as you work through other treatments.

4. Investigate acupuncture

Acupuncture is an integrative health approach that may effectively treat stomach pain with no known cause. This includes regular, chronic indigestion or abdominal pain in the upper or lower digestive tract.

5. Stop smoking and drinking

In addition to being unhealthy, both smoking and drinking can irritate the tender mucous membranes of the body. Stopping smoking and eliminating or greatly reducing your alcohol intake are supportive of positive overall health changes. You will feel better, and your stomach will thank you!

Interventional procedures for stomach pain

If your stomach pain is unrelieved by the above treatments, it’s time for something more interventional. It’s important to note that most people do not get to the intervention stage without a complete medical work-up.

1. Prescription medications

If you have inflammation and pain in your stomach as a result of an infection, your doctor may prescribe an antibiotic. It’s important to take a probiotic or replenish your gut biome with fermented foods (e.g. yogurt, kefir, kraut) while you take your antibiotic.

2. Celiac plexus blocks

The celiac plexus is a bundle of nerves that sends pain signals to the brain. A celiac plexus block is a minimally invasive injection of an anesthetic into the area of the celiac plexus. This stops the nerves from sending signals to the brain and can offer profound pain relief for those who suffer.

3. Surgery

For some patients, surgery is the only option to treat an underlying condition causing pain. Cancer patients may have tumors removed, and those with Crohn’s disease might need portions of the intestine removed. Because stomach pain is so common — and generally very treatable — surgery is usually the last option.

Find help for stomach pain 

If you feel like your doctor has not been responsive, advocate for yourself and look for another medical professional. You don’t have to suffer. You need to know how to stop stomach pain, and you need to know as soon as possible. A pain specialist can help.

Find a pain specialist in Arizona or Texas by clicking the button below or look for one in your area by using the tips here: https://paindoctor.com/pain-management-doctors/.