Symptoms of Ulcer in Stomach – Open sore on the lining of your stomach is called a stomach ulcer. It is among the most painful stomach diseases. Stomach ulcers can affect both the stomach and small intestines, which are directly connected with the stomach on one end.
One of the major reasons for stomach ulcers is the reduction in mucus that protects your stomach from digestive juices. The digested acid already available in the stomach will eat the tissue that lines the stomach, and as a result, it can become a stomach ulcer.
Even though you can cure stomach ulcers, untreated stomach ulcers can cause serious complications, including internal bleeding. Today we will take a look at the symptoms of ulcers in the stomach and their treatment options.
# Symptoms of stomach ulcer
Let’s start with the symptoms of a stomach ulcer. As you are already aware, a stomach ulcer is curable, but it can cause serious complications if you leave it untreated.
That is why you should take a look at every symptom very carefully and consult with your doctor if you are also experiencing the same symptoms.
Pain in stomach
One of the most common symptoms of an ulcer in the stomach is pain in the stomach. Usually, it starts as mild pain, which you might ignore at first, but after some time, it can become severe pain, and it will be very hard for you to ignore it.
Even though every time pain in your stomach is not a sign or symptom of ulcers in the stomach, long-term pain in the stomach can be the classic sign. If your stomach pain is not going away, then you should consult with your doctor, even if it is mild pain.
Weight loss
If you are experiencing unwanted weight loss, it could be due to stomach ulcers. A lot of patients struggling with ulcers in their stomachs have reported back that they are experiencing unwanted weight loss.
Even though weight loss is not directly triggered by an ulcer in the stomach, stomach pain and being after eating the food might trigger it. If you are experiencing stomach pain, then you should consult with your doctor, as it would be the classic sign of a stomach ulcer.
Pain after eating
A lot of people traveling with ulcers in their stomach do not experience any pain if their stomach is empty. As soon as they eat anything, they start experiencing pain in their stomach. Usually, the changes caused by food in the stomach put pressure on the stomach wall where the ulcers are located.
As a result, you experience pain after eating food. A lot of people try to avoid eating food due to stomach pain, and they experience unwanted weight loss. Under normal circumstances, you should never be experiencing pain after eating food. It is always a wise decision to consult with your doctor if you are experiencing pain after eating.
Nausea and swelling
If you are experiencing nausea for a longer period, along with swelling in your stomach, it could be the classic sign of an ulcer in your stomach. The ulcer can cause swelling in your stomach, and further, it can become the reason for nausea. If you are experiencing swelling and pain in your stomach along with nausea, you should consult with your doctor and get yourself tested for her ulcers.
Always feeling full
One of the classical signs of ulcer in the stomach, along with the reason for unwanted weight loss, is always feeling full. The swelling caused by the ulcer might put pressure on your stomach, which will cause you to always feel full. The whole situation might also trigger unwanted weight loss.
You should be very careful of these symptoms as they are highly related to each other. Apart from that, swelling in your stomach due to an ulcer might also trigger a full effect without eating any food.
Bloating and burping
Apart from the above-given symptoms, you might also experience bloating and burping due to acid reflux in your stomach. As you are already aware, due to swelling or pain in your stomach, you might feel full all the time without eating anything. As a result, an empty stomach might cause bloating and burping.
Other symptoms
Now let’s talk about other symptoms of an ulcer in the stomach. Apart from the symptoms, there is a long list of other symptoms. For example, you might experience dark and tarry stools during a stomach ulcer.
There is also a probability that you might experience vomit that’s bloody or looks like coffee grounds. You should never ignore any symptoms like blood in your stool or vomit. It could be a sign of a serious physical condition.
Apart from that, you might also experience anemia which might include tiredness, shortness of breath, and paler skin. Lastly, you might experience heartburn and pain when you start to drink anything, even water.
Other physical conditions might also cause similar symptoms. That is why you should not solely rely on these symptoms and always consult with your doctor.
# Treatment options for ulcers in the stomach
Now let’s take a look at the treatment options available for ulcers in the stomach. We will talk about everything starting from nonsurgical treatment to all the way home remedies.
Non-surgical treatments
Once you get diagnosed with an ulcer in the stomach, your doctor might suggest you start antibiotics and proton pump inhibitors. The proton pump inhibitors block the stomach cells that produce acid, which is the major reason for ulcers.
Along with that, your doctor might also recommend you stop using any kind of NSAIDs. You might also be suggested to take probiotics and H2 receptor blockers. The extra receptor blocker will further block the acid production.
As its name suggests, you won’t require any surgery for the treatment of an ulcer in the stomach, but you might experience nausea, dizziness, headaches, and diarrhea after taking the medication.
Surgical treatment options
The other option for the treatment of ulcers in the stomach is surgical treatment. Even though it is very rare that any doctor will suggest you take surgical treatment, in some cases where nonsurgical treatments are not working, a doctor might suggest a patient go for surgical treatment.
There are different reasons and procedures during surgical treatment options. Your doctor might remove the entire ulcer or take tissue from another part for an intense time to patch it over the ulcer side.
You should consult the whole procedure and every other possibility with your doctor before you start your surgical treatment option.
Healthy diet
Along with the nonsurgical treatment option, your doctor might suggest you make some changes in your eating habits. Even though diet alone is not going to heal you but it can speed up the whole healing process.
First of all, your doctor will suggest that you eat leafy green vegetables along with broccoli, cauliflower, cabbage, and radishes. Apart from that, you should also include some probiotic-rich foods, such as yogurt and kombucha.
You will be suggested to replace your normal cooking oil with olive oil as it contains so many health benefits. Lastly, your doctor will suggest you go for more fruit and fiber-rich food items. The best services for fruits are blackberries, blueberries, strawberries, and apples.
Sometimes you might have to add a probiotic supplement along with glutamine if you are not able to eat food items rich in probiotics and glutamine. The major sources of glutamine are chicken, fish, eggs, and spinach.
# Takeaways
Ulcer in the stomach is among the most painful stomach diseases which are non-serious. As per the data points released by the Centers for Disease Control and prevention, At least 10% of the total population of the United States is going to develop stomach ulcers once in their lifetime.
Even though there is a cure available for stomach ulcers, it needs to get diagnosed as early as possible before the kings go out of hand. Untreated stomach ulcers might cause severe physical conditions. That is why you should keep an eye on every symptom related to the disease.
There is a long list of symptoms, and it starts from pain in the stomach. Apart from that, you might also experience unwanted weight gain due to regular bloating and feel the full effect of swelling.
Along with that, you might also experience nausea, pain after eating, bloody vomit, tarry stools, etc. Most of the symptoms are also related to other diseases, and it might get a bit harder for you to diagnose a stomach ulcer.
There are few treatment options available for ulcers in the stomach. Your doctor might suggest you start with nonsurgical treatment, which includes probiotics and antibiotics. If the non-surgical treatment did not work, then your doctor might suggest you go with the surgical options.
Can you treat an ulcer in the stomach at home?
No, you cannot treat an ulcer in the stomach at home as you require a prescription to buy medicine. Some home remedies might help you to boost the healing process, but it is not going to be enough.