I am in pain?

Question

I woke up this morning and i has severe heartburn and indegestion. I am in so much pain. It feels like im having a heart attack and nothing i do is making it better. Is it normal to have severe heartburn and indegestion or is it something else? I dont want to go running to the hospital or my Gp if its just heartburn and indo. Im 28 weeks pregnant.

Answer 1

***If it could be heart attack, or something SEVERE dont hesititate and go to the ER, or call the ER and ask to speak with a nurse. *** Here is what babycenter.com says about heartburn.
Lately I've felt a terrible burning sensation in my chest after eating. Is it heartburn?
Most likely. Many women experience heartburn for the first time during pregnancy — and though it's common and generally harmless, it can be quite uncomfortable.

Heartburn (also called acid indigestion or acid reflux) is a burning sensation that often extends from the bottom of the breastbone to the lower throat. It's caused by some of the hormonal and physical changes in your body.

During pregnancy, the placenta produces the hormone progesterone, which relaxes the smooth muscles of the uterus. This hormone also relaxes the valve that separates the esophagus from the stomach, allowing gastric acids to seep back up, which causes that unpleasant burning sensation.

Progesterone also slows down the wavelike contractions of your esophagus and intestines, making digestion sluggish. Later in pregnancy, your growing baby crowds your abdominal cavity, pushing the stomach acids back up into the esophagus.

Many women start experiencing heartburn and other gastrointestinal discomforts in the second half of pregnancy. Unfortunately, it usually comes and goes until your baby is born.

What can I do about it?
Though you may not be able to eliminate heartburn entirely, you can take steps to minimize your discomfort:
• Avoid food and beverages that cause you gastrointestinal distress. The usual suspects are carbonated drinks; alcohol (which you should avoid anyway during pregnancy); caffeine; chocolate; acidic foods like citrus fruits and juices, tomatoes, mustard, and vinegar; processed meats; mint products; and spicy, highly seasoned, fried, or fatty foods.

• Don't eat big meals. Instead, eat several small meals throughout the day. Take your time eating and chew thoroughly.

• Avoid drinking large quantities of fluids during meals — you don't want to distend your stomach. (It's important to drink eight to ten glasses of water daily during pregnancy, but sip it between meals.)

• Try chewing gum after eating. Chewing gum stimulates your salivary glands, and saliva can help neutralize acid.

• Don't eat close to bedtime. Give yourself two to three hours to digest before you lie down.

• Sleep propped up with several pillows or a wedge. Elevating your upper body will help keep your stomach acids where they belong and will aid your digestion.

• Gain a sensible amount of weight, and stay within the guidelines your healthcare provider suggests.

• Wear loose, comfortable clothing. Avoid any tightness around your waist and tummy.

• Bend at the knees instead of at the waist.

• Don't smoke — in addition to contributing to a host of serious health problems, smoking boosts stomach acidity. (Ideally, smoking is a habit you should break before getting pregnant. If you're still smoking and are having trouble quitting, ask your caregiver for a referral to a smoking-cessation program.)

• An over-the-counter antacid that contains magnesium or calcium may ease discomfort, but check with your prenatal caregiver before taking one, because some brands contain aluminum or aspirin or are high in sodium. You should also check in with your healthcare provider if none of these suggestions helps.

Answer 2

So normal! At 28 weeks your baby is getting big enough to start compressing all your organs up. Try eating smaller meals and chewing Tums. Also, do some stretching with your arms over your head, this will give your body more room. Make sure you sit up straight when you eat too so your food can settle easily.

Call your ob in the AM if you need medicine other than Tums, I beleive they can give you a script of some sort if you are that bad.

Good luck and hope you feel better!

Answer 3

I am 28 wks also.. the doctor lets me take zantac as needed. Call your obgyn and ask if you can take it. It has helped me out 99%. I still have some yucky burps.. but will take those over that awful pain and acid build up in my chest. Eat some tums til you can call the Doctor.. I know they are only temporary relief.. but it will help some. Also have you been checked for preeclampsia? If your blood pressure is elevated.. you could actually be having angina attacks which feels like a heart attack. I would not be embarassed to go to the hospital for that.. better to be safe than sorry. Hope you get to feeling better really soon.

Answer 4

I'm no expert, but let me tell you, i had heartburn so bad that my body couldn't handle it, so it would begin to somehow make its way up my throat, then later, I would just vomit all of this acid. It was terrible, but it IS normal. Take tums or see if the doc can prescribe you an antacid. Be aware of what you're eating. It can make it a LOT LOT worse. I used to eat a few tums before a meal, and right after ( as long as you don't eat 3205803852 meals a day). Don't worry too much yet. Call the doc tomorrow, ask if he can prescribe you something.

Answer 5

During my first pregnancy, I had some really bad digestive problems.
My doctor told me that my gall bladder was probably to blame, and told me to avoid eating large amounts of sugar and fat.

BINGO! He was right on the mark! I started eating more fresh fruits and vegetables and less fat and sugar and I started feeling so much better. Also, be sure you are drinking enough water.

But I still had ALOT of gas! I never did find out how to avoid the gas because back then doctors were so afraid to prescribe anything.
Ask your doctor if you have alot of gas pains what to do about it. Maybe there is something he can reccommend.

Answer 6

You sound just like me when I was pregnant. Let me ask you a few questions first
1. When you have these feelings does it make you break out in a sweat and make you feel like you are having difficulty breathing?

2. do you notice this flares up more when you eat something that has a higher fat content to it such as fast food or something along those lines?

3. When you have these feelings when you take tums does the pain not seem to subside?

4. Is the pain so unbearable that it makes you just want to curl into a big ball?

If you answered yes to those questions I would call your doctor and have them see if they could find out someway if it could be your gallbladder going bad. I had that same type of thing with all of the symptoms above when I was 30 weeks pregnant and it lasted all the way up until I delivered and it got worse as the pregnancy went on. After I delivered my son I thought the pain would go away. It wasn't until two weeks after I had my son that I was awoken in the worse pain of my life, I felt like I couldn't breathe it was horrible I ended up puking so much I started to puke up stomach acids I ended up laying on the floor because I was in too much pain to move all I could do is scream for my fiance to come and get me I was rushed to the emergency room and immediately put on pain killers and they ran a few tests and couldn't find out what was wrong. My mother had to have her gallbladder out after one of her pregnancies and when I told them that they checked and sure enough it was my gallbladder. I had 12 7mm sized stones and it got so bad it turned into pancreatitus
(spelling) and my liver enzymes where through the roof. I was really sick. I was hospitalized for over a week and put on a diladin (spelling) drip every 7 minutes to relieve the pain. I underwent two surgeries within a week of each other on top of the c-section I had two weeks beforehand. I waited too long to get it checked out and it was really bad they were really worried and at times they would come in because my liver enzymes kept going up instead of down they thought that something really bad was going to happen. So please do me a favor and go speak with your doctor immediately, don't go to the ER wait until the morning and make an appt hopefully for the same day to get in and see your doc let them know of these pains and ask them to check your gallbladder, they won't be able to take it out until you have your baby but at least they will be aware of what is going on. I wish you the best of luck.

Answer 7

When I was prego with my son, the last trimester was absolutely horrible. I had indigestion/heartburn so bad that I had to keep a glass of milk beside me at all times! Tums didn't work. Actually, the milk didn't either. I couldn't lay down or eat anything!

It'll be over soon, just hang in there!

Answer 8

Take Pepcid, tums, rolaids, etc. BEFORE you eat...really helps. Heartburn and indigestion are just some of the lovely perks you experience with pregnancy. It sounds like you are in a lot of pain, so I would ask your doctor about it...never hurts to ask if you are concerned and you will feel better afterwards.

Answer 9

Normal as snow in January!!! Take some tums and try sleeping sitting up. Orange juice or acidic drinks will most likely prolong the problem. If you think you should go to the doc. maybe you should. Can't beat a mother's intuition!!!!!! Good luck!

Answer 10

1)Read an interesting book. 2)Watch a movie. 3)Go out with friends. 4)Go out shopping. 5)Talk on the fone about anything BUT pain. 6)Play Board games. 7)Play video games(better) 8)Baby sit for some1's kids(they keep u busy) 9)Flirt with guys/girls. 10)Dress up in ur room for nothing and walk around like ur on the runway.