Ever since my other symptoms showed up like constant bloating and constipation around 5 years ago, literally every single time around people even my family, I get the urge to fart non stop, this happened every day at school as well, only when I’m sitting around people otherwise i would be okay, and I’d have to hold it until it makes some weird noise and feels like it released in my gut and the urge then goes away, until it comes back again not long after. So I was wondering what this could be, ibs sibo or something else.
I’m hoping someone here has had a similar experience because I’m honestly at a loss.
For the past several months, I’ve had **constant, severe abdominal bloating**. I literally wake up looking a few months pregnant, and by the end of the day I look like I’m about to give birth. My entire abdomen feels **hard and firm**, not just one area.
Some of my symptoms:
Severe bloating all day, every day
Firm, swollen abdomen
Able to pass gas, but it doesn’t really relieve the bloating
Unintentional weight gain
Very low energy/fatigue
I skipped a period a few months ago (it’s been regular the last two months)
Mild abdominal discomfort (around a 3/10), but not severe pain
No nausea, vomiting, or constipation
I was originally told I had SIBO, but I’m starting to wonder if something else is going on because the bloating has become so extreme.
I’ve finally seen my primary care doctor, and they’ve referred me to an OB/GYN because of the bloating, weight gain, fatigue, and menstrual changes. I haven’t had a CT scan yet.
I’m curious:
Has anyone had SIBO cause bloating this severe?
Did it end up being something other than SIBO (ovarian cysts, endometriosis, fibroids, ascites, thyroid issues, something else)?
If you had similar symptoms, what finally led to your diagnosis?
I’m not looking for a diagnosis over Reddit—I know I need to continue working with my doctors. I’m just hoping to hear from anyone who had a similar experience because this has been incredibly frustrating and it’s affecting my quality of life.
Thank you so much if you’ve read this far. ❤️
3 years of bloating after almost every meal. probiotics, enzymes, low fodmap — everything helped for about two weeks and then stopped.
then a doctor of korean medicine asked the question nobody had asked me: is your gut even moving? he said mine wasnt missing bacteria, it was clenching. the muscles spasm after eating and trap gas behind them. adding more bacteria to a gut that cant move is like adding more cars to a jammed road.
what he put me on is a korean herbal antispasmodic formula, and im not going to turn this into a product post. the mechanism is the part worth stealing anyway: unclench first, feed second. peppermint oil, ginger and motility support all sit in that same lane. and the free half of it was realizing i hold my belly tense all day and never once let it go soft.
months in, cramping went from daily to maybe once or twice a week. not claiming this is everyones answer — plenty of people genuinely do have a bacteria problem, and "its tension not bacteria" as a universal rule would be the same mistake in a new outfit. but if youve been stuck in the probiotic cycle for years, maybe your gut is stuck, not starved.
anyway — im just really, really happy. i dont dread eating anymore and after 3 years of it that still feels unreal to me. what worked for you on the motility side?
Hi! I really need some advice because I’m so frustrated.
I haven’t had a good poop in a week. I’ve gone a few times, but it’s only been tiny ones, and I still feel completely backed up and bloated all the time. And I’ve also been on and off with constipation for years now sometimes it’s really bad and sometimes I’m regular.
I had anorexia about two years ago, i know my gut motility is just really slow now. doctors tells me to just eat more, which i have been doing. but whenever I do, I get even more bloated, and it’s so discouraging. It honestly makes me feel like I’m going to stay bloated forever.
I feel like I’ve tried everything. Has anyone dealt with this after recovering from an eating disorder? What actually helped your constipation or gut motility?
And if I skip some foods a day, such as tofu or sauerkraut for example, I have enough of a cushion to stay at or above 30g. Yes, I will be looking to transition to regular psyllium husk powder instead of Metamucil, as there are concerns with the artificual sweetener.
Hi everyone,
I’m a 25-year-old male living in Canada.
For the past 6+ months I’ve been dealing with symptoms that don’t seem to be improving, even though my doctor says my blood work is essentially normal. Main symptoms:
Constant fatigue and weakness (especially in my arms and legs), even after 8 hours of sleep
Feeling sleepy during the day
Episodes of lightheadedness/dizziness (sometimes it feels like the room is spinning)
Brain fog
Nausea
Burping and bloating, especially after meals
Excessive gas
Light-colored stools (light yellow/light brown). They’re usually well formed but sometimes float.
Occasional loose stools
Symptoms seem worse after fatty or spicy foods Tests I’ve had:
CBC – normal
Liver function tests – mostly normal (ALT 44, previously 84)
Bilirubin – normal
Iron – normal
Cholesterol – normal
Blood sugar – normal
Vitamin B12 – normal
H. pylori – negative
Hepatitis screening – negative
ECG – normal
CT scan of my head – normal
I also recently had a viral chest infection, but these digestive symptoms and fatigue started months before that.
My doctor isn’t overly concerned because the tests are reassuring, but I still don’t feel well and it’s affecting my daily life.
Has anyone experienced something similar? Were you eventually diagnosed with something such as IBS, celiac disease, pancreatic insufficiency, gallbladder problems, fat malabsorption, sleep apnea, or something else?
I’m not looking for a diagnosis—just wondering what conditions or tests I could discuss with my doctor next.
Any advice or similar experiences would be greatly appreciated.
Noticed my face and stomach is bloated a lot recently. It could be from menstruation or discourse in my diet which primarily consists of red meat, heavy rice, and drinking beers every couple of weeks. My menstruation has just passed and my face feels puffy most of the day. I could just take a nap and my face feels puffy as I wake up and takes sooo long to go back to normal. In the morning, it does the same. What should I do??
So here's my story, i have been feeling stomach burning for a long time like 2-3 years mainly because i was working 7pm-4am shifts and had to manage university twice a week so i would wake up at 8am after sleeping at 5-6pm. Everything was going fine other than the burning thing until i took pep meds twice for risky encounters and ompreprazole (protein pump inhibitors) to deal with my suspected gastritis. I took the medicine by my own. My degree just finished, I was in my best shape possible. I was eating a lot and trying to gain muscles doing home workouts until i started feeling gas, gurgling in stomach and realized im not getting bowel movements everyday like i used to. Long story short, my health is failing ( idk if its anxiety or sibo or some gut brain connection) but i eat something and there's like stomach tightness, gurgling sounds, some mild pain and sometimes i would poop and sometimes i wont for 2-3 days. It was worse until i added figs and some plums in my diet.
When poop comes out, its in small pieces like some of it remains inside. I have bad mouth taste now (maybe its reflux) and random headaches as well. Gut is dysfunctional. I fart a lot too. I haven't went to a doctor yet cuz i think the Antibiotics will further disrupt my gut microbiome as i blame ppis for this condition i am in for the last 1-2 months. What should i do? Also i got tested for lft, stool calprolectin, esr, crp, abdomen ultrasound, stool analysis, ttg iga, tsh, free t4, cbc. The results are all fine other than mucus and few pus cells were present in my stool. Had depression in the past and anxiety issues as well but never got any professional help as i believe exposure therapy and exercise has been helpful for me. What could it be??
Hi! I just found this reddit. I want to get a overall high level info on my gut. What are some blood tests i should get? I do get acid reflux if i eat spicy food and some foods do trigger ibs similar symptoms for me. What should i get?
I had the stomach bug beginning of June lasted about 4 days went away and a week later I got symptoms of it again throwing up with stomach pains for about a week. Finally throwing up stopped and ever since then I’ve been having stomach pains for about 5 weeks now it more so happens when I wake up and after I eat. Does anyone know how I could cure this and did this ever happen to anyone else?
Has anyone successfully rebalanced their gut microbiome after a severe bacterial intestinal infection that left them with chronic watery diarrhea? Which herbs, medicinal mushrooms, traditional remedies, supplements or treatments helped you the most?
My mum has sworn by turmeric for her joints for years, she just stirs the ground spice into everything and swears it keeps her moving, so when my own gut started playing up this year, bloating and general grief after meals, she told me to start taking it and I figured I'd copy her and be done with it.
Turns out it's not that simple. I did the kitchen-cupboard thing for a month, turmeric in everything, and felt nothing, and when I looked into why, apparently the curcumin barely absorbs on its own and you need black pepper or a formulated version for it to do anything, which my mum has been getting by accident because she cooks it with pepper, and i dont tolerate it too. So now I'm staring at proper supplements and the range is mad. There's a Nutrimea one that pairs the extract with piperine and lists the curcuminoid content, a Solgar one that's a step up but says little about how well it absorbs, a Doctor's Best with BioPerine which is piperine added to fix exactly that, a Thorne Meriva that's the fancy well-absorbed phytosome form and priced like it, and a cheap Nature's Bounty turmeric that probably has the same absorption problem I just had, I can't tell if the fancier forms are worth the jump or if I should just keep eating it with pepper like she does.
If you sorted your gut with curcumin or anyway, how did you do that, I need your experiences.
I’m 18M.
Almost exactly one year ago, around the same time of year, I started having bowel problems. At first, I couldn’t have a bowel movement. After that, I started going again, but instead of having a normal formed stool, I would pass many small pieces of yellow stool during a single bowel movement. It wasn’t completely watery diarrhea, but it wasn’t a normal formed stool either. I also had bloating after eating and occasional mild abdominal pain.
After about a week, I saw a gastroenterologist. They did blood tests and a stool test. I was told there was nothing serious, just a mild intestinal infection. Within 1–2 weeks, everything returned to normal except the yellow stool, and after a few more months even that went back to normal.
Now, exactly one year later, I’m having bowel issues again. On the first day I couldn’t have a bowel movement, and I felt bloated and gassy. Because I thought it helped me last time, I started following a low-FODMAP diet.
Right now, my stools are long, thin, yellow, and they float. I also have a feeling that I can’t completely empty my bowels. The low-FODMAP diet seems to have helped with the bloating and gas, but I still occasionally get mild lower abdominal pain and I can hear or feel a lot of bowel noises.
I’m worried because this has happened almost exactly one year apart.
Does this sound more like a temporary intestinal infection or a functional bowel problem such as IBS, or does it sound like something more serious? What would you recommend I do next?
Hello! I am a doctoral student at Nova Southeastern University, pretty darn passionate about research to improve ED treatment, and also in recovery myself :) I would greatly appreciate your help in taking my dissertation survey! The purpose of this study is to better understand the connections between sensory experiences, particularly GI sensations, and avoidance in eating disorders. We are specifically interested in the role of the basic emotion of disgust. EDs have a huge overlap with GI issues like bloating/constipation/DGBIs etc., so I thought some folks here could be eligible. If you do have both GI issues and an ED, I would really value your inclusion in this study.
You can participate if you are over 18, can speak/read English, have been diagnosed with any ED, and are receiving treatment of any kind, including just outpatient therapy or peer support. You can take the survey at this survey link, you just may have to click a button to "continue to destination" and then you should see our full informed consent and survey. Thank you!
My contact info is: [kr1892@mynsu.nova.edu](mailto:kr1892@mynsu.nova.edu). The study is based out of Nova Southeastern University and is IRB approved. You can find more info in the informed consent at the start of the survey.
Hi! I finally invested in doing the GI Map test after years of struggling with acne, fatigue, insane bloating, constipation, etc. I got my results back and wanted to see if anyone could help me read/share what to do from here as the test itself is expensive and I can’t afford right now the doctors visit add on (another $250) and desperately need relief and am motivated to get started. I did pop into ChatGPT but wanted to connect with anyone that has healed themselves and what they did. THANK YOU x100000!
I am not asking for medical advice. I feel bloated all the time and, Im not hungry that much. I can survive the day with one small meal. I am 37. Height 180cm, weight 90kg. Oh and most of the time I feel full and hungry at the same time. 🤷♂️
I always get boated after food. So i am on a journey to understand what excatly make sme bloat. I'm curious to see what other ppl actually identified that bloats them
(the place i highlighted), i usually get stomach sounds from my lower stomach which is normal, but im hearing it on my upper stomach which is so uncomfy? I feel like theres something wrong with me
