Upper abdominal pain/indigestion help?

Hey everyone!
So, here’s the deal—I’ve dealt with an occasional stomachache before, and I always just chalked it up to my terrible diet (between classes at the university, I’m basically running on fumes from sunrise to sunset and honestly don't even manage to eat a real meal most days). But yesterday, I actually got a little spooked because I started feeling this pretty sharp, moderate pain right in the center of my chest, right where my ribs end. I did have some red onions with my dinner the night before, so now I’m sitting here wondering... could those have totally irritated my stomach? It also feels like I have this burning sensation in my esophagus, though I don't feel nauseous or like I'm going to throw up, and my digestion seems fine—maybe a little loose, but nothing out of the ordinary, and I don't have to run to the bathroom constantly.
When I woke up this morning, it was still hurting just a tiny bit, so I thought, "Hey, let's just eat something light and maybe that'll settle things down," so I grabbed two Jaffa cakes just to have something in my system. Well, turns out that made the pain a little worse... oh man, what should I even do? I can't exactly head to the doctor since it's the weekend, and I'm honestly feeling a bit panicked... and yeah, I'm not sure if age matters here, but I am 21 years old.
Can we get a doctor in here to give me some advice?
scared

An irregular diet—especially when you throw smoking and coffee into the mix—can trigger heartburn, that nasty burning sensation right behind your breastbone, somewhere between your stomach and your throat. If this is happening to you constantly, it might be more than just a bad meal; it could point toward an upper GI issue like GERD. In that case, you really need to go see a doctor. For acute heartburn, which I'm assuming is what you're dealing with right now, your first line of defense should be antacids, like Tums. You also need to start eating smaller, more frequent meals at regular intervals, and for heaven's sake, don't just lie down immediately after eating. If the pain hasn't subsided by tomorrow or if things take a turn for the worse, get yourself to the ER.

Oh man, so my mom was trying to get me to take some Pepto-Bismol yesterday—or maybe it was something else, I can't quite remember—but I actually turned her down... I’ve just got this nagging fear that taking more meds might end up irritating my stomach even worse than it already is! Last year, I had to go see my doctor because my stomach would just start hurting out of nowhere, totally unprovoked, you know? And usually, if I just eat a tiny bit of something, the pain settles right back down. My doctor actually prescribed some Pepto back then because she thought it was all being triggered by stress, which makes sense, but now I’m just stuck wondering what's going on. Yesterday morning, I had some Corn Flakes for breakfast, and then about fifteen minutes later, the pain started kicking in. I ended up falling asleep for a bit, and when I woke up, it wasn't even that bad—it was almost barely noticeable. But then my mom tried to convince me to eat some cabbage rolls, telling me it would "warm up my stomach," which is such one of those old-school, "grandma knows best" type of things, right? Of course, as soon as I ate them, the pain flared up again, just like it did after breakfast! Honestly, it wasn't a sharp pain anymore, just sort of a dull ache, especially when I'm walking around. Today, it’s happening all over again, just like yesterday. It’s weird though, because when I’m just sitting or lying down, it doesn't really bother me at all, but whenever I start walking, I feel this little jab 😁 right in my gut. I know it sounds kind of silly, but I'm really trying my best to describe it accurately!
Hmm... and yeah, how often does this happen? Well, let's say I deal with these stomach issues maybe once or twice a month...

Pepto-Bismol isn't going to do much for heartburn, honestly. I’d suggest starting with something like Tums first; since they're antacids, they should actually neutralize the reflux if that's what you're dealing with. You really only want to move to the Pepto once the antacids fail to cut it. That sounds like a nasty bout of indigestion you've got there... I wouldn't mind taking a closer look at what's going on with your stomach myself.

Oh man, don't go scaring me like that! You know I’ve got a bit of an overactive imagination—my friends are constantly teasing me about being a total hypochondriac, always convinced every little sneeze is some major medical mystery... do you really think it could be something serious?? 😢

Casey Patel28 said:Don't go scaring me like that... everyone already treats me like I'm just a hypochondriac anyway. Could this actually be something dangerous? 😢

You’re way too young for this to be anything serious. 😁

If you're dealing with this kind of pain on a regular basis, we might be looking at a chronic condition. It might not be life-threatening in a clinical sense, but it's something that should be managed with medication. There's really no reason to just sit there and suffer through it...

So, this is actually the first time I’ve felt it like this...😢
I mean, I’ve had those sharp pains before, you know? Like, really intense stabs, but usually, as soon as I managed to get some food down—I typically go for something like dry toast because it’s easy on the stomach—the pain would just sort of fade away within a moment...
That’s basically how I’ve always handled things, just using food to fix the discomfort (though, just to give you some context, I’m pretty thin for my height, standing about 5'7" and weighing around 123 lbs)... but the thing is, even now, while I'm eating, the pain just won't quit, which honestly freaked me out a little. My boyfriend mentioned that his brother gets the exact same thing where his stomach aches all the next day if he eats something like raw red onions... but for me, it’s still hurting right now. So, I decided to jump on here and post something... just to see what my options are... though, I have to be honest, my eating habits have been pretty terrible over the last two years! It is what it is, but since we don't have a cafeteria at my university and the local bakeries and student unions are such a trek, I end up skipping meals all day long... I really think my stomach is finally paying the price. I just had a little bit of honey 😁 hoping maybe it helps... I think I read somewhere that honey can soothe the stomach... 🙂
Oh, hold on, let me go check if I have any Pepto-Bismol in the cabinet... I'll take some of that. If it works, the pain should stop, but if it doesn't... then things might be looking a little grim, right? 😢

Look, listen... this isn't the first time this has happened, but the symptoms are definitely hitting harder now. I’m telling you, you need to watch your portions—don't even think about overeating right now 😁. Onions are most likely the main culprit here. You should probably steer clear of coffee, chocolate, and stuff like that for a bit. Try chewing some gum; it helps trigger saliva production, which helps neutralize that stomach acid. And don't be afraid of taking those antacids; they aren't going to hurt you, they're specifically designed for your stomach. As for that college diet you mentioned... trust me, I've been there, I know how it goes, but skipping meals all day? That’s a disaster, and it's exactly what you're paying for right now

So, I’m currently dealing with some major heartburn and don't have any Tums on hand, but I do have some Rennie... you know, that kind of chewable stuff? The box says it's meant for acid reflux and bloating... do you think it's okay if I pop one of those?

It’s possible... provided you aren't taking any other medications in the meantime...

So, I finally went ahead and took that... honestly, you know how much of a total hypochondriac I am! As soon as it started hurting like crazy yesterday, I immediately dove down a rabbit hole on Google trying to figure out what was going on... and before I knew it, the search results were throwing all these terrifying things at me, like stomach cancer or something equally awful, and I swear I nearly had a heart attack right then and there!!! 😲

Casey Patel28 said:So I just tried that... and look, I’ll admit I’m a total hypochondriac. As soon as the pain started hitting me yesterday, I immediately went down a rabbit hole online trying to figure out what was going on. Before I knew it, my search results were throwing all these stomach cancer diagnoses at me. Honestly, I nearly had a heart attack. 😲

Give me a break... stop reading that nonsense. Cancer? Really? It's common knowledge that people scare themselves half to death the second they start browsing random sites or picking up those sensationalist health magazines you see at the drugstore. The only real solution is to actually talk to your primary care physician. If they're a decent doctor, they aren't going to go around terrorizing you like that. You don't necessarily have to be a hypochondriac; being proactive about your health is actually something to be commended. Just relax. This should clear up by tomorrow at the latest. Moving forward, just avoid whatever triggered this and try to keep your diet on track. Your nutrition dictates your health and your overall quality of life, plain and simple.

Oh my gosh, thank you so much for everything! 😘I’m feeling way more relaxed now after reading your posts because, honestly, I’ve been such a nervous wreck since yesterday... I kept spiraling, thinking, "Well, there goes my life—you have zero symptoms and then suddenly it's stomach cancer and you're gone," especially since you read everywhere online about how stomach issues can be totally silent until it's too late 🙂 haha, oh well... when I told my family yesterday that my stomach was hurting, the very first thing they said was, "Don't you dare start Googling your symptoms, because you'll just end up convinced you have a hundred different diseases!" And honestly? They aren't wrong, I always do that and get myself into a total panic, but clearly, I haven't learned a single thing from my past mistakes 🙂)
Seriously though, thanks again... I'm really hoping this Tums does the trick... if not, I guess I'll just head straight to the ER tomorrow 😢

Casey Patel28 said:Oh my gosh, thank you so much for everything 😘I’ve actually calmed down a bit after reading your posts! I was honestly spiraling yesterday... thinking, "Here we go—you don't have any symptoms, then suddenly it's stomach cancer and you're gone," because everywhere you look online, they say you can't feel anything wrong with your stomach until it's too late 🙂 haha, what can you do... yesterday when I told my family I was hurting, the first thing they said was, "Don't go looking things up on WebMD, you'll just convince yourself you have a hundred different diseases." That's always how it goes with me, and then I end up completely worked up... even though I clearly haven't learned anything from past mistakes 🙂)
thanks again... I'm really hoping this Pepcid helps... if not, I'm heading straight to the ER tomorrow 😢

No worries at all... I'm glad my posts helped settle your mind... hopefully everything turns out fine. Take care.

HEY THERE! 😉