Possible hiatal hernia? Dangerous or no?

[magicalgirl]

Hello everyone. My HA is being triggered by some symptoms that I think may be related to a hiatal hernia. So here it goes.

About a month ago I ate a sandwich and noticed it felt like it didn't go down all the way. It was like it was just sitting there at the entrance of my stomach. Then moments later I got the sharpest pains in that area. It's like the exact center just below my chest (where i'm pretty sure hernias are at based on diagrams I've seen) . Every time I swallowed I would get another sharp pain and the feeling of my food not going all the way in.

After two days it passed! I thought maybe it was just something related to a stomach bug, but ever since then I've been having weird problems. Every single time I eat, my food goes up and down like i'm about to throw it up. It does that about three times after every meal. I also can't stop having these weird random single hiccups through out the day. Lastly, when I lay down to go to sleep I can feel my stomach acid work its way up to my chest (heartburn right?).

I'm thinking it could be a hernia. I'm only 19, but my grandmother and uncle both developed hernias before 50.

I'm worried it could be dangerous. I know most hernias don't need treatment (my uncle just lives with his) but don't some types strangle your stomach? That's what i'm terrified of. The reason my brain keeps thinking I have the strangling type hernia is because of the intense pain and not being able to swallow issue I had a month ago.

If by any chance my stomach was being strangled would I be certain? I'm about to go on vacation with my cousins, so it's making my paranoia much worse.

If anyone would please help me I would greatly appreciate it. Thank you!

[Annaboodle]

Hi. That sounds very much like indigestion/acid reflux to me. Have you tried taking a basic over-the-counter indigestion tablet and seeing if that helps?

19 is a very long way away from 50. I think you've Googled hernias based on family history and have made a massive leap to that? From there you're already at strangulated hernias and now you're talking about the "intense pain". How bad is it on a scale of 1 to 10 would you say? But yes you'd be certain if you had a strangulated hernia (which you don't). It's the sort of pain that comes on very quickly. You'd be in no doubt and would be up at the ER. You wouldn't be walking about or be able to be on here posting this. I honestly think you can reassure yourself that this isn't what you fear it is. You just need to pick away at the kind of thought spiral assisted by Dr Google and his diagrams that's got you here.