Timely reminder: If you have symptoms of appendicitis, seek medical care ASAP
How do you know if it’s appendicitis? It doesn’t necessarily cause crippling pain, as you may have been led to believe. I had an unpleasant stomachache, but it wasn’t necessarily worse than regular tummy troubles. The big sign is that, when you prod the right side of your stomach, about an inch lower than your bellybutton and two or three inches to the right, it hurts a LOT worse than when you do it on the other side. Don’t prod super hard, obviously. Feelings of bloating, nausea, general abdominal pain, fever, etc., are also signs.
Even if you don’t have health insurance, remember that dealing with appendicitis is non-optional. Actual conversation between my friend and her ER doc last night:
Lovely Friend: Yeah, I’ve heard that if it bursts, you can get sepsis and die.
ER Doc: There are some things worse than death! (Upsetting discussion of permanent gut troubles redacted)
So yeah. If those are your symptoms, seek help immediately. If you are uninsured, know that the hospital will work with you. But you have to deal with it. It will get much worse, very fast.
PS Adorable appendix from I Heart Guts.
PPS Feel better, Cat! I love you!
