Pain around my navel/belly button

[mzmonkey]

Hi!  I've been searching high and low for the answer to this question!  I'm 32 and generally feel fine.  I'm a yoyo dieter, just in case that's important.  I mention this because I've recently started my work-out regiment again, which includes lifting weights - I HOPE this pain is just a pulled muscle that's affecting my belly button?!  It's such a weird, dull and existing pain - but some movement can cause it to turn to sharp pain.  I've had it for 3 days now.  It's uncomfortable to sleep on my stomach, but not unbearable.  I do have the appendicitis suspicion, but the pain has not moved at all.  It's only the 1/4" circumfrence around my belly button.  There is not stuff coming out of my belly button, or anything alarming like that.  It's just this pain that has come and hijacked the area around my precious belly button!  If anybody has ANY insight to my problem, please holler!  Thank you!

[J T Junig, MD PhD]

You may have developed an umbilical hernia;  this usually takes a physician to diagnose, unless you feel a bulge deep under the inch of fat that usually covers that part of the body.  Ironically, a small hernia is more dangerous than a large one;  a large one allows bowel to slide in and out, but a small one can trap or pinch the bowel.  IF that happens the bowel can die in a small area from lack of blood flow.  That MUST be treated surgically or the person can die from peritonitis.  You might be getting the severe pain when bowen is trapped, and less pain when it slides out.  The risk is that it will get caught and swell up so that it cannot be 'reduced', and that would require emergency surgery.

Or, you might have just pulled a muscle;  if so, it will take six or eight weeks for the pain to improve.

[mzmonkey]

Thank you, Dr. Junig!  Your answer was really helpful!

[osuzanna]

i agree with the doc, as i recently had surgery for a belly button hernia... not a big deal.  it was very tiny but i felt it as if it was huge.

[mommy620]

A related discussion, belly button pain was started.