'flipping' organs!!

[chelseamorning]

Now you're probably thinking I'm off my rocker here but bear with me!

My DS is 3. Since I gave birth, I sometimes get a weird sensation in my chest/stomach which when I bend right over. The only way to describe it is that it feels like an organ or something is 'flipping'. It takes my breath away and I have to stand up carefully. Then I feel it 'flip' back into place. Usually there are no other after effects. Sometimes it leaves me a tiny bit tender in the area for a day or so.

Please, is there anyone else who has this sensation???!!!

Hello,

This happens to me all the time! My children are 6 and 9. Its like an organ gets pushed up when you bend over and then when you stetch out it pops back into place, Its very uncomfortable for me and I have to hold my breath until it goes back into place

This happens to me still! My kids are 10, 7 and 3. My doctor said maybe some kind of hernia that pops in and out, but we have done every test under the sun with no results.

it feels very physical as opposed to some kind of swelling/inflammation. I am convinced some organ is getting caught somewhere, almost as if my organs didn’t get properly placed in their original places after pregnancy.

Ex-nurse here. I've had several experiences of waking up when turning onto my side in bed due to a sharp pain between my ribs that feels as though something has got stuck - it's really sharp and causes me to gasp in pain. Stretching out my side helps it to ease, but the first few times it happened I really thought I'd done something horrible!

The diagnosis (had scans etc) was precordial catch, as mentioned upthread. In line with PPs, the lower my weight, the less often it happens.

Hi, I’ve been Googling this forever, so this might be tmi 😜 my youngest is 8 delivered by c sec, i also experienced this but could never find anything about it, I too went to Gp and kinda got a weird look and was told to try working on my abs which I didn’t 😳 but it has definitely improved ie cutting toe nails bending down to tie shoes, but here is what brings me back to searching the net, so for the past couple of years sometimes during orgasm I get it, not every time and it could be due to position but I would love to know if anyone knows what it is, I’m certain it’s from either pregnancy or c sec, i had two c secs & also had 3 babies very close, aged 11,10 & 8 looking forward to some answers tia x

JMummy….same…happens at the most inopportune times. Haha But I didn’t have a C section and my last birth was 24 years before this started happening.

My newest theory is “sticky fascia”. Has anybody checked into this? I went to an Active Release guy and he thought he might be able to help but then I moved and haven’t found a new person.

Lately it’s been happening back to back…like as soon as I get it to stop it comes right back out. My husband stood behind me and helped me “push” it back down and in….if that makes sense. (If it doesn’t we probably aren’t having the same issue) Extremely painful when it repeatedly happens.

I have never had a child before and it happens to me all the time. Every time I bend down I feel like something bent inside of me and it goes back into place after a few minutes while I’m standing up. I told my doctor about it and he looked at me like I was crazy.

Just noticed the recent messages and although not pleased people suffer, I’m glad it’s fairly ‘common’ people are still commenting! Mine feels like cramp in an organ or my stomach when I bend over to tie shoes or something. I have to stand up straight and push the area. It’s so weird and suddenly came on about summer 2020. It was less painful back then and more shocking, as it felt like an organ had flipped over but not it’s a cramp pain. I’ve had two children naturally. Eldest is 4.

Has anybody seen a doctor and found out what the problem is? Please let me know because this is very depressing, having to bend down and feeling the pain thank you.

It's definitely scary, but I would describe mine as painful most of the time. Sometimes it just feels like "omg what is happening," but most of the time it feels like something is twisted wrong and it hurts. That's the best way I can describe mine. Although as I posted a while back, mine went away for about a year, then came back suddenly. It's not as bad as it was, but it's still usually painful (but not AS painful as it was before.) One thing I've noticed too is that if I'm lying flat on my back and stretch my arms up & behind me as far as possible, I get the flipping organ feeling too. (Also get a horrible cramp in my stomach and back but it's a completely diff spot.)

@Andrea31818 I have chased this thing for years, now. I have gone through rounds of imaging and physical exams with nothing found. My PCP said she assumes it’s some kind of hernia that comes and goes but unless it is caught while happening it doesn’t appear on any imaging.

I have started doing yoga and strengthening my abdominal muscles and have noticed it happening far less. In my case, I believe strengthening the core is helping to prevent whatever is happening from happening.

Thank you so much for your reply A Grady I will try the yoga myself and see if it works. I really appreciate your reply. I will let you know how it works for me. Thanks again.

https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/320417
I have the same issue. It's irritating and annoying day to day.
It's called Slipping Rib Syndrome.
Here's a safe link to some info on the condition if anyone is interested 😊
Good luck and I hope you find this helpful too.

i have self diagnosed this myself! Did you get an official diagnosis? I find it strange when I went to the GP she was clueless. This has to be a common enough side effect from pregnancy surely? It’s so frustrating that women are left so uncared for after the birth of a child. I can no longer enjoy yoga after my first pregnancy, if I do any sort of extended bend it slips and I’m in agony

Now this is interesting thanks for the article. I’ve been through a series of tests including an endoscopy, a colonoscopy and ultrasound scan of my abdomen. I was so scared there was something sinister! All tests were clear. But the symptoms of slipped rib syndrome match in many ways, not completely but I expect mine isn’t as severe as others. It’s not excruciating, just annoying and I don’t like living with unexplained pain, in case it’s a sign of something more serious. Mine started as a weird feeling under my left rib mid-2020. I’ve had two babies, last one in 2018. It just felt odd and as if something was ‘flipping’ but not pain. It then morphed into low level pain which I thought was connected to my digestive system somehow, hence the tests. The only way I can describe it now is pain that comes and goes but I can’t bend down in certain ways, to tie shoe laces or stuff like that, without it giving me quite a severe cramp-like pain. I have to get bolt upright quickly and stretch a bit, massage it a bit, as if to release something that’s trapped. I’ve therefore been pondering whether it’s muscular in nature and was about to embark on more research. I’m thinking now this sounds like the ribs slipping and pinching muscle?

I have the same feeling at times it is upper under breast bone or under mid rib cage when I bend over or twist to the side and it is the large intestine it twists and flips back in place . Check for a hernia

I think I have solved it (this horrid flipping organ sensation, which I've suffered from continually since I have my two children). This to me really sounds like what I have https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&source=web&rct=j&opi=89978449&url=www.med.unc.edu/ibs/wp-content/uploads/sites/450/2017/10/Chronic-Abdominal-Pain.pdf&ved=2ahUKEwittO_EuNKDAxU_TkEAHZlGAtI4ChAWegQIDhAB&usg=AOvVaw1AUY8MNjOz2XCk5SpACHNS

This is interesting but doesn’t sound exactly what I experience. My pain feels more like a physical movement of something interior (muscle or organ) which causes a sharp pain and then goes away as soon as I switch position. Sometimes a dull ache remains.

Is your pain observed in the skin, and constant? Curious how it differs. This is interesting, indeed!

Mine isn't constant. It happens when I bend forward deeply sometimes, in yoga or to reach down to the floor for example. And yes, it feels as if I have some kind of organ pushing out of my abdomen just below my ribs. It's excruciatingly uncomfortable but then the spasm stops after say 20 seconds. It happens once every few months.

Thank you for the info I just read it.

Yes same, every few weeks. If I’m laying on the couch and reach up to grab and over my feet to reach for something. It also happened the other day when I sat down with my 4 year old to go down a slide. I almost can anticipate it and push it back down before it happens. I feel like there’s a gap in my abdominal wall that is position dépendant which lets something through. It is definitely not just a nerve ending, in my opinion, feels like a physical malfunction, lol.

Note - I have three kids. It happened after my son who was bigger and happened to always be stuck up in the top of my rib cage. I remember sitting and driving near tears. It feels like he did some rearranging and never put things back in order before evacuating ;)

Yes! This is totally the same feeling I have! I had a procedure done the other day with a gastroenterologist and told him about it. He said it sounded to him as if I had separation in the abdominal wall still. I knew I had separation soon after the children's birds I hadn't realized I still would have it six years on!

For a while I thought I was dying so it is nice to know I’m still alive and well (except in 20 second increments when sitting) 5-7 years after my first post! I’m not sure what the solution is, if anything. When I mentioned it to my OBGYN she said “oh that is just one of those weird things that happens to some of us after pregnancy” so it sounds like she has heard of it too. Let me know if you find a solution! Abdominal workouts?

I suspect so! There are such things I believe as postnatal physiotherapists, so I may try to book in with one even though my children are 6 and 9!

Hello Everyone,
Wow! What a weird thing we are all going through. The "flipping organ" sensation happened to me the first time 30 years ago after giving birth to my first child. Since then, it has happened a number of times over the years. It is a very uncomfortable feeling like an organ moves up under my ribs, gets stuck there, and I have to get down on my hands and knees and relax so it goes back into place. And yes, it feels like I'm going to die if I don't fix it. I still do not know exactly what is causing this, but I recently came across some new information.

During pregnancy, the abdominal wall stretches to make room for the growing baby. The abdominal muscles have a line running right down the center called the Linea Alba. This connective tissue is made of Collagen. After pregnancy, it usually shrinks and goes back to normal. For some women, it takes longer, and for other women, it may never heal completely!

I am 55 years old now and post-menopausal. I know that my estrogen levels have dropped significantly and so has the production of Collagen! The Linea Alba is made of Collagen. It would logically make sense that this could be part of the problem. A separated Linea Alba can allow organs to actually move out of place and cause gastrointestinal issues.

At the end of 2022, I had another organ flipping experience where I leaned over and an organ or something got stuck under my ribs. It was awful. I got it to go back into place, but I think it was injured. I've been kind of sore in that area since then (just over a year ago).

What I am experiencing now is a tenderness/soreness in my upper abdomen about two inches up from the belly button. I feel a pinching sensation in a vertical line, right down the center of my abs. There is also sometimes the feeling of a lump under the skin and I wonder if it could be a small hernia (under the muscle) popping through that possible separation in the Linea Alba.

I may have also strained this area by doing sit-ups during my workout. My abs are in good shape, but I feel like they are not holding together correctly in that upper abdominal area. I think there is a thinning of the Linea Alba and I feel it more when I pick up something heavy or bend over (to tie my shoes or just to bend over the sink while I'm brushing my teeth).

I feel like I need to put my hand there to give it some support. Wearing a supportive belt around my midsection also helps. So, I recently decided to STOP doing regular sit-ups and other exercises that are irritating that area. I am also not lifting anything heavy. When I eat, I sit up straight and do not slouch over. I also do not over-eat, because this seems to add to the stress.

Within a three-week period, I have managed to relieve the stress in my upper abdomen. There is no more painful pinching feeling or pinpoints of pain. So, I think once I am feeling more confident about it, I will do physical exercises that help to strengthen my abdominal muscles and repair the weakened Linea Alba.

I still don't know what the "organ flipping" is exactly, but I think we are getting closer to narrowing it down. I am disappointed in doctors' general knowledge. I have learned to keep myself in good health as much as possible and always do my own research when it comes to health. So I will continue to eat a good healthy diet and avoid moving in ways that cause me discomfort.

The Linea Alba can get weakened in anyone, man or woman. Many people seem to injure it by going overboard with their physical exercise routine and lifting weights. And it totally makes sense to me that older women, after menopause, may experience a weakened Linea Alba due to the natural lack of estrogen and Collagen!

Here is a link to more information about the Linea Alba and how you can self-diagnose to see if that might be an issue for you. A weakened Linea Alba can also lead to what is called a "Diastasis Recti." This website and video explains:
Linea Alba and Diastasis Recti

Good Luck to you all, I hope this information helps you figure it out. : )

Just wanted to add to this thread - me too! Ultrasound said my linea alba is fine though. I first started getting the sensation from bending over 3 years ago after I gave birth to my daughter. Still there. I also have tenderness when touching ribs. My flipping sensation is right in the centre of my chest beneath/slightly underneath my ribcage, but other than that exactly the same as OP and others. In addition, after the pain subsides that evening I tend to have a bit of gastric symptoms, burping for instance. At times it’s just a funny pulling feeling in centre of chest particularly when sat a little slumped. I’m so glad to have found this post. Doctor seems flummoxed. I’m a little relieved reading all of this but going to push for MRI anyway as would be good to know nothing sinister going on before ivf next year.