Is your stomach always upset after the holidays? Does it feel like your tummy is punishing you with “payback time” for all the holiday eating and drinking you did?
After a season full of eating fatty meals, sweet treats, and rich desserts, your stomach may give you annoying symptoms that seem to last forever. The symptoms usually include abdominal pain, nausea, gas, bloating, and even vomiting. Plus, the stomach flu is also in season during the holidays, which doesn’t help matters.
If you’re ending the holiday season with a barrage of stomach issues, you could benefit from seeing a wellness specialist. Let’s talk about the things that can aggravate an angry stomach after the holidays and how you can avoid it from now on.
Causes of a Stomach Ache After the Holidays
There are several main factors that contribute to chronic stomach pains after the holiday season is over, particularly the following:
Overeating
Everyone overeats during the holidays, but not everyone has persistent stomach aches afterwards – so those of us who do have this issue tend to look for another explanation. But the fact is, if your stomach is sensitive to overeating and large meals, your tummy is still getting over it.
The good news is that once you resume normal eating habits, the symptoms should go away. However, if your stomach issues are recurring even though you are eating normally, there may be another underlying problem. Tests can determine what the issue may be, such as a food intolerance or food allergy.
Stomach Flu
The stomach flu (gastroenteritis) is also in season during the holidays, and this bug is usually caused by a stomach virus that is highly contagious. If you do get the stomach flu, you will experience fatigue, diarrhea, and vomiting.
Being viral in nature, it cannot be treated with antibiotics. The best things that you can do are to rest, drink plenty of fluids, and have soup and soft foods to help your stomach rest. Don’t take ibuprofen, and ask your doctor before taking any other over-the-counter pain relievers.
Change in Diet
The holidays are also a time of travel for many people, where you’ll be eating foods that are different than what you normally eat at home. Introducing new foods to your stomach can cause a painful or sickening reaction. Foreign foods may be difficult to digest and cause a host of uncomfortable symptoms.
People with IBS or food intolerances are the top sufferers of angry stomach during the holiday season. If this describes you, it pays to know what foods you are allergic to in order to prevent stomach issues. There are functional tests such as the Adrenal Stress Index Panel to determine gastrointestinal problems you may have.
Digestive Health Expert in Weatherford, Texas
If you want to avoid stomach issues after the holidays, the AlphaCare Wellness Center provides full-service wellness care services to address your issues holistically – so you can prevent future digestive issues rather than always having to treat them after they’ve already made you feel miserable. We specialize in functional testing to get a better understanding of what’s causing your symptoms, and we can create customized solutions just for you.
To know more about our integrative services, call AlphaCare Wellness Center today at (817) 550-6332 or request a consultation now via our online form. Dr. Catherine Oseni looks forward to helping you improve your well-being and get you back to enjoying the holidays!
