I think I might be nuts

Last night, I went to bed with a stomachache. It's a horrible stomachache that I have had on and off since... well, the first one I clearly remember was when I was about 11 or 12. I was in the car with my mom and our neighbor, Miss Elsie, going to a dance recital (not mine) to see Miss Elsie's daughter (Debbie) perform. Debbie was my dance instructor and was performing as a "feature dancer" for her former instructor (it's a southern thing).

ANYWAY, I clearly remember having "the stomachache" in the car on the way to the recital and I clearly remember squirming in my seat all night, trying to get comfortable. So the stomachache and I, we go way back.

The pain is intense, but it GOES COMPLETELY AWAY if I can find a comfortable position to lay in, which is generally on my side, somewhat fetal. If I stay that way for a while, that's usually the end of it.

I was diagnosed with IBS about a million years ago, which, not to disparage IBS sufferers, but I think my doctor used it as a general catchall for "stomach hurts, don't know why." This was pre-IBS medication and I have never really followed up on trying to learn more about the problem or the solution because it happens pretty infrequently (less than once a month) and goes away without treatment if I just ride it out.

Last night, I was laying in bed thinking about the stomachache and our long-term relationship and making a mental list of everything that I ate yesterday, looking for a culprit, when I remembered reading a blog post yesterday. By someone with a stomachache. A really severe stomachache that eventually she went to an urgent care clinic for. And it made me stop and think. Am I actually fucked up enough that I got a stomachache by reading about a stomachache? God, I hope not.