01 November 2003
I'm a 20 year old female with anorexia. I was born with a hernia which was operated on when I was four. When I came back to start my second year of university I was stressed and vomited quite strenuously a lot. Because I eat basically no fibre, I've had very bad constipation at points too. I now think I may have another hernia as a result of the strain of either vomiting or passing very hard stools. My bowel area look very swollen, right from where my pubic hair stops, to above my navel. At first I thought it was just very bad water retention of some sort. It's upsetting me so much as it looks so awful. It's not yet painful but I'm frightened that, if it IS a hernia, it may become so. My dad has been waiting for two years for a hernia operation and I'm very afraid of having to wait a similar length of time. Does the NHS give priority to young people, or those with very pronounced hernial swelling? I am in the middle of my degree and don't want to have to deal with this as well. Please can you give me some advice?

Response
You should most definitely see your doctor, any abdominal swelling needs assessment. This doesn't sound like a hernia, but could be another swelling in the abdominal cavity such as an ovarian cyst. That could also account for constipation. Make an appointment soon.