Hello
First, I would like for you to consider the possibility of an H. Pylori infection in your stomach. This often causes abdominal pain, bloating, burping, even nausea and vomiting. Don't know if you have been tested for this yet or if you have been diagnosed with this in the past, but once you have H. Pylori, you will always test positive for it in the blood (with the H. Pylori blood test). H. Pylori can be detected either by blood or by breath test. Once you are diagnosed, you would take a series of 3-4 different medications....an antibiotic, a stomach protector, and a Proton Pump inhibitor (like Protonix or Prilosec, etc). H. Pylori is sometimes hard to get rid of and like I said, will sometimes come back. Since you are on a H2 antagonist (Tagamet), you will need to tell your Dr that you are taking this over the counter med (in case he/she does not know already) as it can already your test results.
The mention you made of a Peptic ulcer would cause you to notice your symptoms more when you are hungry...as the ulcer would be among a very high acid content in the stomach in the absence of food. (and by the way, H. Pylori is the bacteria that is most often times responsible for the formation of peptic ulcers, so the possibility might exist that you have both).
The hiatal hernia could cause your abdominal soreness if it is large enough. And yes, this can cause bloating, and abdominal pains as well.
I would recommend the tesing for H. Pylori then possible upper Endoscopy to narrow down the cause of your symptoms.
Hope this helps!
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Nurse
17 years exp. in all areas of nursing including emergency medicine, hospital, and private practice.