I've had a cough for about a week, but today I coughed so hard I got a terrible stabbing pain in my the middle of my stomach all the way down to my groin. He pain went away after about a minute, but it still kind of hurts when I pee or sit down and lean over. Is there any chance at all I could've done something by coughing ?
Maybe you pulled a muscle. I have a cough and have pulled stomach muscles. Give it a week and if the pain continues, see your doctor.
Being post whooping cough with months of coughing,
I can tell you, yes, you can hurt yourself by coughing, but pain does not necessarily mean, it is sinister and needs surgery.
The belly would hurt very much at each cough and pressure like being inflammed and sick of the constant intraabdominal pressure bouts.
No hernia though (which one could get from hard long coughing)
Also I got a pleurisy, that hurt and burnt the rip cage like mad on each tiny cough, again nothing could be done and I did not rupture anything despite the sharp pain. It was simply inflammed, but not ruptured.
If you are concerned, you can get your doc to check for a hernia,
but it is normal too on hefty coughing to either vomit or get abdominal stings with each cough.
Take care!
You can also brace your abdomen upon coughing with one arm to protect it a bit (the other one you need for tissue or elbow cough still, smile).
There are 3 classes of strains, only the last one is hernia, all of them hurt.
I copy and paste a part from myguidlines dot c o m.
'Abdominal muscle strain occurs when muscles of the abdominal wall are stretched or torn as a result of forceful activity.
Abdominal wall muscles include the rectus abdominis, external and internal obliques, and the transversus abdominis.
Most abdominal strains affect the rectus abdominis muscle that runs down the middle of the abdomen from the ribs to the pelvis.
Muscle strains are classified as first-, second-, or third-degree (mild, moderate, or severe, respectively).
In a first-degree strain, the muscle is stretched but not torn.
A second-degree strain is a partial muscle tear resulting from more forceful stretching.
In third-degree strains, a complete tear or rupture of the muscle has occurred, often at the muscle-tendon junction (musculotendinous or myotendinous junction). A tear through the muscle and the abdominal wall covering (fascia) may result in protrusion of the intestines and connective tissue through the tear (hernia).
Bleeding may occur within the site of muscle injury.
In the workplace, abdominal muscle strains are most often the result of heavy lifting or sudden twisting. However, any sudden and forceful activity can stretch abdominal muscles, including vigorous or prolonged coughing or sneezing. Abdominal muscles may be stretched or torn when an overweight or deconditioned individual exercises too forcefully. Athletic activities such as weightlifting, pole-vaulting, sit-ups, skating, hockey, and breaststroke swimming are common causes of abdominal strain. '