Fibroid Belly Bulge & Weight Gain Pictures

When fibroids grow, the uterus must grow to accommodate it. When fibroids reach a substantial size, they begin to expand outward and into other organ systems in the pelvis and the abdomen, causing the lower stomach to distend. This is the fibroid belly bulge that sometimes can be seen. Fibroids can impede on the gastrointestinal system and the urinary system, causing bloating, pelvic pressure, and general discomfort.

When affected by fibroids, the size of the uterus is often talked about in the same way that a physician would talk about the size of a pregnant uterus. A 20 centimeter fibroid causes the uterus to expand to the size of a 4-week pregnant uterus, which is approximately normal sized, while a 60 centimeter fibroid causes the uterus to expand to the size of a 12-week pregnant uterus, which is about the size of a grapefruit and quite abnormal outside of a healthy pregnancy. This is a useful reference because the expanded fibroid uterus occupies the lower abdomen in the same way that the pregnant uterus does, and therefore can result in similar body changes to a pregnancy.

Our collection of fibroid belly pictures shows some of the body changes, belly bulge, & weight gain that can occur as fibroids grow from smallest to largest. It is quite rare that fibroids get so large that they appear as a mid-term (or later) pregnancy. While social media has made it easier to find fibroid belly pictures and experiences of women that have had to deal with massive fibroids, more often fibroid growth is limited to the size of a very early pregnancy, so it’s more common for the expanded uterus to be obscured by normal belly fat rather than “showing” fibroids.

The fibroid belly bulge is caused by an enlarged uterus, which is caused by growing uterine fibroids within the uterus. Therefore, anything that causes fibroids to grow can lead to a visible stomach fibroid belly bulge.

By age 50 the majority of women in the world have fibroids, but many of those fibroids are microscopic and asymptomatic. Why do some women with fibroids have exceptionally large and aggressive fibroids while the vast majority of fibroids stop growing before they become a serious problem? This is difficult to answer. We know that genetics, hormones, diet, age, and other risk factors can have an impact on the rate of fibroid growth. We also know that fibroids tend to be substantially more common, more numerous, more severe, and larger in African American women than in other ethnicities.

Uterus fibroid belly can be treated by removing your fibroids with a surgical approach or by shrinking your fibroids with non-surgical uterine artery embolization.

• Hysterectomy – Invasive surgical procedure to completely remove the uterus, removing the fibroids with it.
• Myomectomy – Invasive surgical procedure to remove the fibroids while leaving the uterus intact.
• Uterine Artery Embolization – Non-invasive procedure to inject particles into the blood supply of the uterine fibroids, causing them to starve and shrink to asymptomatic sizes.

Depending on the makeup of your fibroids and your treatment goals, one type of treatment may be the clear best choice for you. Hysterectomy can be ideal if you’re done having children and want a permanent solution to fibroids, whereas myomectomy and uterine artery embolization are uterus-sparing, meaning that your uterus will remain intact after the procedure and there’s a chance that you can have children again in the future. The downside of these two treatments is that fibroids can come back, and they may not be ideal if you have several fibroids occupying your uterus. Uterine artery embolization has the distinct advantage of being the least invasive treatment approach, requiring the shortest downtime so you can get out of recovery and back to your life as quickly as possible.

We’re here to help you reverse your fibroid belly bulge and weight gain caused by fibroids. Get in touch with us at ProFibroidMD in the greater Los Angeles area to learn more about your options when it comes to fibroid care.