You are a sane individual; you have just been told you have an ulcer. Jumping for joy? I thought not! Ulcers are a painful introduction to one's life and will require huge changes in lifestyle to reduce the pain and alleviate the condition. Of course, this is only of any worth, if the patient knows that they have an ulcer, if he / she is unaware as to how to recognize the symptoms of a gastric ulcer then the condition will only get a lot worse.
Abdominal pain is usually the most common symptom that an ulcer may be present. The pain can last a long time, sometimes up to several hours, or it could only appear as a stabbing pain and disappear as quickly as it arrived. Being a gastric ulcer, meaning it is of the stomach, it is most likely to rear it's painful head during or just after eating.
The other symptom to watch for is the most alarming situation of internal bleeding. This bleeding will normally make itself identical in stools. This is not always the case however, and the ulcer could cause internal bleeding which goes un-noticed for a long period of time. Jerry Lewis learned that he had internal bleeding for a very long time going completely un-noticed. However, the painkillers he was taking had suppressed all other symptoms of his gastric ulcer, which I'm sure didnt help the situation!
If a patient starts to notice such symptoms, do not hesitate to seek medical attention, it is much better to seek advise and catch a condition early than it is to sit on it and it be too late. The longer a gastric ulcer is left to develop, the worse it will become and people can end up very poorly indeed. Once any symptoms occur, get them treated straight away and then you can carry on leading a perfectly healthy life.