Most people with appendicitis have classic symptoms that a doctor can easily identify. The main symptom of appendicitis is abdominal pain.  Typically, appendicitis manifests as a bellyache around the belly button in the center of the abdomen. Nausea or vomiting may follow. As appendicitis worsens (usually quickly within the span of several hours), abdominal pain generally moves down and to the right of the belly button

Sometimes the pain caused by appendicitis can become sharp and intense in this area - enough to keep you up at night.  Abdominal pain caused by appendicitis usually:

• Begins near the belly button and then moves down and to the right
• Is new and unlike any pain felt before
• Gets worse within a few hours
• Gets worse when moving around, taking deep breaths, coughing, or sneezing
• Occurs suddenly
• Occurs before other symptoms

In addition to abdominal pain, you may experience one or more of the following appendicitis symptoms. 

• Abdominal swelling
• Constipation or difficulty passing gas
• Diarrhea
• Loss of appetite
• Low-grade fever that starts after other symptoms appear
• Nausea and sometimes vomiting

If you are experiencing abdominal pain, call your doctor and schedule an office visit or go to the emergency room.  An inflamed appendix can rupture and should be treated as a medical emergency.  Even if you suspect a "stomachache" isn't serious, call your doctor just to make sure.  To learn more about confirming an appendicitis diagnosis, look into diagnosing appendicitis.