Simply put, bloating is just excess intestinal gas. The feeling can range from uncomfortable to pretty painful. It usually resolves on its own after a period of time after eating, but if you’ve got something going on with your digestion, it is probably coming back pretty regularly. Most of the time bloating happens because of some sort of dysfunction in the gut, but it can also happen when you have a food sensitivity or intolerance, or for women, around their menstrual cycle.