Dry throat??

reachme,

It's funny how you mention that Nexium might have made your throat dry.  Because I have been taking prevacid, twice a day, for ages now.

Do you think that it might be the cause of my dryness?

Also, do you think there's a way to get my throat back to normal??

I think it's quite odd that the GI doctor wouldn't know that the prevacid is causing this!!  She seems to only be able to understand things that she, herself has experienced!!

Like when I told her that my tongue was so, so hurt when I eat salty foods especially, she said that she gets redness on the corners of her mouth when she eats salty things, too.  That is NOT what I meant!!  When I was younger and healthy as can be, I would get those sores, too when I'd eat salty foods.  That is NOTHING compared to what I have now!!  I showed a PCP the lesions on my tongue and she said it looked HORRENDOUS!  The GI should know better than to just try to relate everything to her own experience!!

marthamae, thanks for that great explanation.

Oh yeah, I definitely have food getting stuck when I eat meats especially.  And, you're right it's painful.  I am definitely getting things stuck.

I am confused, if the dry throat is from the acid, then why is my throat still so, so dry after a year of PPIs and relaxation techniques?  Mine is no worse if I'm stressed.  It's always there.

I've been told to take iron now for an iron deficiency.  But I just read that you shouldn't take prevacid when you take iron.  so I've been thinking of getting off of the PPI altogether and just going to a nutritionist.

I have extremely bad gerd.  but the PPIs don't help, anyway!

A dry mouth and throat was my first symptom of GERD. I took a sip of a drink and choked because I couldn't swallow properly. My tongue felt like it was huge! I was prescribed artificial saliva but it didn't help. Tests showed that my throat has been damaged by the acid and I have a motility problem with the middle section of my oesophagus. I also have the lump in the throat feeling all the time. I tried all the different PPIs out there but was allergic to most. I am taking Rabeprozole at the moment and have noticed that with a higher dosage (GP prescribed 3 a day) the lump in the throat feeling is slightly better. As regards doctors I found that the only person who knows exactly what I am talking about is my surgeon (due to have surgery soon). Even the consultant doesn't understand a lot of my symptoms.

Let us know how you get on and don't give up on finding an answer!

Hi friendlygal. Sorry, I forgot to say that since I have been on the higher dosage and kept at it for a few months the dryness has more or less disappeared. I am watching what I eat, so I never eat large meals and never anything spicy or any of the trigger foods. It's really boring but I feel much better for it. You can get so run down if GERD isn't treated properly. I had bleeding gums and was so dizzy I couldn't stand up, along with asthma! (which I have never had in my life before and
was so severe I couldn't walk more than 30 feet).

I'm not sure how your system works in the US (are you in the USA?) We have GP, consultant and then surgeon. Is your GI like our consultant?

Hi friendlygal! I am in the UK. The acid is what has given me the problem with the motility and when I take high doses of PPIs the motility gets better. My surgeon has warned me that I will probably have some difficulty with the swallowing after the operation and that it will take me longer than others to get back onto "proper" food but I am prepared to put up with that.

Don't talk to me about antibiotics! I wonder if that is what started my GERD in the first place! I was taking some for a bladder infection and 4 days into the course I couldn't swallow and that is when it all began.

I am sorry you are feeling so unwell. It's horrid! I hope you get your aches and pains sorted out soon. You don't need that on top of your GERD!

When I first started feeling ill and right up to about 6 months ago I had a lot of joint pain. I still have some now but nowhere near as bad. I don't suppose it is connected to the GERD is it?

jen123, do you feel much better at least now that your throat isn't dry?  What do you mean by prevacid 60 mg?  Are you taking two pills at once or is there a prevacid that is 60 mg?

Thanks in advance, friendlygal

Oh no, I take prevacid twice a day and have mega symtoms still.  It sounds like I have it much worse than you because I have the lump in my throat and dryness all the time, even on prevacid twice a day.

I thought you meant you took 60 mg together.  So I decided to take two of them together, thinking that you did that..

jen123, I have been taking prevacid TWICE a day for a year now with ABSOLUTELY no relief!  I have also tried taking protonix, aciphex, nexium, zegerid, you name it!  And NOTHING helped...

So if you are saying that two at once doesn't help any, then maybe I need to take 3 tablets a day or something!!  All I know is that my GERD is so, so bad and PH-studies confirmed this!!

Have any of you ever strayed from the path of acid reducing meds, and tried the opposite? Or even natural alternatives? I know to modern America, alot of that sounds like hocus-pocus, and believe me, before I came down with terrible acid reflux, I was just as quick to disagree with alternative views.

I used to smoke regularly, drink at least 4 cans of pop a day. Eat pure garbage in the form of fast food and candy and sugar. One day I woke up, couldn't taste with the tip of my tongue and had oral thrush. The doctors then did necessary blood work to rule out any serious conditions. Then I lost feeling in my tongue, had a constant sore throat and sores on my tongue. ALthough the thrush was cured, I still had a very rough,dry, tongue, covered in white. At this point I returned to the doctor a few times. The first time, I decided to stop the soda and smoking. Although it helped, it still was terrible. This was before any heartburn had been experienced, but for some reason, I ate an antacid one day and my tongue magically began tasting again. I returned to the doctor where I was prescribed Nexium. In the weeks to follow, the Nexium did not accomplish much. It actually made things worse. At this point, I self diagnosed with hydrochlorydria, or lack of stomach acid. This in turn leading to indigestion, which led to heartburn. And I was right! I began taking ACV to aid in digestion and this seemed to help, but not in the long term. I also seeked out chiropractic treatment, as the Vagus nerve is sometimes pinched in the spine and responsible for gastric issues. This was probably the defining moment in my road to recovery. The instant I was adjusted, my stomach jump started and began emptying and churning. A wave of relief swept over me. I since then have began taking digestive enzymes, acidophilus, licorice root, ginger and slippery elm. The licorice and slippery elm aid in healing the damage to the stomach and esophogus, the digestive and acidophilus help to promote a healthy acid level in the stomach and the ginger will empty your stomach during a bought of indigestion. And taking a multivitamin also help the healing and recovery. I say none of this lightly, It has worked wonders. Although tedious and sounds like a lot of maintenance, my body feels almost like it did before the reflux ever crept up on me. (after four months, it is much welcomed and most of the pills effects were apparent on the hour of taking them!) I still occasionally eat junk food, but stick mainly to healthier choices. I drink more water than ever before and most pops taste disgusting to me now. Also, quit smoking!

Basically, your body needs acid to absorb nutrients and if you ever plan on not having dyspepsia, your body needs to absorb calcium, magnesium and B vitamins especially. I am pretty sure I was left with some ulcer or at least severe irritation that will take some maintaining my regimend, but I can feel it working. I just hope this helps someone, anyone!