Prescribed Carafate (Sucralfate)???

Hey everyone. I was prescribed Carafate (Sucralfate) 1gm yesterday. Does anyone have any experience with it or know anything about it.

Does it work well have u had it before

Ok thanks I have it for 4 times a day too I also have a hiatal hernia with gerds

does it work well for u

Thanks im taking it every 6 hours. with the 2 hours before and after. it leaves a really small window to eat in. but as long as it helps

I am taking liquid carafate. Did you know carrageenan, a common food additive, causes gastric problems? McDonald's uses it in milk shakes. Baskin and Robbins ice cream too. Check the labels on the ice cream in stores. I forgot and had some ice cream with the additive and my stomach is bubbling.

FC

@FC is the meds helping u much. I did check the blue bell ice cream we have here my eats it every night. thanks for that added it

@Meka yeah I used to just dissolve my tablets in a bit of water tastes kinda chalky though. Can't say they did much for me last time I took them so maybe I need to give them longer to work.

Hi Meka,

I'm a big advocate for Carafate.  I have a reactive stomach, and the Carafate really helps.  I had the Nissen fundoplication surgery, and since the wrap is made from my reactive stomach, it can get irritated/reactive every so often.  The Carafate coats and protects and gets things healed quickly.

I always have Carafate suspension (liquid) on hand, just in case.  If you're having esophageal irritation as well as stomach irritation, the liquid is the best.  Before my surgery, when I'd get gastritis, my esophagus would get irritated as well.  The Carafate coats the esophagus and protects it, allowing it to heal more quickly.

If you have the tablet form, put it into a medicine cup or shot glass, add a little water, and stir it with a  toothpick.  Then "throw it back" like a shot, to bypass your mouth as much as possible.  That way, the medication can coat your esophagus as well as your stomach. 

It is a big tablet.  Even if your esophagus isn't irritated, follow that direction, but you can drink some water afterward to ensure that everything makes it into your stomach. 

It works amazingly well for me.  I remember once I was having terrible stomach pain, and I suddenly remembered I had some Carafate tablets.  I liquefied  one, took it, and had immediate relief.  The suspension (liquid) version is best, though, if you can get it.  It is very expensive, so it requires good prescription coverage.

It takes a lot of patience to heal gastritis.  At its worst, it would take me at least a couple of months and the loss of 20 pounds in the process.  Be sure to eat a bland diet...no acidic foods, spice, or alcohol.  Stay away from rough foods like popcorn.  your stomach mashes foods as part of the digestive process, and if you've got an irritated stomach lining, you won't want it getting scratched in any way.

My GI doc told me to baby my stomach until it has been "perfect" for two weeks. Then I can try introducing more challenging foods back into my diet.

Hang in there, and best wishes!

Denise

Hi Albez,

The Carafate helps heal an irritated stomach, but once things feel fine, I eat anything I like.  For the first couple of years post-Nissen, I'd irritate my wrap if I ate a large amount of salad, or other rough foods that can't be completely chewed.  It worked well for that type of irritation as well, which only ever lasted a few days.

Certain antibiotics kill my stomach.  Also, too much coffee or wine (beer is fine).  This is the thing, though...when my stomach gets REALLY bad now, I take a PPI to reduce the acid assault on the stomach lining, and take Carafate as well.  It is very rare, but it clears up much more quickly than it did pre-Nissen.

Before my surgery, gastritis would bubble acid up into my esophagitis, and the esophagitis was excruciating.  I couldn't eat any normal food without pain.  I lived on egg custard.  That's when I'd end up with a flare that lasted months.

Another thing I'd like to mention is that now that you're wrapped, it's unlikely that you'll get rebound when stopping a PPI.  I had a 24hr PH monitor/wire placed a couple years ago on the request of my asthma/allergy doc (it proved the wrap was working fine, which I knew).  I went off the PPIs for a week, and had absolutely no pain/reflux associated with that--very unlike my pre-Nissen experience.  I guess I'm mentioning this so you know that a temporary use of PPIs for gastritis will not lead to the same horrific rebound problems you had previously.

Yes, if I get a minor irritation issue, I treat it will just Carafate suspension.  Given a few days, it generally clears right up.  I should tell you that I take 40mg Protonix an hour before dinner always.  My allergy/asthma doc wants to make sure that no errant reflux (and there can be some reflux post-Nissen...just much less--if the surgeon brought reflux to zero, you wouldn't be able to swallow food or liquid)makes it to my lungs. 

My Nissen was necessitated by severe lung involvement/uncontrollable asthma.  When my reactive stomach has a more severe irritation, I just add another PPI dose in the AM.  The addition of the PPI really makes a difference, and my stomach feels better almost immediately. 

One other thing.  I've found that if I get mild nausea, Zantac can really help get it better.  I guess I've discovered that in my case, at least, nausea can be caused by an irritated stomach lining, and the Zantac helps calm it down.  If you're totally refusing to use a PPI, 300mg Zantac/Ranitidine would be helpful, I'm sure.

As far as my Nissen, though...bottom line is that it has solved the problem.  I have allergies/asthma, so I still can get pollen issues, but my condition is now completely controllable.  Prior to my Nissen, my lungs were a mess.  My PCP said my condition was life-threatening.  I'm so happy with the results of my surgery! I have my life back.

Good luck with your stomach issues.  Don't be afraid to use meds to help yourself along.  Hang in there!

Best wishes,

Denise 

Meka,

How big is your Hiatal Hernia? Is it sliding or paraesophageal?

FC

I just pulled myself off Carafate (liquid
suspension founded 1981) after 7 days. It worked on ulcers and hiatal hernia discomfort pretty much 1st day! But towards the end of the 1st week, I could handle flatulence, mild headache but the nausea got too much for me..woke up day 7 and almost went to ER for fear of passing out from nausea. I am amazed that every medical study you read its always "It only has effect 1 or 2% of users", lol. The Pharmacists/Doctors all say no its good... I am getting to the point where one can not have faith in our U>S> FDA. I think Big Pharma and Corporate money is coming into play. But I called the Doc..they said stop using CARAFATE granted i would trust the older more reliable medicines. come day 3 I wanted to start back but after eating breakfast and towards noon the nausea wont go away..today is day 4 off and its back again. I can t imagine if i was to stay on it for 6 months like i read with some folks..it full of aluminum..that cant be good long term. BUT Stomach problem folks on this Journey and after many trips to ER abdominal pain, 4 in the last 6 weeks..i started looking at foods i was eating , never had food issues my whole life (age 56,male). I started eat small portions and separating food types for meal (dairy , grains ..sugar fruit etc) what I found was i would bloat up, usual get palps or A-fib for the last 8 years after eating, it was Popcorn on night at home , home made all the time with olive oil and sea salt. Eureka the bloat started about 20 -30 minutes later..which led me to wheat flour, corn flour, fillers in ALL foods, anything sweetener made with corn...then started to do research on GMO, Mansanto Corp.and how corn crops are no the crops our folks grew up with. Order net-flicks or rent "Food Inc" from 2009..I just saw it this week...your head will spin on our food issues and illnesses. But all in all ..Doc appts coming up and cant wait to tell them .."I" finally figured this out after always getting bottles of pills to take and Medical Shrugged shoulders from the establishment of health! My abdomen feels soo much better eating and cooking good veggie, some meats, buy more organic for dairy , meat when we can. Stopped sugar along with all flours..after a few days feel light , non fogged, better stools..no pain! go bless ya kids. ps..also had issues over the years with NEXIUM, Prilosec..those things are not good for you people.your body needs that acid to make good tissue bones and brain..don't stay on them more than 4-8 weeks! learn to eat better..its not that much work. if they would only tell us how to eat instead of pushing pills for big pharma. Put a fork in me..I'm done.