Alternatives to PPI's Part 2

Mouche,

I'm happy you had a good day yesterday and hopefully you'll have a good weekend as well. I'm thinking some of these symptoms you are having may be due to the body not getting all the nutrients it needs. Sometimes lacking enough of different nutrients can cause you to get headaches or feel different. I always try to eat a variety of fruits and vegetables to try and prevent a lot of different symptoms from happening. I haven't had any reflux that has woke me up and I couldn't breath but I would assume it is not a pleasant experience.

I had a bit of acid in my throat this morning, but I think that was due to having some pretzels about half an hour from bed. I guess that's what happens when you are holding the bag and giving your kid a few as a snack and then after awhile just decide to eat one, and then another, and another, and so on. Other than that my day has been going good so far. I can't wait until I find a breakfast that I'll be happy with. Still not sure what I want though. I've been having a lot of gas lately, mostly when I eat fruits. I've been taking probiotics in the mornings but we'll see if they are working after a couple weeks of doing that. I might start taking them in the afternoon as well.

Hi Mouche, I hope you are feeling better today and have a better night tonight. This reflux thing is awful with so many different symptoms for everyone. Sometimes it is so hard to try to figure out exactly how one feels and what is wrong. I never feel good when I don't eat as well. I also woke up last night coughing and yes it is a horrible feeling. Lets hope it will all pass eventually and we all get well.

Hi Haleybw2,

I just wanted to stop by and let you know if you'd prefer to go back to your original "handle" "haleybw", according to Peter, it has been unlocked. It's your call. Both names are fine!

Take care,
Denise

Hello everyone!

I am pazshalom and here is my story:

My gastro told me that I have a hiatal hernia.Before  I have had the stomach pains and burping, and feeling of lump in throat, more when I got stressed out, but it went away with some prilosec 20 mg a day for some  time , and it seemed like when the stress went away, the symptoms went away also. Lately, I have had more stress in my life than before, but I did not feel the relux yet, until  one day after eating a very spiced meal, I started to feel the food going up to my throat, burps again,  but now I also have sore throat in the mornings ! before taking the prilosec I woke up one morning having a terrible pain in my throat, like burning, it took several hours to feel better, so I called the gastro.

I called my gastro and he ordered by phone 40 mg omeprazol ER twice a day. I took it for almost 2 months. I noticed less burning in my throat, but it looked very red and with vessels and still was burning. I also had pain in my stomach, maybe more, so after hearing the advise of many to lower the omeprazol dose, I lower it to 20 mg OTC prilosec twice a day. I have been doing this for some days, and seems like my throat is not as bad as with the 40 mg twice a day.  it is still sore more in the mornings and sometimes the lump feeling, but now after lunch it goes away most of the days.( today it did not go away, I think it was because I did not sleep well, and I was stressed out, and I did not relax)  I also have noticed that the more stressed,  the worse it gets. I also read in one post that not sleeping well makes it worst, and I am a living proof of that. When I try to relax, I feel better, not perfect, but better. I have a lot of work to do about this.

 This is my story.

I am so happy to be here. I was feeling so lonely. I have been reading your posts and they are so informative, and the support you give one another is wonderful.  Nobody undestands what we are going thru, only us. All of you are in my prayers. I hope all are feeling better and better. Hugs.

Post Edited (pazshalom) : 5/9/2014 1:15:35 PM (GMT-6)

Thanks pazshalom! Big hugs back at ya! I hope you are doing well today. I am very nervous right now. Tests in another 4 and a half hours or so...

Hi Mouche,

All your symptoms will go away, when you see the beautiful blue ocean. Have a great time, relaxxxxxxxxx, and be happy.
God is in control and everything will be OK.

Send you a big hug!

Mouche said...
Everything will be fine Haley, let us know how everything went if you can, I'm praying for strength and endurance for you. (Hugs)


Welcome again Pazshalom,

My issues also seem to start after spicy meal in Aug 2013, it is so hard not to stress about it and I too know that when I do stress it does effect my symptoms. Some say stress is not a factor but I disagree as there are many of us that are living proof.

I'm glad you're here and I pray it will be as helpful to you as it has been for me.:)

Hi Mouche,

 

Thank you for welcoming me.  This board has helped me a lot, everybody is so nice. I am so happy to be here.

 I think that stress makes everything worst. Have you read about the Parasympathetic  System and our digestive system? 

Everyone is in my prayers. I am thinking to have a post about stress and reflux. Sharing relaxing tips and experiences. What do you think?

Have a god good day Mouche.  May the Lord heal us all.

Dear Mouche,

I agree with you, we are not going to let it take the best out of our day! I am sorry that you are going thru this. I have had biopsies also. All came benign, so it will be yours. Everything is gong to be alright. God is good.

I will pray for you my friend. That causes a lot of stress.
I was going thru some stressful situations when the reflux showed his ugly head. But God will heal us all. This is my prayer. I think I will start the stress post. You can count with my prayers, I know what you are going thru. Send you a big hug.

pazshalom said...
Hayleybw2 said...
Thanks pazshalom! Big hugs back at ya! I hope you are doing well today. I am very nervous right now. Tests in another 4 and a half hours or so...
Hayley,
You have been in my thoughts and prayers. Whenever you can please inform me how things went. I hope all went super. Hugs.

Hi Pazshalom, thanks for thinking of me. I am going to copy and paste what I wrote already about this because I am exhausted having slept 90 minutes last night. But if you don't want to read the whole thing the summary is the manometry was easy for me and the 24 hour impedance test (which I am still undergoing but ready to pull it out soon as I cannot handle the pain anymore) is brutal.

Here is my experience starting yesterday and into this morning:



"
From yesterday afternoon starting at 3 pm...The manometry was easy for me. I was only the esophageal's second patient with this new high def manometer they just got in today and he had the rep in his office and another doctor who wanted to see the new machine in action. The doctor was surprised at how well it went with me (better than his first patient I guess) and he said the 24 hour test would be even easier for me to tolerate. WRONG. I am seriously not sure I can make it through the rest of the day let alone night.

I feel it there in my throat and it is constantly moving like a pressure. SO uncomfortable. I have a high threshold for discomfort but this is too much for me. I am deep breathing and trying to just keep it in but OMG.

I am having trouble even drinking my herbal tea and now I need to look for a straw or something because the tube is jutting out from my nose (where he taped it) and also taped to my cheek around my ear and to my neck. It just feels like it is moving constantly. I don't want to stop now because it will all have been a waste because the 24 hour test is the more important one for me the doctor said. Not sure why but in any case I am just venting because I know you didn't do it so can really offer no advice on what to do to make it more comfortable. I feel like he put it in at a wrong angle or something or is it supposed to feel like this? He told me I would get used to it in around 15 minutes. It's been 90 minutes and no better.

On the positive side I will say this is the first time I got offered a seat on the subway at every train we took on the way home haha. People must look at me and think I have some awful terrible thing wrong with me and are taking pity. I usually would loathe that but now it was welcome because I needed to sit. And on top of it all I am down to 102 lbs at 5'6". Not even sure how that happened because I was trying to eat these last few weeks to try and gain some weight back and now somehow I lost more.

From this morning:

OK I made it through the night. I didn't fall asleep till 2 AM and woke up at 3:30 AM and got up and made some coffee. No way I was going to be able to get back to the fitful sleep I did manage to get anyway.

Awful night. Burning throat, nose sensitivity to tube (feels like it is ripping my insides out). The doctor told us yesterday that I could take it out before I came to his office if I wanted but and he told me to do it around 11AM but I don't think I can manage that much longer. It's amazing I got this far. Awake almost every minute of it save the approximately 90 minutes of fitful sleep I did manage to get.

While I *think* I am glad I managed to get this far (hope pulling it out doesn't cause any internal damage!) I doubt I would repeat this test ever again. The manometry I would repeat no problem but this 24 hour ph impedance test? I don't think so. I wonder why the Bravo wasn't offered as an option and if it is any less difficult than this wired test?

Anyway let's hope that whenever I do pull the tube out I can do so without further damage and that the doctor can get some useful info from the hours I managed to keep it in my nose and throat. Fingers crossed.
"

I'm now back down to 1 pepcid a day that I take at bedtime. I have been doing this for 3 days now and things seem to be back to where they were before I tried to quit completely. I think once I get to that point again I'll just go down to 1 every other day. I also believe that taking the probiotics every morning is helping as I don't seem to be having as much gas, but only time will tell I guess.

Hayley, I am hoping that you'll get some information back with those tests. I haven't had either one done so I couldn't imagine what it must be like. I hope it was worth it though.

Hope everyone has a good mother's day weekend!

Dear Heyley,

I am so proud of you! You have done so well ! I agree with Imilly, drink some Ensure. All is going to be alright. Take it easy. We will be praying.

Javery, Cheers to you! You are doing so well. I will try the probiotics. Are they in a pill form? Keep up the good work!


Imilly, How are you doing? I hope better and better.
I hope that ugly nausea is going, and going , and gone!

I had a bad day yesterday, the throat thing! Besides I did not sleep well, and that makes the symptoms worse. i did not relaxed neither, no deep breaths. I was a mess. Today I went to have breakfast with a friend and she has the throat thing also! We were having the throat thing together.. hahaha. After we ate, it went away. Wants to come back, but I will relax more!

I hope that everybody is having a good good day.

Happy mothers day!


I started the RELAXING Post in the morning. It was coming along so well, and I erased it! going to a web site to put in a link!! I could not beleived it!!! Oh well I will start another soon.

Hugs.

Hi guys, well I did it and I managed my full workout while the tube was still in. I don't think I could ever do that impedance test ever again. It was awful for me. The manometry was a breeze but the impedance torture. And of course my chest squeezing symptom-the one that is the worst symptom for me didn't happen during the whole time I had the tube in but you guessed it. An hour after I dropped the stuff off at the doctor's office the chest squeezing started and it's still going on 2 hours later. :((

Javery, good job with your progress! So you take your probiotic in the AM. I have been taking it in the evening or at lunch-whichever is my biggest meal that day and that depends on the day. I wonder if morning would be better? It's just I don't eat a lot in the AM and I was trying to take it with the most food. Well keep up the good work and keep feeling well and thanks for your good wishes.

Lily, I am glad you are doing better. Is the nausea gone now? Did you find a method that helps control it? Did the ginger tea help? I am so glad you are having some good days. It makes it worth going through the tough times just so you can get to the good days. It's so hard sometimes when we are feeling unwell to think we will ever feel better again. Thanks for all your support.

Pazshalom, I am so sorry you have been having some throat issues. What is it that you are experiencing? Perhaps we can have some helpful tips to try. I hope you are feeling better now and thanks for your encouragement.

Hi Imilly and Hayley,

Thank you for asking.

I have sore throat in the mornings, like acid, and sometimes I have the lump feeling after drinking or eating something. After I have lunch or a good size breakfast and I get distracted and relaxed, it seems like those feelings  start to go away , not 100%, but feel a bit better. BUT If I start "thinking"and "feeling" about the acid in my throat, It starts to get worse, and I start to get tensed and stressed out   therefore I have more symptoms! ,   BUT when I try to relax, to do deep breathings, and try to relax my always tense  stomach muscles,  and get distracted, seems like the acid feeling starts to go away..not a 100%, but I feel a bit better.(Yesterday I felt bad all day because I was in the cycle of worry, stressed out, more symptoms! I did not relaxed, nor took deep breaths, and I did not sleep well. I was a mess!) I still have to  remember and learn to relax, because it is hard for me, more when I feel my throat sore. 

  This is my boring story..

Post Edited (pazshalom) : 5/9/2014 5:59:56 PM (GMT-6)