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I think I have GERD but I want to keep running

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GERD & Acid Reflux
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Posted 12/6/2016 1:23 AM (GMT 0)
Hi my name is Mike and I am a GERD sufferer I think.

I have had problems off and on for years and my mom had problems for life. I am sure my symptoms pale in comparison to many but I saw my physician today to make a plan. I am a 50 years old and a very active endurance runner. On multiple occasions this year I thought I was having a heart attack on some of the longer runs and for years I have felt like I needed to clear my throat while running. I had no idea what it was at the time. Sadly I have had to give up running in the short term due to reflux and the days of suffering that follow. I am on Protonix, Pepcid AC and occasionally backing soda just before bed. I have only had a few of the sore throat episodes when I wake up.

Anyway I have never had any testing. I have a plan that includes testing and getting it fixed next year. I am hopeful that I can return to my running next year. I imagine that if I stuck to the medication routing, gave up coffee and wine and the stuff I like and quit the physical activity I could manage it okay but I just don't want to do that. While my doctor got me to settle down a bit he scheduled me for an endoscopy in early January. In the mean time he said it was appropriate to only take the Protonix as needed.

Does pursuing this aggressive approach seem reasonable? I am hopeful this is reasonable risk to taKe to get back to what I love doing.

Thanks for reading, Mike
Posted 12/6/2016 4:06 AM (GMT 0)
I have been given Dexilant to try.
Posted 12/14/2016 2:33 AM (GMT 0)
Your a runner.

Might like the natural approach to this?

Then skip Rx meds ans try D-Limonene first.

I would not tell you this for no reason- it works.

Gut Rx meds are not good for you. Try to avoid if possible.
Posted 12/15/2016 3:40 PM (GMT 0)
I have not yet started taking the Dexilant. I have not been taking the Protonix either. As luck would have it I have almost no symptoms for the last week or so. I can't say zero but still nothing that would ordinarily bring me to a site like this. I can't figure it out. Over thanksgiving I had all the bad stuff, too much stuff, wine and running. I even had sausage stuffing for breakfast and had zero symptoms durning a time I was basically asking for trouble. I can't seem to put my finger on any particular trigger or pattern. The only thing I can say with reasonable certainty is long duration running causes me grief. Well after all the tests in a few weeks at least I may be able to rule some causes out.

Thoughts?
Posted 12/16/2016 2:12 AM (GMT 0)
Hi Mike welcome! We aren't doctors but we want to share ideas that might help. Maybe your body is telling you to slow down some as the long term running might be too much for your spinchter. Pressure and bouncing etc. Have you done some of the typical recommendations such as REALLY avoiding heavy, greasy foods, avoid alcohol and carbonated drinks for an extended period of time, Stay away from coffee. Nothing fried. Sleeping with head of bed elevated to keep contents in the stomach below the spinchter. It seems like you received the start of relief, then didn't eat well and expected problems to occur but didn't. The body is trying to fix itself. Please let lifestyle changes help you along with the doctors advice. If you take the medication, please read all you can about them and the side effects Also, be aware that there are specific times to take the medication, especially with relation to intake of foods. (Also, don't eat for several hours before bedtime). Let us know how you are. Wish you the best. (Another thought-- how about walking at a reasonable pace till you have answers so no more harm is done).
Posted 12/16/2016 2:54 AM (GMT 0)
Pat thanks for your suggestions. I have been riding my mountain bike and that seems to help and my doctor has me taking antacids prior to any running. The activity is probably the last thing I will give up however I have been forced to cut down substantially. I can tell you have been around the blog a while because I have not REALLY given up anything. How do people live without coffee in the morning? I don't generally eat fatty foods and almost never anything fried. Ugh as I type this I am realizing you are right on all accounts. I have a long list of excuses I could come up with. I guess I need to accept where I am in life. I will confirm whats going on with the testing in a few weeks and do what I'm told more of the time.
Posted 12/16/2016 3:45 PM (GMT 0)
Mike, my family member (with reflux and LPR & Linx ) WAS a personal trainer. She had to give it up. She is the same age as you are. Active, not overweight not even a little bit, etc. I've been with her and her family through all the tests, medication changes, on and on. I've been to EVERY doctor visit (and there were many). I remember very clearly and definitely when a very knowledgeable physician said you must change your eating habits NOW to how you SHOULD have been eating before this all occurred. This was a bell ringer for us. He presented reality and it made us upset but after we calmed down and thought it through--it wasn't his fault-- he was giving advice that we paid for. My thoughts are that you should discuss with your doctor, start eating healthy, buy books on the topic. You can keep a log of what you eat and also log the date and time of symptoms. This helped her very much in pinpointing triggers. The symptom list helped the doc too. The whole family learned healthy eating and we are better for it. You will be better too with physician guidance.
Posted 12/17/2016 12:07 AM (GMT 0)
NevadaMike-

Anything else besides the endoscopy scheduled?

I mention D-Limonene often here, with minimal response. One good brand is from Jarrow, several online suppliment places sell it. about $10 for two month (60 , 1000mg gel tabs).

It might seem a little too good to be true so people might just write it off. Most here have never heard of it. Regular MD's will not know about it since its natural, only some Natural Path Drs know this works. It heals the LES valve, making it strong again.

For the record I have been in great shape my whole 50 years, I still got GERD 8 years ago. I have a pretty good understanding of whole body health, which is why I looked for other options besides Rx (and Rx cause more issues for my gut anyway. I was very athletic- gym , runner, skier, canoeer, raced :mnt bikes, moto-cross, and snow-mobiles. All of a sudden out of no-where GERD made all that difficult - the bouncing was bad. At one point my LES was so burnt/weak that I could not lay on my back in the gym at all- no crunches either.

Improved my diet, and eat less at meals, but more snacks in between. Walmart has Kava brand acid reduced coffee.

Since I "fixed" my GERD 8 years ago, I sometimes wander from my improved diet and then it wants to come back. Behaving can be difficult during holidays but its needed. Got a new coffee machine at work, started coffee again, was a BAD idea. I do the acid reduced boring stuff , tea, or diet soda with caffeine - but I dont need much.

If you cant kick an all-day caffeine need- there is something else wrong being so tired, like poor sleep or adrenal or thyroid issues, or other...........
Posted 12/29/2016 5:11 AM (GMT 0)
Here is a brief update. The last few weeks one the Christmas break I have had all the junk I normally have with the exception of red wine. I am completely off the prescription meds and take an occasional Tums when I feel like something might be starting up. I have Tums before I go for a run though. Today I ran just under 9 mile in the mountains and everything was just fine.

Astroman I have endoscopy and the Colonoscopy scheduled and that is it. The way I currently feel I would not have the need for anything but Im going to keep the appointment just to make sure everything is okay. Im sure this is the start of a long process as far as my GERD goes but Im going to stay off the Rx as long as possible.

I have never started taking the dexilant and hope not to. Since getting off the prescription acid blockers the arthritis like pain in my hands is gone. I hope to stay off of those for as long as possible!
Posted 1/9/2017 1:59 AM (GMT 0)
So I had my colonoscopy and endoscopy both on Thursday. If anyone is getting the procedure and worried about it here is my experience. For me it was a minor inconvenience with the prep and I have absolutely no recollection of the actual procedure. I had what was called "moderate sedation." I was back to working on the house with just an hour or so of a nap. It was really a zero on the big deal scale with no residual discomfort of any type.

The only thing the Dr has reported so far is minor inflammation in the lower esophagus with evidence of infection. He found a few of what he calls plaques. Looks like white spots on the photos. He sent it off for evaluation and expects it to be a virus or fungus. Yuck! He does not seem to be too concerned and told me to keep taking the Protonix for 6 week and come back in to see him.

I am a little worried about what the results will mean for me. I have been generally symptom free with an occasional tums or two. I pretreat for any runs with two tums.

Should I just follow instructions and take the Protonix for the 6 weeks even if I am feeling well? Im really an anti PPI person but...

Post Edited (NevadaMike) : 1/8/2017 7:27:13 PM (GMT-7)

Posted 1/9/2017 3:16 AM (GMT 0)
fungus- like Candida maybe? Its not uncommon, and can cause GERD as well. Yeast or fungus live off carbs, grains, breads, and sugars (alcohol included).
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