GERD on Steroids!

Good morning: I am a 59 year old female who has been taking PPI’s regularly for well over 20 years. A week and a half ago I decided to discontinue my PPI’s, after reading and hearing about the serious side effects that long-term usage could cause. Wow. I had no idea that it would be this difficult! The heartburn and acid reflux is worse than I ever remember it to be when I first started taking PPI’s. I’ve had heartburn from hell! I NEED RELIEF! NOW! HELP! I have a variety of kitchen remedies in my arsenal: George’s aloe vera juice, DGL, a product called AcidRelief 360, natural unprocessed apple cider vinegar, baking soda, almond milk, raw whole almonds, apples and apple juice (not cider), ginger candy and ginger tea, and chamomile tea. I also supplement with OTC generic Tagamet when the acid reflux gets totally unbearable and prescription Phenergan for the nausea. I’ve been in absolute pain and misery. I’ve had only two days so far when I felt fairly normal. I’m really discouraged. Nothing is working. Can anyone recommend a regimen using some of these products? It’s pretty much been hit and miss. I know it’s only been almost two weeks since I stopped taking the PPI, but it feels like it’s been longer … can anyone tell me how long these withdraw symptoms will last? Thanks for listening!

Thanks for your reply, Sharon. I forgot to add that I did quit cold turkey. NOT a good idea. But since I'm almost at 2 weeks going without, would it be back-tracking if I go back on and then taper off?

Good, practical and wise advice, Sharon. Thank you! It's gotten to be more than I can handle right now. Tomorrow I will put a call in with my GP.

Yeah ... I am more convinced than ever that is probably what I need to do. I've been soooooo miserable and sick. I've heard that it could take anywhere between two weeks to MONTHS for the rebound to ease up, if at all. I appreciate you and Sharon's input and support. It is comforting to know that I'm not alone in this.

So, what I think I understand from your last reply is that you did not give up the PPI? Yes, quality of life is everything! What kind of surgery did you have? I'm glad to hear it was a complete success! That's good to hear, since I've read so many negative results regarding these gastric surgeries.

Do you still take Protonix? What was your experience with the recovery?

I stopped the PPIs before I even had the surgery, and haven't taken them since. The recovery is rough, and I tell people to only have it as a last resort, and I still get waves of nausea occasionally for no reason that I take Zofran for. I went through all of the testing to make sure that I was a good candidate. I think there are situations where people aren't good candidates and push for the surgery, and are disappointed with the outcome or they have acid reflux for a few months and think that surgery is the answer. If your swallowing function is compromised, it's probably not a good choice. My surgeon was very blunt about what surgery would involve and my recovery. I can no longer belch or vomit, but I'm OK with that. I understand about the water, it does burn. I had times where my throat burned so bad, and my tongue actually looked like it was wearing a fur coat due to the acid. I guess there isn't a good reason why something like water would cause such distress. All of the natural aids and probiotics did nothing for me, or Carafate which some people swear by. I also had a cause of h. Pylori bacteria that was hard to get rid of also. You know your body better than anyone, and have a lot of experience with PPIs, so you need to think about whether you want to go back on PPIs, or not. If I didn't have the hernia, I probably would have never had the surgery and would have continued with the PPIs.

Post Edited (SharonZ) : 6/16/2017 12:18:19 PM (GMT-6)

No problem at all, I hope you can benefit from some of the information. I think in extreme cases I would be able to vomit, but haven't had any issues. They said if I felt that sick to go to the emergency room. My surgeon asked me how many times in the past 10 years that I had vomitted, and I couldn't recall any - so it really didn't bother me. Having a hernia is very common, and most people don't realize they have them, and never need to have them surgically repaired. Mine was large and needed surgery, so it was a no brainer. Actually, the Zofran acts pretty quickly for me. You might want to try it, sometimes a change in medications is good. And yes, I had the Nissen Fundoplication and it was a full wrap, not a floppy and it was done via robotics.

Has anyone heard or tried Kumbucha (fermented tea) for GERD?

My boss brought in a bottle of GTS Kumbucha Organic & Raw Gingerade this morning and gave us all a shot glass full. Hmmmm...the first sip was a shocker, but the more I sipped, the better it tasted. Felt really good at first, then ate some cheese and crackers and got heartburn. Don't know if it was the Kumbucha or the cheese and crackers, or a combination of both. Better to play it safe. I'll stick with my Aloe Vera, DGL, etc. I've read a lot of mixed reviews on various sites.

P.P.S. Ever heard of the Stretta procedure?