Posted 6/6/2006 2:37 AM (GMT 0)
Hello all, new to this board.
I have a question that I'd like to pose to the board. I was diagnosed with a hiatal hernia and GERD a few years back. My chief complaints were hoarseness, tightness in the chest (chest often feels like a couple of bricks are on top if my sternum). I rarely feel the acid regurgitating but when I'm not in the meds, it will reflux up to my larynx.
One of the things I noticed was that I had problems with sleep. I wake up in the mornings tired and exhausted like I've not slept at all. This has exacerbated cognitive function because during the day, i am too tired to think when I'm at work. After I was diagnosed with GERD and the doctor put me on Prevacid, I noticed that I started waking up in the morning refreshed and ready for the day. For a while I thought I had sleep apnea but I had the pulsometer tests (or whatever they call it) that indicated I did not have sleep apnea.
I've not seen a lot of information that ties unrefreshing sleep with GERD but I am convinced in my case that it is happening. WHen I am on the meds and the meds are working okay, I get better sleep. WHen the meds start to wane in effectiveness, my sleep worsens as well.
Does anyone know of a link between unrefreshing sleep and GERD?
Interestingly enough, back in the fall, my chest pain was so severe that I was sent to the hospital for a possible heart attack. They did a stress test and everything came back normal. The hospital did mention that my oxygen level did drop during the night I stayed in the hospital. Does the acid refluxing do something to the pulmonary system that causes the oxygen levels to drop?