Swallowing Problem

Hello All, about a year ago I went to the Dr. for a lump feeling in my throat with wheezing and difficulty swallowing, my Dr had me goto the throat specialist people, they diagnosed me with GERD, sedated me and fixed strictures in my throat and stomach. I was prescribed Protonix which I took the whole bottle and felt fine up until about a month ago. I noticed that I had the wheezing, difficult swallowing feeling again. So I picked up a months worth of Prilosec OTC. I took that for a bit over 3 weeks(one a day). I felt a good bit better for about 2 weeks.

Around the third week the wheezing, and difficulty swallowing came back which has now been accompanied by a dull pain on my right side of my throat right where the breast-bone starts. Now, I've read that recently that Prilosec should be taken no longer than two consecutive weeks then stop for a month. I stopped taking it as of this past Sunday(the 4th) three and a half weeks in. Could that be the culprit?

I have avoided Caffeine for the most part the past month, but have been eating chocolate, and drinking a lot of citrus including orange juice. I'm not sure what I can do as I have no Health Insurance.

Suggestions, comments?


Thanks :),

Sean.

Hello Sean, and welcome to healingwell. I am happy you have found us, but sorry you are having issues! First off...I wonder if you are able to get health insurance anytime soon. I am not trying to pry into your personal business, it's just I know what it's like to go without health insurance, and it's scary, and obviously, not good. I am not preaching. People have different reasons for not being covered, and generally, it is not something someone chooses to do...ya know? Sherry is right about the Prilosec OTC directions. I cannot tell you what to do when it comes to medication though. I know this is advice you may not want, but you need to cut back on the citrus, and even the chocolate. Also, I would suggest reading a post by me called...ways to minimize GERD symptoms. There is some useful information on there that might give you some relief. Also, a famous question, do you smoke? If so, quitting is a great idea...again, not to preach! Anyway, I do hope you stick around. Healingwell is a great place for support and information. If you have time, read old posts as well, they hold a lot of information! Again, welcome to healingwell!

Seanstex,

I had some bad GERD for a while. This is what I did:

GERD hit me pretty hard two years ago. However, I have delt with it quite well with a combination of herbal medication, diet, and just paying attention to what impacts my body.

For me I take enzymes, candida Rid pills, and a probiotic as my main mainstay that helped me get rid of GERD. Now I rarely have anything except for an occassional small heartburn. That is even occassional when I drink coffee or have spicy food.

Let me tell you straight out doctors do not know everything. Prilosec only deals with the symptoms and not the cause of GERD. After reading so much about what really causes GERD I have come to a conclusion it is a many things. It is the Western Diet that is more acidic than alkaline. It is the fact that we treat our foods with antibotics which helps to kill the good bacteria on our intestine and causes fungus overgrowth in our intestine, we do not chew our food well, we eat a lot of protien (which wears out our enzymes that helps break down food), along with our huge carb and surgar intake (which helps feed the fugus overgrowth).

Let me just say we are damaging our bodies with this. Therefore, there is no one pill quick cure. It takes time to heal from anything because over time (with those habits) we have hurt our body. Only now our body is saying "ENOUGH!" do something. That means doing some alternative therapy research on this (don't take my word for it) and allowing the herbal treatment time to help. It doesn't happen over night. In the west we want INSTANT gratification and relief, but that isn't necessarily a cure.

I hope that helps.

-Ted.

Sean,

  Sorry to hear that you are having these problems...But as you read these boards you will find that you are not alone!

  For most of us, GERDS and LPR is a chronic condition....meaning that it never fully goes away.  There may be some periods, where you dont feel it as much, but it will show its ugly head again.

  I have had GERDSs for about 18 months...It is under control now by taking protonix 40 mg 2x a day...However, I still do watch my diet...Stress adds to the condition ALOT...and worrying about our symptoms adds to stress...so, its a vicious cycle!

  Do not be afraid to take the medicine everyday...the side affects are more minimal than the damage that the acid does to our bodies....For some of us, our sphincter muscles do not work properly, so that can be the cause of alot of your symptoms....It can take months before your throat and esophagus heals...even if you start to feel better you may not be fully healed...I would say at least 2-6 months of  a strict diet and the meds are necessary for most people, although everyone is different.  I know, I will probably have to be on medication all my life, and I will have to watch my diet as well.

  Good Luck to you!

Rose