Anyone else with LPR?

Officially, I have only been diagnosed with GERD. After much of my own research, however, I'm pretty convinced I actually have LPR (laryngopharyngeal reflux). My symptoms have been excess phlegm in my throat, sore throat, feeling lump sensation/something stuck in my throat, occasional hoarseness, feeling like I need to clear my throat, occasional cough. I have not really had the typical symptoms of GERD like gas, bloating, heartburn, or burning in my throat. I will occasionally have a strange burning feeling that seems more like it's in my lungs (kind of like what your lungs feel like after sucking on a cough drop). I have not been able to trace my symptoms to any particular food or habit. Sometimes I can get by with eating chocolate (sister made some killer peppermint fudge for Christmas), dairy, fried foods, fresh tomatoes, citrus fruits, etc with no problem. Other times these foods actually burn going down.

Anyway, I'd love to talk to others who have this lovely and special form of reflux. There seems to be a lot of confusing and conflicting information out there. I'm not even sure if my doctors (family, ENT, gastroenterologist) even know about or recognize the differences between GERD and LPR since I haven't had follow ups with them since I discovered info about LPR. *sigh*

The past two months have been quite challenging due to LPR---.  I went to the GP as soon as I could as I was having troubling swallowing.  I thought I had a bad cold or throat infection.  The GP put me on Prevacid 30 mg a day for 90 days and steroid noise spray.  He did not know if my swallowing problem was reflux or caused by post nasal drip.  I had a ton of throat mucus that came up every time I eat or drank, a tight throat, and it was very uncomfortable to speak like something was pressing on my vocal chords and --and getting hoarse sometimes.  The GP told me to see a gastroenterlogist or an ENT if I did not get better.  The gastroenterologist did a scope and only found a hiatal hernia. The ENT scoped my throat and found mild reflux and tight contracting throat muscles.  He mentioned the reflux might have healed some since I had been on Prevacid for 9 weeks.  But, the whole thing ruined my Thanksgiving and Christmas and I lost 15 to 20 lbs. The ENT said I needed to incorporate stress management.

I am actually starting to feel better now, but I still have symptoms.  I realize that I was not taking good care of myself and under a lot of stress at work.  I had been treated two times before for gastritis caused by excess stomach acid that happened during very stressful life-changing times.  I also realize that I had been clearing my throat for some time and thought it was post nasal drip and nothing serious.  This was really a wake up call!  Never heard of LPR before all this happened.

Sounds like LPR affects people differently. Thanks everyone for posting on the site. 

 

sunflowerg3


Thank you for sharing your experience and opinion with us. Please be respectful of other members experiences and opinions. IMHO it is safe to say that stress definitely is a contributing factor in acid reflux.



Laryngopharyngeal Reflux Disease is a very complex disorder.



Thank you,

Kitt

closer,


Thank you for taking my post as it was meant.
On HealingWell we strive to seek a balance between alternative and traditional approaches. I feel strongly, both approaches have value for anyone seeking healing.

Your opinion is appreciated and I know members benefit from hearing other member's success stories.

Respectfully,

Kitt

Hello!

I was recently diagnosed with LPR (Silent Acid Reflux) and joined this forum because I just need to vent.  I read Jamie Koufman's "Dropping Acid" book as well looked up lots of information on this.  I live in a big city (NYC) and in big cities there's food all over the place.  Food that people with this condition aren't supposed to eat.  I dearly love to eat, and this situation has turned my life upside down.  Gone are the days when I'd just eat pretty much what I wanted (though mostly vegan and healthy, with some "bad" things mixed in).  Gone are the days of eating wonderful ethnic cuisines like Indian, Mexican, other spicy things....All I can say is that I'm so angry and frustrated - I feel robbed.  Going out with a friend or to functions is a problem now.  Even otherwise healthy items that I love (garlic, onions, tomatoes, certain fruits and spices) are forbidden.  I enjoyed making all kinds of good-tasting soups in the winter; now they'd taste more like dishwater in comparison. Right now I'm in a study as per my ENT doctor which will probably last a few more weeks.  After that, maybe I can cheat a little?  Dying isn't an issue for me; it's living like this.  It's so darn boring.  Lastly, I was hoping to find a meet-up here in the city for people suffering/coping with LPR.  Nothing exists.  Forums are good, but nothing can take the place of people getting together in person and sharing.  Especially for something this tough (for me, anyway).  Many thanks for reading this!

Ditto on wishing there was a meet-up somewhere. I live in California though so making it to NYC would be kind of tough. Just getting to meet and talk to people going through the same thing would be so helpful.