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Stepping down from Omeprazole to Prilosec OTC

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GERD & Acid Reflux
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Posted 7/13/2013 1:37 AM (GMT 0)
Hi, I have been on 40 mgs Omeprazole for 15 days. It was given to me in the ER for a diagnosis of GERD and gastritis. The Omeprazole is making me sicker I believe. It does help a bit with the acid taste in my mouth, but not much. I can't see a doctor until the end of July and the ER doc told me to finish the 30 days of these pills to promote healing. I would like to step down and just take a 20mg pill of Prilosec OTC until I can get in to see a gasterenterologist. I realize that I probably am going to have that rebound effect but does anyone know if the Prilosec will promote healing as well as the omeprazole. Thank you for any advice, it is really hard to get a script in the ER and have to wait a month to talk with a specialist.

 

Posted 7/13/2013 6:49 PM (GMT 0)
Hey there, Prilosec  is Omeprazole.  I would call you own physician to see if he feels comfortable with your switching doses or perhaps has another med in mind.

Good Luck,

Kitt

Posted 7/13/2013 7:35 PM (GMT 0)
as previous poster noted, omep is prilosec. proton pump inhibitors will encourage healing by reducing the amount of acid produced when food is introduced. also, another class of meds that is very similar in end result but by a different pathway of action is h2 antagonists like zantac or pepcid. they work much quicker but fade much sooner than ppi's. while a gi specialist is certainly more knowledgeable on this subject than a general practice doctor, if you have to wait a month or more to see the gi, you may inquire for direction from your general doctor in the meantime. hope this helps. i'm studying to become a nurse practitioner; so i've had to study these meds a few times!
Posted 8/11/2013 3:23 PM (GMT 0)
Thank you for your help.  I just want to leave an update in case anyone else is ever in a similar boat. I did stop the omeprazole after I read your posts and fortunately didn't have much of an acid rebound, probably because I had only been on it two weeks. I went two weeks taking nothing but homeopathic remedies and then started 300 mgs of Zantac when I developed post nasal drip and sore throat that were not cleared up by Claritin. I have continued the homeopathic remedies (chlorophyll, dgl, aloe vera, digestive enzymes) and dropped to 150 mgs of Zantac. After being on Dr. Robillard's Fast Track diet for a few weeks I am ready to drop down to 75 mg of Zantac and after seeing my gastro perhaps discontinuing them, because my post nasal drip and sore throat are gone and most of my acid taste in my mouth which has been my main symptom is gone.
Posted 8/12/2013 2:39 AM (GMT 0)
Wow ChattDana, thanks for those homepathic remedy tips. I, too, am stepping away from my omeprazole 20 mg. daily (after discussing with my GI doc). After being on this thing for months now (from early this year), I'm convinced this thing is giving me heart palpitations and precipitating feelings of shortness of breath. Stopped the omeprazole a few days ago and have switched to famotidine (Pepcid). I'm getting some mild rebound reflux tho I'm trying to mitigate that with diet and antacids. It's tolerable. Will have to look into homeopathic. Thanks a bunch! And thanks for the update, it's encouraging.

Ruhr
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