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Need help with reducing my PPI

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GERD & Acid Reflux
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Posted 4/8/2014 2:55 AM (GMT 0)
If anyone out there can give me some sort of reassurance I would be most grateful. I am reducing my PPI and want to get off completely. I have gone from 40mgs Nexium to 20mgs Prilosec. I have had good and bad days but they seem to be getting worse and closer together. Is this normal. I have had one good day in three. this is the start of my 4th week on the Prilosec. I never had the burning before but now I have it with nausea, light headedness and being tired with a headache. I thought things should be getting better by now but they seem to be going backwards. I am trying dgl before meals and I have a product called Acid Ease but not sure if I should take that while still taking the PPI. I do not eat any triggers and I am trying to stay on a bland more alkaline diet. Today has been a horrible day. Is this withdrawal and will it get better. Thanks
Posted 4/8/2014 1:28 PM (GMT 0)
I went through the same thing a couple weeks back, I was on Nexium 40mgs 1xday and I went to every other day for about 3 1/2 weeks then I switched to OTC ppi and that was a mistake. I had all the symptoms that you are describing and they were unbearable so I went back on them and will start over with a daily gradual reduction. I have since had a colonoscopy and a endoscopy and GERD was confirm, my GI doc wants me to stay a Nexium but I convince him to prescribe me lower doses to try and ween from it and treat my symptoms naturally. this can be a very long process but I like you want off this drug, it cannot cure GERD, only treat my symptoms and if that can be done naturally then I rather go that route. So I understand want you are going through and to answer your question it does sound like rebound but it could also be your reflux returning since you stopped or change your ppi. Has a doctor diagnose you with GERD?
Posted 4/8/2014 2:06 PM (GMT 0)
I am sorry you are having a tough time - but I often wonder too how much is rebound and how much is the GERD symptoms coming back.

imlily,  as you have a multiple page thread already on this first page, Alternatives to PPI's,  perhaps posting all your questions on this topic in your current thread would serve you better than having a second thread on the boards.

Just a thought.

Kindly,

Kitt

Posted 4/8/2014 6:15 PM (GMT 0)
Sorry Kitt, I am not too good with this technology and don't really understand 'threads' and how to find them etc. I just try to answer anyone I can but I wasn't sure how to address my latest post. But thanks for the reminder.
Posted 4/10/2014 6:46 PM (GMT 0)
ImLily,

I used to take 40 mg Nexium a day. I weened off of it over a period of 6 or so months. I started taking an OTC Zegrid once a day supplimented with Gaviscon. I probably should have gone from 40mg to 20mg of Nexium before doing that but I did not want to go back to the doctor for that prescription. I took the Zegrid for about 2 months, then I went to an OTC Prilosec and cut it in half with a pill cutter. I took that for 3 more months. I then was able to start Pepcid AC twice per day and that is what I continue to take. I also have a very strict diet (no gluten, no lactose, no trigger foods etc) and I drink Alkaline water. I also take some other vitamins and digestive enzymes. I am dealing with IBS symptoms from the years of PPI use, so I am still nursing my system back to health.

Posted 4/10/2014 8:51 PM (GMT 0)
Hi Erica. I have lost time these last 2 months trying to get off Nexium and feeling terrible. It wasn't until I met this forum that I realized I was doing it all wrong. I actually jumped from the 40mgs of nexium that I believe was making me sick to 20mgs of Prilosec. At first I did well and congratulated myself. However, it is now 3 1/2 weeks since I switched and I have had some awful days with terrible nausea and burning. Strange how it isn't every single day but it can change from minute to minute. Today I have had a blissful few hours nausea and burn free. I am hoping I am moving forward and I can do this without using any other acid reducers. I want off these PPI's in the worst way but after so long on one I need to be careful so that I don't go backwards. I sometimes feel so bad I wonder if there might be something wrong with me. But, then I read these boards and get encouragement from the people on them and realize I am not the only one doing this. It is such a comfort to have other people that understand to talk to.
Posted 4/11/2014 1:56 PM (GMT 0)
Acid rebound can last a while. Just hang in there, follow the rules and hopefully with time it will get easier. You can suppliment with Gaviscon too. One day I hope to be able to be off meds but if I am unable to, I am happy to take an H2 Blocker versus a PPI
Posted 4/11/2014 6:28 PM (GMT 0)
Erica, It sounds like you are doing it the very sensible way so that you don't suffer the rebound situation. I am going to continue on the Prilosec 20mgs until I have several days with no rebound and then downgrade it a bit. How did you 'cut' your Prilosec. Mine is not a hard pill it is a gel cap kind of thing with beads in it. The outer part is soft. So, if I want to take like around 3/4 of the pill instead of the whole thing I don't see how I can do that. Did you suffer any rebound while you were doing this in the last six months or did you go slow enough that it didn't affect you?
Posted 4/11/2014 7:02 PM (GMT 0)
There is a generic omeprazole which is a tablet. With a pill cutter you can cut it pretty well. Don't rush the process, I was on Zegrid 20mg for 2 months before I weened down to a half of a omeprazole.
Posted 4/11/2014 7:41 PM (GMT 0)
How do I get the generic Omeprazole? The one I have for the Prilosec is a generic Omeprazole but it is a gel capsule delayed release. It does say on the bottle that the capsule can be opened and sprinkled onto apple sauce so I suppose if I can figure out how to open it I can throw away some of the beads inside it. No I won't rush the process although I am very anxious to get off this stuff asap. However, in order to function every day I will stay on it for a few more weeks. Thanks for answering.
Posted 4/11/2014 11:01 PM (GMT 0)
imlilly-- no don't throw away the beads. We purchased empty capsules at a local health food store and split the PPI capsules into halves for a month. , then thirds, then quarters, then eighths. (Yes, eight capsules out of one). Took a total of approximately six months to get off. Used H2 and Tums too. The dose is reduced so slowly that the rebound is gentler on you. You need patient hands and fingers and set aside time to make many capsules. It's worth it. It was hard splitting at first but then we got into a routine and a special area that we did it in. It is doable. Tiny scissors were used to open one end of the full capsule then we poured into others.
Posted 4/11/2014 11:04 PM (GMT 0)
We also did 3/4 caps initially too.
Posted 4/12/2014 12:39 AM (GMT 0)
Pat fillThanks for explaining how to get the 3/4 1/2 1/4 doses out of one capsule. I very much appreciate the way you explained it. I will go to the health food store and get some empty capsules. I have already done the 40mgs to 20mgs and that was soooooo hard. Now I will go very slowly and wait awhile before I do a 3/4 capsule. I want at least a week of feeling 'normal' before I reduce again. It has been so hard to do so far. thank you again.
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