Posted 9/17/2014 8:32 AM (GMT 0)
I am new to the forums, and searching for help. To get the details out of the way:
I am a 190lb 5' 11" 28 year old male without insurance. I have suffered from GERD since I was around 18, given to me from my beautiful mother, as she did most of my siblings. It's been an off and on experience, but I have never had it as bad as I have these last couple weeks. I take 1 prevacid, and 6 pepteal (natural heartburn medicine from a local naturopathic doctor) per day, and live on tums. Prior to these last couple weeks symptoms were:
Heartburn
Nausea
Bloating
Acidy feeling in stomach
Turning stomach
Stomach pressure
Burping, or feeling like I need to burp and not being able to because it feels like acid will come up with it
Sharp pain in back, on the sides of my spine mid and upper back. Feeling of needing to arch my back to help relieve pressure and pain.
Rarely gas bubbles of death (the couple times I've had them, I have wanted to call quits on life. They are like torture.)
Now out of nowhere my symptoms are:
Early morning tightness of chest
Early morning bloating
Early morning hard time breathing (breathing feels heavy, and takes effort. Feel like I need deep breathes but when I breathe as if someone is standing on my chest)
Clogged nose
Nighttime tightness of chest
Nighttime hard time breathing (breathing feels heavy, and takes effort. Feel like I need deep breathes but When I breathe as if someone is standing on my chest)
*Mild heartburn, but can sometimes get bad
*Sometimes have Nausea
*Sometimes have the feeling of my stomach in my throat
*Sometime sharp pain in back, on the sides of my spine mid and upper back. Feeling of needing to arch my back to help relieve pressure and pain.
Sometimes Sensation that chest is warm or hot.
Feeling tightness of throat
*Sometime feel like if I am going to burp acid, or stomach contents will come up with it
Acidy feeling in stomach
Sometime turning stomach
Stomach pressure preceding, or with breathing issues
*These were a major problem almost daily for about a month prior to the current symptoms. I would feel nauseous, bloated, and burp a lot to relieve it. But now it is only sometimes, and not nearly as bad. But have moved onto the horrible breathing issues above.
The moment I stand up it seems that my breathing problems go away for the most part. I then tend to burp, or exhaust from my lower exhaust pipe (fart), and that always brings relief to an extent. I also tend to feel like I need to cough, but if I do, it is just a little self-forced cough. With that, the feeling of needing to clear my throat exists.
I now some nights (such as tonight), wake up in the middle of the night due to the breathing complications. Yet, all I ate today were a turkey wrap, a bowl of mac n cheese, and 4 otter pops (yes, I understnd the last two sound like the diet of a 6 year old, as I am at heart). So, this happens even if I don't eat much. Symptoms seem to come in the morning before, and seem to possibly get worse after eating breakfast (no matter what I eat. Cereal, eggs, etc), and then subside during the middle of the day, returning in the evening around 4:30-5, peaking between then until I fall asleep. Some nights getting bad enough to wake me. I do drink beer a few times a week, thought did not today, but did last night (6 pack). I am notorious for loving spicy food, but have recently stopped eating spicy, and deep fried food, except on occasion. I also am known to eat fast, and take big bites (I'm currently trying to eat slower, and smaller bits, but it's a hard learning curve), and until recently eat way too much, and late at night (I don't eat past 8 now, and only sometimes rarely find myself over eating).
When the breathing issues start, as I said, standing up brings relief. I have added pillows under the head of my side of the bed, raising it at least 6+ inches, possibly around 10 inches (I haven't measured). But even laying down during the flare-up of breathing issues with the elevated head, the symptoms start to return. It also seems as if heartburn follows maybe 10-15 minutes after the breathing issues.
Symptoms I don't, if rarely ever get:
Sour taste in mouth
Burp up acid (used to over a year, twice to were I couldn't breathe from acid coming up into my mouth)
Any help with medicine, health, exercise, diet or other suggestions to cure this, and get rid of my GERD, and mainly the difficulty breathing would be wonderful. It gets scary at times with the breathing issues. I appreciate everyone's time, and hopefully this can help others with the same situation. Having others to form a group, and get suggestions on things that helped them is always a great thing.
There may be more things I remember, and will randomly add when I do remember them.