GERD maybe

Hi,

I'm so glad to have found this forum and found other people like me. I feel like I'm a journey and still not having any real answers and wondered if anyone could give me some input.

I think it started maybe 10 years as I noticed I started getting heartburn with spirits and spicy foods (more an annoyance) then about two years ago I started getting stomach cramps. At the time I thought it was a bug from my kids school which was going around. It became agony so I went to the dr and they diagnosed H Pylori for which I had treatment. I then continued to have stomach cramps and aches down my sides, even into my bladder. It seems to go in cycles every few weeks or so. I had a camera both ends but specialist said I was fine and that my stomach would take time to settle down and referred me to the dietitician with possible IBS (I'm not a 'stressy' person) and I began wondering at that stage whether it was GERD (perhaps) or something else that had caused the H Pylori rather than the other way around. Anyway, the dietitician ruled out food allergies, intolerances and nothing I gave up made me notice any difference. My diet is good and bad, good re vegetables/fruit etc but bad in alcohol (at least a glass of wine a day, more at the weekends), diet coke (one a day), coffee (one a day) and post lunch chocolates bars, these four things I have yet to reduce as potential culprits admittedly.

My G.P. has put me on omeprazole 20mg twice a day. I have only been taking it in the morning for a few months which has helped a bit. The pain cycle is still there every few weeks but lessened in pain which allows my life to function. But I'm still in pain and just want the problem resolved. I've increased the dosage now to twice a day, things taste a bit metallic now and stomach hurts more but that may be transient.

Can anyone here relate to these symptoms or offer me some advice?

Thanks

Matthew

Thank you for your answer. Does this sound to you like I have GERD then? I'm going to cut out all this junk then to see if it helps.

Oddly the omeprazole has stopped the heartburn but not the stomach/bladder pains. I've decided to drink one cup of coffee in the morning from today (although does burn on the way down) and cut out all the other stuff for a month. I also take medication for some other condition and when my stomach flares up then the meds don't get absorbed as well, nightmare.

Upping the medication won't help if you continue with your diet the way it is. You really need to adhere to a strict GERD-friendly diet and eliminate the triggers. H pylori is actually a bacteria in your stomach. You may need to be re-tested to make sure that the medication eliminated the H pylori completely. Your stomach and bladder pains may not be totally related to GERD.