GERD/acid reflux. feeling desparate :-(

[sunshine05]

I've had acid reflux since September, I was on omeprozole and now I'm on Lansoprazole. I've gone from 30mg to 15mg and I wasn't suffering on 30mg but now I'm waking up every morning with a burning throat. It's making me not want to eat at all and I'm already borderline underweight. I'm miserable. I don't want to go up to 30mg again as I feel like I'll never get off these damn pills if I don't reduce them. Anyone tried reducing their dosage? Does the rebound calm down after a while?

Any other ideas/diets? I'm tempted to try low carb diet to see if that helps. Nothing I eat seems to make it better. I'm trying to limit caffeine and only drink once a week though haven't had a drink since this throat burning at all. I also have IBS so avoid wheat and only have milk in my tea/coffee. I'm also taking apple cider vinegar but it doesn't seem to help much.

I have a relative with Barrett's oesophagus and it's being managed with 3 monthly gastroscopies and lasering when any pre-cancerous cells are found.
I wondered whether any of you taking omeprazole (or any ppi) are aware that it can inhibit the absorption of B12? If you are taking it long-term you should get replacement B12 ideally

I have a hiatus hernia and more or less constant acid reflux- my dr just told me to take Gaviscon. Didn't realise there were other treatments- should I be taking something else too? The tone of my voice has changed and is hoarser too. (Sorry for adding my own question OP - hope you get some effective treatment too!)

Yes, I'm aware of that Microwaste. I take a multivitamin and eat a lot of meat, fish, dairy, eggs and cheese anyway. My dc is still little so I assume it would have been checked with my bloods back when I was pregnant? It is worth pointing out though as a relative is suffering from a form of dementia and on the injection for B vitamin deficiencies. This could be related to alcohol consumption or long term PIIs for their ulcer, probably a mixture of the both.

This is a really interesting and useful thread though it's such a pity so many people are having these problems.

sunshine I was a coffee drinker but I've gradually cut down because I also get migraines and coffee didn't seem to help them. However, I do love a flat white and I'm cautiously allowing myself the occasional one in the mornings. Seems to be OK - fingers crossed.

You asked about the gluten-free diet: it's only been a fortnight or so but interestingly, I do feel as though it's improved things. However, I feel pretty much resigned to always having this odd 'lump', or more accurately a sort of 'bubble' feeling in my throat.

It's very peculiar. I'd really like to know what happened, exactly - does a hiatus hernia just pop one day, like a balloon or something? That's how it feels to me. One day I was absolutely fine and the next, it seems as though I'll never be able to just eat or swallow without thinking about it ever again. That's what really gets me down, I think.

As far as I know dashboard, B12 is never routinely checked. (I'm a pernicious anaemia sufferer)

sunshine - I've had indigestion and acid reflux since my 20's .Was dx with cancer in my 60's .

I think taking apple cider vinegar is supposed to increase the acidity in your stomach and the thinking is that you get reflux because your stomach is trying to balance itself and make more acid .So ..I think ,but could be wrong that probably not good idea to take apple cider while on PPI's .

dashboard thank you ,I'm really suprisingly well now .What with the wonders of modern science and the good old NHS rising to a crisis .

allegreto personally I think yes ,yes ,you should be on omeprazole or ranatadine .They seem to often try ranatadine first .I think you go back ,can you see a different GP ?

Brillig that does sound horrible ,having a lump in your throat all the time .Did your endoscopy show that the area was inflamed ? Maybe it will calm down ?

Thanks Micro, I wasn't too sure about that testing wise but will be aware now. I know the symptoms of breathlessness, fatigue etc. I run marathons so can't see that but is there anything you noticed to watch out for?

So glad you're ok ginger. NHS is amazing says she who just had an nhs xray today I really worry about the effect of ibuprofen on my stomach and throat. I take it loads for sciatica and back pain (been told to by gp) and hope to god the ppi is protecting me

Sorry should say ran marathons rather than run. Sciatica and running dont mix

The symptoms are pretty wide and varied. The main reason I initially went to the docs was because of severe palpitations. In hindsight I then also realised that numbness in limbs and nerve pain is not normal! Brain fog, confusion, getting words mixed up are all common too, as is clumsiness or difficulty balancing. A typical symptom (although I've never hd it) is a sore, swollen or red (beefy) tongue. Lack of B12 affects your nervous system so it really has a huge number of symptoms. It's been misdiagnosed as MS, CFS/ME, dementia etc as it has a lot of symptoms in common.
Sympathies for your sciatica my DH suffers terribly from that too.

Thanks for that info Micro, knowledge is power as they say. I'll definitely be more aware now. Cheers for the sympathies and same with your dh, it's blooming miserable. I feel about ten years older than I did a year ago.

Thanks for starting the thread op, really interesting and hope you find some relief soon

thanks dashboard. It really is interesting and great to have support from others who are suffering too. I'm still on double dose- just so I can enjoy my weekend I may try reducing tomorrow again but I'm sure the burning will come back. Has anyone tried any of the diets out there specifically for reflux? There seem to be 2 main ones. Dropping Acid www.amazon.co.uk/dp/0982708319/ref=wl_it_dp_o_pC_nS_ttl?_encoding=UTF8&colid=29YV6D1Y7B4EQ&coliid=I2C96TFDPL0YI0
which seems crazily over priced but has had good results from people doing it (I think it focuses on eating alkaline foods to reduce the pepsin in the throat- based on scientific findings that have found a link between the presence of pepsin in the throat and cancer) people said their symptoms either reduced or disappeared.

The other book is about the Fast Track diet and eliminating certain carbs that are supposed to trigger it (also based on scientific research). The theory being that certain carbs ferment in your gut and create gas which then pushes your stomach up causing the reflux. www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B007WZHCWK/ref=wl_it_dp_o_pC_nS_ttl?_encoding=UTF8&colid=29YV6D1Y7B4EQ&coliid=I2ZH0NHXCVBU8Z

Thing is I don't know which one to try. I am willing to try it (along with taking ppi's till I can reduce them/eliminate them hopefully eventually) but I do believe that diet plays a part (they have theories about the modern western diet and all the refined foods and sugar being a huge contributing factor in the incredibly steep rise in reflux/GERD compared to 30 years ago) I mean, there has to be a link right? I don't know which one makes more sense since both have valid research findings....

....and sorry just wanted to add, the theory on sugar and carbs being a problem, can you lot tell me- do you eat a lot of carbs? Do you have a sweet tooth? I certainly do. Snack wise I'd always go for something sweet over savoury. My perfect snack would be a pastry. I do try to eat healthily but I still feel I eat too much sugar and carbs so maybe I need to break the habit....

I've always been interested in nutrition and healthy eating (I wanted to retrain as a nutritional therapist but haven't managed to yet due to money and time constraints) maybe I should! The problem I find when looking into it is that there are SO many different ways of dealing with health issues with eating (low carb, low fat, paleo, mediterranean, clean eating etc) I know some of these are faddy diets and not necessarily balanced but I do find it all interesting!

I do believe that too many people just take the pills their doctors prescribe but don't alter their diets so either the problem is prolonged or they're not addressing what's causing the problem in the first place. Of course I know stress plays a role too. And that sometimes bad luck means these health problems crop up regardless of diet. But it is something to think about.

gingeroots I thought apple cider was acidic too but actually it's the only one of the vinegars that is alkaline and will counteract an overly acidic stomach. So that's why it's great for reflux. And I'm pretty sure it's ok to take it along side ppi's . I've not noticed huge relief though it does make me feel a bit better and certainly doesn't make it worse. I've found gaviscon does nothing but then maybe that's because I don't have heartburn symptoms just the sore throat.

this forum here has someone asking the same question about both diets. Interestingly they say that the Fast Track diet is similar to other diets used to treat IBS. Since I have IBS maybe I should try that book. (and it's cheaper ) If you read his post it explains the two theories better than I did!

www.healingwell.com/community/default.aspx?f=45&m=2812979

sunshine - I see what you mean about apple cider vinegar having googled it .
It's described as making your stomach contents less acid eg

By providing acid to the stomach before food, the stomach may be fooled into expecting more acid and therefore doesn't need to produce so much

I wouldn't get too hung up on heartburn versus sore throat as I think they are both caused by the same thing - acid rising from the stomach - aren't they? Or have I misunderstood ? Quite likely

gingeroots yeah they're caused by the same thing- too much acid, just different reactions I guess. What i meant was when I used to get heartburn after a meal gaviscon would help but now with the silent reflux I have, I don't have burning in my stomach/chest area so it doesn't offer relief and doesn't soothe my sore throat if you see what I mean?

Mmmm I would guess that it would take longer for irriitation to throat to be soothed .
Hope you feel better soon

Chew gum after every meal, sounds simple but for me works better than any meds. Red bush tea is also extremely soothing.

I thought gum (if it's minty) would make reflux worse as peppermint tea does? But then I've heard gum does help stimulate digestion. Maybe I'll try a mint free one?

I have drank red bush tea in the past and was thinking of getting some to replace one of my caffeinated teas

I reduced my dosage down to 15mg yesterday and amazingly had no rebound acid burning. I still have the lump in my throat but no burning so I guess that's something. I feel more comfortable continuing on 15mg although it's not getting rid of the lump/need to cough and clear my throat.

I'm still undecided on whether to try a diet (from one of those books) could be a waste of time and it may clear up on its own in a month or so....

The gum produces saliva which neutralises the acid.

Chew for a long time initially, then hopefully you'll find you don't need to as much.

....and the burn is back. that didn't last long

I got 5 hours sleep last night. I need caffiene. I've just popped another lansoprazole in the hope the burning will stop. I can't live without caffeine. I used to be able to drink it whenever I wanted to. I'm addicted and I don't want to stop!