Adult GERD, dietary/lifestyle advice, LCHF

[StepAwayFromCake]

With hindsight, I've had this for years, but I only discovered what it was this week.

Something I don't understand: when I reflux into my mouth it is painless. Yet at other, unconnected times, I have pain in my chest and neck, which the GP says is my oesophagus hurting from stomach acid escaping into it. So how come it doesn't hurt when stomach contents are on their way up into my mouth (then it feels like a huge burp moving quickly up), and how come I can't feel the movement when the acid is refluxing upwards and burning high up?

GP's advice has been useless. The biggest trigger for me to reflux is eating carbs, especially wheat. I reflux far less when I eat LCHF. Her advice? Weighwatchers. Spicy food doesn't cause me any problems. I'm far more likely to reflect x after sweet foods. Her advice? No chilli. I don't reflux lying down, if anything it eases the pain of a GERD attack. Plus I have back trouble that means I really have to sleep flat. Her advice: sleep propped up with extra pillows.

I know exactly what triggers the refluxing into my mouth: carbs, wheat and overeating - especially when combined with stress.

I don't know what triggers the pain in my œsophagus. I've only ever had attacks while upright.

I barely drink alcohol and don't smoke. I am overweight, but steadily losing through LCHF eating. (I am, sadly, a yoyoing emotional eater.)

If you're living with adult GERD, or have experience of it, please advise me:

What do you find helps prevent it?
What do you find helps treat it when you have the pain?
If certain foods make me burp, should I avoid them? Or do I just need to chew better?

Thanks.

Hi StepAwayFromCake,
funnily enough I am awake with a GERD episode. Ate out this evening and forgot to ask for gluten-free pasta which caused me to have reflux and racing heart with missing beats so bad that I phoned the out-of-hours doctor. He said to go to hospital but I really did not want to and glad that I didn't as it is now calming down.
I know I need to stay away from certain foods and drinks but don't always - hence this episode.

I think I get this. The first time it happened I thought I was having a heart attack but was really young. Severe pain in my back between my shoulder blades that usually moves around to my chest and sometimes into my throat and teeth. It's terrible.
Don't get it too often and when I do it's my own doing..overeating or binging on rubbish usually late at night. Had it more often in pregnancy. Also had terrible heartburn then but the two are completely different.
I have wondered if I might have gallstones but it's probably gerd. I find Zantac (ranitidine) is the only thing that works. Works in about 10 minutes and lasts. Don't like taking meds so try to be better regarding eating habits now.

I think I get this. The first time it happened I thought I was having a heart attack but was really young. Severe pain in my back between my shoulder blades that usually moves around to my chest and sometimes into my throat and teeth. It's terrible.
Don't get it too often and when I do it's my own doing..overeating or binging on rubbish usually late at night. Had it more often in pregnancy. Also had terrible heartburn then but the two are completely different.
I have wondered if I might have gallstones but it's probably gerd. I find Zantac (ranitidine) is the only thing that works. Works in about 10 minutes and lasts. Don't like taking meds so try to be better regarding eating habits now.

There are several things that help me:

• ensuring that I don’t eat 4 hours before I go to bed
• avoiding carbonated drinks
• keeping myself hydrated
• trying to eat more slowly and chewing more instead of hovering up my food like I used to do
• trying not to sleep on my back the whole night
• avoiding foods or eating in moderation as overeating certain types food, even some fruit or salad on an empty stomach, can trigger my GERD
• trying to avoid stressful stimulators or once stressed trying to remain calm especially before sleeping
• if you have too much stomach acid build up then having an alkaline “diet” might help so I try to drink almond milk, bananas, fresh dates etc because it helps reduce my acid reflux.

Sometimes when my acid reflux used to be so bad, I’d wake up with a sore throat and severe chest pain and milk used to help and then it didn’t help so much anymore because the reflux would reduce but the chest pains would remain. So I started to eat bananas more in the mornings which really helped. And one day when I was out of bananas and had some fresh dates at home, I ate the dates instead and it really helped. After googling, I realised that dates are more alkaline based which was why they helped reduce my reflux.

Yes, dontquit, I also had what I thought was heartburn in pregnancy, but it was completely different. Then it really was a hot, acid sensation lower down in my chest. I ate Rennies like popcorn and they seemed to help. All the classic triggers applied: eating late, eating too much, lying down on a full stomach, eating spicy food, being in the last trimester. But this is quite different - pain in my chest, rather than any burning sensation.

I woke up this morning, was fine lying down in bed, no discomfort at all no desire to get up out of my cosy nest. Then, within minutes of getting up, I felt the ache building in my upper chest and throat. It's quite quiet and peaceful in the CakeHouse right now, everyone getting on with their getting up stuff, no stress.

My body is confusing me.

My Mum had this, in addition to food triggers, it turned out to be a side effect of the medication she was taking. (She is on statins, anti depressants, blood pressure control, HRT and a host of other things...)

Though excluding gluten and sugar helped. Also I would find a probiotic or find natural probiotics, eat lots of raw vegetables and raw healthy fats.