So what comes after the Gaviscon?

[AllIWant85]

Hello,

37 weeks now and had heartburn/indigestion on and off for weeks. Started with milk and refreshers, when that failed I moved onto Rennies. When they failed I moved on to Gaviscon Double Action which I've been taking for weeks now.

The past few days it's not worked. :( I feel like I have acid in my throat aswell which isn't nice. Getting to a GP is a nightmare at the moment so I thought I'd see if anyone had any suggestions on what to try? Even propped up on pillows isn't helping at night and I'm becoming very sleep deprived!

Ranitidine - mine is prescribed by GP and I've needed it since mid- pregnancy. You can buy it off the shelf as Zantac or own brand (much cheaper) versions.

GP might prescribe over the phone.

Ohhhh you are going to have a baby with lots of hair. In my 3rd pregnancy I had shockingly bad heartburn & ds was born 5 weeks ago with lots of hair, some of it nearly 2 inches long! Shame it's all fallen out on the top of his head.

Boots own indigestion tablets worked for me (went through a pack of 96 a week) that and sleeping almost upright with 4 or 5 pillows. Only lay on your left side as well, apparently lying on the right side means your oesophagus stays open and acid comes up easier - I had horrendous heartburn when pregnant with DS. And he had a normal amount of hair, it's an old wive's tale that heartburn equals hairy baby!

I'd definitely second the ranitidine suggestion. I have been meaning to go to GP to get it for the last month but been so busy I haven't got round to making the appt, last week it just got so bad I was in the co op and out of desperation I grabbed a pack of zantac and gulped one as soon as I'd bought them, from that evening on I was like a different person! The whole family noticed the change in my mood, I hadn't realised how much it had been affecting me :(

so you could get it from any old shop if desperate, but best at least speak to GP on phone (if you can't go there in person) as he/she will know your medical history or how it can affect other drugs you take etc

Omeprazole worked for me. You can buy over the counter at boots if you can't get to doctor but it's not cheap. About £10 for a weeks supply.

Looks like a trip to the chemist may be in order then. Will phone the GP Monday to check he's happy enough for me to take them. I'm not too bothered about paying for them, the relief would be worth every penny!

I've noticed laying on my left was better,didn't realise why though!! It's just a shame the SPD doesn't let me lay on my side for more than about 15 minutes.

Thank you for the advice, out of curiousity...to those of you who suffered, how quickly after birth did the symptoms go? Or didn't they?

Ranitidine is great. Heartburn disappeared day after giving birth and has never come back except when eaten massive curry

Those cheap tums ones worked best for me. At first anyway went to Gp in end and got omeprazole and no sooner had I got prescription I never had I indegestion again. My ds had tons of hair too and managed to hang onto most of it. :)

Glad to help. It had resolved by the time I left hospital on each of my previous 2 babies, so within a couple of days of birth. And for the record both mine had loads of dark hair ha ha :) I expect this one will too.

Just a thought - I have heard not to take the likes of ranitidine or omeprazole, in conjunction with things like Rennie or tums. I don't know why, think perhaps they work in different ways or something. Sorry to be vague just thought you might like to be aware!

I can second omeprazole - within a few days of starting it I could eat what I wanted again and sleep through the night! I started off taking 1 10mg capsule at night, but after a few weeks I had to increase to 2. It's expensive so definitely try the GP first. Occasionally I still take a swig of gaviscon, but less than once a week compared to several times a day pre omeprazole. You can use both, but not at the same time.

Last night I was suffering really bad with heartburn/indigestion so I tried 2 teaspoons on apple cider vinegar and had the best night slept! It instantly went away!
I read about it before and thought nah no way will that work.
A cheaper alternative than buying from chemist.

*sleep!