Acid reflux during pregnancy

[Kjan]

Hi there

Reaching out for advice and share experience, I am 11 weeks and barely eat while having nausea and vomiting, hemorroids but mostly heartburn. It became very hard for me as I feel hungry and weak all the time but all of these things stop me from feeding myself properly. I tend to have potatoes (one week I only ate just potatoes everyday) or banana, cereals, it’s so ridiculous. I am so hungry and just resentful towards food, if you can help by sharing the kind of food you have while pregnant and having acid reflux, I will be so grateful.
Many thanks in advance

Are you taking antacids? If they aren’t helping go to the doctor and get medication, it helped me so much. I really regret suffering for weeks for no reason.

I only took Gaviscon but don’t like the taste of it, what medicine you were taking?

Hi!

I'm currently 30 weeks with my first baby and the reflux has been hideous. Right from about 9-10 weeks up until now.
I change my diet, cut out fizzy drinks etc but still would wake up with it in the middle of the night when I had an empty stomach. When I had eaten I also got it. It was constant.
Started throwing up stomach acid last week and couldn't take it anymore. Gaviscon wasn't cutting it!
I went to GP and have been prescribed ranitidine which I take 2x day morning and night. It's been a life saver. Haven't needed Gaviscon anywhere near as much and I feel so much better for it.

Well worth going to Gp xxx

Go to your gp and ask for ranitidine. It's on prescription but you can buy it too. Obviously prescribed you get a lot more tablets. It's fantastic and stopped my heartburn straight away.

I have acid reflux ... Don't eat any exotic fruits oranges, pineapple spicy food is a no go ! . Also coffee and fizzy drinks can trigger acid reflux . In my first trimester after I was sick I had a starburst sweets which just got rid off the taste which was really helpful. Talk to your gp about this they really helped me .

Have you tried love hearts? Yes, seriously. The sweets in a tube. They helped me massively when pregnant when I couldn't get my hands on medication

Definitely see a GP though, they can prescribe something. I was given co-malgodrox I think it's called

I was given a proton pump inhibitor but I don’t remember the name. It was amazing though.
Definitely get trying things out because it will only get worse as the baby starts to shift your organs around.

OP, please get yourself some medication. As a pp has said, ranitidine is a good start. You can get it for free on prescription, or buy over the counter as Zantac. Tesco's sell a cheap own brand ranitidine off the shelf. It makes a huge difference to both acid reflux and nausea in pregnancy, in my experience.

If that doesn't help, your GP should be able to prescribe omeprezole.

Good luck.

Cheapest ranitidine is from Wilko - 95p for 12 75mg tablets. 150mg ones are prescription only. I take it for an existing health condition but have been using it (at GP's advice for indigestion too and it's wonderful.

Many thanks! You are so wonderful!
I will go to Tesco to have these and to GP on Monday just to double check, I was so tired today of these I was crying. I only have eaten potatoes today there is not that much food I can accept, i am so hungry and exhausted

Yes get yourself to the GP and get medication. Just to add that I can't eat bananas as they give me instant heartburn and reflux. There's also a few others things I've had to cut out. I know you said you're not eating much at the minute but definitely evaluate whether any of those things make it worse.

Another vote for ranitidine! It’s very helpful. Last pregnancy I got to the point where gaviscon made me want to throw up so I was very relieved the doctor suggested ranitidine!

I weirdly find in pregnancy that peculiar things give me heartburn, including water, toast (but not bread) & chocolate. I suffer a bit from heartburn when not pregnant and safe to say those things do not give me heartburn usually!

It’ll hopefully settle a bit as morning sickness eases off - I know it feels like it never will. Mines just kicked in this pregnancy and I could just cry! I’m dreading the next 10-15 weeks if it’s anything like last time! But it does get better eventually!

Read this thread yesterday and promptly went out and bought ranitidine from Tesco which gave me an immediate improvement today- I hadn’t realised my overwhelming nausea was related to stomach acid! Have only had heartburn as such once but my stomach has felt on fire and almost like it’s bruised!

I notice people have been prescribed by gp. Information leaflet in the ones I bought said something like ‘safe to use in pregnancy but speak to gp/ midwife first’ don’t really want to waste a gp appointment if they are just going to say ‘yes it’s fine’ or even tell me not to use when I see other people have been prescribed it no problem! Anyone reassure me that it’s ok to take them?

Urgh OP I feel sorry for you (and PP’s)

I’m currently 5-6 weeks pregnant (I know super early right?) Well apparently nobody told my LO that symptoms should only kick in from 8weeks+

I actually tested early BEACAUSE of the nausea, heartburn and horrible metallic taste. I kept waking up with acid reflux and awful gas and knew something was wrong!

I pretty much only drink water- have a reasonably healthy diet and am a healthy weight. So there’s little more I can do but think it’s just luck of the draw sometimes 😭

I’m bracing myself for what’s to come - if it’s this bad now!
What I don’t understand is how women manage these symptoms whilst working? I’ve been signed off already 😭🙈

@ibizababyy see here: www.medicinesinpregnancy.org/Medicine--pregnancy/Ranitidine/

Thanks @Weathergirl1 that’s really helpful. I’m going to keep taking t as needed and speak to midwife at bookings in next week. @gonewiththepotter I hear you on those early symptoms I’ve had nausea since halfway through week 5 and it’s really ramped up in the last week! I’m 7 weeks now and struggling dragging myself into work but don’t want to tell them yet so trying to ride it out

@Ibizababyy i told my boss straight away, even before my family knew, as I had miscarriage 3 months ago and a still born baby 10 years ago, I was not able to take on anymore stress and projects were keeping piling on my desk, so I told him - well he realised it straight away as I was burping and feeling sick all day long and he really stepped up straight away saying to me to work from home and to take it easy, even the head of the dpt told me not to come unless I have meetings. So I recommend (if you know your boss is cool) to share that with him/her

@kjan that’s amazing that you got such a great response from your boss. Personally I know my boss will be good to me as will my whole team (tiny team) but I’m trying to avoid telling them until after we have secured our funding for next year. We are all working really hard on it at the moment and I wouldn’t want the fact that I will be absent for most of the next financial year to be a factor in us being recommissioned (totally know it shouldn’t be but that’s the world we live in!) I get full mat leave no matter what so that’s not an issue it’s more that everyone is so stressed and I don’t want to add to it. Will have to see though- so far I’ve felt horrific but haven’t actually been sick- with my last baby I was sick constantly from about now until 23 weeks so if it does kick in I’ll have to tell them. I’m pretty lucky in that we are all able to be flexible in working hours and work from home when needed so hoping that will get me through!

@qj17 @MotherofPearl @Bol87 @Weathergirl1
Many thanks, I bought 3 of Ranitidine (my husband is mirroring my pregnancy symptoms 🤷🏻‍♀️) and it helps really well. I am seeing my GP this morning just to be on safe side and see if there is any other medicine that can be sucked rather than swallow as I keep throwing up a lot.

@Ibizababyy obviously this is confidential and I have been amazed that he kept that for him and kept being very careful towards me (I am sleepy a lot too ^^)

OP, so glad the ranitidine is helping. It sounds like you could do with getting yourself onto the hyperemesis support thread on here, run by the wonderful LucindaE. It's a wonderful source of support and advice for anyone experiencing nausea and vomiting in pregnancy - you don't have to have a formal HG diagnosis to join.