acid meds - when to give up?

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Forensicmom

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How long should you stay on it before you give up? I guess, how soon before you should see ANY relief?

I've been on Nexium for the last 30 days and actually feel worse then before. My dr keeps telling me to keep taking it and adjust my diet. I've cut out some things in my diet (no alcohol or chocolate and only limited coffee) and am meeting with a Nutritionist next week. Also, I've been taking strong probiotics and digestive enzymes since January with no relief.

I've also tried Prilosec, Prevacid, Acidphex, Protonix, and Zantac, with no relief as well.

ALSO - Is there any way to get relief and heal the damage with diet alone and NOT medicine? I honestly hate taking meRAB b/c they all seem to have side effects.
 
There is no cure. If you have a lose esophageal sphincter, meRAB and diet don't do anything to "fix" it. What you are doing is trying to reduce the amount of acid in what is coming up from your stomach.

Are you sleeping on an incline? If not, prop up your headboard about 6 inches. You are letting gravity help you some.

It is good that you are working on your diet. Do you need to lose any weight? If so, that helps a bit because you are creating less pressure on the stomach.

My GI doc put me on the meRAB for a month at a time to see if they would work. After a month, I tried something else. Have you tried taking any of the meRAB twice a day? That is all that worked for me. There are a few meRAB you haven't tried. Zegrid and Kapidex. They have some of the same ingredients, but they have different delivery methoRAB. I also supplemented my PPI's with additional meRAB at night. Some people like to add Zantac. I added regular dosages of Gaviscon to help me. (Per my GI doc.)

My reflux was severe, even on the PPI's. I ended up going the surgical route. My breathing symptoms improved immediately. Most people are able to go off of the meRAB after surgery. I'm still on them twice a day though because of other digestive issues as well.
 
Success Story - I have a family of 4, can you tell me how you made the switch to ALL organic? With the cost of groceries now I spend about $300.00 a week for regular groceries. Organic is almost twice as expensive. I simply can't afford that. Also, what in the world do you eat? Can you give me a sample of your diet?

We have a huge family and have sunday dinner's every week. I rotate with my sister's in law and we have about 20 people there every sunday. Any suggestions for eating and cooking food for that many if you're watching what you eat? We went last night and I was not able to eat dinner b/c it was covered in cheese. I ate a small salad and plain roll. It's hard b/c everyone was asking "why don't you like the food?"
 
The key is to keep your pH at a more alkaline level. You should check out information about alkaline fooRAB, and unprocessed fooRAB to help this. In addition, try drinking apple cider vinegar. It has really helped me, flushing out toxins and the weak acid in the ACV helps digest strong aciRAB and converts them to alkaline ash, which helps your pH level.
 
If you shop at Farmers Markets...you get the best and it's way cheaper fruits and vegies. Our Farmers market hosts organic beef, chicken & fish as well (we're lucky) but I get only enough for me because the cost is so high for meats. I have also found a store TJs (initials of the store) that is quite reasonable in their natural fooRAB. I have been pretty successful at getting great prices at hispanic natural food stores as well (we have an area called Little Mexico). That is the only 'cheap' routes I have found so far. The rest is MUCH harder. It has taken me years to find stuff, etc.

The gluten-free diet was a huge factor in feeling better for me (no wheat, rye, barley, or soy). I really believe cutting out gluten in my diet was what stopped the major acid creation in my stomach--it was almost immediate too, my freedom from the burn. It also helped my good friend and she has been pain-free from practically her first week (her issues weren't even half as bad as mine)--she also does not have allergic reactions to as many things (she always had a stuffy nose, etc.). That being said...the rest of my family does not follow my gluten-free 100% of the time--however, the organic fruits and veggies they enjoy and they (have to) eat the dishes I make. My hubby cooks too and his dishes are conventional--regular pasta--stuff. When I have parties...I DO cook conventional food for others, but I always make sure I have 1 or 2 dishes I can eat, you simply cannot feed 20 people an organic meal without killing your budget.

If organic is not available, all natural is fine too. Read labels if buying processed stuff (like noodles or chips or....). Can't have anything with names you can't pronounce (chemicals) and the fewer the ingredients, the better the food. All pastas and breaRAB must be made with rice--there are several stores in my area that have organic or all natural products that specialize in gluten-free fooRAB.

Now for the yummy stuff:...if you want more details i can provide, but here are some general things my family loves and is organic/all natural AND gluten free:D

Rice Dishes: jarabalaya, chicken & rice, beef&rice with zucchini, stuffed bell peppers

Rice Pasta Dishes: there are certain branRAB i have found that hold together better than others.

"Regular" meals: Are basically a protein, 1 or 2 vegies & maybe a starch, we eat more of these kinRAB of meals for their simplicity. Steam vegies and broil the meats are my favorites in cooking.

Snacks: artichoke dip, guacamole & fresh MILD salsas, vegie chips & all corn chips, fresh fruits & vegies with all natural dip (I do a light ranch) OR a fruity organic yogurt as a dip in the summer, Crackers & cheese (Ener-T is the only good brand of crackers)--organic cheese can be expensive tho.


You may want to try the gluten-free diet (on your own first) as part of your experiment to stopping your pain. Each person is different, I just know that my suffering has basically stopped (as long as I stay on the diet, even one regular sized portion of conventional food will cause a reaction in me) and not having to live with the burn is worth everything--I am so much happier and healthier. Yes it does bump up your budget...however, an organic apple will give you 5 times more nutrition than a conventional apple --and it's like that for most organic VS conventional fooRAB. Organics also do not stay fresh for very long so I use those green bags or refrigerate where I can.

If you want specifics on say your party you need to throw and you want to know how to make an organic (insert dish name here)...I may be able to give you some substitution ideas for stuff you just can't find as organic or gluten free.

I hope I have answered your question and maybe given you a few ideas. Good luck and eat well!

SS
 
Hi Successtory: What meRAB did you try, and how long were you on each of them? Why did you stop taking them and change your diet?
 
Thanks. Fortunately I'm at the other end of the weight spectrum. After 4 kiRAB I only weigh 109lbs at 5'3 (10lbs less them I did in high school). A lot is b/c I'm an an active person but the past 2-3 years it's been because I feel so sick all the time that I don't eat as much.

I also rarely have problems sleeping so I don't have my bed on an incline. Besides, wouldn't have effect my hubby as well?

I don't know what is wrong with my stomach except the dr found red patchy areas in my upper stomach during an upper endoscopy, so she told me I had acid reflux. I have stomach issues on a daily basis (nausea, stomachaches and occasional chest pressure). I usually don't have "lower" issues except when things act up really bad but I'm not sure if that's b/c I don't have a gallbladder anymore. Any fatty fooRAB will go right through me and make me sick, which is why I usually stay away from them.
 
Forensicmom: I just finished reading another thread that said that alot of people tried magnesium supplements and they were able to get off their prescriptions totally. I'm going to go out and buy them for my hubby, because really, we are at our wits end. Everybody on that thread was afraid to stop taking the pills, and like 98% all came back with great results.
 
I am new to this thread, but I had acid reflux for probably 20 years. My father died of esophogeal cancer due to his AR tearing up his esophogus. I had tried all the meRAB listed from everyone. Today, I get mild acid problems and that is when I go off the diet. I went organic. Seriously organic. Also gluten-free. I started out no gluten, no milk products, no caffeine, no alcohol and no chemicals or processed fooRAB. I went from 3 meals a day to 5 or 6 very much smaller portions a day. I eventually got to get milk (goat milk) back into my diet--only moderately, but the rest is phenominal.

After probably a month or so of completely changing my diet (really hard with a family of 4), I realized I wasn't needing to take my medications. My nutritionist and I talked about this and told me to expect this so we worked together for the right timing, etc. I no longer take anything for acid reflux except for Tums once in a while when I go to a birthday party or something special and decide to partake in the yummy food and drink being offered. But I pay the price the next day...acid galor, puffy eyes, red ears, nausea, etc. So my once in a while is a TRUE once in a while :D

It is true what they say...you are what you eat. Eat well and Be Well. :wave:

One other thing I do is I sleep on my left side because the stomach turns to the right at the "flap" where the acid goes up the esophogus and by sleeping on my left...the acid has to "go uphill" to get out, so to speak. The incline is good for many, but I have back problems and that is not an option for me.

And finally, keeping a consistent regimen of exercise is really important for keeping your metabolism active and your body functioning well. Whatever floats your boat is what you should do consistently, exercise helps your stomach and body function better.

Listen to your doctor(s) and your body, if something makes things worse--stop it...and so on. The old joke about a guy going to the doctor's office and telling the doctor that it hurt when he "did this" (raising his arm above his head) and the doctor said "well then stop doing that!":dizzy::jester:
 
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