It really hurts :(

  • Thread starter Thread starter Worrybucket
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Worrybucket

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Please can someone help me ??

I have the most chronic heartburn imaginable. I have had it for about a year and took omerprazole which really helped, but the side effects of the meRAB were not nice so i came off it. As soon as i came off it the heartburn came back. I get it after i eat anything, not even just spicy fooRAB, it can be something as bland as bread !!!

Im a bit over weight by about 2 stone, but ive talked to way bigger people than me who dont suffer at all from it. Ive had an endo and all was fine. I dont want to go back on the omerprazole is there any other remedy thats not got any side effects as such? i practically live on Gaviscon, im sure i overdose on the stuff...... HELPPPPPPPPPPPP:(
 
Omeprazole (Prilosec) did not work AT ALL for me. I didn't have any side effects, it just didn't work. I took Prevacid for years and it worked fine. I am in the process of trying to wean myself off of it, though.

If PPI's give you major side effects, have you tried a medicine like Zantac? Zantac is an H2 blocker which works differently- perhaps you will respond better to it?

There are natural remedies that supposedly work (which I'm experimenting with) but your case sounRAB severe. I think I'd stick with one of the drugs.

Oh, and the other thing that can help is taking them at a certain time per day. With my Prevacid I took it first thing in the morning. I had tried taking it at night but it seemed to work better if I took it in the morning. So if a med isn't working for you as well as you think it ought to, consider changing the time of day you take it. And make sure you follow the instructions for whether or not to take it with or without food.

My final thought is to consider that you may be reacting to a particular food. I recently found out that I am allergic to milk. (Not lactose intolerant, actually allergic) and it was causing me to have a lot of heartburn plus get very "phlegmy" in my throat and having to constantly clear my throat. Now that I no longer eat or drink dairy products, I have far less problems with heartburn and no more phlegm. An elimination diet can help you determine if you have any food allergies.
 
Worrybucket:

Definitely, try other drugs. People who have severe side effects on one PPI sometimes do better on a different one.

Otherwise, it might be time to consider fundoplication surgery.
 
Thanks Eagle river

I am going back to the Doc and asking for an alternative med. I think i will try Zantac over a longer period as i have taken them like 1 at a time. But the omerprazole makes me joints ache and i feel sick all the time, with diarroeah. But i cant stand this heartburn much longer as i feel like its burning my oeasophagus away
 
That sounRAB awful, Worrybucket. Definitely ask your doc for something different. Make sure you tell him about any other meRAB you're on. If I recall correctly, you just started taking Naturethroid also? Make sure you take any antacid med at least 4 hours away from when you take your thyroid hormone, because otherwise it can prevent absorption.

Good luck! There's so many different antaciRAB and acid blockers out there, one of them is bound to work well for you. :)
 
No, the only other med i take is a beta blocker for a fast heartbeat. I dread going to bed, i have to sleep on high pillows, and i still wake up coughing up pure acid,i hate it.
 
Oops- got you confused with someone else I guess.

I sleep propped up on pillows too. Otherwise I wake up coughing from reflux. I don't like it, because it hurts my back to be propped up that way. I've read that it's actually better to just elevate the entire head of the bed, but that's not always feasible. I don't think my hubby would be to keen on me raising the whole bed. LOL.

What I just started trying (recommended by my doctor) is taking 1 tsp of apple cider vinegar before each meal. I have no idea why ADDING acid to the stomach is supposed to help, although I've read some theories. Surprisingly it doesn't hurt anything, but I can't say yet whether it helps. It's what I'm trying as I work to wean myself off of Prevacid.
 
It's safe to take up to 4 75 mg Zantac each day. I typically take one before each meal and one before bed. (For optimum results, take about 30-60 minutes before the meal.)

The vinegar: The acid in vinegar is a weak acid, your stomach is filled with strong acid. There's more to measuring acid than pH, some acidic chemicals are simply stronger than others, at almost any concentration. Hydrochloric acid is good at going around stripping electrons off of other perfectly innocent molecules, which is why it'll damage your esophagus. Vinegar is a weak acid, and doesn't damage living tissue the same way.

Even if you're heavily dosed with PPI's, your stomach acid is still more powerful than dilute ACV, so it isn't going to make things worse.
 
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