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View Full Version : Anxiety + GERD making life impossible.



eric.walton
11-27-2011, 05:01 PM
Hey guys, first time here, quick rundown:

I've had anxiety ever since I stopped doing drugs years ago in highschool when I was about 17 (23 now). Tried to take medicine for it once, but it made me feel really zoned out, so I decided to just try and deal with it, which I have managed so far.

A couple weeks ago I woke up feeling a little off, and quickly found out that eating was making me feel sick to my stomach, and after that I started getting pains in my chest after sleeping. Few days later I woke up feeling frightened and delirious and rushed myself to the hospital.

After 5 hours waiting at the hospital they gave me a prescription for Rabeprazole (strong-ish antacids) and told me I just have a little acid reflux and it should go away. I asked them if a stomach ulcer was possible and they essentially said "Yeah, it's possible. See your doctor if you're worried".

After taking the pills for a few days, I didn't feel much different, and ended up going to my doctor. She did some compressions around my stomach, and found a spot that was particularly sensitive, and told me that's usually where ulcers form. She prescribed me Nexium 40mg once per day. She is also making an appt for a Gastroscopy to ensure that it is an ulcer and not something worse. It will apparently take at least a couple months to get the appointment!

A couple days prior to taking the Nexium I started waking up feeling confused and frightened. I disregarded this as anxiety brought on by the stomach/esophagal/chest pain caused by GERD.

After starting to take the Nexium, this has progressed into waking up temporarily unaware of where I am, having the shakes, sweating, feeling weak, as well as exhausted as if I never slept at all. Along with this I've been having vivid dreams/nightmares where I feel like it is my real life.

These feelings stay around for a while until I calm down to a point of "normal sickness" where it's mostly just the stomach pain and exhaustion I have to deal with. This usually takes up to 5 hours.

Today I stopped taking the Nexium (after only 6 days) and I have only been eating fairly bland foods since all this began (minus the once or twice where I have caved for something that actually TASTES good). I stopped taking the Nexium because I really cannot live my life feeling this way, and really hope it's just the drug.

If it's not the Nexium, what else do you think it could be? I've been reading of other peoples experiences, and there's a lot similar, but nothing that I've seen yet that seems to match what I'm dealing with completely.... Any advice/comparisons would be SO helpful!

I go back to the doctor tomorrow for the results of some blood tests they did to make sure this isn't the cause of something else, such as a blood disease. Hopefully the tests can shed some light and I can get some accurate solutions....


----------- Also I forgot to mention before this all started I had been living in British Columbia away from my family/friends with my girlfriend at the time, but we split up and she went home - leaving me there for a month and a half before I could catch a plane home. Also upon leaving, I have been left without a job, and am living with my parents again. To say the least, I have been under a fair amount of stress, if that helps.....

***Thank you very much if you read all this, I realize it got a little long***

jayone
11-27-2011, 09:08 PM
Wow. What you've posted above is pretty much what I go through. Read my thread I just posted. I actually have GERD tonight from the alcohol abuse at the wedding this weekend.

Do you have Skype or AIM by any chance? Would love to talk to you 1-2-1. You're roughly around my age too.

eric.walton
11-29-2011, 09:14 PM
Hey, I read your thread, and what you're dealing with doesn't really sound anything like what's happening to me.... It really sucks, that's for sure. And no one seems to be able to tell me why it's happening.

anna_wilson
11-29-2011, 09:48 PM
hey im female and im 20. ive had anxiety for about a year now from a drug called speed -_- i only took it this one occasion out with friends and that one night ruined my life to be honest..

i get really bad chest pains
heart pulpitations
shortness of breath
pins n needles alot
headaches
freaking out over sum sharp pain
i cant sleep till about 4-5 am till i ware my self out
get deppressed alot -crying at everything ect
cant go out the house alone :(
get paranoid being in the house alone so cant really win..
i dont take medication i try to deal with it without

i wud recomend camomile tea to carlm down it helps alot.. ermm.. st-johns wart is an anxiety herble medication its helps alot.

hope this helps ...maybe not but hey, if you ever want to chat give me a mail i am allways up :)

oh and sorry about the spellling its useless

eric.walton
12-01-2011, 05:28 PM
Yea, I've learned quite well how to deal with the anxiety, since I've had it for so long and refused to take meds for it. But since getting the stomach ulcer, I've been having all these other problems, and it's really hard to deal with. Not sure what to do.... :(