Acid Reflux?

[jw927458]

Does anyone else on here deal with acid reflux? I have been having it a lot lately, I don't know if it's a mixture of the stress or what. I am taking omeprazole, it helps but doesn't eliminate it all together.

[Chiliphil1]

I have it. It's terrible, causes all kinds of pain and aggravation, and it can be worrisome as your not sure what's going on. I take omeprazole as well, I was taking 2 a day but that caused me problems with digestion, so I went to 1 per day and still had issues. I am now taking 1 every other day, this seems to be the right balance for me. The meds seem to work well, and I rarely have reflux at all, sometimes I still do though but not very often at all.

To answer your question, yes reflux definitely gets worse with stress, when I have anxiety I definitely have heartburn to go with it, I believe most of us do. I think it has something to do with stress affecting digestion, but that's just a theory. I would recommend speaking with your doctor, they may be able to give you prescription prilosec, or possibly something like nexium.

I certainly wish you the best, I know how rough this stuff is.

[theoryofchoice78]

Does anyone else on here deal with acid reflux? I have been having it a lot lately, I don't know if it's a mixture of the stress or what. I am taking omeprazole, it helps but doesn't eliminate it all together.

I have also suffered from acid reflux in my life. A few suggestions.

1. Apple Cider Vinegar. At least 3 times a day mix 1oz of Apple Cider Vinegar with 8 oz of water (it doesn't take that bad).

2. Get rid of simple refined carbs/sugars as much as you can. Simplify your diet. Whole foods as much as possible. No more white breads and bleached flour, 9 grain or nuthin when it comes to bread. Limit grease/bad fat intake.

3. 1 Tablespoon of Cod Liver Oil every day.

Omeprazole treats the symptom, not the problem :)

[jw927458]

Thanks guys for the reply. I will try your suggestions. The omeprazole does seem to be masking the problem, but for instance, today I woke up with a little burn in my stomach.

[theoryofchoice78]

Thanks guys for the reply. I will try your suggestions. The omeprazole does seem to be masking the problem, but for instance, today I woke up with a little burn in my stomach.

Keep a little food journal. Write down foods you eat, and attempt to find the foods that cause the symptoms? (or use something like the myfitnesspal app if you have a smart phone).

If you've noticed, the docs don't spend a whole lot of time with you, and they write a little prescription for you to deal with the current symptom. That doesn't mean that's the end of the road. By all means treat the symptom and deal with the pain, but don't forget that your health is ultimately your responsibility.

A little bit of wisdom from my own life. I was on reflux meds for multiple years. I assumed that the reflux meds were treating the problem. One day, agonizing pain in my stomache. More reflux meds prescribed. Didn't help. Continued to have attacks of pain. I got an ultrasound done, and they found that my gall bladder was full of stones. They zapped it, and I haven't really needed reflux meds since.

A few points. First, this wasn't the first time they tested me for gall stones. I had been tested a few years before. No problems found. Obviously things got worse.

Second, I know for sure that at various points I changed my diet (I switched to a whole food, nothing boxed, nothing canned diet), and my reflux would go away. When I went back to my typical way of eating, the reflux came back. I played around and never really stuck to the dietary changes that helped me, and eventually my body got sicker (reflux turned into gall bladder disease). I'm not in any way suggesting that reflux means your going to develop gall bladder problems. I'm just saying that reflux was my bodies way of telling me that I was doing something wrong, and instead of listening, I continued to treat the symptom until things got worse. Listen to your body, and at least try to make adjustments instead of just attacking the problem one symptom at a time.