How have you treated acid reflux?

[karensi]

Someone told me to eat an apple if you think you may have eaten something that is going to give you heart burn. I've tried it a few times and it does really work. My friend told me the "tinactin" in the apple is what helps curb the heartburn.

 

[emer95]

I just found out that I have Barrett's esophagus in February. The weird thing is I don't have any symptoms, but apparently my esophagus has quite a lot of damage. It's baffling. I'm thin and I've always eaten a very healthy, clean diet. I take Prilosec every day, but I'm very concerned about the negative side effects. The only reason I found out about the reflux is because I have a burning tongue. They wanted to see if silent reflux was causing my tongue to burn, so I had an endoscopy. Unfortunately my tongue is still burning, despite the treatment for reflux. Now they're trying to rule out MS.

 

[KBoopaloo]

I had my first bout of severe GERD about 13 years ago and I ended up on 40 mg of Prilosec twice a day for about 18 months. Then I spent six months on 40 mg once a day and then I was done. After that, I had intermittent issues if I ate the wrong things (Chinese food always bothers me, too much coffee, too much tomato sauce, too much chocolate) but it was manageable and didn't last or require a doctor.

In January of this year the GERD came back with a vengeance. I tried everything - Prilosec 40 mg twice a day again, the apple cider vinegar, Nexium, etc. I also stopped drinking coffee all together which was brutal. LOL The Nexium combined with Gaviscon after meals seems to have gotten it back under control and now I rarely take the Gaviscon - only when I know I have eaten something I shouldn't have. I have also started having one cup of coffee a day again.

I had high hopes for the Apple Cider Vinegar (in a cup of warm water with honey) and thought it was working for a bit but then everything got much, much worse. I have no idea if the Vinegar was to blame or not but I am not giving it another try just in case.

 

[dotfurio]

I was on Prevacid for years and just recently switched to Prilosec. I supplement with Tums if needed. Prevacid has some bad side effects so be wary of being on it long term - the ones I was worried about most were osteoporosis and dementia. I'd been on it for years with no problems but I don't want to take any chances moving forward. Now by reading a previous posters response it looks like I need to look up the side effects of Prilosec! So far the Prilosec has been working fine, but I've also made dietary changes. According to my Dr the big triggers are caffeine, chocolate, garlic, onion, mint, citrus, tomato, alcohol, and spicy foods. Some of those don't seem to really bother me, so I still have them, but I've cut back. She also suggested sleeping with my head/upper body elevated, which I haven't done yet. I've been dealing with this since my first pregnancy about 15 years ago and all my scopes have been fine so far, thank God. I get my next scope in a couple weeks.

Interesting info about the apple cider vinegar - I might give that a try.

 

[AppleDumpling]

I took PPIs for several years but didn't like the idea of staying on them for the rest of my life. I'm off meds now and have been doing fairly well with a restricted diet and other natural methods.

Sleeping in an elevated position has helped a lot, once I got used to it. I try to eat smaller meals more often, eat slowly and no food late at night. Also while you should drink lots of water, it's better not to drink it with meals, and cold or iced water actually interferes with digestion so you're better off sipping warm water.

Some foods that help reflux symptoms are apple or applesauce (I've tried vinegar but can't tolerate the taste), banana, watermelon, oatmeal, plain rice, ginger, and licorice (DGL).

 

[Christine]

I was on Prevacid for years and just recently switched to Prilosec. I supplement with Tums if needed. Prevacid has some bad side effects so be wary of being on it long term - the ones I was worried about most were osteoporosis and dementia. I'd been on it for years with no problems but I don't want to take any chances moving forward. Now by reading a previous posters response it looks like I need to look up the side effects of Prilosec! So far the Prilosec has been working fine, but I've also made dietary changes. According to my Dr the big triggers are caffeine, chocolate, garlic, onion, mint, citrus, tomato, alcohol, and spicy foods. Some of those don't seem to really bother me, so I still have them, but I've cut back. She also suggested sleeping with my head/upper body elevated, which I haven't done yet. I've been dealing with this since my first pregnancy about 15 years ago and all my scopes have been fine so far, thank God. I get my next scope in a couple weeks.

Interesting info about the apple cider vinegar - I might give that a try.

Prevacid, Prilosec, Nexium, Protonix, and many others are within the same class of drugs and all have the same long-term side effects so it won't help you to switch around. Only you can determine whether the reflux will cause more damage than the drug will (and reflux can cause some nasty esophageal issues). Not everyone will get Barrett's.

 

[KBoopaloo]

I took PPIs for several years but didn't like the idea of staying on them for the rest of my life. I'm off meds now and have been doing fairly well with a restricted diet and other natural methods.

Sleeping in an elevated position has helped a lot, once I got used to it. I try to eat smaller meals more often, eat slowly and no food late at night. Also while you should drink lots of water, it's better not to drink it with meals, and cold or iced water actually interferes with digestion so you're better off sipping warm water.

Some foods that help reflux symptoms are apple or applesauce (I've tried vinegar but can't tolerate the taste), banana, watermelon, oatmeal, plain rice, ginger, and licorice (DGL).

Yes, applesauce helped me a lot during this last GERD flare up I had. I would eat one of those small snack size tubs of applesauce after lunch and dinner and it seemed to help quite a bit.

 

[Julylady]

I also take Prilosec daily. I am concerned about the long term effects, but on those days when I don't take it, I really suffer. Even with the Prilosec, I have to avoid anything tomato based as well as chocolate. Also, I can't have anything to eat within about an hour of going to bed.

 

[Land Shark]

I used Prilosec daily which of course just took care of the symptoms. Just lying down caused issues.
Diet and exercise did really work for me. Dropped 30 pounds and do 30 minutes of cardio everyday. Very rarely eat fast foods and cut way back on red meat. I rarely have problems anymore unless I really overeat at one sitting. Unfortunately, I do have some esophageal damage from going to long with those symptoms

 

[OhMari]

I have been on Nexium for over 10 years. I don't think I can ever get off the medication. I have developed polyps in my stomache, but I was told they are harmless, but I have to have a endoscopy done every 5 years to watch them.

 

[Christine]

I have been on Nexium for over 10 years. I don't think I can ever get off the medication. I have developed polyps in my stomache, but I was told they are harmless, but I have to have a endoscopy done every 5 years to watch them.

Were the polyps due to use of the Nexium?

I also developed them (but I was not told I had to come back every 5 years). I read somewhere that the PPIs can cause that but I'm not entirely sure about that.

 

[nkereina]

I recently had an MRI for an unrelated issue, and they noticed I have a sliding hiatal hernia which causes my acid reflux. It's from carrying belly fat and being overweight. It's my understanding it can only be fixed through surgery. Definitely worth looking into!

 

[OhMari]

Were the polyps due to use of the Nexium?

I also developed them (but I was not told I had to come back every 5 years). I read somewhere that the PPIs can cause that but I'm not entirely sure about that.

Yes. Scary.

 

[dotfurio]

Prevacid, Prilosec, Nexium, Protonix, and many others are within the same class of drugs and all have the same long-term side effects so it won't help you to switch around.

Yikes! My Dr switched me to prevacid because of the side effects. Doesn't make sense if prilosec has the same ones!!! Thanks for the info...

 

[Kellykins1218]

My doctor gave me 6 weeks worth of Protonix and it was resolved by the time I finished it.

 

[720L]

I've been diagnosed with "silent reflux".... no heartburn. My symptom is an elongated Uvula. Of course I would get this rare side effect lol. It feels like I have mucus in the back of my throat. I've been put on Prilosec twice a day, so far its not helping at all . I really don't want to take anything but changing my diet didn't help.

 

[Skiton]

I have horrible reflux. It started after I had my second child. Apparently my esophageal sphincter relaxed during pregnancy and never tightened back up, so the acid just keeps seeping back up.

I was on a sort of prescription prevaid for a couple years (can't remember the exact name) and it would resolve, so I'd stop taking it, and then it would be back within a few months. It was very expensive stuff, even with insurance. These days I take Prevacid and do my best to minimize triggers. Alcohol and coffee/tea seem to be the worst. I do love my coffee, but I limit it to a cup or two in the morning. The problem is, once I feel good I think "Oh, I'm cured!" and go back to all of my bad habits, and then I find myself back at square one. The best thing you can do, truly, is make some life-style changes and then make them stick. I'm doing my best to take my own advice.

 

[wishesuponastar]

I have been on Nexium for over 10 years. I don't think I can ever get off the medication. I have developed polyps in my stomache, but I was told they are harmless, but I have to have a endoscopy done every 5 years to watch them.

How did you find out you had polyps, were there symptoms you can tell us?

 

[OhMari]

How did you find out you had polyps, were there symptoms you can tell us?

I had my 3rd Endoscopy and was told about them. No symptoms at all. I go to a specialty hospital in Milwaukee called Froedert. When I got home, I googled everything, and what I found out, is basically what the Dr. told me. They are chartered and will be monitored, and their is no threat. Just sounds scary.

 

[Christine]

I had my 3rd Endoscopy and was told about them. No symptoms at all. I go to a specialty hospital in Milwaukee called Froedert. When I got home, I googled everything, and what I found out, is basically what the Dr. told me. They are chartered and will be monitored, and their is no threat. Just sounds scary.

Mine have no symptoms either and I was shocked to know I had them. Like you, they were not there during my first two endoscopies. But I guess after years of PPI use, they finally showed up. I've been off Prilosec for 2 months now. It will be interesting to see if they shrink after a few years. I've heard they will go away.