This one is mine, Reflux, like you dream of or not.

[Mackey Mouse]

I know I have a lot on my plate, but I do not need this...

The last three nights I have been awakened by pains in my chest.. I know I immediately use to think of heart, but have had every test under the sun for heart.. it is my reflux..

It manifests itself in spasms of the esophagus that wake me out of a sound sleep.. I have to sit up or walk around, take some tums, drink some gaviscon and hope it stops.. the last resort is taking a lorazepam to relax the esophagus..

Darn... I do not need a flare up of this right now... anyone else suffer from Reflux...

 

[TruBlu]

Oh Marsha,
I have it so bad that I have called my doc in the middle of the night thinking I was having a heart attack! I recently had an endoscopy with dilation that helped a lot, but I get the most relief from a daily Prilosec (OTC). I've been taking them for almost a year now, and I don't have any problems with the reflux now. (Stop reading if you have a weak stomach... but mine was so bad that acid would drip out of my nose during the night! It would burn causing me to inhale really quickly and risk sucking the acid into my lungs. That is when they did the dilation.)

Have you tried Prilosec?

 

[Mackey Mouse]

I take Nexium...and have for a while.. 40mgs and of course now my insurance no longer covers it..

I have taken them all .. prevacid, protonix, prilosec.....but seems I will go back to prilosec once my nexium, which is not working now obviously, is no longer covered..

I try not to eat anything after 6......I think I will move it down to 5. I know I should give up my coffee, but darn, it is my only vice...

Maybe one in the morning and one later on, late morning and that is it.

I am sure mine is all stress related, but I have to get it under control. I am thinking of eating my bigger meal at lunch and for dinner just having something very bland, like oatmeal. I know sounds weird, but we have to do what we have to do.

This pain can be very bad.. I never have heartburn, never feel the acid, I just have the esophagus spasming thing which hurts like labor pains in your chest..

I am laughing writing this, we have to find humor where we can..

 

[TruBlu]

I know EXACTLY what you mean... if we don't laugh about it, we might cry - and who wants to go there???

Do you sleep with you head slightly elevated?

I was taking protonix (when my insurance would cover it... ) and it was FANTASTIC! It worked MUCH better than the prilosec. I think I would get my doc to switch me to something different. You definitely have enough to deal with! You don't need to be having chest labor on top of everything else!!!

 

[Christine]

I suffer reflux but I do not get the sharp pains like you do. I just feel sick to my stomach after most meals (fun, huh?).

First off--if the Nexium "pooped out" on you, chances are that the Prilosec isn't going to work either. Nexium and Prilosec are, essentially, the same drug with Nexium being the "improved" version and slightly more pure with the active ingredient.

Now, I know that everyone has different triggers. Just about everything triggers mine in a *minor* way; however, my two biggest triggers that will make me so miserable are: coffee and orange juice!

I know coffee is your only vice (I feel for you as "tea" is my only vice) but I'm telling you, if I even drink as little as 4 oz of coffee, I am sick FOR DAYS and that is with the medication.

The other day I took my iron supplement with orange juice in order to maximize absorption. I only drank about 3 swallows of the stuff and I was up all night with acid in my throat.

I urge you to give up the coffee. You might find you are significantly better.

 

[kathleena]

Me too. Mine started last spring, after a few rounds on antibiotics for sinus infections. Tried Prilosec, didn't work. Then Nexium, worked like a charm.

I'm now 7 months on nexium and about to go off due to the reports about long term use.

I drink Rooibos tea and water. That's it. My vice is a little chocolate.

I don't have any daytime episodes and once in a while I wake up about 4am with pressure beneath my ribs. But nothing in the food area makes a reaction, specifically.

I have read orange peel extract work well for acid reflux, so I'm going natural now to see what happens.

Also losing weight, which I need to do......

 

[TruBlu]

I almost forgot about this... Just this week, DH was reading an article in the paper about broccoli being a cure for acid reflux! The person quoted said that after he started eating broccoli 3 times a week he was able to stop taking prilosec. There was an explination as to why it worked, but I can't remember it... sorry.

 

[Mackey Mouse]

I know, I know about the coffee.... inserting big wah's here, but I do not drink, I do not smoke, I am doing weight watchers, I work out 5 days a week.. I turned 60 this year......please do not ask me to give up my one cup of coffee..

I am laughing here, I cannot give it up.. sorry cannot do it. I will give everything else, food, anything, but my morning coffee.. I do not drink orange juice because of this reflux thing, I keep away from Spaghetti sauce and I am Italian...

I try to stay away from chocolate as I know that triggers it.. but my coffee.. no can do.

 

[kathleena]

Oh and a friend's doc told her to eat one carrot in the afternoon everyday.

Maybe there is something with the broccoli and the carrot. Vitamin A???

 

[GoofyBaby]

Marsha,

You poor thing - you have enough to worry about without this happening. Please know you and your family are in my prayers. I have exactly the same thing that happens to me. Those esophagus spasms are the worst! I get them about twice a month, when I eat the wrong foods and they keep me up all night. I always fear a heart attack but, like you, I have had every heart test known to man (even the dreaded heart catheter) and they have all come back normal. I don't take anything for the reflux because I'm too sensitive to the medicines but many times soy milk does help me (I have no idea why).

I just wanted to offer my support and let you know you're not alone with the reflux beast! And I say again, by the grace of God, we will get through these trials!

 

[zumbergc]

A couple things that helped me that weren't regular treatments for reflux were.
1. Carafate. It use to be used to coat the stomach , and esophogus.
An er doc prescribed it for the severe chest pains from the reflux.
It was like I was breathing fire. Not a fun feeling.

I had endoscopy after endoscopy, and I didn't have any ulcers. But, the carafate helped out. My regular docs were like, its like chalk and it coats the esophogus, and he said it didn't really have any side affects, so I kept taking it for a while.

2. I tried aloe juice. I still take it every morning.
you can get it at a health food store. I use the 10x concentrate.

Put 1 tablespoon in a your favorite juice. (Not orange juice because it will aggrivate reflux).

When you start you might want to do it 2x a day.

The only way I can describe it, its like when you have a sunburn, and you put aloe on it, it soothes the pain.

I've now stopped the carafate.

I still take prevacid, but for a long time before I tried the other things, I was taking it 2x a day.

 

[disney kid at heart]

I take Nexium...and have for a while.. 40mgs and of course now my insurance no longer covers it..

I have taken them all .. prevacid, protonix, prilosec.....but seems I will go back to prilosec once my nexium, which is not working now obviously, is no longer covered..

I try not to eat anything after 6......I think I will move it down to 5. I know I should give up my coffee, but darn, it is my only vice...

Maybe one in the morning and one later on, late morning and that is it.

I am sure mine is all stress related, but I have to get it under control. I am thinking of eating my bigger meal at lunch and for dinner just having something very bland, like oatmeal. I know sounds weird, but we have to do what we have to do.

This pain can be very bad.. I never have heartburn, never feel the acid, I just have the esophagus spasming thing which hurts like labor pains in your chest..

I am laughing writing this, we have to find humor where we can..

I know exactly how you feel!! I have been on Nexium 40Mg 2x's daily and it has really helped. If it works for you, you can call the phamaceutical co and they will probably send it to you at a cheaper cost. Also I can not take aspirin, ibuprophen, aleve or any of those or I'll be a GI bleed (ulcer) A lot of times if you take them it will make the pain worse. I'll get the number of the company if you want to call them. They are AstraZenaca and they are good to work with. Let me know. Hope you get to feeling better.

 

[Pea-n-Me]

I don't know if this will help you or not, but here: http://health.yahoo.com/ency/healthwise/ut1638spec

 

[safetymom]

Marsha, sorry to hear your reflux is acting up. You sure don't need that on top of everything else. I hope you find something that works for you.

I think the cup of coffee should be the last thing to go. With everything you are dealing with you need something to relax you.

 

[Mackey Mouse]

Thanks everyone.. three nights without reflux..

But, eating earlier in the evening, smaller meal, and no laying down.. sitting up till I go to bed, then maybe a couple of tums and off to bed- it is working so far.

 

[teacups]

I had this same kind of reflux, with pains down the center of my chest. Recently found out I have H. Pylori. NOt sure if that is somethign you want to ask your doc about... I had threatment, and now am waiting to get the scope to see if it killed it and what damage is in there. Not sure if this info helps you. I also tried every "cure" under the sun.

 

[Mackey Mouse]

Thanks for the information, and when I finally get to have my long awaited doctor's appt in March.. I will be asking. My Dad had bleeding ulcers so I was reading about H Pylori... it was interesting..

Thanks again.

 

[disneyfanfamily]

Reflux is different than heartburn, right?

I am assuming I have heartburn, but don't know. I have had heart tests because I have gone to the doctor with "heart" pain. In fact, I went to the emergency with all the symptoms of a heart attack. Just heartburn...

Orange juice has always been awful for me. Love it, but it does not like me....

How do you know if it is reflux or heartburn.

It tends to go in spurts. I wake up for a few days in a row with heart pain and back pain (on the left side where my heart would be.) I have had my gall bladder out, so I know it is not that....

 

[Mackey Mouse]

I think reflux is a term we all use and heartburn falls under the term GERD....Gastroesophageal Reflux Disease...

I have had an upper GI Series....I cannot believe they still do those tests with all the new things available, but protocol and insurance makes you go through those steps.. Anyway, when they tipped me after making me drink the chalk drink they could see that the liquid refluxed into my esophagus....no kidding, I could have told them that without that test..

So I have had an endo, more than once and I have what is known as GERD, reflux disease, but it never manifests itself in heartburn....instead I get chest pain that builds and goes away, builds and goes away, sometimes even tightening my throat...mimics a heart attack, but my heart is good... It still is GERD or reflux disease, I just do not get it in a the form of heartburn...

Did that help??

 

[Christine]

I also don't get "classic" heartburn, but I do have reflux.

You can also have heartburn with reflux. I get more of a burning in my stomach and acid fluid coming up the back of my throat.

My chest doesn't burn, but sometimes I will get "heart" pain.

The only time I had true heartburn was in both of my pregnancies. I felt like I was on fire in my chest. Nasty.