don't want to scare you, but the acid can erode your esophogus to such an extent that it can rupture. Over the counter medications will not be enough. You need prescription strength acid blockers. That means a trip to the doctor. If you are in the hospital, that house will get finished without you. Call the office, explain the situation about the house and make an appointment as soon as possible.

I know, the doctor told me that but that's why he prescribed the Ranitidine. He said if there was any damage, it would repair it.

I had a call in to my doctor today but she didn't call me back until they were almost closing and I was just driving into a garage and my cell phone missed her call. She said to call her in the morning.

Have you tried Prilosec OTC ? My DH and my sister both depend on it . They both have severe acid reflux , but the Prilosec OTC definitly controls it .

Someone at work just mentioned it to me. No I haven't tried that yet. Seems like every time someone says something worked miracles for them, it didn't for me. Do they have the same symptoms as mine?

I took Ranitidine and when that didn't work I was given prescription stregnth Prilosec. Taking it twice a day improved my situation, but I still had to sleep with Mylanta on my nightstand. After several years, I finally have some relief. I had to go on a low-carb diet because of diabetes and that also took care of the reflux. I still have to be careful about having things like tomato sauce or pepperoni.

gandbb, how long did it take before the Prilosec starting working. I was on a low carb diet a few months ago but I'm a carb addict so I couldn't stay on it long. I reached my goal and have no desire to go back on it.

Did you have the same symptoms I described?

the problem is that acid reflux and it's damage is seldom "fixed". It's more like it's controlled. Once you get the acid levels down, the healing begins, but if you slack up on your medications, it will return. It takes time. You also have to watch your weight and what you eat and drink. If you are not satisfied with your doctor's diagnosis, get a second opinion. Go to a doctor that specializes in gastric problems.

Before GERD was popular husband had a bleed in his esophogus from it. He had to have a blood tranfusion (8 units he'd bled so bad) and had a mild heart attack from it, it is NOT something to fart around with!!

So on top of the medication (which you may have t change if it isn't working well for you).

1. If you can elevate the head of your bed with bricks under it, do it...NOT a couple of pillows, that just folds your body, but actually make yourself sleep with a little incline. Gravity is your friend.
2. Stop drinking Caffeine and Carbinated drinks.
3. Do NOT eat after 6 or 7 PM depending on when you go to bed (aprox 3 hours before you go to bed).

Those three were the main things (along with the meds) that helped My husband. He also had to take a medicine that "moved the food faster" through his stomach, leaving less to come back up. I don't remember the name of that one. Good luck, and please stick with the Dr. Besides eroding your esophogus, the erosion can lead to a pre-cancerous condition (I think it is called schlotzkies rings or something like that), and esophogael cancer (which my husband's father did have).

Vickey-MN

Susan, my symptoms were not so severe as yours. It was more like I had swallowed a very strong acid and then thrown it up. I did double over from the pain in my stomach. What I forgot to say though is that I was also tested for and treated for H. Pylori bacteria. That was a necessary first step. If you haven't had that done, you should. I think the Prilosec worked to some degree pretty quickly. You are not supposed to take it with the Ranitidine, but I have because the Ranitidine is more immediate in its effect and the Prilosec seems to calm the stomach more slowly and over a longer period of time. It really was the low carb diet that fixed things for me though.

First off you need to understand that Ranitidine is Zantac. Over the counter Ranitidine or Zantac is 75 mg and prescription is 150 - so taking two otc pills is equal to taking a prescription pill. Prilosec and Pepsid and some of the other otc pills are different drugs that do the same job which is to make your stomach produce less acid. If you want your stomach to stop producing acid you have to take a different pill and they are always prescription (and therefore involve a doctors visit). I take Acifex. You might have to try different pills to find the one that works best for you.

The drug for moving food through the system faster is Propulsid - but I believe it is no longer available.

My un-educated guess would be that your esophagus is freaking out because acid is splashing on it. It is very hard to make this go away. A simple pill ain't gonna do it. You have to stop eating completely in the evenings and you'll have to test different times to figure out when your system does best. I have to stop eating around 6pm, other people have to stop much earlier. Some times you can't even drink a glass of water before you go to bed - even water will fill your stomach and cause acids to splash back up into your esophagus (its as if the acid floats on top of water).

When its really bad I sleep in an easy chair rather than the bed. How you place your head on a pillow will cause problems - you want the leading edge of the pillow to be almost at your sholders so that your neck doesn't bend. Kinking your neck can cause esophagus problems. Even though you want to be elevated and the raising up one end of the bed works (only if you sleep alone), sleeping in the chair works better.

My chest pain feels more like a heart attack then what you discribe. I get no relief when I vomit. Mine doesn't go away completely. I have sorta learned how to keep it away rather than learn how to treat it when it happens. There are times when no matter what I do, what pill I take, how I sleep it is gonna make me uncomfortable. And the discomfort can go on for a few days. It irritates me the way people dismiss acid reflux as something minor - it can induce panic attacks and all the other problems listed previously. It isn't anything to take lightly.

What works for me - I started taking vitamins (my doctor recommended them because of my weight and age). Don't know if vitamins play any role in reflux but mine has almost completely gone away. I take omega-3 and Vitamin B 1 (the bottle says Big 100, I think it is all the B's). I also eat my last meal of the day before 6pm and only eat a few graham crackers sometime in the evening. If my stomach feels jumpy I don't eat or drink anything.

The most amazing "cure" so far has been vinegar. You can read all about it on the web. It sorta makes sense, but if you have damaged the lining of your esophagus I'm not sure it would be wise to drink vinegar, it would be too painful. I drink like a teaspoon (1-2 cap fulls) of apple cider vinegar almost every evening. It burns. If my stomach and throat are suffering from acid reflux I will feel mighty awful after drinking the vinegar. In fact I'll think I have just poisoned myself. But within 15 minutes all the symptoms are gone. It truly is amazing. I'm not sure it will work for everyone or for all stomach problems, but I believe it has almost cured me.

If and when you ever see a doctor again you need to be tested for H. pylori bacteria in your stomach. This trouble maker can lead to all kinds of problems and is easy to get rid of. My doctors theory is that all adults over the age of 40 should deal with this pest (it takes about 40 years for the infection to build up in the lining of our stomaches. The bacteria more than likely comes from our water supply - its universal). H. pylori bacteria contributes to acid reflux problems but probably doesn't cause it - but once you have this pest living in your stomach lining your stomach won't produce acid in the proper way until you get rid of him.

John: I do know that Zantac is the same as Ranitidine - that's why I starting taking it. But I didn't realize I was only taking 1/2 the dose I was taking of the Ranitidine (thought it was 150 but it was actually 300).

I believe I was tested for H Pylori not long ago and it came out negative but I'm not sure.

And my stomach never hurts which seems to be a symptom in other people with GERD. My pain is confined to the center of my breastbone and to my back (which is awful).

I'll pass on the vinegar right now - think that will be a last resort.

Vickey: Elevating my head doesn't seem to do anything but maybe its not elevated enough. I've tried sleeping sitting up but that lasts about 5 minutes. I drink very little caffeine and maybe one diet coke a day. I have such a weird schedule. I work from 4:30p to 11:00p so I don't usually go to bed until about 2:00 a.m. so I can't really stop eating at 6 but I can stop 3 hours before going to bed.

I don't understand what causes this cuz I don't really eat too badly (although I love carbs). My diet isn't great cuz I do love carbs and fried foods (but I don't eat a lot of fried foods any more). I eat a lot of low fat foods. I don't smoke and seldom drink. I'm at my best weight in years (116). And it doesn't seem to matter what I eat and when I eat. It just comes on.

What were his symptoms that showed he was bleeding in his esophagus?

I spoke with my doctor this morning and she said there are several things that will work. She prescribed 40mg of Nexium once a day. I took it this morning and so far, so good. She did mention the danger of Esophageal cancer. I have to go see her in a month.

Well lets hope the Nexium works!!!!!!!! Thanks.

Thanks for all your advice guys.

My wife had a similar problem, she was even hospitalized. She came home ate something and the reflux started again, pain in center of chest etc. We heard about taking some cider nimegar for such, a neighbor told her it was an old remedy that sometimes helped. She took two teaspoons twicw about 2 hrs apart and it removed the problem. She felt the start of another attack a few weeks later, took vinegar again and the symptoms went away at once. Has not had any problem in 2 months.

There are many symptoms of acid reflux and not all of them involve what you would expect (e.g., heartburn or a pain in the chest). A dry, unproductive cough is a symptom, as is persistent hoarseness. When my reflux flares up, those are the two most prominent symptoms. Although I did eat at an Italian restaurant a couple of weeks ago and I think the red sauce was just too acidic. I had chest pain not to be believed. That has NEVER happened to me before.

You need to stay under your doctor's care -- the house can wait.

Susan,

There was a post similar to yours about a year ago. I replied on it with some comments about the use of vinegar. I had to spend a lot of time explaining my points after a couple of other posters disputed the use of vinegar. Since it was an acid, it would seem to be more of an irritant than a cure, but with Triangle John and Iggie commenting that it was helpful, means I wasn't so far off.

When I was having problems with what was determined to be GERD and an ulcer, I was unable to sleep laying flat in a bed for more than a short time. For some reason, I started taking a lot of vitamin C when I had these attacks, and the pain actually went away, which obviously shows that too little acid can be more of a problem than too much. If you start taking prescription drugs to reduce stomach acid, I believe you are causing yourself more harm, since you do require stomach acid to properly digest your food. If you start messing with this balance by relying on daily usage of a doctor's prescription, you will likely be using these drugs forever, trying to find relief.

Since that time, I've found other recommendations for relief without the use of commercial drugs.

For rapid relief from an irritated esophagus, Slippery Elm is highly recommended. It is supposed to be mucilagenous, which means it will coat the irritated membranes to resist acid attack. I'll put a link down below for a few URLs you can research.

Digestive enzymes are supposed to be helpful for stomach problems. They are supposed to help maintain proper digestion. I use them, but I'm not sure how effective they really are.

Mastic is recommended for H.Pylori. I used this when I had GERD. This was after many months, after getting no relief from prescription drugs. This really did cure my problem. I think I used it for only a month or so. Here's a URL for some info:
http://www.life-enhancement.com/article_template.asp?ID=852

GG

Here is a link that might be useful: Slippery elm info

I began having heartburn regularly when I was horizontal, my doctor prescribed Protonix and after the first pill (one pill/day) I have never had a problem.

My husband always had heartburn. He took OTC meds for it which helped some until something happened. We were at a buffet one night, he took a bite of food and a drink of water and got up immediately and ran to the bathroom. He came back saying he had to spit it up, it wouldn't go down. This went on the entire dinner, he couldn't keep anything down. I took him immediately to the ER and they told us that the acid had caused so much damage to his esophagus that the scar tissue had built up and caused his esophagus to be shaped like an hourglass; the food and water he tried to get down at dinner was just getting stuck at the pass and he had to spit it out.

They gave us three options:

1) Let the acid back up, eat into the lining, get into his bloodstream and kill him instantly.

2) Let him slowly starve to death.

3) Emergency endoscopy to push the food down into his stomach.

After a long time weighing our options (LOL!!!) he had the endoscopy and had to do a full-blown one a few days later to really open his esophogus back up fully.

My point is, don't let this get to an emergency situation. Take care of it now. You say you don't have time to go to the doctor. MAKE TIME. This is not something to put off, it CAN kill you.

I have read reports that say anti-acids are many times the exact opposite of what is needed. If food lays for too long undigested, it can cause problems like acidy redux. Persons 50 yrs. or older often lack sufficient stomach acid. Now I realize that when you already have a raw place, it complicates things.

Each situation must be individually evaluated.

Zantac is now available OTC in 150mg tablets. Also, I discovered that my heartburn increased dramatically when I was taking estrogen for menopausal symptoms. It took me a few mos to figure out the connection but I had significant improvement when I went off it.

Hi, everyone. I have been reading your responses and taking the suggestions to heart. I finally tried the Apple Cider Vinegar - oh my God, that's worse than the symptoms. But the pain was so bad, I even tried it several more times. (I thought maybe my bottle was old so I got a new one - JUST AS BAD!) Never again.

I have been back to the doctor a couple of times. The Nexium did not work. She then prescribed a higher dose of Ranitidine at night and Prevacid in the morning. Said to take Advil for the pain if necessary. I had a lower and upper GI taken and they both came out normal. I've now been getting sick every night. The pills don't work. Someone suggested that because of my severe back pain, it may be gallbladder. Monday I had an ultrasound and today I got the results -- I have gall stones. I was recommended a surgeon to talk to who deals with that. I'm glad they have at least found something that can be corrected but I'm not sure what I'm in for. A friend told me that was minor but I just read some posts here that have me kinda scared. And I wonder if this means that I never actually did have Acid Reflux.

re: prilosac OTC,
I have been taking generic store brand ranitine tablets twice a day previously. Dr. did not seem to think my heartburn was severe when I brought it up last visits. I get a burning in my throat. Comes on my way home from work, when I haven't even eaten for over 4 hours, as well as after eating. Thought I would try the Prilosac OTC. had a coupon and got a 42 pack on sale. Had heartburn the first 4 days. Day 5 was perfect. forgot to take on day 6 and got like migrain eye symptoms and splitting headache.
started again the next day, with minor hearburn. Now I am reading the pkg. and it says DO NOT USE MORE THAN 14 DAYS UNLESS DIRECTED BY A DR. REPEAT EVERY 4 MONTHS IF NEEDED.

so, what happens after 14 days when you stop? Do I need to stock up on the rantinine again?

People take Prilosec every day for mos and years. I don't know why the package says that. I guess liability or lack of info on longterm use. For many people, reflux is chronic and one needs to stay on meds.

When I read your opening post I thought gallstones. The back pain is classic for them. Feels like a arrow being driven through your body coming out your back. Very, very painful.

Been there, done that. Removing your gall bladder does cure them but....you are going to have to change your diet somewhat after surgery or you may have problems with diarrhea. Bile breaks down fats in your stomach and when they remove your gall bladder they connect the bile duct to your small intestine. All the bile being squirted into your intestine when you eat fatty foods instead of your stomach can trigger sudden, painful diarrhea.

I have my gall bladder out in 1999, so maybe treatment for gallstones is different now. They may not always remove your gallbladder. Ask your doctor about diet and diarrhea. Mine didn't warn me.

Changing my diet did wonders for me. The one thing I completely eliminated is creamy foods (pot pie, casseroles) because they were the biggest offenders (heartburn that felt like a major heart attack). I also eliminated most caffeine except occasional chocolate and reduced my intake of onions and tomatoes. Finally I try to finish my dinner a few hours before bedtime.

When I eat any of those foods on a regular basis, the reflux and heartburn returns. When I eliminate them, it goes away. I never take any meds except for Mylanta if I really need to.

I was diagnosed with hiatial hernia, acid reflux and an ulcer in 1997. My situation has improved over time as most of the acid reflux was when my stomach was herneated and it doesn't seem to get stuck much anymore. I have taken Prilosec all during this time with no problems. I don't think I could have survived without it. I sympathise with anyone who has any of these problems. I do sleep elevated (after all this time, don't think I could sleep any other way.) I do try to watch what I eat, but can occasionaly treat myself to things like pizza, spagetti and Mexican dishes so long as I leave the salsa alone. I do agree with everyone who advises staying in touch with your doctor, this is not something to play around with. Good Luck!

I suffered with acid reflux for three years. I went to many doctors and took all the drugs. Nothing helped. At its worst, I was up most of the night for a week in a row. Sometimes I vomited every hour or so. I had terrible coughing. I almost quit my job. I couldn't go anywhere without water. It got so bad that I couldn't talk on the phone. I went over a year without pizza, tomatoes, chocolate, soda, etc.

Giving up on doctors and drugs, I realized it must be stress. That admission was a tough one to make because it meant I had a mental problem which I thought worse than a physical one. I didn't think I was under any particular stress. My job had been about the same for 10 years. There were a few problems with a rental house and my husband but nothing noteworthy. Perhaps getting older makes you more vulnerable to stress that you could withstand before. Or perhaps I just couldn't recognize what was wrong.

I bought self-hypnosis tapes and saw a hypnotist three times to get me started. Slowly, using the tapes twice a day for 30 minutes each time, I learned to relax (difficult even through my coughing)and in three months, the reflux was virtually gone. It's been four years now. Every so often, the coughing and reflux symptoms reappear. I use my hypnosis relaxation technique and in about three minutes, the symptoms abate.

Good luck to anyone who suffers from this awful condition.

Hi All,

I too have suffered with GERD/Heartburn for many years. I was taking Tums & Pepcid AC like they were candy.

After testing confirmed no H. Pylori, my Dr. put me on different meds but they all failed.

The pain had gotten so bad, that I couldn't even bend over slightly without excrutiating pain!!! I thought I was gonna die!!!

And, because I refused to be on RX drugs for the rest of my life, I went the a Naturopatic Doctor, who actually strives to 'heal' the cause and not just treat symptoms.

She took me off all meds, including aspirin, Advil, Tums, etc, and put me on a food elimination diet. She had me taking Betaine HCL & digestive enzymes and drinking homemade smoothies. She told me not to drink with meals as this dilutes the stomach acids and suggested Aloe Vera juice as needed for symptoms.

I kept a food diary to log what & when I ate and what symptoms appeared. It allowed me to cut out foods that were causing reactions. I found I couldn't tolerate the breads, fats, potatoes or pastas. I had already traded my coffee for Teeccino and cut out ALL chocolate.

It worked, and slowly the symptoms were improved. Now, as long as I eat right, and don't overeat, I feel pretty good. I use Aloe Vera juice & DGL to control symptoms if I eat something I shouldn't.

Another thing is to sleep upright or on your left side if you have symptoms. It helps keep stomach fluids from leaking back into the esophagus.

Also, smoking and certain foods can cause the sphincter muscle to relax over time, and this allows fluids to seep back into the esophagus, and she said the Betain HCL will help tighten it back up.

However, like many have mentioned, I strongly feel, in my case anyway, that stress had a major influence in my GERD. Once I changed jobs and was able to relax, things improved immensely!

So, on the same lines as Gooseberry Guy, check the web for natural medicine such as herbs or supplements that help heal. Go to your local health food store. There are a ton of options besides prescription drugs, but without the side effects. You may have to try different things to find what works best for you.

This won't work for everyone, but at least there are options. Oh, and about the vinegar. The best vinegar to use is Bragg's Raw Organic Apple Cider Vinegar. It's not filtered or processed, so you'll get all the nutrients with it. It's brown & cloudy, but it's the healthies for you. Check out their website.

Sorry for being so long winded. Hope this helps.

Good Luck,
Gracie Girl :)

Jeanettec, why do you think stress is a 4-letter (6) word? I know very few people who are not stressed. It doesn't mean you have a mental problem. It means you have a lot going on and we all have our limits. Stress can be caused by a multitude of things - too much to do and no one to help, deadlines...its nothing to be ashamed of by any means. And unfortunately it causes all sorts of symptoms. I can certainly imagine how hypnotism could help and I'm glad its working for you.

As I said in my OP, I can't associate any foods with my problem - it came on no matter what I ate, when, where, no matter what I was doing. That's why is was hard for me to eliminate the culprits.

But as I told everyone, I was diagnosed with gall stones in November. I quit taking all the meds because they didn't seem to be helping. Well, get this. I've been building a house for almost two years (talk about stress!). We moved in December 16, had to get upacked and everything ready for out of town company at Christmas (and we did it!) - do you know I have only had heartburn once since we moved in and I haven't had any back pain either. Is it possible I was misdiagnosed or that I passed the gallstones without knowing it? But why did the heartburn stop - no more stress associated with building? Or maybe it wasn't actually heartburn? I don't understand and I'm certainly not knocking it and I'm counting my blessings but I'm baffled. Is it also possible that the meds were causing it to be worse?

Your under the breastbone pain going through to your back is not a symptom of acid reflux/heartburn, it IS a symptom of gallstones.

If an ultrasound showed gallstones, then you have/had gallstones. Some could have passed through the bile duct but it is unlikely that all have.

heartburn meds shouldn't make gallstones worse, but they won't make them better either.

When you were having the gallstone attacks, were you eating fattier foods than normal? more fast food etc.? that would explain why you aren't having attacks now.

I would follow up with your doctor.

When I read your very first post my immediate thought was that you have gallstones. I've had pain with my gallbladder off and on for three or four years. I've had two full blown attacks where the pain was so severe, I thought I might die. One attack was brought on after I ate potato soup. (I will never eat it again. :) I have indigestion now several times a week, and take Pecid for it. I never had indigestion before I started experiencing problems with my gallbladder, and in my case the two are related. Now I watch eating foods that could trigger an attack, and I've not had one for over two years. Stress also is definitely a factor in gallbladder pain.

Just because you have gallstones does not mean you will have to have your gallbladder removed. I fully intend to keep mine controlled with diet and positive thinking. I know at least a dozen people who have gallbladder problems, and have been able to live with the stones and not resort to surgery. My grandmother lived to be 88 and had occasional flareups with her gallbladder since she was in her 40's, but never had surgery. Here are a couple of good articles about gallbladder disease that you should read. Best of luck to you.

http://www.wellfx.com/InfoBase/cond_Gallbladder_.html

Here is a link that might be useful: consciouschoice -- Gallbladder Disease

Hi Guys,
So glad to find this forum...
I am a "newbie" in acid reflux. I never had any troubles of this sort and now it is whole week trying to eat properly and chewing antacids plus trying to find info about all this more.
Confusing is that I find quite a different information about proper diet. Did any from you has more experience, maybe somebody could post a link with some useful info? I tried many sites - somehow none of them has some suitable recipes.
Some say bread is OK, some say no way.
Some say garlic is good, some say not at all....
Some say milk is helpful, some say it is badness for acid reflux...
I am quite desperate, I just cannot bear the pain. I am willing to eat anything - just what will keep my digestive system as good as possible.

What is good food for you?
Thanks,
Alena

gracie - read your post and i say ditto to the aloe vera juice - it has changed my life (and stomach...)

Carrie

It's been a long time since I first posted. Since then I found out that my prolonged use of prilosec etc. is probably the cause of my osteoperosis

I haven't suffered from heartburn in a long while now. It really helps to stop eating early in the evening and I stopped eating my most troublesome foods which were tomato based sauces. Here is the odd thing though. I now drink 2 tablespoons of vinegar in 4 oz. of water before each meal to cut my blood sugar and it doesn't bother my stomach at all. For years, decades maybe, I have read that acid reflux is most often about a lack of sufficient acid to digest our food. Maybe that was true because with the vinegar, I am off all stomach meds. I suppose it is possible that acid reflux is about delayed digestion - food that stays in the stomach too long.

BTW, I also used aloe vera juice for acute attacks of acid reflux.

These are the same symptoms I had in February plus it felt like a lump or a ball in that same area. I am not a wimp with pain; I have a vey high pain tolerence, but these pains were so bad (12 out of 10) that I was SCREAMING in pain while waiting in the ER. Morphine did not touch the pain, Diluadid took 3 shots to bring pain level to a 5 out of 10. They thought I had a torn aorta but did a CT. Told me I had a fast growing espohageal cancer. Luckily the head of gastroenterology dept said he thought it coud be eosinophilc esophagits. Turns out it's a rare disease thats becoming an epidemic. They had never seen a case like mine as it presented and I will be used in a paper on the disease where it may help someone else. I had several types of gastro endoscopy tests. I was in the hospital over two weeks and have been home a month now. The treatment is odd as you take a course of SWALLOWED, not inhaled, Flovent for 8 weeks. I have also been on prednisone this whole time which means no sleep. The pain is off and on, Vicodin doesn't do much, nor does Oxycontin. Please at least look up this disease and bring it to the attention of your doctor or just go to a gastro specialist.

Here is a link that might be useful: Eosinophilic Esophagitis

Wow. I'm doing research for my baby daughter who has reflux. Seems like you're the only one going through these things until you see other people stories. Good luck.

Here is a link that might be useful: Reflux Remedies

I have been reading throught the "Health" forum today and found so many things that interest me. One is Reflux..GERD..and for me, mine turned into Barrett's Esophagus. I had to have it "burned out" because it was on the verge of cancer. I have taken every med available...but now am taking a Nexium in the morning and evening, 30-60 minutes before eat.....also with the Nexium, the doctor told me to take 1/4 of a Valium tablet...watch those acid and tomato things...BBQ sauce, pizza sauce, etc.... I just can not believe the vinegar idea would be good with all the acid that is in it...afraid to try it....but if it helps others, that is great.
Raise the top of your bed 6-9 inches (not just pillows), don't eat after 6....and eat smaller meals 5 x a day instead of 3 big ones....don't eat fatty meals, raw fruits and veggies....no onion or garlic.
Hope you are all better by now because this post is an old one.

I had your same symptoms for a couple of years, including the throwing up. I once had a 4 hour eposide of it!
Doctors gave me Prevacid, then Prilosic, and now I've been taking Nexxium for 3 years with great success. But if I miss even one dose, I experience a touch of reflux. I avoid spicy foods and eating late at night. Gastroenterologist said my last endoscopsy showed that my esophagus had actually improved with the Nexxium. I wish you good luck with treatment, because this was something very dibilitating for me.

I am curious about one possible cause of acid reflux that I didn't see mentioned. Being overweight can cause Acid Reflux as well. I have no way of knowing if anyone here is overweight, but if you are then maybe it might be part of the problem. I know because being overweight is what was the major cause of my having it. I had the endoscopy, and was taking Protonix with some success. But on a number of occasions I ended up in the ER with severe pain and was given a GI cocktail to kill the pain.

I was advised to try dropping my weight. I did and with only a 25 pound loss, my GERD is gone and I no longer have to take Protonix.

Just a thought.

Helen

Hi I posted but just saw this post here so here I am..I have have had acid reflux for 11 years or more. Prilosec 20mgs once a day and a Zantac or two at night if I have a bad flar up like last night..Mostly Prilosec once a day works fine.. I still have a burning gums today and stomach still feels alittle nausia from last night.. Anyway some say apples help. Ive tried this and still not sure on this. I do not get heartburn with mine. I get feelings of food stuck and nausia burning gums, runny nose, coughing. Ive heard of Gavascon and Mylanta. Do they help when you have bad flair ups at night or can you not take Zantac and mylanta together like that. I try gum and water to get the lump in my throat down but sometimes is so bad you feel like your gonna throw up!!Anyway anyone have any quick ways to get the acid under control when you have flair ups..How about a toothpaste to protect you teeth from the acid?? I know that chicken pot pie I eat was the problem last night!!! Never eat that again..

Hi, all. I was the original poster almost 5 years ago. Thankfully, as fast as my acid reflux/heartburn came on, that's how fast it just disappeared. The last doctor I went to about this thought it might be gallstones and that I might have to have my gallbladder removed. It seems like he must have scared it out of me because my symptoms have almost disappeared - I still have a very light occasional case of it but nothing anywhere near what I experienced for so long. Everyone seems to have different symptoms for the same thing which is very curious. I never heard of gum pain, mine was concentrated in my back, the center of my chest and terrible nausea. When my back hurt and I was doubled over, the only thing that would help was to throw up. Then it went away. Now I only experience a little acid back up and occasionally back pain. The only thing I take now is Tums and that seems to work. I get it whether I eat or not so I don't think it was ever food-related. And I've always been just 5-10 lbs overweight so I don't that's my problem.

I feel for all of you and hope you find what works for you. Ranitidine is commonly prescribed for this but it didn't work for me - I think it made it worse. And some have suggested Apple Cider Vinegar - that is the nastiest stuff you'll ever taste. Think twice! I'd rather have heartburn. I didn't like Gavascon either.

I cured my heartburn by stopping taking anti-acid tablets and drinking a lot of still water in the order of 2 glasses once I got up, 1 glass b4 bath time and 1 glass 1 hour b4 bed.

Also, used slippery elm by following the info on following links:

http://www.slipperyelm.biz/slipperyelm-acid-reflux-heartburn-gerd.html

I was taking Aciphex, but saw that one of the side effects was osteoporosis, which is what I already have and am taking Boniva for it. I went off the Aciphex and will see what the doctor says.

One of the problems I get is chest pains that radiate up to my teeth. It lasts anywhere from 30-45 minutes, then subsides. It happens anywhere from once a month to once every other month.

For years I have suffered with heartburn symptoms at night. I am really afraid of prescription drugs, so I searched for an alternative method.

Here is a link that might be useful: My Heartburn's Gone

The previous link I posted above has been changed to the following:

Here is a link that might be useful: slippery elm for gerd

As I can see all these drugs and no help. Here is a webinar on stomach to explain why we get acid reflux
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zf8YSfMEyqA

Medicines weren't helping me at all (around a year) in fact I think they were worse I think medicines are for the crisis moment . After obviously seeing a doctor, changing the diet I decided to quit the pills, (you can not doit all of the sudden), what helped me was:

One glass of lukewarm water with the juice of half a lime, at least half un hour before breakfast.

I was scared because the lime is a citric but guess what?I'm much much better, of course I take care of what I eat.

I have entirely solved my problem with acid reflux by drinking a couple of tablespoons of vinegar in a glass of water every morning. I took proton pump inhibitors for way too long - with my doctor's permission - idiot!

Wow, I was searching for something else and came across this old thread. Since I have had some experience I thought I'd drop in with my own particular solution... I think it will work for most people though. Drink "green juice"... its simply concentrated fresh veggies. Mainly greens like lettuce, spinach, dandelions, beet greens, etc stuff like that run through a juicer... NOT a Blender, blenders leave all the roughage in, which dilutes the flavors and bulks up and is just plain too much extra to drink. Root veggies are okay to add as well, especially carrots and beets. Cabbage related veggies are too strong flavor-wise and will render the juice very unpleasant to drink, mushroom will make it taste like the forest floor. Fruits will make it more palatable but do add a lot of sugar in the form of fructose its so best to limit that. Drink just a cup of green juice at least once a day and within a week or two, no more acid attacks, ever! If I fall off the wagon (stop drinking it daily) in about a month the night-time acid issues resume. I've been doing this for almost twenty years now, the pattern/connection is un-mistakeable. Additional benefits from drinking green juice... sleep more soundly, blood pressure normalized after the first several months, bowle movements are quite regular within 20 minutes after having my morning green juice. And I'm not the only one... my wife and several friends also drink green juice with similar results. My conclusion is we (meaning everyone) just aren't getting enough of what freshly consumed vegetables supply (likely high concentrations of minerals in highly absorbable forms) into our diets... so fix the diet and you'll likely fix a number of physical health issues. Its not a magic potion, its not a drug to instantly treat symptoms.... Rather green juice is real nutrition and so it will take time to work, it needs to be a lifestyle change, if you treat it as a fad it will have no lasting results.

Peace, I'm outta here...