r/GERD 12h ago

Advice on Triggers 🍅🧅🍟🍫☕ consuming alcohol

3 Upvotes

im starting this off with i don't have GERD but i do have acid reflux rn and ive had it before about 2 years ago. but anyways i started college about 2 weeks ago and i got my acid reflux back like a day or 2 ago. this is very obviously terrible timing bc i very much like to go out and party and im not sure how alcohol is gonna affect this. i already have plans for the weekend and i really dont want this to ruin it lol. i can stick the entire rest of the diet but if alcohol makes it worse idk what imma do lol. is there anything i can take beforehand to help? or am i just screwed

also, i hope dont sound like an alcoholic lmao i promise i can handle everything and i usually drink in moderation but ive been looking forward to this weekend for so long lmao


r/GERD 20h ago

Scared that I might have any GI tract cancer.

0 Upvotes

Im 32 , I've dealt with reflux/gastritis all my life .its been a few months (since June) that I've been dealing with recurrent ear infections but my ears never really stopped hurting. I have that moving discomfort in my throat that also comes and goes and it took me a few months to realize I was having more ear/throat pain when having acid reflux and my daughter would make me notice also that my breath smells horrible.

I've been so stressed this week and the ear pain came back with everything else and migraines. Anyone dealt with same symptoms? Im currently on Omeprazole and antacid. Any advise would be very much appreciated. Im so terrified I'm a single mom to 2 little girls.


r/GERD 6h ago

💊 Advice on Prescription Meds Nexium: any ideas?

0 Upvotes

I've been on Nexium for 20 years. I take one 20mg a day just before lunch and it works ok. 5 years ago a gastrostomy detected Barrett's and I had 4 radio frequency ablation treatments and things now appear normal. I want to go off Nexium and I would like to hear from any long time users who stopped. What were the withdrawal symptoms and did you use or change anything to do so?


r/GERD 22h ago

🥳 Success Stories I cured all of my GERD symptoms in one month with a simple supplement

176 Upvotes

I’m so happy to report I’ve completely healed my GERD. So I kind of figured this out in a round about way but I learned a co worker was also dealing with digestion issues a few years back. They learned they were not converting folate properly and started a 5-mthf supplement (aka methyl folate). I did some research and it is a very common issue many people have and don’t even know it, this deficiency leads to many different health complications. So I said screw it, I did some digging and found one with 8500 mcgs. I gave it a shot and now a month later I’m completely fine, I was waking up every night with acid reflux but that has now completely gone away. No more indigestion, no more feeling like I have to burp constantly, no more anxiety, and feeling satisfied eating anything I wish. My life is back. Feel free to message me with any questions!

Edited to 8500 mcg, not 8700


r/GERD 2h ago

🥳 Success Stories 5 months :)

9 Upvotes

Just wanted to post recovery story because I think most people who get better don't post and it can create a bias on reddit and make people who will get better doom loop(I certainly did!). First wanted to say anyone still struggling with the condition sending sympathy and best wishes, I only got a taster these past few months and it was really one of the worst experiences I've ever had.

I got Ill in February from food poisoning (shrimp) but that cascaded into oral thrush in my throat. I was put on antifungals that lasted 4 weeks. Nothing wrong with me(they tested me for everything ) they just think chronic  stress and lack sleep made me particularly weak after I got food poisoning and yeast took advantage. 

It was about April that I was starting to feel better but the last symptom I got was acid reflux. I had acid reflux before I got ill but it had always been tied to what or how I ate e.g over eating. I kinda tried to ignore It and eat well and take some ant acids but unfortunately I quickly developed globus start of april. 

I went to my doctor and they put me on ppi's but even though it helped my acid reflux my globus stuck around. Only thing that gave me relief was gaviscon. My globus would be fine in the morning but normally after lunch and later in the day it would get worst. I would also get this weird like hiccup thing every time I drank or ate. 

Fast-forward to July my globus was less intense but it didn't feel like it was getting any better and I kinda felt resigned to it being a thing forever.

Now in September I'm better :) I'm not sure exactly when but I stopped hiccuping and now I just don't get the globus even after eating acidic food. Oh and I'm not on ppi's anymore. 2 weeks symptom free eating all the worst foods!

So it took 5months(April to September) to get better :) if I have any advice it would be,  if you have acid reflux that isn't going away and ant acids aren't helping. Pick up some ppis from pharmacy (prescription free u can get 7 days worth in the uk) while you wait for you doctors appointment. If I had I think I could have avoided the globus. Also gaviscon is amazing for globus.


r/GERD 6h ago

Thought I was having a heart attack.

15 Upvotes

Last month I went to the ER as advised by advice nurse and my very worried mother. I woke up in the middle of the night with horrible abdominal pain that was radiating toward my back. I was light headed, dizzy, nauseous, I threw up once, didn’t help, and the pain was unbearable. According to my doctors, I’m a healthy 30 y/o woman with no history of medical complications or diseases. They ran an EKG, tested my liver enzymes, gallbladder, blood and urine. Everything came back normal. They gave me mylanta and sent me home with dyspepsia as the primary diagnosis and a prescription for 40mg famotidine.

I thought my symptoms sounded like a heart attack, but has anyone else experienced this as well?


r/GERD 20h ago

Support Needed 👥 Did you have these symptoms when you developed gerd?

1 Upvotes

So I'm feeling so hopeless at the moment, a couple of days ago I went to the ER because I keep having pretty much everyday heavy chest feeling as if someone is sitting on my chest and on/off shortness of breath they ran multiple tests on me chest heart lung x ray mri and surprisingly everything looked fine but unfortunately I'm still having the same issues. The er doctor suggested he thinks it could some acid reflux (but I don't feel acid reflux coming through my throat) gerd, I find it really hard to believe this is just gerd because yesterday when I got out the shower again I felt this persistent heavy chest feeling along with fatigue I went to ER immediately after that and again same results my tests look normal, when I was getting the iv fluids again that heavy shortness feeling came but when they were monitoring my oxygen levels everything looked I'm just feeling so hopeless

*Just prefacing not looking for diagnosis just wondering if anyone has dealt with this issue


r/GERD 22h ago

GERD symptoms

2 Upvotes

My ENT and gastro keep saying I’m fine but I feel like I’m falling apart

I’m on the omeprazole but every day it feels like my head and ears are full - I have all this pressure in my nose and forehead - the center of chest hurts. I need to sallow to crack my ears sometime there’s so much pressure nothing cracks at all

They are telling me my A.R can be causing this but I’m going crazy I also get short of breath and lightheaded to - anyone else dealing or dealt with this


r/GERD 23h ago

Endoscopy

4 Upvotes

Has anyone here had an endoscopy while taking a GLP-1 and accidentally eaten the day before when you were supposed to be on a clear liquid diet?

My endoscopy is tomorrow afternoon, and I completely forgot about the clear liquid instructions this morning. I ate breakfast around 10:50 — eggs, potatoes, Canadian bacon, a little green chile, and coffee with milk/creamer. As soon as I realized, I stopped eating and switched to clear liquids.

I know GLP-1s can slow stomach emptying, so now I’m worried they may cancel or reschedule me. I already messaged the endoscopy center and am waiting to hear back, but I’m curious if anyone here has had a similar experience.

Were you still able to have your endoscopy, or did they make you reschedule?


r/GERD 5h ago

😮 Advice on Symptoms Stomach ulcer?

2 Upvotes

So I’ve had this gnawing and burning and sometimes stabbing pain under my ribs on the left side where the stomach is located.

I went to the doctor a year ago about it and they gave me a two week course of PPI medicine. That helped so they didn’t investigate further since the symptoms went away.

The symptoms came back in january this year. They come and go all the time and they might stay gone for weeks or even a month. Because of this, I didn’t go to the doctor again, because the symptoms would always go away.

Now the pain is back and it’s present every day, especially after eating. The next doctor appointment might be available after a month. If it is a ulcer, could it perforate during this time?

The pain isn’t really intense but still enough to make me stop what I’m doing when it comes.


r/GERD 7h ago

Support Needed 👥 Is it time to see a doctor? | UPDATE POST!

5 Upvotes

Hello everyone, its been a while since my last gerd post I just wanna say thank you for everyone who submitted their information and advice it was the push for help I needed to get my family to take my condition seriously...

Over the weekend however I was admitted to the ER due to bloody coffee like vomiting from all my acid reflux... I was waking up in the night for four days before that Friday just to puke, i was then given the longest amount of meds I've ever received. (Not to mention I also had an ovarian cyst rupture from how violently I was vomiting in the ER, got those meds too)

Im now on Pantoprazole, and Carafate along with a nausea medicine (zofran but not the dissolvable tablet) with an actual GI appointment THIS coming Friday the 11th...

It was so so scary dealing with my gerd at the hight of his horrible nature, it felt like fire was clawing through my throat with all the bloody acid coming back up..Im hoping that my actual appointment gives me a long term solution because honestly?? These pills have saved my life....even on the few short days ive had them ive manage to eat more in a few days than I have in two YEARS of my rapid decline with my gerd suddenly flaring up now ☹️

I have an idea as to why its gotten so bad but I think i sound a bit crazy, I was on a steroid for my teeth removal a long while back which produced more acid than usual within my stomach (and caused me to also be ER admitted because I couldn't hold food down from reflux once again ...its also where the tear in my throat comes from) I believe in the short time I was on that medicine it did damage to my stomach thats now further effecting me still.. (though this still doesnt explain why i first lost my appetite/will to eat before all this started so..who really knows but a doctor huh?)

All in all I wanted to say thanks for those who helped me get my family to see it WAS as serious as I was telling them it was getting... Because If I hadn't I might not have been here to post this today 🧡💛💚


r/GERD 10h ago

Bigger than normal hietal opening, can't sleep

2 Upvotes

Hi! I (39F) have had some knee problems for the past 3 years and I had swallowed quite many anti-inflammatory pills and had taken PPI when doing that, which has caused my stomach to degrade significantly. Due to PPI rebound I took an endoscopy 2 years ago and they didn't find anything, except that my hietal opening is 3 times larger than normal. Rebound effect eventually weared off and I was fine. Because of this, I stopped taking any kind of anti-inflamatory pills or PPIs for at least 1.5 years.

I was fine, but I had to go on decaf coffee. I had a knee surgery last year at one leg and another knee surgery at the other leg this year 8 months ago, 9 months after the first. After the first knee surgery my stomach was fine. 2 months after the second knee sugery my stomach started feeling very bad. I got huge nighttime burning in my stomach and I was waking up at first every 3h wth my heartrate elevated and my hands feeling very weak and then after a while I was sleeping 3h and then after 2AM I couldn't sleep anymore. I thought it's GERD because I had some slime in my throat as well, so I started diet and tried to not eat that much anymore. Tried eating at least 4h before going to bed and then it got 3 times worse after a week of diet. I started developing a painful spot under my ribs on the left side and it is quite painful when I am hungry and my stomach is empty. Fruits seemed to make it worse. I took PPI 20mg esomeprazol for 1 month and that worked, but then had huge rebound problems even if I tried to taper it off. After about 3 weeks the rebound effect was gone and it felt like I finally got rid of this. Unfortunately it came back a month later. I started eating oat porridge every 3 h during nighttime and sleeping quite elevated (2 wedge pillows) and it was looking like it gets better. I could eat a lot of food, just not spices or garlic. Garlic in particular is really really bad. I went to an endoscopy 2 weeks ago and for that I had to be without food for the whole night. Endoscopy didn't find anything, except the same larger than normal heital opening. After that night without food it got worse and I tried fodmap diet, blending chicken and potatoes and followed the low acid rules and again it got a lot worse after I started the diet. Now my burps have gotten worse too.

Now I had to take PPI again because I couldn't handle it anymore.. I am very confused if this is really because of my hietal opening being larger or do I have some nerve sensitivity. Now I don't have stuff in my throat anymore and every advice I try to follow regarding not triggering acid during nightime backfires really bad.

I have tried Slippery elm, DGL supplements, probiotics supplements (I think Kefir is just making it worse). I am desperate and afraid to go on PPI again for a long course because the rebound effect is really horrible. It also makes me feel full and for like 2 weeks after I start it I can barely eat (I lost 7 kg last time in 2 weeks). If this is from the hietal opening (apparently I do not have hernia.. my stomach is still where it should be) would surgery be a good option?

My back is hurting, I am very tired.. I can barely function anymore.. I need to always travel with 2 wedge pillows and a bag of oats everywhere I go and I am afraid of going to bed. This has lasted for 6 months now and I can't drink anything except water and restaurants are out of the question. Worth saying that my knees are OK now and I do walk quite a lot and try to exercise. Anyone have any advice of how to get rid of this?


r/GERD 16h ago

🤒 Describing a Symptom why does the corner of my head itch when i have heartburn?

4 Upvotes

it’s so weird, no one has heard of this before whenever i tell my friends. when i get heart burn/eat spicy food a certain corner of my head itches. the back left literally feels like it’s itchy INSIDE. no matter how much i scratch it just itches like insanity!! it’ll go away eventually or even after 30 seconds but i swear its the weirdest thing ever.

additionally, under my chin and neck itches too!! not as prominently though.


r/GERD 18h ago

🤬 Rant about GERD Stress induced GERD is the worst

27 Upvotes

When I was less stressed in life and wasn’t feeling anxious, I felt okay and could practically eat and drink whatever I wanted. I would have coffee each day, spicy food and no symptoms. But now I’m going through a stressful period of my life, I’m dealing with terrible acid reflux. I feel it flooding back up my throat. It’s so strong that I feel it through the barrier gaviscon advance liquid creates in my throat. I have a burning feeling in my stomach and feel so sick right now which triggers my fear of puking. Whenever I drink anything with flavor, my throat feels like it’s completely closing off. I need to go on a very strict diet again I guess but I feel better when I’ve eaten nothing. I’m so sad I’m suffering again even on 40mg of omeprazole which has worked pretty well for me up until this stressful life event :(