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So does anyone else on here have this, if so how do you manage the condition?
The doc has mentioned eating 4 -5 small meals a day and the last meal 4 hours befor going to bed and only drinking water afer that point. Also mentioned raising the bed to 30 degrees!
I've tried putting 2 pence post cut offs headboard end (8" higher) and it's nowhere high enough. I'll try will pillows etc but reckon I will end up sliding down them so will see how that goes.
Assuming an adjustable bed would be ££££.
Cheers for any advice.
Esemoprazole for me, once a day. I forgot to take some when we went away for 4 days, by day 3 I was struggling. I was hoping it'd be a good chance to see if I still needed it, sadly it seems I do
Bed didn't make any difference for me.
Omeprazole keeps mine under control most of the time.
Alcohol, especially red wine will cause a flare up.
I still take Rennie's on a big ride though, just in case.
Lanzoprazole for me. See if you can get a test for H Pylori too - that might be it.
Lanzoprazole for me. See if you can get a test for H Pylori too – that might be it.
Not heard of that, what is it?
Lanzoprazole has been prescribed.
Strange no-one else has been told about raising the bed...
A big meal late on is definitely a trigger for me. I usually finish eating by 6 and bed at 10 so your GPs 4 hours work for me.
Also no tea/coffee/coke after mid afternoon.
I usually only use one pillow, but two helps if I'm getting it.
I tried the raised bed head some years ago, but to get it raised enough for any difference (off cuts of wood) seemed a pain and Mrs L didn't like it.
Like others I have omaprazole, but only take it if I'm having a bad run due to bad eating (I need to avoid bread products), or taking naproxen for my various joint issues.
Omeprazole for me too. I was sent for endoscope to check for hiatus hernia and other things. Prescribed straight onto omeprazole that day as I produce too much stomach acid. I avoid too much caffeine now, must make sure I do eat regular, night shifts don’t help but only a few other things bother me.
Slightly raised sleeping up is used as an aid to ease it, you don’t need a new bed just some pillows.
Omeprazole, liver salts, slices of lemon in boiling water.
My dad has esophageal cancer so has the valve to his stomach removed so has to sleep sitting up as a result otherwise he's up all night chugging pepto bismol
Used to suffer a lot with acid reflux. Had to sleep sitting up for 2 years of intense pain.
Avoid strong alcohol - a shot of whisky is fine but more will be troubling.
Wine is the worst for me.
Avoid oily or creamy food. (tea or coffee not a problem or hot or spicy food just not spice that is not easily digest)
Avoid spice especially chili flake that cannot be digested properly (if you happen to consume them then drink/eat a lot of yogurt to counter it)
Do not over eat or eat anything 1 or 2 hour before bedtime.
Sleep at an angle for a period of time (2 years for me).
Go for proper check to ensure it is not caused by parasite etc.
I had various prescription in the past but ultimately it is still down to managing my food consumption.
p/s: Nowadays I always have Andrews Salts ready if I feel like something is going to happen with my stomach acid
Ranitidine was the best thing for immediate relief, but they banned it. Cant buy it any where. ****s!!
omeprazole every day for many years now, since i met a german doctor(ess) in Mandalay, who told me about it, and put me out of my misery, after all those years without it.
I still take rennies with me if im out for a big ride etc
I feel your pain OP. I've been suffering with it since 2009. I've tried to manage it without the PPIs because they're not supposed to be good long term.
Avoid alcohol, fatty food, coffee, eating before bedtime etc, but its still not easy. Occasionally I get bad flare-ups that last for months.
Also if you like ice cream, make sure it is made of proper milk (not those with plenty of chemicals) and consume moderately few hours before bedtime. Drink some warm water as cold water can make things worst (for me anyway).
Omeprazole for me as well, daily. There does seem to be studies showing it causes drops in your magnesium levels over time so to be safe I have started taking a supplement.
PPIs are really bad for you. They stop your stomach producing acid which in turn means you don't digest food properly as you're supposed to, can lead to B12 deficiency and other issues.
There's a Swedish device called IQoro, which is now available on the NHS and has good results in clinical trials. Basically you use it three times daily and it retrains the neuromuscular processes needed for your stomach to seal properly and prevent reflux. Expensive if you buy yourself, but can be prescribed. Got to be worth a look:
https://www.iqoro.com/
Other than that, avoid the foods that trigger reflux for you - spicy, hot foods, raw onions, possibly alcohol, coffee etc. I had it during long covid and still do occasionally, but it's manageable with care. There are a few recipe / reflux management books out there that might be worth getting hold of.
PPIs are really bad for you. They stop your stomach producing acid which in turn means you don’t digest food properly as you’re supposed to, can lead to B12 deficiency and other issues.
They reduce the amount. I wasn’t digesting food properly until I started omeprazole. Yea, like any medication their side effect and some resins but they’re far from really bad for you.
Yes been in Omeprazole too, made a big difference and been good since. Occasionally I get problems but it's generally diet related.
I have found drinking dilute apple cider vinegar helps a lot, it's a hippie remedie but it does seem to have worked for me. There is some discussion on the web as to why but nothing that will pass muster on here! I am not a doctor etc etc.
Tomato is bad for me, red wine, garlic. Strangely spiced food seems ok generally. Mine generally started at midday and would grumble all afternoon. Had the ulcer test but ok. I suspect there is a stress element to it
It's bloody miserable though so you have my sympathy
Lastly ibuprofen, my Dr warned me off it straightaway. So I now avoid
Oh and drink lots of water
They reduce the amount. I wasn’t digesting food properly until I started omeprazole. Yea, like any medication their side effect and some resins but they’re far from really bad for you.
Fair call. Perhaps it's fairer to say that PPIs are less than optimal particularly in the long term. Anyway, the iQoro device definitely worth a look as an alternative that doesn't change the acid balance of your stomach.
Oh, one thing I meant to say is having a big drink (of anything ) directly after a meal will set me up to kick it off. Even with a meal isn't ideal. So I usually have a drink before I eat
Omeprazole here too, daily.
Previously prescribed it for short periods after a 'flare up' of reflux but problem returned after I stopped taking it.
As well as alcohol, pastry, lots of fatty food etc, the 'crunch' position of cycling can make things worse.
Another long term omeprazole user. I only take 2-3mg* of the stuff a day, it's enough to stop the reflux. Tried coming off it, willing to tolerate a rebound which was mentioned on another thread, but 6-7 days and getting worse I just thought sod it, and went back on.
Yes I have previously had camera down the throat and other scans.
*Open the capsules and then take a dozen or so grains. Brands vary a lot how many grains in 20mg capsule .
I've suffered with heartburn since a teenager or younger, I can remember having crippling heartburn from an early age. I remember my mum once putting it down to me being allergic to cucumber. Doesn't seem to be.
I've never really been able to manage it properly. Some mornings I just wake up and can feel it's going to hit the first thing I eat. Lanzoprazole has made it better - I did think I'd cleared it completely when I had mega antibiotic treatment for H Pylori, but it came back.
I have no interest at all in not eating spicy food, not drinking, and am stressed most of the time. I've tried not doing all of those things and not noticed much of a difference other than being grumpy.
Thanks for the iQoro recommendation Jon. Having spent many nights up late, reading a book and sipping ginger tea waiting for heartburn to pass, when I'd happily spend any amount of money to make it go away, £150 on a bit of plastic seems good value as realistically I'm not happy about the known side effects of the Lanzoprazole though probably would die of something else before the magnesium deficiencies became a problem.
Thanks for the iQoro recommendation Jon. Having spent many nights up late, reading a book and sipping ginger tea waiting for heartburn to pass, when I’d happily spend any amount of money to make it go away, £150 on a bit of plastic seems good value as realistically I’m not happy about the known side effects of the Lanzoprazole though probably would die of something else before the magnesium deficiencies became a problem.
No worries. As above, it's available on prescription from the NHS, so maybe worth trying your GP. I copped reflux as one of many autonomic side-effects from long covid and couldn't believe what a thoroughly miserable experience it was.
Omeprazole too. I can last two days before all breaks lose. Had to start taking mine as it was a side affect of statins. My mate, who's a sports orthopedic surgeon, also takes it so maybe not so harmful.
I had the weirdly named "silent reflux" a couple of years ago. A few months on Omeprazole sorted it out and it hasn't yet come back.
A few years earlier my GP diagnosed (from symptoms) a stomach ulcer, he didn't bother with an endoscopy (and taking a sample look for H. pylori) he just put me on a course of antibiotics and it completely cleared up.
Thanks for feedback peeps.
Mine was caused by sleep apnea.
Apparently trying to breathe in really hard when your throat is completely closed up pulls the contents of your stomach up past your diaphragm and gives you reflux.
Doing it every night for months apparently gives you acid reflux all the time... The alternative is breathing it in. So i got off lightly.
The night-time stuff was fixed within a couple of weeks of getting the machine. The daytime stuff took another month maybe.
It's one of those things that can have a multitude of causes. In some cases the Iquoro type trainer will help (there is some scientific research which suggests it can), but others may be due not to a failure of the swallowing/not swallowing mechanism, but overproduction of acid/long term H pylori infection etc, or a combination of the two.
If you have persistent reflux, and are having to resort to over the counter remedies/drugs regularly, it's worth getting it checked out by your GP.
I'm currently going down that road, as I'm convinced that silent reflux is irritating my airways and making my asthma worse.
I copped reflux as one of many autonomic side-effects from long covid
Not heard of this one before, is there any body system this virus doesn't **** up?
I suffer from Laryngopharyngeal Reflux and use omeprazole every 2-3 days to keep it under control or take one after heavy meal. Before it was diagnosed I used to choke on certain food such as steak or tuna, including a few scary ones were I didn't breathe for over a minute.
If it comes up too far, like last weekend when I had too much whisky before bed, that flappy thing at back of throat gets hit by the acid and inflames so. Much it drags on tough and feels like I'm going to swallow it. Horrible
Made an appointment with the asthma nurse about an annoying dry cough thinking it was my asthma and straight away she said It's acid reflux, so an appointment with the doc and a few hospital visits, and now on Omeprazole and Mebeverine for IBS.
I’ve been on lansoprazole for the best part of 30 years. I’ve dropped from the 30mg dose to 15mg.
I find that eating too much processed type of bread triggers reflux the most for me, oh and drinking white wine. So I try to avoid as much as I can.
I know that taking these gastro suppressants inhibits the absorption of vitamins, so unless I have a big ride that day, I don’t eat anything until about 10.30, drink a pint of water and take high quality vitamin supplements first thing. Then around 10 take the lansoprazole before eating a late breakfast of fruit and nuts.
I’ve tried many times to ween myself off them and can go 5 days without if careful with what I eat. But after 5 days the reflux returns. I’ve tried all sorts of so called natural remedies, like apple cider vinegar diluted in water but I doesn’t work for me.
I never had any symptoms of acid reflux but an endoscopy showed that I had Barrett's Oesophagus which is essentially a change in the structure of the cells in the oesophagus which could be a precursor to oesophageal cancer. Been on omeprazole daily since that diagnosis, but still haven't experienced the obvious symptoms of acid reflux.
Open the capsules and then take a dozen or so grains. Brands vary a lot how many grains in 20mg capsule .
Does this still work as I thought the capsule was gastro resistant and therefore required. If it does work though that would be good for me because I hate the capsules but they're so much cheaper than the tablets are.
I’ve tried many times to ween myself off them and can go 5 days without if careful with what I eat. But after 5 days the reflux returns
Are you sure that it isn't 'acid rebound' which I believe is quite common in the cases of long term antacid use. I think that it can last for up to two weeks.
I guess he means a CPAP machine for sleep apnea.
Are you sure that it isn’t ‘acid rebound’ which I believe is quite common in the cases of long term antacid use. I think that it can last for up to two weeks.
It might well be but the pain is unbearable so I end up back on them.
I last had an endoscopy 15 years ago, nothing conclusive.
Well if it is acid rebound then I guess the way forward is to reduce very slowly the dose.
You say it comes after about 5 days, why not try without for 3 days then go back to lansoprazole for a few days, and then off for 3 or 4 days, and so on?
Like that your body has a chance to very slowly adjust without the rebound. Maybe also mix it with slightly less effective antacid medication. Basically after 30 years a sudden reaction to going cold turkey can't be entirely surprising I would have thought.
@airvent, it's not the capsule that gastro resistant, each individual grain is coated. In fact the instruction leaflet says you can open the capsule and mix the grains with apple sauce or similar. Pop the grains in a small tub, photograph it, then count them. My doctor described the dose I was taking as " homeopathic", but it does the job.
@mert, can you explain your post a bit please, machine?
I guess he means a CPAP machine for sleep apnea.
Yes, a CPAP, i've mentioned it in a couple of apnea threads.
1991 I was out with two ex-university mates. One overweight, we were a bit out of it, I said I thought he needed to lose some weight, getting reflux and all that. I got the most old-fashioned look. He had a fabulously successful career in journalism, then the oesophageal cancer got him at 58. Don't know if there was any connexion but awful nevertheless.
Don’t know if there was any connexion but awful nevertheless.
esophageal cancer? Not nice at all. there is an association with inflammation and H. Pylori infection as well as alcohol consumption.
OP (I think) asked ‘what’s that’? I scrolled but didn’t see an answer. Sorry if I missed it.
H. Pylori was a Nobel prize winning discovery. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2661189/#:~:text=Paul%20C%20Adams,-2University%20Hospital&text=Received%202008%20Jul%2031%3B%20Accepted%202008%20Jul%2031.&text=In%202005%2C%20Barry%20Marshall%20and,pioneering%20work%20on%20Helicobacter%20pylori.
The discovery transformed gastric ulcer treatment.
It also identified a risk factor for gastric/gastroesophageal cancer. https://www.cancer.gov/about-cancer/causes-prevention/risk/infectious-agents/h-pylori-fact-sheet
Bit of an update.
The wooden blocks didn't last long, bed back on terra firmer lol. A v pillow and normal pillows kind of being used to get a bit more angle but nowhere near steep enough I'm guessing.
Prescribed Lanzoprazole but stopped taking that due to gut ache and squits. Now trying 20mg Omeprazole, with evening meal. Early days but seems ok so far.
The hardest part is trying to do the 4 - 5 meals a day and fitting in with family feeding...... need to cut down the bread I do know!
Have you tried just drinking full fat milk or greek/plain yoghurt when you get a flare up?
A freind of mine who takes Lanzoprazole on the regular seems to think your body becomes reliant on it over time.
@matty, no not tried either of those. Do drink probiotic yog drinks now and then.
brant
Free Member
I’ve suffered with heartburn since a teenager or younger, I can remember having crippling heartburn from an early age. I remember my mum once putting it down to me being allergic to cucumber. Doesn’t seem to be.I’ve never really been able to manage it properly. Some mornings I just wake up and can feel it’s going to hit the first thing I eat. Lanzoprazole has made it better – I did think I’d cleared it completely when I had mega antibiotic treatment for H Pylori, but it came back.
I have no interest at all in not eating spicy food, not drinking, and am stressed most of the time. I’ve tried not doing all of those things and not noticed much of a difference other than being grumpy.
Thanks for the iQoro recommendation Jon. Having spent many nights up late, reading a book and sipping ginger tea waiting for heartburn to pass, when I’d happily spend any amount of money to make it go away, £150 on a bit of plastic seems good value as realistically I’m not happy about the known side effects of the Lanzoprazole though probably would die of something else before the magnesium deficiencies became a problem.
Posted 2 months ago
so that was 2 months ago eh? I got my £150 bit of plastic. Started using it. Stopped taking my lanzoprazole and genuinely have not had heart burn despite me now flipping to a much stupider diet than I ever had thought possible (I didn’t realise how much food I was avoiding because of heart burn). #gamechanger #bringsthetrailalive #yourlanzoprazoleissaracin etc.
so that was 2 months ago eh? I got my £150 bit of plastic.
I've just made my own Iqoro by buying an American football gumshield with lip guard, cutting off the extra bits and threading some string through. Cost about £12. I'll try it for a bit and report back.
I’ve just made my own Iqoro
it sounds worth a try. Otherwise its omeprazole everyday until im dead
Otherwise its omeprazole everyday until im dead
This is exactly what I want to avoid. Taking any drug long term worries me and although PPIs deal with the acid they are not without side effects.
Been taking omeprazol for over 10 years. Don't think I've experienced any side effects.
I've just picked my repeat prescription which I forgot to order last week. I've been without for about 5 days and it's been painful. The acid was back within the first day of no capsules, been popping Rennies and chugging Peptac liquid to try to alleviate.
I finally received a diagnosis of oesophageal hypersensitivity this year after 14 years of suffering. The latest endoscopy showed that I do have a slightly faulty oesophageal sphincter (rather that one than the one downstairs) but barium swallow and 24h Ph. manometry showed minimal reflux, well within normal range so basically for me, the pain is an overreaction to normal reflux levels which means that PPIs don't really work that well. Exercise, meditation, and avoiding all alcohol, coffee, chocolate etc from now on.
Supposedly tumeric makes a good natural PPI - https://newatlas.com/medical/turmeric-acid-reflux/#:~:text=A%202019%20study%20demonstrated%20the,pump%20inhibitor%20(PPI)%20lansoprazole.
I’ve just made my own Iqoro by buying an American football gumshield with lip guard, cutting off the extra bits and threading some string through. Cost about £12. I’ll try it for a bit and report back.
I'm about 2.5 months into using this and I would say its having an effect. I've hardly had any instances of heart burn after the first month. I had to stop using it for about 3 weeks because of pain around a slighty difficult tooth extraction and I started to get heartburn again. This has now disappeared after a few weeks back using it.
Worth a shot for long term sufferers I'd say.
difficult tooth extraction and I started to get heartburn again.
How on earth is this physicaly possible? it makes no logical sense? they are two seperate things... I'd love to know the mental gymastics behind this.
Bloody quacks on the 'net cause more problems than they solve.
How on earth is this physicaly possible?
How can Iqoro help? Read up on it, it's easy enough to search. I believe that hiatus hernias, for example, is an age related problem because muscles weaken with age.
How on earth is this physicaly possible? it makes no logical sense? they are two seperate things… I’d love to know the mental gymastics behind this.
I think you have misread my post. I was using the iqoro device and my heartburn stopped. I had to stop using the device for 3 weeks due to pain from a tooth extraction and when I was not using the device the heartburn returned. I started using the device again when the extraction site had healed and after a few weeks the heartburn was back under control.
Not sure where the allegation of quackery is directed? The iqoro is available on the NHS I believe?
Sounds like some top shelf crazy Tom Cruise Scientology ****erism to me...
Give me a tangible physiological mechanism and I might give you some credence, lol!
I think you have misread my post
I don't think he has.
I think you have misread my post. I was using the iqoro device and my heartburn stopped.
My appologies... So you bought a bit of plastic off Ali/ebay for what, £200? and now you are cured?
Someone should tell the actual doctors about this!
It's a miracle!
Someone should tell the actual doctors about this!
You can get it from your GP under a NHS prescription, so yeah, actual doctors have been told.
You can also get CBD under a NHS prescription, but none of them will prescribe it.
They would rather prescribe opioids and tranquilzers.. we are really heading into the same problem that the USA has.
Is that because CBD is also top shelf crazy Tom Cruise Scientology ****erism?
Edit for your edit:
They would rather prescribe opioids and tranquilzers.. we are really heading into the same problem that the USA has.
I bow to your expertise.
Only just discovered this thread sadly.
But yeah, like weeksy and so many others, I suffer badly too. Discovered Omeprazole earlier in the year and its been a game changer! I don't need it all the time, but I know about it if I've had red wine or a curry or something and haven't taken a pill recently.
Worth noting that when I was recovering from surgery recently a few months ago, I only ate home made veg soup for a few days and was only drinking water or tea, and didn't need the Omeprazole at all.
Biggest pisstake I've found recently is that dependant on where you live, the price of them varies wildly. My local tesco's is about £15 for 14 of their own brand (or £20 for brand names) normally, sometimes it comes up on a clubcard special for £12... I was in Llanelli for work the other week, popped into the Tesco's there, and it was £8 for 14 tabs ffs! So I stocked up...
I really need to speak to the NHS but have been told they're quite reluctant to hand out prescriptions for it these days...
Is that because CBD is also top shelf crazy Tom Cruise Scientology ****erism?
In a word, no.
It's much more dificult to copyright and monetize. So there's no money in it.
If in doubt... follow the money.
It's a bit like Apple trying to copyright the rectangle, or Ford trying to copyright the wheel...
I really need to speak to the NHS but have been told they’re quite reluctant to hand out prescriptions for it these days…
Are they selling Omeprazole OTC at Tesco these days? that's not good...
Yes, has been OTC for a while now. Since 2015 according to Google. Surprised me when I found out.
My appologies… So you bought a bit of plastic off Ali/ebay for what, £200? and now you are cured?
Someone should tell the actual doctors about this!
It’s a miracle!
Sometimes people are so desperate to show how smart they are that they end up doing the opposite.
Instead of going straight to full on kneejerk outrage, try reading the thread and have a read about the device.
The mechanism is plausible. The jury is still out on the effectiveness. I have not claimed a miracle cure like you suggest merely some anecdotal improvement.
And no, I didn’t buy a £200 bit of plastic off ebay. Being a confirmed tightfisted sceptic I did some reading, decided no harm could come from giving it a go and made my own for about £12.
Saying that, I just looked at what you're supposed to do.... Hooked my thumb in my mouth between lips and teeth, sucked, held back with my lips , and pulled on my thumb for 3 x10s , isn't that the same for free?
I tend to keep my thumb in my person at all times too!
Saying that, I just looked at what you’re supposed to do…. Hooked my thumb in my mouth between lips and teeth, sucked, held back with my lips , and pulled on my thumb for 3 x10s , isn’t that the same for free?
The short answer to that is that I have no idea although having just tried it, it feels very different. I figured that if I was going to try it for cheap I should make something that copied the device as closely as possible and that at £12 (roughly) for the materials there didn’t seem to be any reason not to.
As a long term sufferer I have a couple of questions for fellow sufferers
Is there any food that is an absolute must avoid for you? I have tried eliminating the obvious but have never made a tangible difference
Has anyone tried turmeric? I came across some suggestions that it was effective but no evidence as to why.
Currently on omaprazole which is a game changer.long term I would rather not be on it though
Seeing as part of the forum is having a melt down over people copying the look of some brakes, not sure about what will happen about that eBay link.
I did spunk £200 on the real thing and I was sure I had commented on this thread but can’t see it.
IQoro was a game changer for me. No more lanzoprazole. No more heartburn. Sorted me in month. Fixed 40 years of heartburn.
Ps: love the gum shield hack.
Pps: oh my reply is up there isn’t it. I just didn’t scroll back far enough.
I did spunk £200 on the real thing and I was sure I had commented on this thread but can’t see it.
You definitely did comment as that was what prompted me to look at it.
I can't take credit for the gumshield thing, it cropped up in my searches.
I've also found the IQoro device has massively improved my reflux. It's easy to use, has a useful free app and is comprehensively explained on the website.
On the 'follow the money' side of things, who do you think is raking it in from acid reflux treatment? A relatively small Swedish start-up or the pharmaceutical giants churning out PPIs by the bucket-load?
No-one's saying that drugs are crap, but your stomach produces acid because it needs it to properly digest food. If you mess with the levels of that acid, you potentially impact the way you process what you eat. If you're producing too much acid to start with, yes, PPIs make sense.
If the problem is that muscular weakness is preventing the valve at the top of your stomach from sealing properly, so stomach fluids are leaking out, then fixing that issue rather than making your digestive fluids less acidic and, in the process, less effective, seems reasonable.
The fact that the NHS is prescribing the thing suggests that 'actual doctors' believe it works.
One of the more depressing aspects of the UK's ongoing 'health crisis' is that we seem to focus more on drug-based treatment than prevention. We've even developed drugs for obesity now rather than doing something about our terrible national diet and lack of exercise.
Oh, the thumb thing. As above, not the same response. The eBay device looks like it would do the same thing though.
If you mess with the levels of that acid, you potentially impact the way you process what you eat.
You also increase the chances of catching infections