1. < Digestive Health

Getting Off of Omeprazole: Share your success stories please.

Posted by Bonnie @nightngale1998, Jun 26, 2018

Hi there: Has anyone had success in weaning off of Omeprazole? I take it for GERD. Thank you in advance!

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Jane S. Brown | @macjane | Jul 10, 2018

I have been so sick for months and Prilosec has worsened conditions. I need help but can’ t help when trying to talk with PCP. My doctors can’t listen to side effects. Lost well over 30 lbs because I cannot Sleep or eat. I also am told this is all in my head. Two years ago, same doctor tells me I have MAC but reaction to meds was very bad. I saw someone made up list of foods she has played around with but can’t find her. I have had achalasia but told before surgery this was all in my head.

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2 replies
shahnaz | @shahnaz | Jul 11, 2018
In reply to @macjane "I have been so sick for months and Prilosec has worsened conditions. I need help but..." + (show)
@macjane

I have been so sick for months and Prilosec has worsened conditions. I need help but can’ t help when trying to talk with PCP. My doctors can’t listen to side effects. Lost well over 30 lbs because I cannot Sleep or eat. I also am told this is all in my head. Two years ago, same doctor tells me I have MAC but reaction to meds was very bad. I saw someone made up list of foods she has played around with but can’t find her. I have had achalasia but told before surgery this was all in my head.

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I'm really sorry to hear about your suffering. I'm not qualified to advise you about your complex medical condition but I do have a list of foods that I avoid for the hyper acidity that I experience. I take Zantac 150 once in the morning before breakfast and then another one of the same before an early dinner.The foods I avoid are those that are spicy, tomatoes, garlic and pepper of all kinds.No citrus fruit or any tart tasting ones. Apples and bananas are fine for me.Unfortunately I have to limit eating mangoes that I love,to one a day at lunch only. I'm a vegetarian so no meat but skim milk with muesli- no added sugar- I use stevia as sweetener. By the way sugar is very bad for acidity ..so all desserts,chocolate, and coffee have to be avoided or drastically reduced.Deep fried foods are a no-no.Full fat cheeses should be replaced by low fat cottage cheese- this helps a lot when I take it last thing at night.However late night snacking is discouraged. You should leave a three hour period between dinner and going to bed,but I have occasionally eaten a banana/cottage cheese before going to bed if I'm hungry.Giving up coffee has been very difficult for me and I love sweet foods so that's also tough!I hope this will be of some help.Bless you

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Nanny23 | @nanny23 | Jul 11, 2018
In reply to @destinnana "We weaned off our acid reflux meds very slowly. The possible long term side effect of..." + (show)
@destinnana

We weaned off our acid reflux meds very slowly. The possible long term side effect of taking acid reflux meds concerned us. I brought empty capsules and made our own capsules as we slowly weaned off. Now, i juice 16 ounces of celery every morning for myself and husband. . We drink it before our coffee and wait about 30 minutes. And, we drink a teaspoon of Braggs apple cider vinegar (the mother) each morning before breakfast. I hope this is helpful.

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I have tried celery juice. It’s very soothing.

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coldfeet | @coldfeet | Jul 11, 2018
In reply to @destinnana "We weaned off our acid reflux meds very slowly. The possible long term side effect of..." + (show)
@destinnana

We weaned off our acid reflux meds very slowly. The possible long term side effect of taking acid reflux meds concerned us. I brought empty capsules and made our own capsules as we slowly weaned off. Now, i juice 16 ounces of celery every morning for myself and husband. . We drink it before our coffee and wait about 30 minutes. And, we drink a teaspoon of Braggs apple cider vinegar (the mother) each morning before breakfast. I hope this is helpful.

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You need stomach acid to help breakdown food before it eners intestines for absorption. The problem with antacids is it slows acid production thus making digestion difficult so you eat more antacid, becomes vicious cycle of chasing your tail!

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coldfeet | @coldfeet | Jul 11, 2018
In reply to @nightngale1998 "Thank you for responding, dand48, hopeful33250, Theresa, and destinanna. I still suffer from GERD from a..." + (show)
@nightngale1998

Thank you for responding, dand48, hopeful33250, Theresa, and destinanna. I still suffer from GERD from a hiatal hernia. I have taken Oemprazole a little over two years and want to get off of the medication because of the associated health issues of poor absorption of key nutrients (D, B12, and calcium are the ones I am familiar with).

My provider, a competent gentleman, has said "hmmmm." I am an RN so am used to doing the research and my own investigation. I have not found evidenced based information / articles on weaning off of Omeprazole. I have heard it can be done and tried to do so but was met with resistance and poor results when I attempted to do so. I switched over to Zantac and the first three days were reasonable and after that it was very uncomfortable).

The celery sounds hopeful and am trying to figure out the mechanism of action for its success. I have tried cider vinegar and it was met with severe cramping.

I am seeking successful scenario's by the valued participants on this board and will do a fair amount of research / experimentation on my own of what works for me. I take responsibility for my nutrition. I am also Lactose intolerant and have a few other sensitivities / intolerances in digestion.I thank you in advance for any additional feedback.

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Perhaps Baking soda if not on sodium restriction

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coldfeet | @coldfeet | Jul 11, 2018
In reply to @dandl48 "Wouldn't taking vinegar increase your GERD since it is an acid? I take 4 generic Nexiums..." + (show)
@dandl48

Wouldn't taking vinegar increase your GERD since it is an acid? I take 4 generic Nexiums plus a Zantac along with D3 and magnesium. My blood work is fine.

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Why not D3 & magnesium & calcium alone?

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Jackie, Alumna Mentor | @travelgirl | Jul 11, 2018
In reply to @destinnana "We weaned off our acid reflux meds very slowly. The possible long term side effect of..." + (show)
@destinnana

We weaned off our acid reflux meds very slowly. The possible long term side effect of taking acid reflux meds concerned us. I brought empty capsules and made our own capsules as we slowly weaned off. Now, i juice 16 ounces of celery every morning for myself and husband. . We drink it before our coffee and wait about 30 minutes. And, we drink a teaspoon of Braggs apple cider vinegar (the mother) each morning before breakfast. I hope this is helpful.

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@destinnana I never heard of celery juice either for acid reflux.
I have noticed Plan Ice cold water first thing in the morning is helping before coffee. I also found a Low Acid Coffee called Manatee Gourmet Coffee. Proceeds from the coffee help to save the manatee too. And I'm a coffee guru who typically drank in my day, 3 pots a day. It's pretty good with lower acid.
Another drink that seems to help my acid reflux is Natural Alkaline Water. I was drinking it all the time. I think the Alkaline help neutralize the acid in my stomach.

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Robin | @harliegirl | Jul 11, 2018
In reply to @harliegirl "I have acid reflux and getting off omeprazole is not an option but I do swallow..." + (show)
@harliegirl

I have acid reflux and getting off omeprazole is not an option but I do swallow Priosec in am and zantac afternoon with tums with needed on every third day the others I use zantac morning and evening with tums in between. I feel so much better the days I use the one Priosec(not sure I am spelling right) but I am having a calcium intake problem so I am using doctors suggestion for using tums, zantac and prilosec.

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When was the last time you had lab work to test your liver status? That seems like alot of Nexium, generic or not. That is why I had to reduce my prilosec. Lab results were not great but in question. I still need to follow up again on those recent lab results to check again. Acid reflux to include gastroparesis are my stuggle.

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JK | @contentandwell | Jul 11, 2018
In reply to @marlaxyz "I hesitate to write this because i am absolutely not an expert and am an experiment..." + (show)
@marlaxyz

I hesitate to write this because i am absolutely not an expert and am an experiment of one. With that said I will tell you my experience.

i was on Prilosec (prescription) for years and then there were a series of events and I stopped taking it. Surprise. NO problem. Then I had an endoscopy (for other reasons) and asked the doctor if he thought I should be taking Prilosec and he said he saw no reason. So I have not gone back to it.

What I did do was adjust my diet and stop eating citrus, tomatoes, and other items - i actually forget now because it is all in the past. I DO eat yogurt, cottage cheese, other cheese (not cheddar) peanut butter, meat, cooked (and non cruciferous) vegetables, yams, berries, bananas, other stuff. . I have a whole list somewhere if you want it, just PM me. I created the list by trial and error - if something gave me GERD, out it went.

One take away I came to was the gastroenterologists do like to prescribe Prilosec. If you have something it will probably fix it. I have other problems but Prilosec is not fixing them, still the GI doctor wanted me to take the Prilosec. . All medicines have an affect on our kidneys and livers. I have a sense Prilosec is not a bad medicine any more than any other (I went back to the original research and found it not compelling) ..it is just that all medicines have problems.

BTW - that vinegar. Yikes. NEVER or as Jackie above called it - "acid"

Best to you and good luck-

Val

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@marlaxyz I would see your list of goods that you do not eat. I have Barrett’s esophagus and I was told to not have much citrus, tomatoes, coffee, and I forget what else. So far my Barrett’s has remained stable and is not bothersome. The only symptom I had prior to diagnosis was hoarseness. I will be having my yearly endoscopy in the fall and will want to speak to the doctor about whether or not I really need to continue taking omeprazole. I take one 20mg a day.
Thanks.
JK

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kozlo52 | @kozlo52 | Jul 12, 2018
In reply to @destinnana "We weaned off our acid reflux meds very slowly. The possible long term side effect of..." + (show)
@destinnana

We weaned off our acid reflux meds very slowly. The possible long term side effect of taking acid reflux meds concerned us. I brought empty capsules and made our own capsules as we slowly weaned off. Now, i juice 16 ounces of celery every morning for myself and husband. . We drink it before our coffee and wait about 30 minutes. And, we drink a teaspoon of Braggs apple cider vinegar (the mother) each morning before breakfast. I hope this is helpful.

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i have also tried the unsweetened apple cider with vinegar and it still bothers my throat and that is after my fundoplication, 3 dilations. my fundoplication is 1.5 years old. i still experience heartburn symptoms, with no help from antacids. I am getting an endoscopy today from my gastroenterologist today july12, 2018. I hope to know more about what is going on and why does drinking water make it seem worse.

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