Adjustable bed frames: Acid reflux after esophageal cancer treatment

No feeding tube here. They stretched my stomach up into my chest.

For the patient who has had an esophagectomy. Take the omeprazole about 30 minutes prior to eating your morning meal. If your waking hours are daytime and you get up at about 7:00 am, immediately take the omeprazole. About 30 minutes later eat your 1st meal of the day. Your last meal of the day before bedtime should be your smallest and easiest food to digest. Take the 2nd omeprazole 30 minutes before the last meal. Most GI Doc's will say "eat 3 hours before bedtime and that is not enough time for your food to break down and move entirely into the small intestine. You want the feeding tube that replaced the esophagus to be as clear as possible. During the 30 minutes before you recline in bed for your night's sleep, you can chew two or three Tums that will help to reduce the acid in your feeding tube. Your feeding tube is part of your stomach but is verticle in your chest. You no longer have a sphincter valve to reduce the upflow of acid. Reducing acid is important to protect the stub of the esophagus below your throat. Don't bend over right after you eat or your food will come out of your mouth. Your diet must include hi-fiber foods and a cap of Miralax every day. Keeping your bowel movements loose will prevent constipation. Always sleep on an incline with the head of the bed higher than the foot.

When do you take the omeprazole? How do you handle the acid reflux during the night?

Your husband's life will be a series of adjustments for the rest of his life. Twenty-five years ago my GI Doc said "humans are not designed to be lying flat and we all should be sleeping with our sleeping surface on a continuous tilt, higher at the head and lower at the foot". I didn't pay enough attention and ended up with esophageal cancer and had my esophagectomy over ten years ago. I've been taking omeprazole, a proton pump inhibitor PPI, 40mg, twice a day for years. Additionally, I chew two Tums (calcium carbonate) prior to reclining for my, hopefully, eight hours of night-time sleep. The PPI works via your bloodstream to reduce the production of acid and the Tums helps to quickly chemically neutralize the acid in the throat and the after-surgery feeding tube. I'm a side and stomach sleeper and the pillow wedges never worked for me. I've spent a lot of money on special devices and electric beds and the best option has been a specially-made incline base that is permanently installed on the bed under the mattress. In incline needs to be a straight surface that is about 6" to 8" higher at the head but pivoting at the foot.

Try Dexilant 60 mg at bedtime for acid reflux. Ask your dr. first if its suitable for you.

My husband had his esophagus removed eight weeks ago and is having issues with a stricture and scar tissue up at his throat. We have one of those huge pillows it looks like you’re being hugged? It’s some thing that I had in college and I bought another one prior to my surgery. So what we do is we turn it upside down and it makes a big wedge and then we have pillows so that my husband can sleep sort of sitting up. I bought this pillow at Walmart for about $20 a couple of years ago. I’m sure you can find a wedge in a medical catalog if you look for physical therapy or alternate positioning.

Lori- I bought my adjustable bed frame from Denver Mattress and the mattress I had was compatible with it as I had purchased it new a few yrs earlier from the Denver Mattress Store. I have no record of the cost. It does have the knee adj also.
I also have acid reflux but only rarely and I am on Prilosec. I do best when I allow 3 hours between eating and bedtime. Sometimes I slide down my mattress and am lying too flat. I don’t do alcohol or eat spicy food in the evening-I can’t pinpoint the exact cause.

I have a queen mattress. Just need the frame. I'm seriously looking into this one!!! TYVM!!

I think they also have a queen size if you don't like two beds pushed together. The nice thing we like about it is each of us can change the settings for preferences. The zero gravity position is nice and is a one button push on the remote. The downside might be you have to have 2 sets of Twin XL fitted bottom sheets for the mattresses and 1 King sized top sheet and blankets so it's a little extra work when changing sheets 🙃

Thank you very much John for your comment / help.