How to tackle bad GERD?

Who ordered your scope, and what are they recommending? Is there anything you can pin down that is working for you? I’m not much help to diagnose, rather just someone trying to hold it all together through my own process. 🙂 A scope my local GI did a few years back didn’t yield any information for me. When you say “inflammation” how are you defining that? I am thinking pinning down details of where you are at will help you make another step forward. IDK

I’ve had chronic 7 diagnosed digestive illnesses, 11 years now .
Did all the major testing , many x over . 5 GI Dr’s , even Mayo Clinic Jax testing .
I tried FM practitioners , holistic approaches, every supplement for GI Health, acupuncture, hypnosis ( that didn’t work ) , you name it . RX ‘s , eliminating diets , food allergy testing .
I still suffer every single day , chronically, plus chronic fatigue now , I deep wet belch over 600-700 x a day gross 🤢, went through a throwing up stage , non stop churning gut & intestines. Can barely stand to eat but still very sick if I don’t eat .
I’m really at wits end.
It’s no way to live , I can barely leave my house anymore.
I feel for you .

You do have lots of unpleasant symptoms. Gallbladder okay? Are you currently taking a PPI? I just had to wait a few months to see a new GI.

I have GERD and when I had my first scope 12 years ago my esophagus was red and irritated. I’ve had a small hiatal hernia all along. That allows the reflux. I’ve been on pantoprazole ever since and even though I still have some mild symptoms my esophagus has looked pink and healthy in the 3 scopes I’ve had since including last week. My understanding is that a PPI and OTC reflux meds may both relieve symptoms but only PPIs actually heal the esophagus so I’ve been told to stick with my PPI.

I hope you can get in to see the GI soon and find a solution to whatever is driving your GI issues.

I am sorry you are going through all this. I can tell you what I did and maybe will ring true for you. I have GERD, hiatal hernia, and laryngopharyngeal reflux. I suffer chest pains and coughs and belching. I was on a PPI (omeprazole) for four years without blood test monitoring and discovered by chance that I had developed chronic kidney disease, stage 3. I weaned off the PPI and my CKD improved; it was an acute kidney injury caught in time so I improved into the reference range. I will say the PPI managed my symptoms so I could eat almost normally.

You said you tried diet, etc., but let me tell you what I did in that regard.

I bought Dr. Jonathan Aviv's book on low-acid, whole food diet, and joined the FB page that has a ton of recipes based on his diet (acid watcher warriors I think it's called). I also went to the web site of another ENT, Dr. Jamie Koufman, which has a lot of good free advice. She also has a book on a low-acid diet. I followed a lot of her advice, e.g., the diet, alkaline water (be careful if you have filtered water. Check to see if it's acidic. If it is add alkaline drops); Gaviscon Advance from UK, chewing sugarless gum, sleeping on an incline (actually I sleep sitting up), spritzing my throat with alkaline water. When I follow the low acid, whole food diet I feel better, no chest pains, less belching, no reflux. It is difficult, but when I eat highly processed food or acidic foods I feel worse. It took more than a month for the worst symptoms to start abating.

My GI doc wanted me on PPIs or undergo surgery. I opted to try the diet/lifestyle protocol because it had less chance of side effects. If diet/lifestyle changes don't work for you then I suppose you need to do more testing to see if there is something else going on besides plain vanilla GERD. Good luck!

@januaryjane I have had GERD and a hiatal hernia for several years, and have been taking Lansoprazole for as many years. I have discussed going off Lansoprazole with my doctor because I have heard it should not be taken long term, but she said in some cases - like mine - it is best to stay on it to prevent Barrett’s esophagus. I take one 30mg. Lansoprazole every night at bedtime.

I also do not eat anything after 9:00 p.m. - most nights I stop eating by 8:00 p.m. I have the head of my bed raised too. All this has kept my GERD at bay. Having lost ten to fifteen pounds over the years has helped greatly too.

I do exactly the same!

My gp ordered my scope. My diagnosis was gastritis, bile reflux, hital hernia, gastric polyps, mild distal esophagitis.
I was on Omeprazole for years so after my scope I tried Pantoprazole with no effect, added pepcid, switched to Nexium and now on Prevacid. I worked with the surgeon and my gp.
Along with burning indigestion, I have frequent burping and hiccup fits that come out of nowhere. The surgeon said my h hernia was small and not concerned at the time.
Seems like symptoms can get a little better at times but it's not long till they rear their ugly head again!

That's awful I'm so sorry. Thank you for your kind reply.

On prevacid now. Gallbladder is fine but I do have gallstones that are deemed ok.
Pantroprazle is supposed to be a wonder drug but I tried it for months to no avail. I'm glad it worked for you!

Thank you for all the info! Yes, I usually sleep head elevated or in a chair. Processed foods and acidic foods or drinks are the worst! Sometimes the only thing I can drink is water and I try to get the alkaline because it sits best. I will look at these recipes, thank you!