Acid Reflux (GERD)

This forum is helpful because I was just told I had the same thing...my kitchen is empty right now. Have you changed your groceries much, or just cut back on certain things that you had been eating? I'm searching for different methods that may help me cope better...as we know it always seems easier to cut back on what you like vs. cutting it out all together & re-stocking. So if you have any advise to offer me it would be greatly appreciated!!! : )

I used to have acid reflux, I didn't treat it at all medically, I just lost most of the extra weight (about 60 pounds thus far) and it went away.

I have GERD and I avoid trigger foods. They can be varied from person to person; I know there is usually a generic list (don't eat acidic things/fatty things/alotta things), but my big ones are seafood and milk. If I eat any of those, I am in PAIN.

I also make sure to take a zantac if I know I am going to eat out and then sleep with my head and shoulders elevated.

Edit: like the above poster, I tried everything that was recommended by a doctor to mitigate it and nothing really worked to make it "stop". The only thing that really worked for me was to figure out triggers and avoid them completely. It's genetic for me as well (both grandfathers and all of my uncles have it...).

ALSO: Do NOT just take Alka seltzer/Tums/Rolaids for GERD-related acid reflux... it will help at first, but then it will make it worse I speak from experience.

OMG, YES i have GERD. my doctor switch my pain medication to non-asprine based. used to take naproxen, (stuff works great) but now everything is asprine free. no more tomatos, reduced the coffee intake, no more hot foods, forced to chew foods slower-well that is most likely a good thing. i have to make sure i take prilosec x4 aday.

I have GERD too and have just switched from 40mg daily of omeprazole (generic form of Nessium) to 20mg daily (which is equivalent to prisolsec). I would like to get to the point where I no longer need any medication at all, since the long term side effects of omeprazole include lack of bone density. I don't think it's weight related, since I am 5'10 and 150 lbs. But I have noticed that overeating gives me severe heart burn and acid reflux, so I joined my fitness pal to help deal with the evening cravings that I have. Stress is also a big contributor with me for reflux. Anybody out there figure out how to get off the medication?

I have severe acid reflux. They thought it was weight related, but it has continued after losing weight. It has been determined that it is genetic (my real dad suffers too and he's NOT overweight at all) and there's nothing I can do to stop it, I can only treat the symptoms.

I tried everything under the sun to get it under control - raising the head of my bed, not eating before bed, watching my dairy, watching "spicy" foods, etc - everything they recommended and it continued. Now, I take Prilosec every single day. Keeps it in check.

I've had an endoscopy that found pre-cancerous cells in my esophagus due to the acid reflux. If you suffer, please.. talk to a doctor and see what they recommend. I suffered in silence for many years and have the damage to show for it.

I am right there with you. My doctor practically yelled at me for not going in about it sooner because I'd caused so much damage from not treating it. Mine also has nothing do with weight or what I eat. All I can do is take the pills. Anyone else with this problem should see their doctor immediately.

I had it badly in high school. My doctor refused to consider that there could be a real problem because I was 17 years old, 5 1.5" and 94lbs. Obviously mine was not weight related, but I had all the symptoms. I was treated with Nexium and slept elevated until the summer after graduation. I had a scope done which found a hiatal hernia. I had surgery to have it repaired, had a difficult recovery, and now 10 years later I eat the spiciest foods I can with no issues.

Get into a Gastrointerologist!! There may be more that can be done. I don't regret surgery at all, one of the best things I have done for my health.

I had reflux bad until I lost my weight. I hope the solution is that simple for you, but there is only one way to find out.

I had severe acid reflux, I quit eating fried foods, bread also triggered it, bananas etc, and gave up coffee too, started drinking one capfull of apple cider vinegar to a tall glass of water sipped it one in the morning and one at night. and it has helped immensely, also eating celery or foods that helped cool my system down. I noticed having fried foods sometimes or even a cup of coffee dosnt hurt my tummy or cause flare ups, and if i do have those foods I drink the apple cider vinegar, and again only one capfull. I did not want to rely on drugs. But that is how it has helped me I wanted to heal my gall bladder and liver not throw drugs at it.

I have it bad, can't say it's due to weight since I've listed thevweightnbutnthe GERD is still here. I'm on medication and try to stay away from trigger foods.

OMG, YES i have GERD. my doctor switch my pain medication to non-asprine based. used to take naproxen, (stuff works great) but now everything is asprine free. no more tomatos, reduced the coffee intake, no more hot foods, forced to chew foods slower-well that is most likely a good thing. i have to make sure i take prilosec x4 aday.

I really hope you're not taking Prilosec 4X per day. It is meant to be taken once daily, sometimes twice daily if you have resistant GERD. Once in the AM 30 minutes before your breakfast should be plenty. This is coming from someone in working on their doctorate of pharmacy right now (I graduate in 109 days).

Oh and I almost forgot! Believe it or not stress and anxiety I believe triggered mine too. Weird I know but has anyone else had the same experience? I have learned to breathe to help with stressful moments.

i used to have reflux..Twas bad stuff, that it was.

I took Prilosec for it a few times. That helped TONS. Any other time, I'd stay try my darndest to just say no to spicy/greasy foods and whenever acid reflux hit (which was nearly every single night), I'd sit and chew on a handful of TUMS.

Since losing weight however, I've stopped having the episodes altogether. In fact, I can eat a majority of the stuff that would've made me sick in the past.

I can only offer my experience - I had gerd severe enough that it caused Barret's Esophagus/stricture - I didn't always feel the reflux, but it happened often enough over a long period of time that the tissue in the esophagus created a blockage of mucus to try to repair the damaged tissue and it made swallowing difficult. My mother had the same condition and actually had to go to the ER and get the stricture dilated. I didn't have an episode where something stuck completely, but it would come back up and was painful.

Long story short, I had gastric bypass within a year of that starting to be a really bad problem, and the procedure itself cured it. My esophagus has healed because my stomach doesn't produce the same amount of digestive fluid anymore. I'm not suggesting that as a solution, but it really opened my eyes to how bad my problem was and how it was even affecting my asthma.

My mother's gerd went away when she lost weight, and I know that the weight I've kept off has helped me as well, even with the intervention.

Pay attention to what you're taking in, what time of day you might have these episodes, keep your head elevated at night with multiple pillows or a wedge if you're not already doing so. There are presciption acid reducers that can be effective if you've made changes and still not getting better. Discuss it with a doctor.

But don't wait until you've lost "X" number of pounds before you take action - gerd isn't something you want to "live with", you want the acid to stop.