Worried

Have suffered from acid reflux for the past 7 months. The good thing is it's not fatal if you treat it right. Usually the ppis don't work it's more about eating right. That means no dairy alcohol fatty foods citrus fruit coffee etc for at least a few weeks to heal your oesophagus. I just found dr kaufmans acid reflux recipe book it has a lot of info on how to treat this disease. It can become very serious if you don't treat it I'd suggest reading this book and being very careful what you eat as well as no eating after 7pm and 4 hours before bed. Nighttime eating is one of the worst things for reflux. Try gaviscon after meals as well no acidic food only alkaline lots of Veges. I also used to suffer back neck and chest pain but now it's mostly mucus production

Hello Pamela

Diet, avoiding the foods Charmayne says, is key. Several medium meals per day (I have seven, one every two hours or bit longer), rather than fewer bigger ones are ideal, so that you don't overfill and stretch/pressure the stomach. Be sat upright for and after meals, not bent or slouching, so you don't squash your tum and press its contents upwards.

PPI can help some people, but I weaned off them because they made my tum and eosophagus feel worse and my throat and mouth very dry. Diet and these other measures are all I use, along with nutrition drinks from my dietician, for having low-fat foods makes the calorie intake too low in my case.

It can take time to have some improvement, and after three years I'm not free of gastritis, but it's better to what it was the first two years. Because we're all different you might find some foods are ok or bad with you compared to other people, so it's a matter of experimentation and patience. Chocolate (a little white seems ok with me, being caffeine-free) and salty foods are also bad. Spicy and hot foods can also aggravate the trouble for some people. Minty foods relax the lower eosophageal muscle, so they are best avoided. I use a fruity toothpaste rather than mint. Stress and excercise that affect the stomach are also to be avoided. Be as calm and stress-free as you can.

You may find, as I did, that waiting to be too empty before going to bed actually causes hunger discomfort and keeps you awake. Because of this I lie-down (on my right is best for me) about an hour and a half to two hours after last meal, and this is much better.

Another thing which has helped me greatly, is to not burp after about ten or so minutes after eating, as this can bring acid up and cause burn damage that then has to heal, even after a gaviscon. And don't take antacids routinely unless you need to during heartburn and during this worst period of your troubles.

The impact of these types of illnesses on you mentally can be as major as the physical issues, so you will not be alone if that is so in your case. Pain and discomfort can naturally be depressing and hard to cope with, and the sufferer can feel a grief for the life they took for granted and have suddenly lost. Share this with your doctor, family and friends if you need to, and know that you can post here anytime.