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Gastritis Sufferer for 18 Months - Will it Ever End?!

Posted , 4 users are following.

barbara56934
barbara56934

Hi - I was diagnosed with mild chronic gastritis, acid reflux and a hiatus hernia 18 months ago. I had a long term shoulder condition and the most likely cause of the gastritis is use of Naproxen anti-inflammatories. I was prescribed 20mg Esomeprazole once daily, which has now been increased to twice daily. I managed to bring the symptoms partially under control for about 8 months, but they have flared up again in the last 6 months and now affect me at least 5 days out of every week. Symptoms include burning, gnawing pain under my left rib cage, tightness and pressure in the same region, nausea (on occasions), acid reflux, stomach cramps, bloating, excessive gas and diarrhoea (on occasions). I have made significant changes to my lifestyle in terms of eating well (removing spicy foods along with those which obviously aggravate my stomach plus cutting out all alcohol and caffeine), exercising and reducing stress. I have remained in close contact with my GP's surgery to check things when they have flared worse that usual, but have received very little real guidance other than to monitor my foods and take the Esomeprazole. A referral to a gastro clinic is on hold due to Covid and I am unlikely to be seen for at least another 6 months, possibly longer. I'm starting to feel pretty demoralised as all the positive changes have seen little improvement and although the condition is diagnosed as 'mild' the symptoms are anything but! It is extremely debilitating. Any advice around anything else I can try would be most welcome ... am more than happy to consider alternative therapies, although have been a bit wary to date for fear of making the situation worse. Am getting to the point where a lot of the time I skip meals rather than having to deal with the discomfort, which is not really a sensible route to go. Thanks for reading 😃

0 likes, 7 replies

7 Replies

  • anne53212
    anne53212 barbara56934

    Edited

    I thought i was getting worse again after improving somewhat on the PPI i was prescribed which seemed weird so i did an experiment and went OFF the ppi against my doctors orders! Lo and behold the sharp stomach pains, sever cramps in stomach slowly disappeared for the most part. wow my hunch was right. i believe the PPI was actually preventing my recovery after not stopping it at 2 months or 3 ( kept taking it for close to 7). No doctor will entertain this idea however. I thought i had an ulcer that just wouldnt heal! The PPI made me worse after so long. The mucosal lining needs some acid to stimulate it to produce and heal. I just use the occasional pepcid now. I am not sure if my story will be of any use to you but thought i would share as doctors are not known to think outside the box when one is not healing..

    • barbara56934
      barbara56934 anne53212

      Posted

      thanks very much ... will try anything at this stage so will drop back one dose and see how it goes 😊 like you say sometimes you have to go against the advice!!

    • ivan54290
      ivan54290 barbara56934

      Posted

      I was just diagnosed with mild gastritis, bad acid reflux, and a hiatal hernia last. I've been in pain for 3 months. Please let me know if you find a solution or anything that helps. This is a nightmare.

  • sara89988
    sara89988 barbara56934

    Edited

    Hi,

    I have just returned from hospital after excruciating pain in my stomach, I have been diagnosed with possible gastritis but Im under investigation to have this confirmed, currently waiting on a scan of my gall bladder to rule out gall stones.

    Im sad to hear that your life and diet changes have failed to bring adequate relief, have you been tested for H Pylori? I believe this can be an underlying cause for gastritis, it requires a intense course of antibiotics to resolve it.

    Im new to this, Ive had IBS in the past but this is a whole different thing. I have read that Curcumin and Aloe Vera can be helpful, it may be worth a try but do speak to your GP first.

    Take care.

    • barbara56934
      barbara56934 sara89988

      Posted

      Hi - yes, have been tested for H Pylori and that has been ruled out. As you say, very different to IBS. Thanks for your message and suggestions ... much appreciated. Take care of yourself and best wishes for the tests 🥰

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