Pills stuck in throat

Posted , 5 users are following.

I took Zantac last night before bed and I felt it was stuck in my throat. I drank two glasses of water and felt it go down but then it came back up. At first I thought I was only imagining it, but when I got into bed I could taste the bitterness of a dissolving pill in my mouth.

I recently found out that I no longer have any health insurance so I can't even go to the doc until I get that figured out.

I am thinking of going back to Prilosec but the side effects last time were seriously scary. Also, I'm afraid of that getting stuck too.

What should I do to keep the pills down?

2 likes, 6 replies

6 Replies

  • Posted

    I get that also! I take the pill with water then eat a small piece of bread! Works
  • Posted

    Hi Hallie:

    Sorry to hear you had such a bad experience.  First of all I do not approve of using acid blocking drugs.  It will just lead you down a bad road that is difficult to get off of.  If you absolutely think you must take one, get one in a capsule so you can pour out the tiny pills in your hand and swallow them with lots of water.  They will go down and disperse.  PPi pills are known to settle in one spot in the stomach and dissolve and cause a chemical burn.  You can get off them by weaning off slowly over a 2 month period, otherwise you may get acid revenge.  I would rather recommend malox liquid before bed, it will last longer. Then you can use antacids during the day.

    What is the reason for you taking a PPi drug?

    • Posted

      Jonathan, most PPIs are enterically coated which means they are designed to go through the stomach with this coating intact preserving the drug inside. You must never pour out the tiny pills and swallow them.

       

    • Posted

      Hi Lucinia:  When I was having my acid reflux issues, I tried almost every acid blocking drug, I still have most of them in the boxes, but I remember trying one major brand in a capsule and it burned my stomach so bad I was vomiting for hours.  It definitely was not coated and dissolved in my stomach.  I was eventually successful in getting off all PPi drugs by opening the capsule of my PPi and swallowing the tiny pills with water.  They disperse nicely and never caused any issues whatsoever.  I took fewer and fewer over several months and eventually just used a mild antacid before bed.  I would not recommend that someone do something if I had not already done so myself.  

      But, Hallie has an issue of pills getting caught in the esophageal pocket.  That is extremely dangerous and can lead to an emergency hospital visit and long term damage. I also don't agree with instructions to take a PPI in the morning on an empty stomach like I see on the label.  It should be taken in the middle of dinner so it is buffered by food and provides better protection while sleeping, where most damage occurs.

      I believe my advice is logical and I stand by it.

    • Posted

      I have been put on omprezole and was told to take it on an empty first thing in the morning. It always got stuck so to make sure it went down I follow it with a small piece of bread or cake and it always works.

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