1. Community
  2. Gut, bowel and stomach
  3. Reflux Oesophagitis

Reflux getting me down

Posted , 8 users are following.

lisa33471
lisa33471

i have just switched to lansoprazole for reflux. Had pelvic pain, stomache ache constant, sore upper abdomen, wheezing, breathless, and worse of all the feeling something stuck in throat sadwaiting blood results but fear the dreaded endoscopy will be inevitable. Can anyone help me stop worrying.  My GP thinks I'm suffering from anxiety. I can't help but think things like cancer. 

0 likes, 23 replies

23 Replies

Next
  • Tinkerbell32
    Tinkerbell32 lisa33471

    Posted

    Hi Lisa, please don't worry. I was exactly like you, worrying i had Cancer and googling all sorts of things too. Definitely sounds like reflux rather than anxiety. My doctor said the same thing to me but i knew i wasn't anxious about anything. I have had 2 endoscopies in the last 12 mths but they really are a piece of cake, esp if u have light sedation. Mine started with burning upper stomach pain and have had reflux for the last year. The worst things for me is the breathlessness, sore throat and cough, there's lots of us in the same boat so hopefully u can take some small comfort from that! I was taking Lanzoprasole but it didn't do much for me, now I'm on Nexium and have an inhaler to take too. Don't panic if things don't improve, there's so many different medications for it, just trial and error. You need to change your diet as well, caffeine, chocolate, spicy and fatty food is a no no and raise the head of your bed too. I've just bought a reflux wedge for bed from the internet to help. If you have any questions please don't hesitate to ask x
    • lisa33471
      lisa33471 Tinkerbell32

      Posted

      Hi tinkerbell, thanku for your reply. I was diagnosed a few years ago with non ulcer dyspepsia so I dnt know whether I may have hiyas hernia as my sister has exactly the same? It's the thing stuck in your throat that I dnt like and like it's just sore. What are the best foods to eat so u think? I know to avoid onion, toms, garlic etc but so hard when a lot of food have them in. Have u stopped having tea and coffee altogether? 
    • Tinkerbell32
      Tinkerbell32 lisa33471

      Posted

      Hi Lisa, unfortunately i have had to cut out tea and coffee completely, everytime i had it i felt breathless and dizzy afterwards. Coffee was my weakness too along with chocolate! An endoscopy will tell you if u have hiatus hernia or not but i understand u concerned about the procedure. Best foods to eat are plain foods like chicken, fish and vegetables, avoid sauces if u can, at least for a couple of weeks. Its a bit of a bland diet but i was willing to try anything so give it a go because it helped me with the burning sensation.
    • lisa33471
      lisa33471 Tinkerbell32

      Posted

      Thanks tinkerbell. I'm goin away in 2 weeks so I will only b having light, simple foods smile my only concern will b the alcohol! Not that I'm an excessive drinker or anything but I can't avoid that on my hols sad does this feeling of having somethg stuck in your throat ever go? sad 
    • Tinkerbell32
      Tinkerbell32 lisa33471

      Posted

      I still get the lump in throat feeling but not so often. Usually i get it if I've eaten something naughty or if I've slept too flat. The tablets should stop this but you need to give them a couple of weeks before u know if they are working. I actually feel so bad from alcohol now that i don't drink it, but everyone is different so it may not affect u in the same way. Also try not to overfill your stomach, it can make the breathlessness worse. Enjoy your holiday though, don't let this horrible thing get u down x
    • lisa33471
      lisa33471 Tinkerbell32

      Posted

      Ah thanks tinkerbell. At least I kind of feel normal now, although a bit impatient too! I will give these tabs a go & just tell doc after my holiday if no better. Thanku for your advice. I will be watching my diet and what I am eating a lot more from now smile take care x
  • stomachgirl
    stomachgirl lisa33471

    Posted

    Okay--this is probably a side effect of the prevacid.  I had the exact same thing happen to me when I took ppis.  I thought I was dying, and when I looked it up--it showed some rare form of diabetes, but it was just the side effects from the ppis.    He was fine.  Don't worry.  Just switch to pepsid, tagament or zantac--I take all 3.  I had the exact same thing.  I looked it up and found that many many many others get these side effects, some have even attempted suicide or died, so it's important for you to stop the prevacid.  I was diagnosed with H. Pylori(sp?)  Just yesterday, so that could be it for you too.  Don't worry!
    • stomachgirl
      stomachgirl

      Posted

      I didn't make the connection with the side effects for a while.  My 89 year old aunt, asked me when I complained if I started any recent new meds, and then I said yes, and she said, "Duh."  I thought that was funny coming from someone in her generation.  So don't worry Lisa. That's most likely it for you as well.
    • lisa33471
      lisa33471 stomachgirl

      Posted

      Thank you for your reply. No the omeprezole didn't work either. Only had the lansopramole 4 days so mayb they could work, dnt know how long need to kick in? But I've had the pain all over and sometimes in my back. sad 
    • stomachgirl
      stomachgirl lisa33471

      Posted

      The ppi medications can cause this.  They really have a lot of side effects try getting off all of them and instead take an h1 blocker.  ppis include nexium, prilasec and prevacid.  There may be more, but they all can really mess your system up.  As for the endoscopy, I had one last Friday, and hurt all weekend in my esophagus/chest area., but, I did find out what my problem is, so now I'm happy to know.
    • lisa33471
      lisa33471 stomachgirl

      Posted

      I did come off them at one point but then got worse symptoms back sad glad to know they have found out what was wrong through your endoscopy. Hopefully u too will start to feel better soon 😊 
  • stev433
    stev433 lisa33471

    Posted

    Hi lisa33471, I understand your concern about endoscope.i took one a few years ago & for the most part there wasn't a problem,but my years of using recreational drugs made my tolerance to sedation kind of high & I woke up during procedure. Even with that occurring things still went smoothly . I've had almost every test to see what's going on with this, so many trips to doctors and er that they seem to keep a bed ready for me. My problem is finding the right meds that won't have interactions with others, & my fear of that keeps me returning to Zantac instead of ppi which increases my problem because the Zantac isn't strong enough. Just went to specialist that I'm confident in & that's actually concerned about his patients. With being able to contact him online gives me the opportunity to contact him about matters & makes it easier to adjust any meds I'm given. So don't be discouraged,  there's support & relief. 
    • lisa33471
      lisa33471 stev433

      Posted

      Thanks Steve, I know I'm being silly. My sister ah one without sedation and she said was just. Bit uncomfortable and she's always sick with her reflux. I gag quite easily so bothers me, but think I'm getting to the point where I'm that fed up I'm like just have it done! But would def b sedated. I'm trying to b careful with diet, try and eat bland foods for a week or so just to see if any relief. I'm going away in 2 weeks so I'm hoping being away from everythg will take my mind off thing then have an appt after at docs. It's the feeling somethg stuck into throat as well and the stomache ache I there every morning I wake sad 
  • carmel83758
    carmel83758 lisa33471

    Posted

    When I tried the pp1s and pp2 t5hey always ended up giving me terrible side efrfects. So I switched to bicarbonate of soda which is far better and virtually natural.

    So long as you dont take too much too often it is fine and does the trick.

    • stomachgirl
      stomachgirl lisa33471

      Posted

      Put a tspn in a glass of water.  Peptobismol is also good or pepsid ac or zantac or tagament.
    • carmel83758
      carmel83758 stomachgirl

      Posted

      If I use a teasxpoon full I end up having to go to the toilet loads, wheezing, coughing non stop, not being able to breath. It has to be just a pinch for me.
Back to top
Next

Report or request deletion

Thanks for your help!

We want the community to be a useful resource for our users but it is important to remember that the community are not moderated or reviewed by doctors and so you should not rely on opinions or advice given by other users in respect of any healthcare matters. Always speak to your doctor before acting and in cases of emergency seek appropriate medical assistance immediately. Use of the community is subject to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy and steps will be taken to remove posts identified as being in breach of those terms.