If you have been keeping up with my blog – then you’ve read my horrible experience with GERD. (Gastro Esophageal Reflux Disease)
GERD is a suck-y thing to deal with. Especially if you don’t even realize you have it until you get really scary symptoms like I did when I woke up in the middle of the night unable to breathe. If you ever had a fear of drowning….God help you when you experience the inability to breathe. For those 45 seconds…..I ran like I bat out of hell and watched my life flash before my eyes. I can’t even joke about that part of it now….and that was 5 months ago. I simply cannot find any humor in it – even though I was diagnosed later with GERD, which is not life threatening per say – like heart disease or something.
BUT….
It IS funny how….when you get better…..you slack off. You think…wow…..I have no symptoms. I must be well. I think it’s the human spirit to just rejoice in wellness and feel somewhat carefree for once (especially when you’ve been sick).
I slacked off….
I was feeling really good. Two visits to the ENT, taking 30mg of Prevacid every day for 3 months. NO food after 6:30 and had dropped about 6 pounds (I wasn’t extremely overweight…..I’m 5’4″ and weighed about 150 – so now I’m about 145 – trying to get to 138). And I have the head of my bed propped up 6 inches.
But I stopped taking my Prevacid. Just didn’t want to take it anymore. I also added chocolate and wine back to my diet. Not a ton….maybe a glass or two of wine a week and just one square of Ghiradelli Dark chocolate 4 times a week.
But that was enough.
Today I feel like crap. The chest pain is back. It truly feels like a heart attack. Which causes anxiety……and it’s a vicious little path I go down.
You’d think after 7 years of not knowing what the hell was wrong with me…and having so much anxiety that it was my heart….that I would stick to my GERD program for as long as I am told to by my ENT Doc.
But no….I let my human spirit rejoice in just feeling “ok” – and I blew it.
When I last saw my ENT doc – just two months ago…he looked at my throat with that lovely little scope that goes in through your nose and down into your throat. He said…..”Wow…it looks 30% better!”
Not 50% better….not 100% better….
So why did I not follow through?
Well…..I’m back on Prevacid starting tonight. I will take it before bed and hope that I haven’t totally messed things up again with weeks of heart attack symptoms ahead of me. Ugh!
I was supposed to go to the ENT for a follow up yesterday – and I called and canceled. I knew it was pointless because I hadn’t taken my medicine for 2 months. So….he would just look and say…..”Umm….it looks worse, why?”
So I’ve rescheduled for the end of May – that will give me 5 weeks back on the medicine and hopefully back to feeling better.
I think silent GERD is the worst. Because you have either NO symptoms – or symptoms way off the mark of what you think heartburn or GERD might feel like.
Other than heart attack like chest pain – I had no other symptoms for years.
Then started the coughing fits at night. Then a sore throat in the morning. Then a naggy little cough all the time – especially after I ate. All the while – the chest pain was getting excruciating. It was squeezing and pressure-like. I would think to myself….”Today is the last day I will see my kids….because this has to be my heart giving out.”
It was an awful way to live. Especially for someone in their 30s and early 40s in great health with no other issues. My blood work was perfect, I eat a mostly vegetarian diet, take walks…..and get on the treadmill for 45 minutes 6 days a week on an 5% incline at 3.0-3.5 mile an hour. Not a marathon sprinter for sure…..but not sitting on my butt eating moon pies and cheetos wondering why I’m 50 pounds over-weight either.
So I guess I’m just throwing this out there for anyone suffering from GERD. I truly can feel your pain. I know there is a lot of controversy out there over medicine for GERD.
I’ve heard many arguments:
1. They don’t know the long term effects.
2. They cause heart problems.
3. It’s not TOO much acid that’s the problem – it’s not enough acid.
4. You’ll get IBS because food won’t digest right.
…there are tons of arguments out there. And I am not a doctor.
All I can offer you is my experience. I was on the Prevacid from Dec 1 to Feb. 28 and I was feeling FABULOUS!!!! Better than ever. It took about 2 months and then that 3rd month – I was feeling really good.
And then…
I stopped. I thought…..I’m healed because I feel good.
WRONG!
So…I’m back to my Prevacid. Back to watching what I eat and trying harder than ever to drop another 8-10 pounds. This is my life…..and I have to take responsibility.
So…..
I hope this helps in some way for anyone out there going through the same thing….or thinking of stopping their meds. It was a bad move for me.
GERD – I’m down…..but don’t count me out – I’m coming back to GET ‘CHA for good!!
{ 3 comments… read them below or add one }
I was sick for years with NO classical heartburn symptoms at all. I thought I had sleep apnea because I would wake up in the night unable to breathe. Horrible pain in my throat, chest pains, anxiety. I completely lost my voice twice. No coughing or anthing like that beforehand. My voice was just all of a sudden completely gone. I’ve since found out about how esophageal spasms can press on the vagus nerve which in turn can affect your heart rate and your voice box.
I had a bad spell of chest pains this morning. I was on Aciphex which made me feel horrible, but I guess I’m going to finish up the prescription, though I hate to go back to having the horrible headaches and other side effects…
Must quit my coffee habit, and my smoking… (sheepishily hangs head)
That’s the first thing that comes to mind when I have the chest pains…my daughters, and what will they do without me. You’d think that would be enough to make me stop all the bad habits…
Wow – so funny you send this comment today.
I am having some serious chest pain today….UGH!!
So sick of it. It’s comforting to know someone else can relate. But so sorry to hear you are suffering. It’s a sucky feeling when the area where your control center (your heart) feels pain, soreness….
I went to pick up my Prevacid refill today and the pharmacist says….”It’s waiting authorization…have to talk to the doctor….”
Apparently my insurance is saying NO to paying for it. It’s $189 without insurance. Geesh!! They’ve paid for it in the past….so why get all bent now? Who knows…hope they figure it out – I have three Prevacid Sol-u-tabs left.
I was hoping I would see some improvement by now being back on the Prevacid. But now I have neck soreness and pain along with the chest pain….even a little breathlessness. So bizarre. Symptoms of a classic woman’s heart attack waiting to happen…but I suppose it is just this GERD monster.
I will tell you – I did try Aciphex as well. I didn’t like it. Made me feel like I was having tension headaches all the time or something.
I would definitely get rid of those cigarettes. But that is easy for me to say since I don’t smoke.
Did you see the recent Oprah on people quitting their smoking habit? Man….were they suffering. But it’s worth it if you can quit. The pros out weigh the cons.
I took a few Tylenol Sinus pills this morning….thought maybe the heavy chest thing and breathlessness might be allergies?
Sometimes I feel like I have to yawn to get a deep breath….another fun little glitch my body has decided to throw at me.
Every now and then I think….I’m just gonna find a place that you can pay for one of those 64 slice CT scans of your heart. I heard it’s like $1500 to just do it without insurance. But I feel like it would be worth it for me to know FOR sure that these symptoms are not my heart. Heart disease is the #1 killer of women in the USA…..so it does worry me.
But..until I can scrape together $1500 and FIND a place that will do that scan without a doctor’s orders….I guess I better stick to my attack on GERD and hope for the best!
Hope you feel better soon!
Thanks so much for sharing your story!
Your friend in GERD,
Kelly
HomeBasedBusinessMom.com
GERD is a horrible thing.
Silent GERD – even worse.
I am so glad for your post. It has made me realize that I am NOT crazy. My symptoms are real and being treated like some kind of idiot-nut case has been insulting and upsetting.
GERD is very real. I take Zegerid every day. Basically I think Zegerid is a stronger version of Prilosec. It has baking soda, I think in it was well to help neutralize the acid.
This has helped me immensely.
SO many of my friends are on this anti-medicine kick. They want to be all-natural. And I am not saying this is a bad thing. But sometimes, ALOT of times, medicine has improved people’s lives AND saved their lives.
If you have weird symptoms, ask your doctor if it could possibly be GERD. If it is, TAKE the meds.
Sure, you can start sipping apple cider vinegar if you think that’s going to help because you read it online, but I really think meds are the way to go.
Thank you for your GERD story. It’s very comforting knowing someone understands.
Sincerely,
DeAnna