Home Based Business Mom

My GERD Saga….
As it has come to be known at my house….is interesting to say the least.

And is it just me….or has EVERYONE got GERD? Or are doctors just diagnosing every problem someone comes in with as a GERD symptom?

“Here….have some Nexium…. NEXT!!!”

And speaking of Nexium….are we really feeling all warm and comfy that it DOESN’T cause heart problems? I mean…..I KNOW the little studies done by the company that MAKES Nexium says it doesn’t cause heart problems……but me…..and this is JUST me….I feel like I need a bigger, broader, longer…..more OBJECTIVE study.

And why do I care about Nexium, when I’m on Prevacid anyway?? Well…hell - I can no longer get my insurance to cover Prevacid. I have no clue why. They just won’t - not even with a doctor’s over ride. It’s like these Prevacid Sol-U-Tabs are little pieces of gold.

So…what do they put me on….Nexium. The “little purple pill”. Sounds so cute….so unassuming.

Actually I didn’t even get the dang “little purple pill”, I got this dissolving mix gunk that I am supposed to mix with water and drink. Not a fan of Kool-aid…..but thanks.

So…back to the ENT (Ear Nose and Throat) surgeon next week. He’s gonna stick that scope up my nose and down my throat again. Oh joy.

Maybe while I’m there I can raid his pharmaceutical cabinet for some Prevacid Sol-U-Tabs. Or shake down the drug rep in the parking lot. You can spot those snooty-toots a mile away at a doctor’s office. They look like Barbie and Ken on their way
to a corporate office party!

So…until I go to my appointment next week….the BIG Purple BOX, that looks like enough medicine for a colonoscopy prep kit sits on my kitchen counter. I refuse to “go there” until I’ve seen my ENT and begged for Prevacid in person. If I beg too much he’ll be throwing anti-anxiety meds and anti-depressants at me for good measure. Seems that’s another area that doctor’s are more than happy to write a script for…..

So….until next week….it’s TUMS Ultra and Maalox for me.

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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!!

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Yep…that’s the new nickname my husband has given me.

If you haven’t heard of GERD - oh boy….let me tell ya - not pretty. And in my case, close to a 911 call.

GERD: GastroEsophageal Reflux Disease

You wouldn’t think something like acid reflux (extreme heartburn) would be a major health issue - at least that’s what I thought….not even realizing for 7 YEARS that it was what was causing me a slew of health problems.

In early 2001, right after the birth of my second child, I started having chest pain. Not just a little bit of chest pain - A LOT. Felt like a heart attack in every way. My husband drove me to the ER - they told me….costochondritis. This is an inflammation of joint tissue where the ribs meet the sternum (By the way…I’m not a doctor….nor do I claim to be a medical know-it-all.)

So they sent me home with mega painkillers and told me to follow up with my primary care physician. He in turn sent me for a full work up at the heart center. I did the treadmill stress test and echo. At the time I was 35 years old, in good shape….and maybe carrying 12 extra pounds from just having a baby 3 months prior.

All looked well….nothing but mitral valve prolapse which I probably inherited from my Mom. And it’s a condition that’s not life threatening from what I am told.

Over the next five years I visited the ER at least once a year for chest pain that just HAD to be a heart attack. Sometimes I would go weeks and weeks with horrible chest pain. The anxiety was incredible. It was a vicious circle. Chest pain, anxiety….anxiety brought on more chest pain or made it worse. I was in tears a LOT.

The ER….in all their wisdom…
Each time would send me home with painkillers like Darvacet, and sleeping pills like Ambein…or anti-anxiety drugs like Xanax and Valium. They tried offering me anti-depressants MANY times….basically asking me which one I wanted. Zoloft, Lexapro, Celexa……Wellbutrin?? ( I didn’t shun them because I don’t think they help people or that I am “above” an anti-depressant….I just knew…in my gut…this wasn’t what I needed.)

I tried to tell them….
I’m not depressed…..I want to live….I’m not sad?!
I also wouldn’t have anxiety if I didn’t have the chest pain!!

Anybody…somebody??
Dr. McDreamy?

So….I went for years….with this chest pain.

In 2007 - my OB-GYN suggested I go in for another heart work up. She said….maybe whatever is wrong - just didn’t show up with the first heart tests in 2001 - and it’s getting worse.

Again….all the blood work….treadmill, echo…

“Many women would kill to be in the shape you’re in at 40 years old. Your blood work is perfect, your weight is fine…..and your stress test shows a healthy heart.”

What in the HELL was wrong with me? I started questioning my sanity at this point.
Are the doctors idiots? Am I an idiot? Will I drop dead from a bad heart that all these tests
just didn’t detect?

Was I just destine for a life of perpetual chest pain, anxiety…..chest pain…..anxiety.

::sigh::

I guess so.
Then…right after a trip home to Indiana for Thanksgiving last year - I was up late working on my computer. I finally went to bed around midnight. At exactly 2:23 in the morning I woke up unable to breathe. Not choking…not coughing….unable to breathe!! I jumped out of bed trying to breathe in. I took off running….(I have no idea where I was going…but apparently this is the typical reaction of someone unable to breathe - they just take off running…). I ran down the stairs, past the kitchen and into a little sitting room….my husband running behind me with the phone in his hands. He kept saying….”Kelly? Kelly? Do you want me to call 911? Kelly…can you breathe?!!”

My struggle to breathe in made a horrible loud shrieking sound. It woke up my kids…I could hear my 13 year old son saying….”Dad…do something…please Dad….she’s dying….Mom…Mom!!”

This all was happening in a matter of seconds. And I have to tell you….my life was flashing before my eyes. I thought….I’m never going to see my son get married….my little daughter will watch her mom die right in front of her. How awful…..

Then…about 47 seconds into this….I started coughing and gasping….able to get a small amount of air. I coughed and coughed for 15 minutes trying to sip some water.

To tell you I was scared….that’s just not even a word that touches what I felt. I felt Death had come to visit me and was going to be back at any time for round two.

I stayed up the rest of the night. My husband slept beside me in a big chair we have. I felt as if I’d been beat up and then shot up with adrenaline.

The next morning after the kids left for school my husband drove me to the doctor. For the first time ever….when the doctor walked in and said….”How are you Kelly?”, I just started sobbing. I was overwhelmed physically, emotionally, spiritually. I felt broken in so many ways.

My doctor….who has known me for 13 years listened intently to my saga and then said….”Ya know….this sounds like GERD.”

He went on to explain that some people have acid reflux bad and don’t even realize it. They might have one symptom or no symptoms….just depends. Obviously my only symptom was chest pain - and now the choking incident.

He asked me…”Have you had a cough?” Hmmmm…..I did have a cough….it had been getting worse over the last three months. And I hadn’t realized it….but often it started up after I ate something.

He also asked if I’d had a sore throat in the morning, or was a bit hoarse in the mornings.
Yep….yep….but I assumed it was just from being asleep, dry air….and typically it was gone by noon.

He asked if I’d ever experienced coughing fits at night.

OH my gosh! Yes!! Big time. They would strike out of the blue - I’d be in a sound sleep….and BOOM…..I’d be coughing, gasping…
I had experienced those episodes for 5 years or so.

My doctor said that probably what had happened the night before was the acid came up to my voicebox and spilled over into my lungs. This caused a spasm in the lyrnx, closing off the throat to protect the lungs. Say what???

These are all symptoms of GERD. Is this what’s been wrong with me for 7 YEARS????

(He had me do a sleep apnea test just to be safe….and it came back fine.)

HELP for GERD Sufferers THE “stop acid reflux” NOW ebook! Insightful!

He sent me to an ENT (Ears, Nose, Throat Doctor). The ENT proceeded to stick a long flexible straw thingy up my nose and down into my throat. It’s just a tad painful - mostly feels weird.

Guess what? My throat was raw, eaten up by years of acid exposure.

I was put on Prevacid. Told to lose 5-10 pounds, no eating after 6PM, head of my bed raised up SIX inches. Avoid certain foods…..keep a food diary. I found out wine, red onions and bread cause me terrible chest pain!

I went back to the ENT just the other day for my 2 month check up. Again with the scope in the nose thing (this time it kinda hurt!!). He said it looked 30% better. Switched me to another medication called Zegerid and told me to take it at night. I’ve been on this medicine for about a week.

I go back to the ENT in 3 months for another check up.

I have to tell you….even after the doctor suggested GERD - I didn’t sleep well for about a week. I don’t think I slept at all. And talk about a strain on your health and life in general.
Sleep deprivation SUCKS! No wonder it’s a form of torture.

But I was scared. Really terrified. That 47 seconds of gasping for air….it was THE most frightening experience in my life so far. I wouldn’t wish it on anyone.

But my chest pain has pretty much gone away. The cough is totally gone. (I used to eat cough drops by the dozens it was so bad…and embarrassing!)

I’ve lost about 4 pounds - still working on the other 6….

I think the no eating after 6PM has helped the most. It was hard at first. I’m a big FOODIE! I would eat LATE at night….10PM, 11PM….(years of late night radio shifts left me with weird eating times - I wouldn’t eat breakfast til around noon!)

I feel better. And though I’m a real anti-medicine kinda girl…..I think it has helped. I hope to only be on it as long as I have to be. I’ve heard good and bad regarding these types of meds for GERD.

I just thought I would share this experience with everyone. There is so much out there about women’s heart attack symptoms….and how we need to be diligent. I agree. But I think I had convinced myself this HAD to be my heart - and I wouldn’t hear anything else.
Of course - ALL chest pain should be looked into in my opinion. Better to be safe than sorry.

But just in case anyone out there might be dealing with symptoms like mine - you might ask (after heart problems or major organ problems are ruled out!!!! I am not a doctor!) - if maybe GERD could be your bodily gremlin.

I went 7 years thinking I was dying a slow heart disease death. The stress of that alone…was incredible and harmful to my body.

I feel so much better, not just physically - but mentally. It’s been a long time. It feels REALLY good.

My husband says I’m like my old self again.

I am GERD-a-licious! Former Acid Reflux Queen!

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