Alternatives to PPI's

Lily, the only part I hate about the colonoscopy is the prep, and the solution I had to use for this last prep cost me $64 and was called Moviprep. The time before this one I used a bottle of MiraLAX in Gatorade, that was so much better to drink. Other than the prep, I awake to not remembering a thing:)

I know we all hate test and the expense, but I think it's a good idea to know what's going on inside our bodies so we can address the situation. My doctor explained that I may or may not be able to stop the ppi's with out my symptoms coming back, but he supports me trying along with lifestyle changes that include my weight and diet.

Sounds like a good idea. You are doing so well. I had no idea there was even 20mgs nexium let along the granulated. I wasn't offered anything but 40mgs which doubled my dosage of the PPI years ago.
How was the prep for the colonoscopy and were you out for the test itself. I am very wary of the whole thing.

Thanks so much mouche, I am the worst baby of all and even hate to walk into the doctors office let alone do these tests. I am worried about this prep as my stomach is so sensitive at the moment plus I have lost a lot of weight in the last 3 months that going without any food at all for a whole day will be stressful. I get so stressed just thinking about it all. I have an appointment with the GI doctor tomorrow so I have lots of questions for him which I know he will just blow off as he thinks I am neurotic anyway. how are you doing on your reduced dose of medicine?
Javery are you still hanging in there without anything? Does anyone get leg cramps? Since I have been on this Prilosec I wake up with them a lot early mornings.

Good morning everyone,

@Lily so glad you are seeing the doc tomorrow, I promise you the only thing bad about the colonoscopy is the prep and your prep may not require a pre-day of clear liquids, my last colonoscopy did not, I had to stop eating at 5pm the day before. That was 10 years ago though, my GI said things have change to get a better view hence the new prep (MoviPrep) and the time and the way you drink it.

I almost called him back when I found out how much it cost $64 and that was after my insurance. Then I found a coupon online after the fact where I could have gotten it for $20, oh well it's over now, but if you do have to use it know that there is a coupon online.

I also use to get the leg cramps but not so much anymore, but I do get hip pain and it was really bad last night. My worse symptom of this drug is hair loss, my hair started falling out, my doc seems to think it's more of the fact that I'm almost 54 and my hair is just naturally thinning. I know better though and this did not start happening until Nexium entered my life. That is what really got me going with weaning off this drug.

Hello everyone,

It makes me so sad to think of so many of us that are dealing with these issues. Doesn't it seem odd that so many people suffer from Gerd/LPR?

All of this started for me when eating egg whites, like I did every morning, started to make my stomach burn, then I started to feel burning up my esophagus, and then burning across my chest. The strange thing was that it didn't happen all the time. It seemed to only happen when I ate a lot of protein or a lot of carbs. And I never experienced all three burning episodes at the same time until one night after the end of Feb when I had a bowl of pasta with red sauce. That's when I decided this had to stop. I started eating bland foods and I didn't have anymore heartburn or stomach burning or esophagus burning but I still went to the doc because I didn't want to just keep eating bland food and I was afraid to eat anything else.

So of course he put me on ppi, Protonix. I was only on it for 6 weeks and it made me worse. During those 6 weeks I rarely had heartburn and if I did it was very mild, but during the 5th week of being on Protonix I had heartburn after everything I ate. And I was eating the same things everyday!

I have been doing a ton of research during the last 6 weeks and decided after 1 week of heartburn after every meal I had to get off the ppi. Everyone says to wean yourself off but I went cold turkey only because I was armed with natural remedies.

A lot of the research will tell you that gerd is caused by too little stomach acid, not too much. I believe this to be my issues and that's why I would have issues after high protein/high carb meals. I didn't have the acid/enzymes I needed to break down and digest those foods. Which would explain why being on a pill that cuts off stomach acid would end up making matters worse. I have been off the ppi for exactly 1 week and am doing pretty good. The best thing I did was take a digestive enzyme. I use a high potent one but I open the capsule and only take 1/3 before I eat, and that's because I still don't eat that much.

I think part of our recovery is finding the root of the problem. I had taken a bunch of NAIDS over the course of a year for a back issue and all that Advil hurt my stomach and caused me to be anemic. Last October I got Salmonella and I think that only added to all of this, plus eating a high protein diet for a long time didn't help.

I think for the majority of us we need to heal our stomachs. In my extensive research I have found some products that are meant to help us heal.

Here is what I'm doing and it's working.

I take PEPZIN GI by Doctor's Best(research it, it's supposed to heal your stomach) after breakfast and dinner.

I chew a dgl tablet 20ish mins before I eat.

I take Doctor's best Digestive Enzyme about 5 or 10 mins before I eat. Again, this is a high potent, broad spectrum enzyme that is much more than I need for the meals I consume so I open the capsule and pour 1/3 of it into a little bit of water and swallow it down. It's doesn't taste great but it has been what has helped me the most. As a side note, if you take more than you need it will give you diarrhea. That's how I first discovered that I only needed 1/3 for each meal.

I also take a good Probiotic, Digestive Advantage by Schiff. I take it first thing in the morning.

I was literally bloated for the 6 weeks I was on Protonix. After 1 week I am no longer bloated, I don't have the burning in my chest, esophagus, or stomach. I barely feel anything at all but when I do I take 2 Gaviscon Extra Strength tablets just to make sure any acid reflux stays down.

Some people on the same regime say that are completely better (meaning, no meds and eating like normal again) after 1-5 months. I think the longer you've been dealing with Gerd and the longer you are on PPI the longer it will take to heal.

Some have said that just taking a digestive enzyme and a probiotic allows them to eat whatever and never have an issue. But, it's different for everyone.

I also think, for me anyway, I will never go back to eating whatever I want just because all that bad food and stuffing myself isn't good and I want to eat healthier because of all of this.

I hope this helps someone and I pray that each and everyone of you will be healed. Not fixed, but healed. Jesus can heal anyone of anything.

Matthew 17:20

Do some research on Lectins and Phytates and you will quickly see why things like grains, pastas, legumes, seeds, and other things not accepted in the paleo community are not good for you to eat as they can cause so many different problems. I think that's where my problems stem from along with probably a lot of other people. Through this research I found that white rice and white potatoes are better for you than more whole grain items because they don't contain anything bad, it's just that you need to have some form of fiber with them so they don't digest as quickly which can cause insulin spikes. But those are two things that are good for extra carbs if you need them because they won't cause any issues in the long run. But eating foods that are wheat and oat based, especially breads, cereals, and pastas, can cause problems in the long run. The biggest one that is known is celiac disease, which people stem to gluten, but I'm not sure if the gluten itself is the problem. I'd probably look more at the lectins for causing the majority of the problems, not gluten. Since I've researched a lot of this information I have been doing an 80/20 Paleo lifestyle. But I think you are heading in the right direction with the supplements you are taking. There are ways you can increase your acid production naturally if you have low stomach acid. I've done some research on it but haven't really done too much. I know that certain sea salts will help with increasing acid production. The key thing is that the body needs certain nutrients and vitamins in order to work correctly all around so in order for that to happen, you need to provide it with the essential pieces. A lot of these things come from vegetables and fruits, which are two food groups a lot of people don't eat enough of. And it also needs to be a variety of vegetables and fruits too, not just a select few.

Lily,

Just keep going at your own pace. I think we know our own bodies better than anyone and a lot of times I think we know what's best. I've heard time and time again that when it comes to the stomach we have to be patient. We're talking month after month of the same routine. Just keep going.

@RebeccaMorgan

I totally come into agreement with being healed, not fixed, but healed in Jesus name!!!

Also did you experience any rebound after being on it for 6 weeks?
A lot of folks have been on it for years and I myself for only 6 months and we experience really bad rebound, so much so that weaning is a really hard experience.

Also what were you diagnose with when they put you on the Protonix?
I'm just wondering how much the length of time on theses ppi's matter when it comes to rebound. I wish I had did my research sooner to see if my problem was low stomach acid. I am planning to use the digestive enzyme that I have once I'm off my ppi and a little more stable. I have already tried them once and that was a mistake!!!
Thank you for posting your really helpful info.:)

I honestly think it is so hard to know what works and what doesn't work. I kept a food diary for a long time and sometimes what I would eat would not bother me then another time it would. I have since February eaten more bland foods with only a few carbs here and there with lots of veggies and a little fruit. In the past I had always enjoyed food but I was a heavy sugar eater too. Now I am not really interested in food at all. I have a hard time 'thinking' what to have for the in between meal snack as well as regular meals. I have tried to use the Almond milk which seems to suit my digestion but I don't really like the consistency of it. I always prior to switching my PPI was considered lactose intolerant. I miss eating some cheese but that is very acidic. Do you know if Feta cheese is acidic. I tried to find out on the computer but so far have been unsuccessful.
How long has it been now since you began lowering the dosage of your PPI? I am so anxious to reduce mine again but I am still holding out until I feel confident that I can. I still get the quivering in the chest but not sure why. As long as the nausea stays away I can cope. Thanks for answering Javery. I love to read your posts as you are so informed.

Hello Everyone...

Today has been my worse day yet, pounding headache off an on and about an hour after lunch had very sever pains shooting through left side and pain in my breast (not sure if that's from my recent breast biopsy). My left shoulder also hurts and my stomach won't settle down, feeling a little lightheaded too. I had one of those frozen lean cuisine meals (turkey breast with mashed potatoes) not sure if that was it or not. Symptoms are still manageable I just pray this isn't the quite before the storm, took some Gaviscon and it has help some, but throat still burning a little and I can feel the refluxing like I use too.:(

Hi Lily and everyone else dealing with this struggle. I am also tapering my dose of PPI's (since last week only so I am at the beginning of this challenge) and these last few months health wise have been one of the toughest challenges I have ever dealt with so far. Just wanted to say hey and add my support to everyone here.

Lily, good luck with your colonoscopy. I haven't had one yet but my dh did a few years ago and it was not difficult at all. As others have said even the prep is less difficult than years past. As far as the endoscopy I didn't have to go off my PPI's when I had my second one done in March so hopefully that will be the case for you as well. Good luck!

What I am doing so far to wean myself from Nexium.
I just started high quality probiotics one a day with a meal (will probably be dinner like I did tonight since it needs refrigeration so makes it difficult to take to work)
Digestive enzymes with my meals and DGL about 20 minutes before them and before bed.
I have also been drinking aloe vera (inner leaf) and not sure it is helping yet but hopefully nothing I am doing will make matters worse.

And Javery, thanks very much for recommending the Alkazone drops. I just ordered them from amazon and it should be here by May 8th-9th and I am looking forward to trying them out.


Thanks for starting this thread Lily and sending hugs and healing vibes to all :)

Thank you lily. You are so kind.

Unfortunately I have been in a lot of discomfort this last week but honestly these last few months (all of 2014 so far) have been very challenging for me health wise. First week of january I got shingles and then a month later this horrible non stop burning of my arms/chest/back and neck started (and according to my doctors this is not postherpetic neuralgia) and a few days after that the esophagitis which was one of the most painful things I have ever endured. And so began my PPI journey.

After the esophagitis healed on the PPI's (about 4 and a half weeks later determined by a second endoscopy) I was still told to take them because the burning and chest squeezing symptoms were still present albeit less painful than before I started the PPI's. And that's when the gastroenterologists in all their wisdom prescribed double dose PPI's (40 mg Nexium BID).

I saw a new gastro (esophageal specialist) last week who wants me to get off the PPI's since they have such negative side effects but he has no clue what is causing my burning. So I have just started tapering and am already experiencing quite the increase in symptoms. I am doing my best to remain upbeat and hopeful because I really have no alternative. But it is tough and I am taking it one day, one hour at a time. Thank goodness my dh is so supportive and has been there for me every step of the way through this surreal nightmare. And I am thankful for this forum because there is so much help and support for all of us dealing with this awful problem.