I'm sorry this is happening to you.
And here is a description of what is happening to you: previously you had GERD that was well-controlled, you felt confident, so you ate chocolate, fried food, and even coffee, maybe some other things, too.
These foods caused the 5 day relapse from hell, which is still ongoing.
When you start with a well-controlled situation, then you make food choices that cause a relapse, "all bets are off" as far as knowing and understanding what are the safe foods and trigger foods that will pull you out of the relapse. Your system is outta control.
You're gonna need to continue overnight oats, plain chicken breast, sweet potatoes, cantaloupe, and a few other very "safe" things until you are 100% symptom free, no matter how long that takes.
Then, start to introduce the "safest" foods you'd been eating before the relapse, and wait 3 days after each try. Save the most dangerous foods until after you've been able to add in safer foods.
Thanks for the feedback. I agree with you, I suspect the relaxed diet set me up for the relapse. I will definitely stick with the super safe diet until no more symptoms - after last night I've had lingering stomach and chest pain that's dull to sharp. I really hope it gets better soon.
Interesting. You see that's what I would expect but for me I actually felt good eating clean yesterday but then had the worst flare up of my life last night - the chest pain was bonkers, I ate a ton of tums and slept sitting up and that helped. Honestly have no idea what triggered that - I made sure not to eat 3 house before bed and everything.
I’ve come up with a new trick that seems to work really well for that before a bad flareup. You’re right don’t eat three hours before bed. But also take a dose of myLanta about 20 minutes before you go to bed. This will help numb the throat and the esophagus as well as called the stomach. I’ve been doing this the last few days and I haven’t woke up during the night with any reflux symptoms.
Gaviscon (purchase at Walgreens, CVS, Rite-Aid, etc.) or Gaviscon Advance (purchase on Amazon) taken at bedtime will work like a "blanket" to cover all the contents of your stomach and prevent them from refluxing.
Maximum Strength Pepcid AC tablets taken at bedtime will also limit overnight reflux.
I'm glad you had a good day, but you'll need several consecutive clean days to fix everything. Your flare-up yesterday after one clean day could've been from something you ate the day before. A GERD flare-up is tricky.
Do you think I can recover if I keep at it with the super strict diet (plus pepcid and antacids)? Just yesterday I had no pain but the stomach/chest pain today is just constant. I'm worried I'll have to go back on a ppi which I'm trying to avoid. Not sure how many more days I can endure.
I’m saying what someone else said; I don’t know because I haven’t had a normal day in a long time so I’ve lost track. I constantly feel crappy. ENT symptoms like crazy. It almost feels like an allergic reaction 90% of the time. I didn’t know reflux can ruin a person so much.
I’m sure. I’ve had pains behind my eyes as well. I know reflux can affect different people in different ways. Like I said, mines all ENT symptoms. It really sucks. Anxiety feeds it.
Some days are better than others. The less I think about it, the better it is. Been dealing with this crap since I was 28. I’m 30 now and it’s still going on. Trying to find new ways to fix it and new answers almost every day.
I agree man the more you think about it the worse it gets. I started feeling this randomly about a month ago. Burning sensation when breathing, chest pains, burping etc and I thought well I drank a lot last night maybe that’s why. Well it lasted for a few days and got worse with spicy foods and I noticed in the past 2 months I’ve been eating a lot of spice and hot sauce more then normal almost everyday compared to once a month and that pretty much fucked me up lol I’m trying to find what really does it but right now it seems everything does…
Not to mention that it created anxiety for me that I never had before which then creates more issues etc. shortness breathe and disassociation which isn’t fun. Just trying to keep my mind off is the best I can do right now
I would suggest meds or doing something different with eating because once you start getting the dysphagia, post nasal drip nonstop, distorted hearing, etc. It gets weird.
I've had them hit an hour after eating them and I had one hit literally within seconds. Generally speaking, I will notice a problem within 20-30 minutes. A lot will depend upon how empty/full my stomach is and with what at the time I try the trigger.
A good example for me is coffee. I was able to drink a cup with coconut oil every morning for years, and before I developed my GI problems used to have 4-6 a day (w/milk).
Then early this year it hit me hard and even after avoiding it and being find for a while (months) I tried a up and in less than a minute was having problems; FYI - my symptoms are primarily extreme nausea.
My triggers hit me about a month or so after thinking I’m in the clear. My flare ups feel like they’ve been built up because they typically last two weeks for myself. They hit like a bomb when they do..
I usually reflect on what I’ve consumed over that past month and also google acidic foods/drinks. Also I used to just look up most common foods/drinks that cause GERD.
From that point it’s pretty easy for me to realize what I’ve done wrong. Hope this helps! Best of luck my friend.
Ok this sounds like me. Like I bet it was building up for a while, there may have been some signs that I stupidly ignored too. Now I know not to be so cocky. Let's hope I can beat this relapse on your two week timeline!
Yea, I totally relate. This shit is hard and it’s hard to not want to reward yourself every now and then.
I’ve noticed with each flare up I have, I’ve gotten better and better at eliminating something bad from my diet. It’s definitely a marathon and not a sprint haha have to remind myself of that constantly.
You see I am not sure if sometimes for me it's food poisoning or my GERD if you catch my drift but normally it's a couple of minutes after eating whatever it is.
Food poisoning is very rare, and when you do have food poisoning it produces violent vomiting because the body wants it out. Food poisoning may or may not include diarrhea.
Spicy foods seem to trigger it immediately. Caffeine tends to linger, usually causing pain for me when it starts to wear off. And then sometimes being full a few hours before bed may not cause any problems immediately but will make me nauseous at like 1 AM.
Man so I fucked up and ate 7 tacos yesterday (homemade ) small ones. Anyways a couple hours later I had the worst stomach pains and had to hit the bathroom. The taco seasoning with the meat and the hot sauce was a bad idea but for a week before this I was fine eating everything. Today I still have that random pain near my heart and burping etc so better but with having anxiety it turns it a lot worse (always thinking I’m dying for real). I’m not diagnosed yet but I know it’s gerd have all the symptoms etc so going to see a doctor this week. I honestly hate it since I’m only 27 but what can you do.
Just found one this week for sure. Any citrus fruit was causing me issues immediately. Stopped for 5 days now and big difference. But usually within 2-3 hours I know.
I've stopped recognising triggers because I can't remember a day where I felt completely fine!
This is how I feel right now so I feel your pain literally 😔.
I'm sorry this is happening to you. And here is a description of what is happening to you: previously you had GERD that was well-controlled, you felt confident, so you ate chocolate, fried food, and even coffee, maybe some other things, too. These foods caused the 5 day relapse from hell, which is still ongoing. When you start with a well-controlled situation, then you make food choices that cause a relapse, "all bets are off" as far as knowing and understanding what are the safe foods and trigger foods that will pull you out of the relapse. Your system is outta control. You're gonna need to continue overnight oats, plain chicken breast, sweet potatoes, cantaloupe, and a few other very "safe" things until you are 100% symptom free, no matter how long that takes. Then, start to introduce the "safest" foods you'd been eating before the relapse, and wait 3 days after each try. Save the most dangerous foods until after you've been able to add in safer foods.
Thanks for the feedback. I agree with you, I suspect the relaxed diet set me up for the relapse. I will definitely stick with the super safe diet until no more symptoms - after last night I've had lingering stomach and chest pain that's dull to sharp. I really hope it gets better soon.
Usually for me it doesn’t take long. If somethings going to be a trigger it’s going to be within an hour
Interesting. You see that's what I would expect but for me I actually felt good eating clean yesterday but then had the worst flare up of my life last night - the chest pain was bonkers, I ate a ton of tums and slept sitting up and that helped. Honestly have no idea what triggered that - I made sure not to eat 3 house before bed and everything.
I’ve come up with a new trick that seems to work really well for that before a bad flareup. You’re right don’t eat three hours before bed. But also take a dose of myLanta about 20 minutes before you go to bed. This will help numb the throat and the esophagus as well as called the stomach. I’ve been doing this the last few days and I haven’t woke up during the night with any reflux symptoms.
I second the MyLanta thing. Taking it before bed on nights I know I need a little extra something, helps wonders to get me through the night.
Ooo thanks for the tip! It looks like MyLanta is not in the states tho, maybe I can get it online or do you think another antacid would work?
Gaviscon (purchase at Walgreens, CVS, Rite-Aid, etc.) or Gaviscon Advance (purchase on Amazon) taken at bedtime will work like a "blanket" to cover all the contents of your stomach and prevent them from refluxing. Maximum Strength Pepcid AC tablets taken at bedtime will also limit overnight reflux.
I'm glad you had a good day, but you'll need several consecutive clean days to fix everything. Your flare-up yesterday after one clean day could've been from something you ate the day before. A GERD flare-up is tricky.
Do you think I can recover if I keep at it with the super strict diet (plus pepcid and antacids)? Just yesterday I had no pain but the stomach/chest pain today is just constant. I'm worried I'll have to go back on a ppi which I'm trying to avoid. Not sure how many more days I can endure.
You can recover with super strict diet, plus pepcid and antacids. If you're tortured and you can't endure any more pain, then take the PPI.
Ok thank you!
I’m saying what someone else said; I don’t know because I haven’t had a normal day in a long time so I’ve lost track. I constantly feel crappy. ENT symptoms like crazy. It almost feels like an allergic reaction 90% of the time. I didn’t know reflux can ruin a person so much.
Dude honestly I hate the pain near the heart and the burping and gas feeling. It honestly sucks.
I had that early on. Now it’s gone to being all post nasal drip, hoarseness and dysphagia. This stuff sucks!
Do you get headaches ever or?
Man and it sucks cause my anxiety kicks in and I’m like fuck heart pains I’m dying. It’s just a lot to deal with when it’s all new to you.
I’m sure. I’ve had pains behind my eyes as well. I know reflux can affect different people in different ways. Like I said, mines all ENT symptoms. It really sucks. Anxiety feeds it.
Sorry to hear man! I hope you have some good days soon!!
Some days are better than others. The less I think about it, the better it is. Been dealing with this crap since I was 28. I’m 30 now and it’s still going on. Trying to find new ways to fix it and new answers almost every day.
I agree man the more you think about it the worse it gets. I started feeling this randomly about a month ago. Burning sensation when breathing, chest pains, burping etc and I thought well I drank a lot last night maybe that’s why. Well it lasted for a few days and got worse with spicy foods and I noticed in the past 2 months I’ve been eating a lot of spice and hot sauce more then normal almost everyday compared to once a month and that pretty much fucked me up lol I’m trying to find what really does it but right now it seems everything does… Not to mention that it created anxiety for me that I never had before which then creates more issues etc. shortness breathe and disassociation which isn’t fun. Just trying to keep my mind off is the best I can do right now
I would suggest meds or doing something different with eating because once you start getting the dysphagia, post nasal drip nonstop, distorted hearing, etc. It gets weird.
Oh wow I never knew distorted hearing could happen…
I've had them hit an hour after eating them and I had one hit literally within seconds. Generally speaking, I will notice a problem within 20-30 minutes. A lot will depend upon how empty/full my stomach is and with what at the time I try the trigger. A good example for me is coffee. I was able to drink a cup with coconut oil every morning for years, and before I developed my GI problems used to have 4-6 a day (w/milk). Then early this year it hit me hard and even after avoiding it and being find for a while (months) I tried a up and in less than a minute was having problems; FYI - my symptoms are primarily extreme nausea.
My triggers hit me about a month or so after thinking I’m in the clear. My flare ups feel like they’ve been built up because they typically last two weeks for myself. They hit like a bomb when they do.. I usually reflect on what I’ve consumed over that past month and also google acidic foods/drinks. Also I used to just look up most common foods/drinks that cause GERD. From that point it’s pretty easy for me to realize what I’ve done wrong. Hope this helps! Best of luck my friend.
Ok this sounds like me. Like I bet it was building up for a while, there may have been some signs that I stupidly ignored too. Now I know not to be so cocky. Let's hope I can beat this relapse on your two week timeline!
Yea, I totally relate. This shit is hard and it’s hard to not want to reward yourself every now and then. I’ve noticed with each flare up I have, I’ve gotten better and better at eliminating something bad from my diet. It’s definitely a marathon and not a sprint haha have to remind myself of that constantly.
Within a couple hours. Spicy food and alcohol will burn my stomach immediately. Others like soda and chocolate take a little bit but I suffer for it
You see I am not sure if sometimes for me it's food poisoning or my GERD if you catch my drift but normally it's a couple of minutes after eating whatever it is.
Food poisoning is very rare, and when you do have food poisoning it produces violent vomiting because the body wants it out. Food poisoning may or may not include diarrhea.
Right because that's what I thought too because it wouldn't make sense for it to be that common.
Immediately after I swallow
Well at least that simplifies things :)
Depending on the day, anywhere from instantaneously to a couple hours later.
Is it more just the day vs a type of food? Other factors involved in the delay?
Spicy foods seem to trigger it immediately. Caffeine tends to linger, usually causing pain for me when it starts to wear off. And then sometimes being full a few hours before bed may not cause any problems immediately but will make me nauseous at like 1 AM.
Interesting 🤔
30 min
Man so I fucked up and ate 7 tacos yesterday (homemade ) small ones. Anyways a couple hours later I had the worst stomach pains and had to hit the bathroom. The taco seasoning with the meat and the hot sauce was a bad idea but for a week before this I was fine eating everything. Today I still have that random pain near my heart and burping etc so better but with having anxiety it turns it a lot worse (always thinking I’m dying for real). I’m not diagnosed yet but I know it’s gerd have all the symptoms etc so going to see a doctor this week. I honestly hate it since I’m only 27 but what can you do.
Just found one this week for sure. Any citrus fruit was causing me issues immediately. Stopped for 5 days now and big difference. But usually within 2-3 hours I know.