Acid Reflux / GERD

RicFlair

RicFlair

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Hey everyone, over the last few days I’ve been dealing with what I believe is either Acid Reflux or GERD. I’d been having afternoon meals that were fairly fatty and greasy at times, but once night came and I lay down in bed, I’d feel this really unpleasant burning moving upward from my chest into my throat. Sometimes while lying down I’d have to sit up straight and burp repeatedly to get some relief and clear the gas out of my stomach. Is this a serious issue where I ought to reduce my dose, or is there something I should be doing to stop it? For a bit more background, I was on 1 mg of reta for roughly 2 weeks and had no bad side effects, so I bumped it up to 2 mg, and now I’m wondering if that’s too much and whether I should try 1.5.
 
My approach is antacid tablets first, and when those don't do the trick, I reach for famotidine (also known as Pepcid or Zantac). Sleeping on my back with pillows stacked so I'm nearly upright is another thing that seems to help.
 
Pay attention to the way you cook, since the method used can have a big impact. As an example, every piece of meat I make goes on a George Foreman grill, so the fat drips off and I do not need to add any oil. Just doing that can lower how much fat is in your meals, which matters when acid reflux is an issue. In the past I dealt with poor eating habits every single day, and the consequences were serious — I would wake up with acid already there, and the burning, unpleasant feeling could stick around for hours. But after I began focusing on both the foods I chose and the way I cooked them, the change was striking. Picking lean cuts of meat and cooking them so that extra grease is avoided can do a lot to keep acid reflux symptoms away and make digestion more comfortable overall
 
Omeprazole gets my strong recommendation. You can get the generic form for very little money. It needs roughly a day before you notice anything, yet once it starts working, relief carries on for several days. When I began Tirz, reflux became so bad that my sleep suffered, and Omeprazole is what carried me through that stretch. As time went on, I lowered how much I was taking. At some point after that, the reflux simply disappeared on its own. It has now been 10 weeks since my last pill.
 
FartfulCodger said:

Omeprazole gets my strong recommendation. You can get the generic form for very little money. It needs roughly a day before you notice anything, yet once it starts working, relief carries on for several days. When I began Tirz, reflux became so bad that my sleep suffered, and Omeprazole is what carried me through that stretch. As time went on, I lowered how much I was taking. At some point after that, the reflux simply disappeared on its own. It has now been 10 weeks since my last pill.
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Appreciate the recommendation — I may grab some at the walgreens close to me, since it's been messing with my sleep a lot lately. I've been jolting awake roughly every hour, getting up just to burp and let things calm down before lying back down, which isn't great given that I work and really don't want my sleep to keep getting broken.
 
On the day of the injection, both my wife and I experience heartburn — that's the Reta doing it. It tends to fade after a while. I've got Tum sitting on my nightstand, and occasionally I'll take one just before getting into bed.
 
Since I raised my dose to 2mg/week, I've noticed some acid reflux happening at night too. Before this, heartburn hadn't been an issue for years. For the benefits I'm getting, it's a minor trade-off—I just have to use antacids or change how I sleep.
 
Yep. Reta is the culprit. Certain foods make it worse for me—anything particularly greasy, or almond flour (oddly enough). For me, though, the heartburn only shows up at night. I sleep on my side, usually the right, and that position tends to encourage heartburn given how your organs are arranged when you're lying that way (or at least that's what I've read, but it does seem to hold true). Ever since I switched to sleeping on my left side and started taking an antacid before bed, it's been manageable. Maybe that'll help you too!
 
Pinngo said:

Yep. Reta is the culprit. Certain foods make it worse for me—anything particularly greasy, or almond flour (oddly enough). For me, though, the heartburn only shows up at night. I sleep on my side, usually the right, and that position tends to encourage heartburn given how your organs are arranged when you're lying that way (or at least that's what I've read, but it does seem to hold true). Ever since I switched to sleeping on my left side and started taking an antacid before bed, it's been manageable. Maybe that'll help you too!
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Yeah, for me it only shows up at night when I'm trying to fall asleep, and lying on my side still isn't great—though it's nowhere near as bad as lying on my back. Today, though, I had a cleaner meal with less fat and grease, so I'll see how I feel tonight.
 
RicFlair said:

Pinngo said:

Yep. Reta is the culprit. Certain foods make it worse for me—anything particularly greasy, or almond flour (oddly enough). For me, though, the heartburn only shows up at night. I sleep on my side, usually the right, and that position tends to encourage heartburn given how your organs are arranged when you're lying that way (or at least that's what I've read, but it does seem to hold true). Ever since I switched to sleeping on my left side and started taking an antacid before bed, it's been manageable. Maybe that'll help you too!
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Yeah, for me it only shows up at night when I'm trying to fall asleep, and lying on my side still isn't great—though it's nowhere near as bad as lying on my back. Today, though, I had a cleaner meal with less fat and grease, so I'll see how I feel tonight.
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Fingers crossed it all goes smoothly, no early-morning wake-ups, and the best night's rest you've ever had!
 
The "Sulphur burps" have just begun for me. It's surprising, given that Reta has been part of my routine for multiple weeks now. My current dose is 4mg, and I've been at this level for 3 weeks. I'm open to trying whatever suggestions you all have.
 
RicFlair said:

Hey everyone, over the last few days I’ve been dealing with what I believe is either Acid Reflux or GERD. I’d been having afternoon meals that were fairly fatty and greasy at times, but once night came and I lay down in bed, I’d feel this really unpleasant burning moving upward from my chest into my throat. Sometimes while lying down I’d have to sit up straight and burp repeatedly to get some relief and clear the gas out of my stomach. Is this a serious issue where I ought to reduce my dose, or is there something I should be doing to stop it? For a bit more background, I was on 1 mg of reta for roughly 2 weeks and had no bad side effects, so I bumped it up to 2 mg, and now I’m wondering if that’s too much and whether I should try 1.5.
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The culprit in my case was the citric acid plus malic acid found in the pre-workout and BCAA drinks I was consuming.

On top of that came hot oatmeal and coffee.

"Mylan-Pantoprazole 40mg" was what my Dr. prescribed for me.

Once I stopped all the acidic beverages and started the medication, the lining of my esophagus was able to heal.

These days I have to keep everything in moderation, otherwise it comes back.
 
My acid reflux gets quite severe. First thing: stay away from greasy and spicy foods. If you plan on drinking heavily one evening, expect symptoms to flare up.

To keep from waking up during the night after a night with a lot of alcohol or after eating the foods I mentioned, I take pepcid AC right before going to sleep. I also use anti acid tablets. That was what my Doctor advised.

When you already know a restaurant meal is coming, taking a pepcid AC tablet beforehand makes a difference.

This has been the side effect that hits me hardest.
 
Acid reflux is very widespread, and the odds rise when someone is overweight or obese; GLP medications are another frequent trigger or aggravator. What happens is that stomach acid travels back up into the oesophagus, irritating it and producing pain and discomfort. Over the long run it may lead to significant harm, so medical evaluation is definitely warranted, though in this instance reta is the cause and the situation should hopefully be short-lived.

The usual approaches for cutting it down include antacids, h2 blockers, or proton pump inhibitors such as omeprazole. Other measures: smaller portions, avoiding water alongside meals, having meals earlier in relation to bedtime. And no fluids right before sleep. Since reta is the culprit here, the slowed gastric emptying and the general stomach-irritating action matter, so a diet with less fat could also be beneficial. Another option is to raise the head of the bed on bricks so gravity works in your favour.

Lowering the dose again for a while, then increasing it gradually, may be worthwhile. Needing to remain on reflux medication such as omeprazole long term while taking reta is quite common. That is far preferable to simply ignoring the problem, because if it hurts, damage is being done.
 
My diagnosis is LPR. It's close to GERD, except I don't get heartburn — instead I deal with a globus feeling, a weak voice, and mucus in my throat. The symptom I can't stand is chest pain that shows up when I lie down. At times it makes me anxious; I've even gone to the ER overnight, only for it to turn out to be reflux.

Spicy foods plus orange juice and coke are the biggest triggers for me.

Before bed I'll occasionally take a gaviscon advance, and that does seem to help. For my condition, though, I'm not comfortable relying on PPIs.
 
Acid hits me regardless of my efforts. Antacids, tums, digestive enzymes, paying attention to my diet — none of it worked. So I went ahead and began omeprazole. You take it daily, and quitting can trigger rebound reflux, yet for an ongoing chronic symptom it ought to do more than the alternatives.
 
Pinngo said:

Yep. Reta is the culprit. Certain foods make it worse for me—anything particularly greasy, or almond flour (oddly enough). For me, though, the heartburn only shows up at night. I sleep on my side, usually the right, and that position tends to encourage heartburn given how your organs are arranged when you're lying that way (or at least that's what I've read, but it does seem to hold true). Ever since I switched to sleeping on my left side and started taking an antacid before bed, it's been manageable. Maybe that'll help you too!
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Sleeping on the right side causes the same thing, that's accurate. I can't stand lying on my left side. So I just turn onto my back, or take a tums.
 
On Tirz, I dealt with this too, and it only stopped once I realized I had to stop eating at least 4 hours before lying down. After I started doing that, it cleared up in a few days.
 
Years back, I got a GERD diagnosis. My doctor's advice was to raise the head of the bed by 8 degrees. I skipped raising the bed itself, but I stacked pillows so my upper body was propped up somewhat. Over time I've figured out my own rules. Nothing with red sauce as the last meal of the day. Stop eating 4 hours before bed. Skip lemonade, orange juice..citric acid. Chili only at lunch. Drink beer early. All of this needs close attention now that I'm switching from Tirz to Reta. Over the next 3 months I'm tapering Tirz down while adding reta. Assuming it goes as planned, Reta will be the only pep I use for now. Oh, on reta shot day I've gotten heartburn both times so far. It lasts just a day no matter how strict I am with what I eat. Best of luck.
 
I dealt with some level of heartburn pretty much around the clock, which started before I ever began GLP treatment. A generic version of Voquezna sourced from India turned out to be a miracle pill for me. Another thing that made a difference was sleeping in a recliner.
 
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