tummy problems

[tish]

i have had gerd so bad i have to eat before 5 everyday, and it's getting worse all the time.  seems when i get up to go to bathroom at nite, starts a rush of acid that almost makes sick all over again.  i've told doctor about this, that it seems to start from bladder a rush of acid. they say it can't happen, but they don't have sd.  can anyone help with these awful symptoms.

[DianeWI]

Hi Tish,

I have major gut problems and I highly doubt that its coming from the bladder… gall bladder maybe. 

Ok..if you are on the Minocin, its probably aggravating the situation.  You may need to use a prescriptive antacid or try the OTC first.    If you want, try sipping a mixture of papaya juice or gel, with aloe-vera juice.  It puts out the fire.  Also, up the Acidophalus.  I take the capsulre acidophalus and also the chewable kind.   I take the Minocin with an antacid right away.  Otherwise I get acid up to my throat.

If you have a hiatal hernia, you could press between the bottom of the rib cage, and push in a downward motion to help push it in place.  A Chiropractor did that for me one time and now I do it when I have a flair.  Sometimes it helps.

I also take 2 Digestive Enzymes by Life Extension with each meal.  That also helps some.

Hope this helps.

Diane/WI

[linda]

Tish,

I put up with heartburn and abdominal pain for 8 yrs, always assuming to was caused by themeds I took. It finally got to be too much and I went to see a GI doctor last month. My esophagus and stomach are fine, but they have found a small problem with my liver. Many GI problems can mimic ulcer pain, heartburn, etc. I think it would be a good idea to see a GI doctor, he can do an upper endoscopy to see if there is damage to your esophagus or stomach. The doctor can also take biopsies to check for other diseases like celiac, sprue, infections like H. pylori, etc. It's painless since you're sedated, takes about 15 min. I think it would be worth your while. In the mean time, try some OTC meds like prilosec and elevate the top of your bed with bricks or blocks, just a few inches. Simply lying at an angle on pillows won't help because your stomach gets pushed up against your esophagus.

I don't know your diagnosis, but if you have SD that could be causing the symptoms-whatever it is, it needs to be diagnosed and treated before it gets so bad that you can't take abx.

linda

[tish]

linda, thanks for info, i did go to GI doctor, have been on nexium for a little while now, he did colonoscopy & endoscopy in october 2007.  2 years before that i was having esophasgial spasms, but changed eating habits and seemed to do ok.  This time it's like the acid is so overwhelming it may be burning me up on the inside.  The nexium helps some, but i have a far cry to go.  I got back on iv's last week, 5-900mg a day for 5 days.  have seemed to get worse since then.  had trouble even swallowing pills last nite.  up all nite with upset stomach.  oh yes i'm sure others have this problem but can not sleep for anything.  when my hormones get messed up every thing else does too.  I'm going to give another week or two then going back to GI, can't hardly eat. have lost almost 10 lbs. any suggestions.  don't have an appetite when everything you eat sticks in throat.  any other ideas, open for all suggestions.

[tish]

oh yes linda, what is your liver problem, if you don't mind me asking.

[superperroRA]

This won't fix your serious problem, but it might help. I purchased a “lift chair” and now I sleep in it instead of in bed. This keeps my head high while I sleep, and after I eat or take my pills, thus reducing acid reflux. (A brand new lift chair is expensive, more than $1000. Your insurance may pay for it. Mine was second hand and just cost $100. Got it via Craig's list)

[linda]

Good question- I wish I had the answer. I'm still waiting for the results from a CT scan I had last week. Before that I had an ultrasound that revealed a small mass in the liver, probably a hemangioma, which is a collection of tangled capillaries. They are not harmful or painful unless they grow to bigger than 4 cm; mine is only 7 mm, so I'm having a hard time believing that's the cause of my symptoms (severe abdominal pain in upper right side and back, nausea, heartburn, bloating, diarrhea). Ulcers, gerd and gallstones have been ruled out by endoscopy and ultrasound. I understand your frustration- it really stinks to have these symptoms but not be able to pin down the cause.  :doh:  Hopefully we'll both find out what's going on soon.

linda

[tish]

linda, do you have sd?  are you on ap and for how long?  I can't sleep so a chair would probably be good for now.

[linda]

Nope, I have PsA and FMS 20 yrs; I was on AP from Oct 2006-Oct 2007, but the abdominal pain got so bad that I had to stop AP and a few other meds. Then of course the PsA flared up again, so I decided to go back to remicade/mtx, thinking they would not hurt my stomach as much, and then return to AP when I could get to a dr who could do AP with IV's. That was when I thought the pain was stomach related, now I know it's not my stomach, so I don't know what to do next. I do know that mtx is hard on the liver, and the symptoms went from moderate to severe w/in 3 weeks of starting the mtx. Just as a little tease, the joint and muscle pain were almost completely gone. When I mentioned this to my GI doc he dismissed it, but my rheumy wasn't so sure; he advised me to stop the drug until I find out what's wrong. Suspiciously, in the last 6 weeks the abdominal symptoms have slowly decreased, but of course, the PsA has come right back.  However, my liver function labs all came back normal at the peak of the pain, so I honestly don't know what the heck is going on.

This is one of the most frustrating things about AI diseases; it's so difficult to get a definitive diagnosis, and then when you throw in a bunch of meds with serious side effects, it blurs the picture even more. Is your gerd from SD or is it from your meds, or both? Or is there some other disorder that's causing an increase in acid production? It's so hard to know for sure. Add the slow health care system (it's been over 6 weeks since I first saw the GI doctor) and I'm about to go postal.:headbang:

I just want an answer so that I can make a plan and move on with my life- but I'm preaching to the choir, I know you feel the same. I must have been very impatient in a former life, cuz' if nothing else, I am learning to wait with grace; well, when I'm not feeling postal!!!

linda

[richie]

Hi

Gerd is a very common problem in people with scleroderma –it is due to overgrowth of collagen around the so-called trap door or lower sphincter at the base of esophagus–collagen overgrowth due to scleroderma can also occur at the upper esophageal sphincter –it is very important to try and control this as the esophagus itself can ber damaged –some scleroderma cases bercome so severe that a so-called boot is inserted down the esophagus  —I had this condition –however nexium keeps it under control –if nexium is not working for you –it is important to try another anti-gerd med –a few tips

---

when lying down ,make certain head is well elevated —if reflux is evere at night  use a recliner to sleep in -keeping it almost in an upright position –another helpful hint a doctor gave me was only sleep on your left side –for some reason sleeping on the right side increases the acid —your acid is not coming from your bladder at all and enzymes will not help because the scleroderma has actually caused physical damage to the workings of the esophagus

 

Richie

 

[linda]

The next generation drug after nexium is called protonix and is now available in generic form- maybe it will work better.

[tish]

linda,

i definitely know what you're talking about.  i'm ready to eat, but it sure isn't fun to watch everybody else.  i will pray for you.  it is very frustrating.   i'm going to give ap another week and one-half to do something. then going back to gi doctor.  sometime ago the gi had to stretch my esophogus.  then one time i had a stricture in my esophogus,  then time before last gi said my esophogus was spasming.  last time in october he said had a little gastritis, but didn't say anything about esophogus.  but we gotta hang in there.  can you call dr. about ct scan, or do you have to wait patiently. 

[Maz]

Tish, not sure of your diagnosis, but I'm guessing it's a form of scleroderma from the discussion thread here…

I did a little search on gastritis in Wikipedia… 

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gastritis….
and the first three causes (aside from autoimmune diseases) that came up were:

Bacterial infection (most often by Helicobacter pylori and other Helicobacter spp.)

Fungal infection (most often in people with immunodeficiency)

Parasitic infection (most often by Anisakis spp. from poorly cooked seafood)

What is interesting about this is that Heliobacter Pylori is linked with RA, so this piqued my attention and I did another little search and came up with a couple of studies linking scleroderma to HP.

I can't get into this article without paying for it, but the blurb on the URL link says,

http://linkinghub.elsevier.com/retrieve/pii/S0016510706008674

ScienceDirect – Gastrointestinal Endoscopy : Reflux Esophagitis …  

“Reports have shown that reflux esophagitis is observed in approximately 60% of patients with systemic scleroderma. Helicobacter pylori infection is thought …”
 
Here's another study abstract:
 
[font=Arial,Helvetica,Verdana,Sans-serif]http://mcic3.textor.com/cgi-bin/mc/printabs.pl?APP=eular2006SCIE-abstract&TEMPLATE=&keyf=1056&showHide=show&client=
 
Just wondered if it might be worth your while being tested for Helicobacter Pylori to see if this may be causing some of your issues?
 
Hope you get to the bottom of this…must be terribly uncomfortable for you. 🙁
 
Peace, Maz
 

[A Friend]

Linda,

[Edit Note: Just saw Maz's post after posting this, and she has given you some great information! AF]

I'm so sorry that you are going through all of this, and then do not know which physician is knowledgeable enough to treat “the cause” of all of this.  (Trust me… I do understand this dilemma!)

It certainly will do no harm for you to become VERY knowledgeable of HCl, Acidosis, pH, and even simple proven detoxification techniques, while supporting the liver with a quality silymarin, etc. (with the advice of a knowledgeable CCN (Certified Clinical Nutritionist — an ACAM one, if there is such a one), since it seems your physicians have scattered ideas. 

If you are interested in pursuing some of the subjects listed in the above paragraph of this post, there are probably a few posts on these that may be helpful. 

[Edited before posting this… For some reason when I previewed the post, it will not retain the link I previously posted, so do a search in the little search window to find this HCl link with rheumatic in its name.  The “preview” also got rid of the remainder of my posted message to you.  The bottom line from me is to learn all you can on the above bold-printed items. AF ]
____________________________

From a previous post on RBFBB:  Here's the HCl link… very, very long, but was certainly worth my time, especially since I had just learned that Blood Type A's like myself were nearly always deficient in HCl needed to protect our bodies from germs/viruses, etc. entering through our mouth; and, helping to break down proteins to aid digestion and to prevent leaky gut syndrome, and much, much more!

[align=left]Hi All,
 
An article about Hydrochloric Acid, which can be accessed by the link below, looks very important to me — have just skimmed over it.   I can't believe I've never seen it there before, or anywhere else,  unless it is fairly new.      
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[align=left][sorry, remainder would not post when sent][/align]

[align=left]AF[/align]

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[Author]

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