Gastritis Support Group

I am so interested in hearing of those stories too. I've had for 4.4 yrs. If I keep taking Nexium, I'm just putting a bandaid on the problem, not curing it....but if I stop, then it gets worse...and when I try any natural remedy, it only makes it worse! What to do?! Pls do keep me posted. God Bless.

When I get the answer I'll be sure to share it. I was thinking that I need to find a cook book that is directed at people with Gastritis. There's a fantastic book out there for people with IBS, but many of the recipes have lemon or other irritants in them. We're all so focused on what we "can't eat" that we don't see what we can eat.

My husband is Mexican so I'm essentially preparing two meals each night.

Glenda, have you been diagnosed with anything specific? The only thing I know I have so far is gastritis. I have not had heartburn on a consistent basis. I go for the barium tomorrow. Just drank the magnesium citrate packet... yum?

This is probably going to annoy someone, but I found out how to cure my gastritis. My GI doc wrote me a clean bill of health yesterday. He said my gastritis is minor and that there are no other signs of issues.

I had been expecting this response, as per all of the complaints online about peoples' GI doc's. So I pre-empted the issue by telling my regular doc that I am always exhausted and I want to be checked for anything that can cause GI issues, nausea, and exhaustion. So the phys assistant looked at my hemoglobin and said it was borderline low. They checked my iron and I found out I'm pretty low.

Since then I've been hunting around online and have discovered that anemia can cause digestive issues. I knew that pernicious anemia could, but had no idea about low-iron anemia. So now I'm making an appointment with the OB to follow up on a suspected cyst to see if I can stop the extra blood loss each month.

Well, so if all of this goes right I believe I will have cured my gastritis. I guess my message to everyone else is if you find you have gastro issues don't just assume that they're caused by gastro issues. They could be something that a simple blood test can detect. Best of luck to you. Will update sometime in next 6 months (that's how long my iron treatments are scheduled).

I just wanted to add that my Aunt had gastritis many years ago and had it for quite some time (don't remember how long) and she eventually healed and never had trouble with it after that.

Currently I've been doing better and I sometimes think that half of my problem is the anxiety I generate about this so maybe my problems are like 50% anxiety 50% gastritis. The doc said I have gastritis caused by acid reflux which I had off and on for a month so I think it might just be taking me awhile to heal. But I think I will eventually heal.

I guess this isn't really a success story but more a optimistic one :)

nic

I've found that talking about my feelings makes my stomach issues better. Maybe you could try that?

Yes, my doctor insists that my GI issues are very anxiety and stress related. I do know that my symptoms come back whenever I am under stress (which makes me eat unhealthy, not sleep well, worry etc) - and also, thinking about it all the time (anxiety) makes my symptoms seem a lot worse than they really are. I just started undergoing some anxiety management therapy that seems very promising. I shall post what I learn on here in case it helps other people. For now, my therapist recommends 'countering' each negative thought. E.g. instead of thinking 'This food will make me sick later', think 'This is delicious food, I will enjoy it, and will be fine'. Don't fight off the negative thoughts though, there is a control component there that you must learn to let go. Embrace the thought, counter it with a positive one. :)

Talking about things definently help Buradi. I agree.

I talked to my primary care doctor yesterday who prescribed my some Zoloft for the anxiety (I believe overcoming it could be one of the keys to making myself 100%) however the naseua side effect has been really frustrating and after just one day I'm thinking about whether or not to continue. I felt like I was getting better and better and maybe I could just try to manage the anxiety myself. That way I wouldn't have to deal with another pill either. On the other hand maybe the zoloft would help a lot. I'm pretty torn about what to do.

Until now I've decided to avoid anything for the anxiety. Even though I struggle pretty bad. I have some interest in martial arts and my doctor wants me to do cardio. I think if I can do the cardio and maybe venture into the martial arts I won't need the pills... We'll see.

Please let me know how you're doing with or without Zoloft.

Wow, my doctor put me on 25mg Zoloft as well - and I had really bad nausea the two days that I took it as well. I would take the pill at night before bed on an empty stomach and wake up nauseous. I also went through the day feeling very worn out, super sleepy and also felt my stomach act up. Today, I spoke about this with my doctor and we are trying Paxil - which I hope is not a scenario of from the frying pan into the fire. In the meantime, my therapist insists that the SSRI will help me deal with my anxiety along with the cognitive behavioral therapy I am undergoing with her. She is very smart, and I trust her judgement on this. Very often we under-estimate the GI effects of anxiety. Hope you all feel better.