Gastritis Support Group
Gastritis is a medical term for inflammation of the lining of the stomach. It means that white blood cells move into the wall of the stomach as a response to some type of injury. Gastritis has many underlying causes, from infection with the bacterium H. pylori, bile reflux, or excessive consumption of alcohol or certain foods or drugs like aspirin.
It took me 8 months to arrive at this conclusion. Please read it with a grain of salt, because it's just an opinion of someone sick and desperate. This is what makes complete sense to me though.
I was a previously healthy, energetic 33 year old. I had an occasional burn in my upper right stomach, just in one particular spot, which I think was due to exuberant cider drinking, spicy food, and drinking coffee on an empty stomach. I figured I should fix it, so I went to the doctor.
I never had heartburn, dyspepsia, anything. I didn't even know what antacids did, since it didn't apply to me.
The walk-in clinic doc listened to my symptoms and gave me a 30 day course of Nexium. Just like that. I took it for a couple of weeks, then went to Omeprazole because of side effects, then ditched the PPIs altogether. I felt great. A couple of weeks after that I went for Vietnamese soup and spring rolls. It's been hell on earth since. My reaction to that soup was akin to pouring battery acid into my stomach. Why????
I think the PPIs in February completely screwed me up. I'm reading medical journals about the acid rebound effect, and how the stomach tries to overcompensate for lack of acid with building up of acid producing cells (layman's terms). So basically, this happened over the month that I was on the Nexium/Omeprazole, and I was a ticking timebomb. Soup, boom.
Why why why did the doc give me a shovel to kill a fly? I did ask him first if I needed to change anything in my diet (at that point I was clueless) and he said "take this and eat whatever you want".
I had a good cry this morning when I realized this may be the root of the problem. That one Vietnamese soup started a chain reaction and my stomach went beserk. I've been trying to get it under control for months with no avail, and the doctors (I've seen another one since) are freakin useless. Talk about professionals! This is someone's life!
I was having a bad flare in August and the doc helping me now told me to up my Protonix to 80mg/day for 2 weeks, I did, finished and went down to 60/day. 4 days into the lower dose and I'm having heartburn from hell - nothing can tame it. I didn't even know what heartburn was prior to getting this "medicine". I'm not even treating my original issue anymore, just the complications from this disaster. I feel like I'm completely on my own. I'm worried that I'll end up with a chronic condition simply because I started the PPIs. Why didn't he tell me to take Famotidine, or something lighter to start? I would've probably improved on my own had I known to change my diet.
Sorry for the rant. I have a scope next week, and I'm seeing a new European doctor after that. I hope he will be able to wean me off and fix my wrecked life.
I was a previously healthy, energetic 33 year old. I had an occasional burn in my upper right stomach, just in one particular spot, which I think was due to exuberant cider drinking, spicy food, and drinking coffee on an empty stomach. I figured I should fix it, so I went to the doctor.
I never had heartburn, dyspepsia, anything. I didn't even know what antacids did, since it didn't apply to me.
The walk-in clinic doc listened to my symptoms and gave me a 30 day course of Nexium. Just like that. I took it for a couple of weeks, then went to Omeprazole because of side effects, then ditched the PPIs altogether. I felt great. A couple of weeks after that I went for Vietnamese soup and spring rolls. It's been hell on earth since. My reaction to that soup was akin to pouring battery acid into my stomach. Why????
I think the PPIs in February completely screwed me up. I'm reading medical journals about the acid rebound effect, and how the stomach tries to overcompensate for lack of acid with building up of acid producing cells (layman's terms). So basically, this happened over the month that I was on the Nexium/Omeprazole, and I was a ticking timebomb. Soup, boom.
Why why why did the doc give me a shovel to kill a fly? I did ask him first if I needed to change anything in my diet (at that point I was clueless) and he said "take this and eat whatever you want".
I had a good cry this morning when I realized this may be the root of the problem. That one Vietnamese soup started a chain reaction and my stomach went beserk. I've been trying to get it under control for months with no avail, and the doctors (I've seen another one since) are freakin useless. Talk about professionals! This is someone's life!
I was having a bad flare in August and the doc helping me now told me to up my Protonix to 80mg/day for 2 weeks, I did, finished and went down to 60/day. 4 days into the lower dose and I'm having heartburn from hell - nothing can tame it. I didn't even know what heartburn was prior to getting this "medicine". I'm not even treating my original issue anymore, just the complications from this disaster. I feel like I'm completely on my own. I'm worried that I'll end up with a chronic condition simply because I started the PPIs. Why didn't he tell me to take Famotidine, or something lighter to start? I would've probably improved on my own had I known to change my diet.
Sorry for the rant. I have a scope next week, and I'm seeing a new European doctor after that. I hope he will be able to wean me off and fix my wrecked life.
Don't beat yourself up over the past. There is no way you could have known. That is what you are supposed to do when you feel bad, go to the Doctor.
I too, often wonder as well if I had just stayed on Pepcid AC instead of going to my GP, would I be in a different boat right now. Sadly, there is no point in dwelling on it.
The truth is, you will not know until you get scoped, you do not know what is going on and you will go off into different directions and stress yourself out even more.
I am sure it is not a chronic condition. Remember, this is only temporary. You will get better.
Also, look into 'Dropping Acid' cook book. I have been using that and have tolerated it fairly well.
sigh...
I'm happy I joined here... You can feel so alone with this, at least I know you guys are out there, too.
I will look into this book, tx.