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.

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Kozet11 11/17/2016

Hello all! I'm new to this group, hoping to find friends that can understand what I'm going through. It all started in June 2015, I couldnt eat anything without feeling extremely sick, I got down to 89lbs (from 115lbs) and literally tought I was dying. Finally in Sept they found my gallbladder was not functioning and I had it removed. I hoped that would solve all my problems... WRONG! I felt a bit better but was still nauseaus after eating and had terrible rib pain on my left side. After a ton of tests/scans/endoscopy's they diagnosed me with Chronic Gastritis, that was in March. I'm taking all the meds the Dr. prescribed and trying some natural things as well (I take aloe vera juice every morning). I still feel awful. I feel awful everyday, some days are better than others but I never feel great. I don't go out anymore, not even to family functions. I make it to work and go home and that's about all I can handle. I'm seeing a new GI Dr. this coming Tuesday and I'm hoping she can help me or give me some ideas. If anybody has suggestions I'd love to hear them. My family is supportive but I don't think they really understand what I'm going through. I know this is long so thanks for letting me vent..

Ktltel 11/19/2016

Hi kozet11, I'm so sorry to here all that your going through. Mine started this past Sept 2016. GI doc just slapped on the meds. Prilosec, Carafate, and Zofran for nausea. Gastritis is tricky and takes time to heal. You may need to see an additional doctor to get to the root cause of your gastritis. Find a good functional medicine doctor, or a naturopath doctor. Search online for a good one. Ask around at your local health food stores etc. Maybe friends know one. Mainstream medical doctors keep the meds for symptoms coming. But you need to find out what is underneath the reason why your stomach and gallbladder got sick in the first place. I see my GI but I started seeing a naturopath too. I'm taking supplements for many areas of concern for me. It takes a while to get straightened out. Don't mess around. Your losing too much weight. I lost 23 lbs in 2 months. But, I had it to lose. If your not getting better, time to find help elsewhere. Soon.
Hugs,
Stella

Kozet11 11/21/2016

Hi Stella! Thanks for the advise, I have had other people tell me to check into a naturopath too. Yes it seems all these Dr's want to do is mask the pain/symptoms with meds. I go see the new GI tomorrow so we'll see how that goes! Gastritis is an awful thing to have to go through and I sympathize with anybody that is/has gone through it. I pray yours heals soon and thanks again for the advise. Hugs back!
Tia

Kozet11 11/22/2016

Just saw the new GI Dr. today and she diagnosed me with bile reflux chronic gastritis, the bile reflux can not be cured so I'm feeling kind of down... She wants to do the gastric emptying test to check for gastroparesis, I pray I don't have that. Ugh, I wish there was a magic pill we could all take and all the stomach/digestive issues just went away! How are you feeling???

Ktltel 11/24/2016

Kozet11
Sorry to here about the diagnoses. It's very discouraging but please, see a good naturopath or a functional medicine doctor. They can really help. Gut issues take time to straighten out. Mainstream medical doctors don't have all the answers. They do have lots of drugs for the symptoms but not the root cause. Look into doing the best of both worlds.... I hope you get some relief soon. Keep me posted.
❤Stella

Kozet11 11/24/2016

Thanks so much for the encouragement. I will check into the the naturopath or functional medicine dr. I'll keep you posted. I hope you're feeling well.. and Happy Thanksgiving to you!!

cocodupont 11/30/2016

Gosh, I went through the exact thing in 2011 and am having a flare up of gastritis right now... I had my gallbladder removed because it was low functioning but I didn't get better. I continued having nausea and pain in my upper left abdomen under ribs and in back for months. I was on carafate, protonix and Zantac...nothing helped much. After 8 months of misery, countless scans and tests, I started acupuncture and supplements. Eventually I gained back the 28 pounds I lost (was already thin) and started feeling better. However,in get flare ups every few months. Right now I have the pain, diarrhea and nausea. After an endoscopy yesterday, I am diagnosed with erosive gastritis again. I am going to a naturopath next week but am already doing cabbage juice, DGL tablets and slippery elm tincture. Truly, I know how miserable you are... Forums help because we get support from others going through similar things...

Kozet11 11/30/2016

Hi cocodupont! I'm so sorry to hear what you've been going through, I can completely understand. And it seems a lot of us our stories are similar, we take all the meds the Dr's prescribe or recommends and they don't seem to do much. We go through test after test and scan's and seem to still get no answers. I want to look into seeing a naturapath but one of my biggest obstacles is my job and getting the time off to go see all these Dr's and have all these test's run. And you're right, these forums do help as my family is of course there for me but they don't fully understand what I'm going through/how I feel... I wish you well and I hope you can get some relief!!

larrysanders 12/08/2016

i really hope it will go away !! i'm in the same situation.. it's a nightmare i know, i was first diagnosed in september, changed my diet, on supplements, on cabbage juice in the morning. on lanzoprazole as couldn't stomach emsoprazole. the pain and problem has moved from lower stomach (bloaty and unsettled) to a raw pain 20cm above my belly button. is there any cycle to gastritis? anyone know why the pain moves, ps tried mastic last night. and felt sick all night :(

Kozet11 12/13/2016

Hi larrysanders, I'm sorry you're having to deal with this. All the GI docs I've seen always say the same thing that gastritis should go away fairly quick once you find whats causing it and get on the right meds. Well my new doc thinks its the bile reflux causing my gastritis to not heal. She has prescribed me a medication that helps soak up some of the bile from my stomach. I have noticed I'm not tasting the bile anymore so I guess its helping but the stomach pain and nausea are still there. I have not had any pain above my belly button, my pain is on my left side near my ribs, I do get the raw gnawing pain in my stomach too and the bloating. With me I have not noticed a particular cycle with my gastritis, just that it won't go away!! I pray you feel better, keep your head up and Merry Christmas!

sandraj 01/15/2017

Hi, my story is similar to yours. I was diagnosed with gastritis after an endoscopy in April last year and was told to eat bland foods and stop drinking but it hasn't gone away, in fact it has got worse. I am taking omeprazole every day and antacids but they don't seem to be doing anything. I have given up caffeine, alcohol and most foods I like and I am so fed up of this now!! When is this all going to end?!! So you're not alone in this! Wishing you recovery soon x

Kozet11 01/16/2017

Hi sandraj! I'm so sorry to hear you're going through it too. I know exactly how you're feeling! I'm on Nexium and Librax, as well as the bile reflux meds. When I was just on Nexium and the Librax, I didn't feel any better. Since I have been on the bile reflux meds I do feel a bit better. Not enough to go out and eat at restaurants but at least I can eat more food than I was able to before. Not that I want anybody to suffer with this, but it is comforting to know we're not alone. It's nice to vent to somebody who understands the pain and agony of this as family/friends don't fully understand what we're going through. Praying for healing for you!!

gasly 01/17/2017

Ive also had chronic gastritis for several years, just now I'm finding a way to deal with it.. You need to first log what foods bother you, then start eliminating. I take a probiotic every morning and drink lots of herbal tea. I've even started eating things I would of never eaten before. Kefir! for one. Its been a week and my stomach is a lot better. I googled a lot to try and make my own menus. You need to plan ahead your meals as well. I have eliminated all foods that bother my stomach and foods that cause acid or acidic foods. Its abit bland but its working .I am also trying to get off the medication my doctor prescribed. PPI'S aren't good and if you eat properly you won't need them. Just remember what works for one might not work for you though. You need to figure it out according to your body. Do your homework the internet has many sites and that's how I work with it and daily I check things. Hope this helps you somewhat.

Lesleygm 01/23/2017

Everyone posting here go to shihonage on this site. He has a link on how to heal gastritis. he is a pro on this issue and many over the years have followed his regime. This is a very challenging issue and your mental health also impacts this problem in a big way. I have noticed over the years I have been helping on this site that mental health and anxiety seem to be one of the major causes of gastritis and those who dont start out with anxiety end of developing it due to how challenging this issue is. A food journal is a must and discipline is a huge part of healing this. You have to stick to the plain boring foods for months and keep it to small meals and have a small amount of a safe food when the stomach is burning etc. An empty stomach makes the symptoms worse etc. Good luck. This issue can get way better. it takes a ton of hard work to get there. Hang in there!

Choose 02/02/2017

Hi Kozet11. Did your new GI doctor do any additional testing before diagnosing you with possible bile reflux chronic gastritis? Thanks.

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