Joanna, before we go ahead, please elaborate on what you're taking for gastritis now (if anything). Asides from Xanax.

I take up to 3 bars a day, it does help.ive been on these 10 yrs..

Ok.For gastritis I take ACV in the morning with warm water and honey.I also do DGL before lunch and dinner plus slippery elm before bed.I stick with a really blend diet when it hurts(oatmeal, rice,bananas,chicken vegetable soup)I sued to do aloe vera juice but it doesn't seem to help.I will not do any PPIs or any other crazy drugs.Thank you.

Jimgreg what do you mean by 3 bars?3 mg?Wow 10 years its a long time.In the past I would do it for up to a month and then slowly tapered off.

"For gastritis I take ACV in the morning with warm water and honey.I also do DGL before lunch and dinner plus slippery elm before bed.I stick with a really blend diet when it hurts(oatmeal, rice,bananas,chicken vegetable soup)I sued to do aloe vera juice but it doesn't seem to help.I will not do any PPIs or any other crazy drugs.Thank you."

Ok. I don't know what age group you belong to, but low stomach acid condition is more likely to happen with the elderly. Apple Cider Vinegar is to be used for that.

Most common condition, however, is where your stomach walls are damaged, and ACV and honey are only making things worse. Same goes for Aloe Vera juice.

This is what I want you to try.

Get this from Amazon:

http://www.amazon.com/Doctors-Best-PepZin-Veggie-120-Count/dp/B0035BYOSA/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1432794196&sr=8-1

And later, maybe, this:

http://www.amazon.com/Designs-Health-GastroMend-vegetarian-Beauty/dp/B00290CG56/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1432794229&sr=8-1

The former is zinc carnosine/PepZin GI, a zinc-based "healing food". It is a drug which is not a drug. It has no side-effects, was invented in Japan, and has been used there to heal gastritis since mid-90s.

The latter is a supplement containing several ingredients, including the former, DGL and mastic gum.

Since you're resistant to the idea of "drugs", this is the path of least resistance.

Try the former supplement first. It's safe. Take 1 pill as you wake up, 1 before bed, and 2 more pills spread between meals but not immediately before or after them.

If you don't notice significant improvement in two weeks, try the latter supplement. It can have side-effects, such as constipation (for some people), but it is far stronger, and is probably the last hope of getting out of where you are without "drugs".

Personally I suspect you're too far gone to avoid pharma entirely.

So if neither supplement makes a sufficient dent in your condition, it's because you are in need of suppressing stomach acid. You can't heal a wound that's constantly being irritated by hydrochloric acid.

And there are NO natural supplements which suppress the acid. I guess the closest is TUMS (calcium carbonate), but if you keep taking it all the time, it can create kidney stones.

So, in this case, you will need to go on the regimen of aforementioned former supplement (PepZin GI), plus take Zantac (ranitidine) 150mg every 12 hours.

I've done extensive research, and Zantac is currently the safest acid suppression drug that's available everywhere. Unlike its predecessor, Tagamet, Zantac eliminated all major liver interactions, and it isn't as heavy on the kidneys as Pepcid.

Pepcid is even cleaner than Zantac, but it doesn't last as long, and although people with normal kidneys shouldn't have problems, in long-term it just makes sense to take Zantac instead.

A doctor will likely try to put you on a PPI ending with *prazole, or brand like "Nexium" or "Prevacid".

Unlike these drugs in the PPI category, Zantac has no history of creating kidney problems. It can be taken pretty much for decades.

Getting off any acid suppression drug is very difficult, however if the choice becomes between

a) letting acid eat a hole through your stomach and require surgery
b) taking a few pills every day which don't have side-effects for most people

It should be a pretty clear choice.

Also, Zantac is monstrously cheap on Amazon as generic ranitidine 150 made by Kirkland (CostCo brand).

______

As for Xanax, it can help. Stomach does react to our sense of anxiety. However, without REAL healing, it will not lead anywhere, and after 2 weeks it starts becoming addictive...

Wow, Xanax is really dangerous. You shouldn't take it longe than 2 or 3 weeks.

There are much better options for your anxiety!

"I will not do any PPIs or any other crazy drugs."

Sorry, i really don't understand this. You're taking Xanax but you don't want to take a PPI or H2-Blocker because it's crazy??

I see.My other big worry is that I don't want to take anything to make my condition worse.Can pepsin GI make one constipated?I have tendency to get constipated so I want to make sure this is not gonna make I worse.
As for low stomach acid I am 40 and I have no idea if its low or high but ACV used to work well for me.
Now I have an autoimmune disease and I believe the kind of gastritits I have is an autoimmune gastritis.Do you think the mentioned supplements will be able to help with that?
I was scoped in February and it showed moderate erosive gastritis and mild esophagitis but the symptoms I have been experiencing with gerd are crazy.I am even afraid to eat now for sometimes it feels like my throat is closing and I have so much pressure in my ears and head and blurry vision.Any advice on how to cope with that?I think I am ready to try Pepzin at this point.Thank you for your guidance so far:)

I would say only the brave should try ACV with gastritis! I did try it in my naivety, wont be doing that again!

I take anti-depressants for anxiety rather than things like Xanax that are for more acute panic situations which I dont tend to have much problem with. I have also dabbled with mild opiates in the past like codeine for anxiety but the side effects weren't worth it.

I would try a more natural method like Autogenics for anxiety, I actually found this better than any drug, and it was even better for my sleep than the powerful sleeping pills I was on at one point due to anxiety.

Please don't confuse PepZin GI with Pepsin or Pepcid.

No, PepZin GI has no side-effects. Period. Unless you already take extensive zinc supplements, in which case you should watch the overall dosage of zinc.

However, really, based on how far you're gone symptom-wise, I don't know if you have time to experiment with PepZin GI alone.

Maybe try it for a week. But have Zantac (ranitidine) 150 nearby. It's sold on Amazon for cheap... you can also find it for less cheap in Walgreens as Wal-Zan 150.

After that week, start taking, as I said, Zantac 150 every 12 hours. Doctors used to prescribe it "at the AM and at the PM" but I prefer strict timing (using an alarm on the phone). Up to you which works better...

And keep taking PepZin Gi as I described earlier.

The solution is always 2-sides: lower stomach acid with Zantac so that PepZin GI can stick to stomach lining and heal it. When one of these factors is missing, in my experience things just don't move forward.

Also consider eating Russian tvorog/quark/"farmer's cheese" as it's proxy is called in American stores. With sugar sprinkled on top, it is more than edible. It is a milk byproduct, which, unlike milk itself, actually suppresses stomach acid and is a good probiotic and source of some protein. I used to finish each meal with it.

Aaand, consider taking a probiotic pill with breakfast. And consider helping out your stomach with digestive enzymes - I use Source Naturals brand, it takes at least 4 to get effect, they're to be taken seconds before food hits your stomach.

For Sjorgen's, consider this:

http://www.amazon.com/GNC-Ultra-Potency-GLA-Softgels/dp/B00AQADCTA/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1432843859&sr=8-2

(or, when not in stock, you'd have to buy Lindora's Stay-Weight, which is the same supplement, not off Amazon)

paired with fish oil, because above supplement may deplete EPA/DHA in the body:

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B000SE5SY6/ref=sr_ph?ie=UTF8&qid=1432843922&sr=1

Also, this:

http://www.amazon.com/Sibu-Cellular-Support-Omega-Count/dp/B00ESJ883A/ref=sr_1_1?s=hpc&ie=UTF8&qid=1432844030&sr=1-1

I have very strong dry eye syndrome which was suspected to be caused by Sjorgen's, but the latter hasn't manifested in blood tests. However I also have creaky knees. I'll be 38 very soon.

The above supplements, combined with HydroEye as base, do help my eyes. I also suspect that Astaxanthin, taken for a long time, should help.

Because it did help when i first started taking it, but the body "adapted", so I shifted to "bombardment with all supplements that ever made a dent" strategy, which still works.

Before considering HydroEye, make sure you're not taking Vitamin A already.

That first supplement I mentioned (safflower oil modified to produce 50% GLA), is a strong anti-inflammatory. At first, just taking it alone, I could feel it when it "hit" after 1 hour of intake, my eyes would just stop being inflamed and feel "human" again.

However, you should only experiment with these AFTER your stomach feels better, and never take them on empty stomach. Just my 2c.

"...I was scoped in February and it showed moderate erosive gastritis and mild esophagitis..."

Yet you take ACV? Does this Naturopath even understand exactly what gastritis is? In what bizarre Universe will gastritis ever heal from ingesting an irritant like vinegar? An acidic irritant that will activate the enzyme pepsin & erode your lining further.

I do appreciate ACV has it's place in helping some low-acid conditions, but certainly not where an inflamed or damaged lining is involved.