I have been able to cut down to 40mg every other day. Some times I do get heartburn on the day I don't take nexium and then I take an otc (20mg famotidine) and it helps most of the time. I'm hoping to keep cutting back. I have heard and read that that is the only way. I'm also concerned about the malabsorbtion of calcium since I have osteopenia. I also drink a lot of fennel tea which helps me with stomach discomfort.
Good luck Jennie, let us know how you are doing. (((hugs))) for support

I haven't tried to get off Nexium yet (but would like to someday!), but I have heard that "rebound reflux" is common -- that your reflux may temporarily get worse when you first quit Nexium. You could always ask your doctor to be sure, but if I were you, I'd continue the 20/40 alternating for a few days and see if the burning goes away -- if it does, great, if not, ask your doctor if you should stay on the 40mg.

Good luck!

Hey. I'm still not getting on well. Went back to 40mg everyday until the stressful part of my job was over (last week)so I thought I would try again today. I was doing ok, just feeling a little sick, till I ate dinner and then had a packet of mints.

I was able to eat what I wanted when on the PPIs so cant see the benefit of going back to being restricted off them.

Also, my endoscopy was normal so why am I having the rebound reflux if my stomach is normal?

If you have not had reflux long enough to cause damage or errosion to your stomach and esophagus, and endoscopy may not show much. (Or, you may be refluxing bile instead of stomach acid -- this is less common but possible.) You can still have reflux if your sphincter is loose (which may or may not show up on an endoscopy) or is opening up more often than it should during the day.

There are risks to long-term use of PPI's, so that would be one benefit to going off of them :) The most common side-effects are that PPI's inhibit your body's ability to absorb certain nutrients (especially calcium and vitamin D), and can cause stomach polyps over time. Even though I miss a lot of my favorite foods, if I could control the reflux by diet alone I'd do it, since I'm still fairly young and don't want to be taking PPI's for decades if I don't have to!

You may also want to try a little more restricted diet while weaning yourself off PPI's -- mints are a common reflux trigger, for example.

Good luck -- just keep working with your doctor to figure out what's best for you, whether that involves PPI's or not!

How do you know your stomach is healed now? Did you have a test done? I am wondering if it is time to come off Protonix but want to make sure I am healed too. I didn't take my ppi today and have bad heartburn and reflux. I don't want to go through this. Good luck to you:)

I have had great luck with decreasing my carbohydrates, using digestive enzymes and drinking water with a little apple cider vinegar throughout the day. Has any one else tried any of the natural approaches?

My doctor is putting me on Nexium for my laryngopharygngeal Reflux. I had gastric bypass surgery 22 months ago and was told that I would have to take omeprazole for the rest of my life. So, I was taking priolosec but it wasn't helping my heartburn. I also have a hiatal hernia which I understand can contribute to reflux. I was diagnosed with osteopenia several months ago. I am wondering if I should even start the Nexium?

Twinb, I'd ask your doctor(s) about the Nexium and the osteopenia. Depending on how bad the GERD is (e.g., if there's esophagul damage that needs to be healed, etc.) it may still be beneficial to take the Nexium, perhaps with vitamin D and calcium supplements. But if the GERD symptoms are fairly mild or can be controlled by diet and lifestyle changes, then maybe you don't need the Nexium.