Got the heartburn!

[galadriel]

....For the first time, really, at 35 weeks now. It's really kickin' in! I stopped eating 3 hours before bedtime tonight and it's still here. I tried taking papaya. Any other (non-pharmcalogical)suggestions?

[MamaOui]

-Eat small meals more frequently
-Don't snack before bed
-Use some extra pillows to prop you head and trunk
??????
Those suggestions helped me. I hope you get some rest.

[pottermamma]

Hi If you aren't vegan, try drinking some milk when it flares up. I had never had heartburn till I was way preggo and milk hit the spot every time, and pretty quickly too!!!!

[Quirky]

Does Tums count as pharmacological? All it is is calcium carbonate (chalk).

[velveeta]

I have it really bad, too.

I drink *lots* of water. And here is the best thing that has helped me so far: cabbage juice. I juice cabbage with celery (also great for HB), apple, and kale. The apple and kale are just for taste. And it is lacinato (dinosaur) kale, not the bitter kind of kale.

The reason that I tried cabbage/celery juice is because I have read over and over and over that cabbage is an *excellent* and highly-effective remedy for ulcers and for HB, in general. I mean, it is so good, that a three week course with a pint of the juice daily is nearly always curative for ulcers.

I know it sounds a little gross, but if you are like me, you will get to a point where you will try almost anything to get rid of the pain. HB has been so weird for me. I had never experienced it before I became pregnant. And now, when I don't juice, it is my constant companion.

You have inspired me to go and juice right now!

Good luck and good health to you!


Jean

p.s. the red cabbage is a little more palatable than the green, although both are excellent medicinally.

[sahm]

May sound odd but apple cidar vinegar immediately cures it for me every time!!! You could take it in the liquid form but since I'm a wimp, I just got it in the pill form. It's high in pottasium (which combats acid) and also there's something about it that combats the high acidity. I don't know all the details but it works INSTANTLY every time I have heartburn (and lately that has been A LOT!!!).

[momto l&a]

Slippery Elm powder mixed with war, milk and drunk quilckly before it get to thick worked for the severe heart burn I had with dd #1. I can remeber how much powder I mixed with like a half a cup of milk, am think ing it was like a Tablespoon or so. I also added just a little brown sugar to it, made it taste like oatmeal that way.

The Slippery Elm capsules dont work

With dd#2 I had heartburn but nothing like the first time, Tums worked for me then though I really dont like using them. I tried to use the Slippery Elm but it made me puke, worked thought. Come to think of it the only Tums I could take without puking was the Ultra Spearmint ones, all others tasted to chalky.

Milk also helped with dd#2, I had access to farm fresh milk

I hope you find something that helps you! SOON!!

[galadriel]

Thanks for all the suggestions! Last night it went away 5 hours after dinner (instead of the three I was shooting for), and I got a good night's sleep, so I think I'll just eat dinner that much sooner. I think that will do the trick!

[late-night nan]

About antacids, my nutritionist friend reminded me that we need all the nutrients from the food we consume to nourish the baby. So the stomach acids serve a purpose that should not be neutralized by antacids, if possible. If there is an emergency flare-up, mylanta is better than tums.

Another suggestion is to eat while standing up so that the stomach has more room. The expansion of the stomach in your crowded abdomen is what causes the extra secretion of digestive acids. I also find exercise or yoga helpful.

It's also a good idea to keep track of what foods seem to cause more HB than others. I am trying to cut down on wheat products, which seem to trigger burning for me.