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acid reflux

post #1 of 17
9/20/08 at 11:29pm
Thread Starter 
It's so miserable. Papaya enzyme helps with the very little heartburn I have but it does nothing for the acid reflux. I have taken to sleeping sitting up already. It doesn't seem to matter when I eat, or how often. Anyone else?
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post #2 of 17
9/20/08 at 11:49pm
Oh, totally. And, I have to say, nothing holistic I've tried has done a damn bit of good. My mw's are very agin' mainstream medicine, but the stuff they recommend is useless!!

With the exception of magnesium. I highly recommend taking a mag citrate supplement; it's helped my level of reflux immensely.

But other than that, I take a dose of Pepcid AC before bed and if the acid's being worse than usual. It's godawful. But it's better than having the reflux- I'm (rightfully) paranoid about it eating away at my esophagus.
post #3 of 17
9/21/08 at 2:22am
Ug, it's bad right now My MIL made a big pot of chili and the beans she uses are full of gluten and that just made it 10 times worse for me.

I have a lovely glass of apple cider vinegar, watered down of course, and it's making me burp like crazy so it should help here in about 20 minutes.
post #4 of 17
9/21/08 at 5:13am
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by Jojo F. View Post

I have a lovely glass of apple cider vinegar, watered down of course, and it's making me burp like crazy so it should help here in about 20 minutes.
Ugh! Dh has been trying to get me to drink apple cider vinegar, but I'm having a really hard time. Does it really work? How do you get it down?

ETA: I just read that raw apples and even apple juice sometimes helps. Very odd...I am not an "apple-y" person at all, but I have been craving apple juice and even got up in the middle of the night a few nights ago and ate an apple.
post #5 of 17
9/21/08 at 2:11pm
UGH - I feel your pain. The heartburn hasn't hit for me yet, but I had horrible heartburn my first two pregnancies so I'm expecting it any day now. I slept sitting up for the last few months of both pregnancies, and kept Tums Smoothies by the bedside (and in my purse and in the kitchen and in the car...). They aren't very natural or holistic, but they were all that worked for me. And the Smoothies actually taste good, so it's not like choking down chalk.
post #6 of 17
9/21/08 at 3:29pm
I eat Tums too...like candy. And I try not to eat anything acidic, like citrus (incl. orange juice) because the reflux is just so unlivable.
post #7 of 17
9/21/08 at 5:16pm
Thread Starter 
Oh man! Stay...away...from...tums. I ate them too, like candy, with dc#1 and developed kidney stones. More than one urologist told me that Tums are most definitely the culprit. Stick to chewable papaya enzyme for regular old heartburn. It's just as cheap as tums and works just as well if not better. If you have not had kidney stones before, believe me when I say, I'd rather labor and childbirth. Plus, if you develop them in pregnancy, there is nothing you can do about it.
post #8 of 17
9/21/08 at 6:05pm
I wish I had something better to offer you but I been suffering with the same thing. Apple cider vinegar did not help nor anything else holistic . I have been doing the magnesium which helps and when things get bad I do Zantac. I developed an ulcer in my esophagus while pregnant with ds#3 - thought toughing the reflux out with no mainstream meds was the best thing to do. Man, was I wrong!
post #9 of 17
9/21/08 at 6:28pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Cutie Patootie View Post
Oh man! Stay...away...from...tums. I ate them too, like candy, with dc#1 and developed kidney stones.
Quote:
Originally Posted by doulamomvicki View Post
I developed an ulcer in my esophagus while pregnant with ds#3 - thought toughing the reflux out with no mainstream meds was the best thing to do. Man, was I wrong!
: on both counts.

Again, I do a magnesium supplement to help overall, an acid blocker when it seems appropriate, and then tums or milk or whatever to quiet the burn on an immediate basis. But because the mag citrate and the acid blockers are keeping the general level of my reflux low, I don't have to do immediate palliatives that often.
post #10 of 17
9/22/08 at 12:13pm
If you are interested in something holistic this is what I do. I put three peppermint tea bags in a pitcher of water and refrigerate. When I am having the acid reflux, I drink a big glass of the tea. The cold tea helps with that burning feeling that you get. I did this for several years before I got pregnant. Then it stopped for several years. Now with being pregnant, I am having to do it occasionally again.
post #11 of 17
9/22/08 at 2:36pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Cutie Patootie View Post
Ugh! Dh has been trying to get me to drink apple cider vinegar, but I'm having a really hard time. Does it really work? How do you get it down?

ETA: I just read that raw apples and even apple juice sometimes helps. Very odd...I am not an "apple-y" person at all, but I have been craving apple juice and even got up in the middle of the night a few nights ago and ate an apple.
It's not that bad when mixed with a ton of lemon juice and honey. It's actually quite pleasant then. Plus the vinegar is really good for you anyway and the vinegar, lemon, and honey drink is my cure for the dreaded cold.
post #12 of 17
9/22/08 at 4:43pm
Acid reflux is actually one of the signs I use to indicate I'm pg. The first couple of months its easy to manage with Tums, papaya enzyme and dietary changes, but each time it gets worse and worse.

Mine is terrible - I can't even think about drinking water or anything without it flaring up and literally feel it eating my esophagus away. It starts very early and after suffering through it and still suffering through it I still have lasting effects post-pregnancy where if I do get a bit of heartburn or reflux from a meal its crippling pain.

I know most of the moms here would not endorse the use of a prescription medication during pregnancy - but in this I have to say - talk to your MW, or regular dr and get some help otherwise this reflux can do some serious damage to your esophagus in the long run.
post #13 of 17
9/22/08 at 8:47pm
So I've been struggling with this too...what can I do diet-wise to help? I can nibble a Tums every night...but I'd rather avoid it if I can. What should I be eating/not eating? Thanks.
post #14 of 17
9/23/08 at 1:13am
Mostly, avoid fatty foods, spicy foods... caffeine, chocolate. Google "GERD diet" to see more.
post #15 of 17
9/23/08 at 12:49pm
My heartburn starts while at work and progresses during the day. I didn't have it at all this weekend though.

Today, I ate: Kashi Go Lean, saltines, milk, cottage cheese, white cheddar Cheez-its and my ginger supplements, and can't figure out why I have it again. ARG. I wonder if it is related to sitting at a desk all day.

Dh is going to check out Acid-Ease by Prevail today at the coop. I would try an Rx if I had to.

I am fine during the night. It killed last evening then seemed to be soothed by a smoothie I drank.

P.S. I just noticed this thread is in the Jan DDC - I found it by a search. I'm in the May DDC.
post #16 of 17
9/23/08 at 1:32pm
Recipe:

1 big glass of water (mine are about 14 oz)
1 T of apple cider vinegar
2 T honey

stir well and enjoy. it really isn't that strong and it seems to get the digestion going in the right direction.

at this point, i'm used to it enough that i skip the honey half the time because i don't like the stirring part.
post #17 of 17
9/23/08 at 1:35pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by CookAMH View Post
My heartburn starts while at work and progresses during the day. I didn't have it at all this weekend though.

Today, I ate: Kashi Go Lean, saltines, milk, cottage cheese, white cheddar Cheez-its and my ginger supplements, and can't figure out why I have it again. ARG. I wonder if it is related to sitting at a desk all day.

Dh is going to check out Acid-Ease by Prevail today at the coop. I would try an Rx if I had to.

I am fine during the night. It killed last evening then seemed to be soothed by a smoothie I drank.

P.S. I just noticed this thread is in the Jan DDC - I found it by a search. I'm in the May DDC.
You could try adding some fruits and veggies - bananas have amylase which helps digest grains, apples have pectin, etc etc. The smoothie might have helped because there were fresh fruits in it perhaps? need those enzymes.

Oh and ginger alwyas made my acid worse - it is a heating sort of food.