# WHAT ARE YOUR SYMPTOMS?????



## gar54 (Nov 27, 1999)

Hi All.....I am a sufferer of Acid Reflux and I have heard and read about others who suffer who have differing symptoms. I thought it would be interesting for those of us with Gerd to list, or tell, what our symptoms are. People have said that they have burning in thier breastbone, heartburn when they lay down, different foods that trigger symptoms, etc....... For me it seems like stress and sweet foods are a trigger. Chocolate and any type of glazed or sugared cakes or donuts. Also when I am having a stressful time at work or home. My throat burns at times and only occasionally do I get the heart burn feeling in my stomach. I also find myself clearing my throat alot. I was on prevacid for about 1 1/2 years and went off it about a year ago. Now I control my gerd with tums and zantac. How bout you? I am interested to know what everyones symptoms are and trigger foods. Thanks!.....Gar


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## GurgleGut (Dec 2, 2001)

Hi Gar, My symptoms, depending on how bad it is are: upset stomach,(indigestion feeling) burning sensation from stomach to mouth, bad taste, a feeling of a lump in my throat, sore throat, pressure in my chest, chills, belching a sensation that there is some type of sludge in my esophagus and the worst is severe nausea, sometimes with vomiting. Sometimes the syptoms are very mild and I may only have one of those, sometimes they get very bad and I feel like I should be rushed to the emergency ward. My triggers seem to be anything fried, rich things like cream soups or Alfredo sauce, very acidic things like spagetti sauce, chocolate, peppermint, carbonated beverages, beef, garlic and believe it or not....iceberg lettuce. Iceberg lettuce is the worst! All the others are fine, romaine, butter, endive whatever but iceberg is just awful. I have found that stress is definately a trigger as is PMS and if my IBS kicks in the reflux will also. The worse is the combination of PMS, IBS and GERD....OH THE HUMANITY! LOL!


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## christine (Jun 4, 1999)

Well, my GERD symptoms are rather atypical in that I have never really experienced heartburn. I mainly get queasiness which progresses to nausea if it really bad, belching, food coming up, burning in throat (if it is really bad). I guess for me the worst part is the constant queasiness I seem to have. Or, if I have a meal, a few hours later I may drink some water and then my meal seems like it is still there, coming up. I have been officially diagnosed with GERD through endoscopy, but my GI doc thinks I may have some "delayed gastric emptying" which causes the food to sit around and aggravates my GERD. Right now I manage my symptoms with Prilosec. It does help, but it is not perfect. I also use Gaviscon at times if I'm really having a flare up. I'm not sure it helps but I *think* it does. Stress definitely exacerbates my symptoms as well as doughnuts, chocolate, etc.Christine


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## ilovehockey (May 30, 2001)

I have no symptoms during the day, except a hoarse voice that never gets better. My problems happen during the night, when I aspirate acid. This is very painful, causes the hoarse voice, and aggravates my asthma. I take Protonix twice a day, which doesn't seem to help. If I also take the overnight-strength Mylanta at bedtime, my nighttime symptoms aren't so bad. However, taking Mylanta every night aggravates my IBS(D).


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## soldo (Nov 21, 2001)

I had many of the same symptoms as you and the other replies, nausea, burning in my stomach, chills, dizziness and also the feeling of a lump in my throat. Sweet foods and stress made all of this much, much worse. I went to many doctors and they put me on everything from Zantac to Prevacid to inhalers. Nothing worked, and my personal and professional lives were being ruined!! I finally broke down and went to the Mayo Clinic in Scottsdale, AZ and met with a GI doc who was amazing. He diagnosed me with a type of panic disorder and put me on Celexa. I have been on it for just over a month and I have been absolutely been amazed by the results. All of the symptoms are all but gone and I am able to work and go out and have fun again!! I am no expert on the subject, but thought that I would post a reply. Good luck and take care.matty


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## christine (Jun 4, 1999)

Matty,So did you have true GERD or was it just a manifestation of the panic disorder? I also have a panic disorder although I have found that use of SSRIs (including Celexa) exacerbate my symptoms. I have never been able to go more than 2 weeks on an SSRI without some yucky side effects. But I think if I could find the perfect drug and reduce my panic, eventually my GI symptoms might be reduced. I don't think it would actually disappear because I definitely have the relaxed lower esophageal sphincter. Can't "make" that up, so there is definitely a physical component but most like exacerbated by panic. I was just curious if yours was all panic or a combo of psychological and physical.Christine


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