*Update*
I saw a gastrointerologist (sp) today and I think the only thing worse than a doctor who doesn't take you very seriously is a doctor who seems more alarmed by your symptoms than you are...
But the good news is he's going to get me in to be scoped the day after tomorrow. He's also doing some blood work. Ordered dupes of what I had done last month and also included a test C-19 or something that's supposed to point to pancreatic tumor. He did a rectal exam (wasn't expecting that!) and used some sort of litmus test to determine there was blood. Said it could be nothing, could be something.
After yet another day of being so hungry that I could eat the cat (nay, BOTH cats), I begged him for something to make that go away. He said no, he didn't want to mask symptoms until he knew me better.
I liked him.
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Original Post:
Hello fellow sufferers
I have been lurking here for a few days and thought I'd go ahead and post.
I am a 36 yo female who just recently (5 weeks ago) started experiencing sore throat and nighttime regurgitation / aspiration of stomach contents. I also noticed a dull, pulsing ache on my right side below my ribs (though it moved sometimes to more in my abdomen).
Things move slowly on Maui where I live and it seems like it's hard to get a doc to take you seriously. Therefore I plopped myself in the emergency room for some one-stop shopping of diagnostic tests. They did full blood work and an ultrasound of my abdomen. They found nothing but slightly elevated amylase levels. They gave no hint what this might indicate and sent me on my way, saying I needed to get it checked again in 2-3 weeks. That was about 4 weeks ago and I plan to contact a Dr. tomorrow to follow up. I am now in CA, staying with my parents for a few months so I am going to start fresh with a new dr. This is probably a good thing. I am also going to try to get scoped, as my current other problem is this horrible gnawing, nagging hunger pain in my stomach, which does not react at all to anything I eat. It is simply ALWAYS there. I have no idea when or how much to eat as it overrides my internal signals. And it makes me obsess about food constantly. Really annoying.
The doc I saw back on the island just said I should take 2 months of Prilosec and then we'll talk. I just don't think I can deal with gnawing hunger for 2 months! If anyone has any experience with this please post.
Other history...
I have had one previous (2003) very bad episode of repeated nighttime regurgitation that made me considerably more raw. I treated it myself (no insurance) with OTC Prilosec. Honestly I can't remember how long it took. A few months, perhaps. And I think I only took 1 pill every morning. I do remember that at this same time I started experiencing many of the same chest discomforts that I have read others post about here. Shortness of breath, wierd referred pain to my arms, and (oddly) this is when my neck pains began as well. The odd chest fullnesss and pain have remained but (thankfully) I have been heartburn/rawness/nighttime regurgitation-free for these years. I believe this is probably when I developed my hiatal hernia, but who can really say.
Back then, when I finally got insurance I went ahead and got scoped. They found nothing but the hiatal hernia. I believe, had this scope been done during my symptomatic period, they may have found quite a bit of erosion. I could not speak or swallow without great difficulty during this time.
I am now on 40 mg of Prilosec a day, at Dr's request. I am doing the OTC Prilosec b/c my insurance does not cover prescriptions and the cost is roughly the same for OTC. Doc said the two were basically the same so I went for the OTC because it was easier/less cash outlay at a time.
I believe the Prilosec is helping. I have not had nighttime regurgitation and I THINK my throat and esophagus are healing. It is hard to tell at the moment b/c I believe I have a virus that's renting space in my throat.
I'm also taking Probiotics daily but I need to get a new bottle tomorrow as the one I have with me did not stay refrigerated through my long travels and I suspect it's largely inactive. So I've been off that for a few days, I think.
I started drinking coffee again sometime after I had my daughter in Oct. 2005. I can't remember how long I've been drinking it. Probably 6 months or so. I think I've gradually been increasing the amount. I feel this may be contributing but I have not (this is embarassing) yet cut out that last cup in the morning. I'm scared of the headache. I think tomorrow Ill take 1/2 cup and taper down from there.
Since my toddler started eating regular food, I started making mac 'n cheese a few nights a week. She'd have two bites, I'd eat half the pan. I think this may have started the nighttime problems. Doc told me specifically that foods like mac 'n cheese can really cause problems in digestion due to the heavy, hard to digest fats. I am interested in trying some of the dietary changes discussed here and seeing if I have any success. I've definitely started eating the bulk of my meals earlier in the day to avoid going to bed full.
Thanks for reading if you made it this far. Any replies are very much appreciated. Take care!
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