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Another thing is to raise the head of your bed 6 inches. This allows gravity to work to keep the acid where it belongs.

rhodesengr wrote:

mouthbreather72 wrote:Now I only drink the apple cider vinegar once in a while as a preventative because I truly believe it aids in overall good digestion.

yes, there is a theory going around that GERD is due to too little acid rather than too much acid. In fact there is at least one book on the topic. I looked into it a few years ago. Apple cider vinegar was one of the methods to increase your stomach acid. There is another method that you may like better if it works for you. You can buy a supplement called Betaine HCL. Here is one example
http://www.amazon.com/Now-Foods-Betaine ... B000M4CD2C

I found it much easier to just take the capsules than to drink the cider vinegar. There are also cider vinegar capsules you can get. The idea was appealing to me sense it is similar thinking to low carb diets. The problem is not too much fat etc... but in my case, it seemed to help but not enough by itself. If the vinegar works for you, you might find the betaine works better or at least easier.

I will look into those capsules. It would definitely be more convenient and look more civilized than taking a swig from my huge jug of apple cider vinegar. I only use it about three times a week now to stay in good working order. I never want to go through the agony of feeling like the pits of hell are fuming up from my stomach.

I'm glad I'm not the only one who thinks too little acid is the culprit in some cases. Thanks.

here is the book I bought about increasing acid with supplements
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/087131 ... detailpage

that's interesting about the low acid, have to read a bit on that.

In addition to no food within 3 hours of sleeping and no greasy foods at all and an incline frame....a little bit of bulk forming natural psyllium helped to get rid of that lump feeling in the throat. Also lowered maximum IPAP by 1 or so and bloating decreased. Still swallowing a little air here and there near wake up, but not enough to get the bloating feeling.

I am so frustrated. I've been on acid blockers or ppi's for most of 20 years. When I first went low carb my GERD was cured but after getting pregnant with my youngest I've been unable to get it under control. I think I did some serious esophageal damage for a few years as I got very heavy and sick and did not watch my diet or treat the GERD. Bad apnea was a contributing factor.

Since being consistently low carb and on CPAP for the past six years it's better than it was, but still pretty bad. I found I cannot have dairy. But I can't get off the drugs. They are EVIL!

I think I'm just going to have to suck it up and hope I can do it this time by getting a better balance of acid. A little scared I will drown in reflux or burn a hole in my esophagus in the process, but I want off these drugs!!!!

Janknitz wrote:I am so frustrated. I've been on acid blockers or ppi's for most of 20 years. When I first went low carb my GERD was cured but after getting pregnant with my youngest I've been unable to get it under control. I think I did some serious esophageal damage for a few years as I got very heavy and sick and did not watch my diet or treat the GERD. Bad apnea was a contributing factor.

Since being consistently low carb and on CPAP for the past six years it's better than it was, but still pretty bad. I found I cannot have dairy. But I can't get off the drugs. They are EVIL!

I think I'm just going to have to suck it up and hope I can do it this time by getting a better balance of acid. A little scared I will drown in reflux or burn a hole in my esophagus in the process, but I want off these drugs!!!!

Fundoplication surgery

Janknitz wrote:I am so frustrated. I've been on acid blockers or ppi's for most of 20 years. When I first went low carb my GERD was cured but after getting pregnant with my youngest I've been unable to get it under control. I think I did some serious esophageal damage for a few years as I got very heavy and sick and did not watch my diet or treat the GERD. Bad apnea was a contributing factor.

Decades of migraines causing vomiting and cough presenting asthma which also often triggered vomiting has done the same to me. I originally got the PPi's when I was prescribed some temporary meds which were guaranteed to cause stomach issues , what a difference it made to how I felt! I never went off them again. No more constant low grade pain.

Oddly enough, and I'm just reporting....not bragging or complaining.....after two months of CPAP treatment I was able to come off the Prilosec and Pepcid AC I had been rotating through for at least twenty years. I also had horrible reflux at night if I ate anything even close to bedtime. And I am talking coming out the nose and going in my lungs horrible. Have not had a single episode since starting CPAP. So, if nothing else, that has made wearing the mask worth it. One of my goal is to stay off as many recurring drugs as humanly possible. When my father died, he was on 11 prescriptions. I have no idea how he kept up with it all with different dosages, etc.

Mudrock63 wrote:Oddly enough, and I'm just reporting....not bragging or complaining.....after two months of CPAP treatment I was able to come off the Prilosec and Pepcid AC I had been rotating through for at least twenty years. I also had horrible reflux at night if I ate anything even close to bedtime. And I am talking coming out the nose and going in my lungs horrible. Have not had a single episode since starting CPAP. So, if nothing else, that has made wearing the mask worth it. One of my goal is to stay off as many recurring drugs as humanly possible. When my father died, he was on 11 prescriptions. I have no idea how he kept up with it all with different dosages, etc.

Mudrock, My experience has been almost exactly the same as yours. I went off Prilosec down to Zantac after many years on Prilosec. I haven't had the chocking night time reflux since starting BiPAP a year and a half ago. My mother had severe osteoporosis which I'm also being treated for. My concern was the increased risk of possible hip fracture.

OkyDoky wrote: Mudrock, My experience has been almost exactly the same as yours. I went off Prilosec down to Zantac after many years on Prilosec. I haven't had the chocking night time reflux since starting BiPAP a year and a half ago. My mother had severe osteoporosis which I'm also being treated for. My concern was the increased risk of possible hip fracture.

Glad to hear I am not the only one. I am happy to be able to say good-bye to Prilosec after all these years. Especially happy since the report came out last week linking similar medications to kidney damage and disease.

I don't usually chase new medical studies, but staying on these meds 20 years straight can not be good for you.

Mudrock63 wrote:Oddly enough, and I'm just reporting....not bragging or complaining.....after two months of CPAP treatment I was able to come off the Prilosec and Pepcid AC I had been rotating through for at least twenty years. I also had horrible reflux at night if I ate anything even close to bedtime. And I am talking coming out the nose and going in my lungs horrible. Have not had a single episode since starting CPAP. So, if nothing else, that has made wearing the mask worth it. One of my goal is to stay off as many recurring drugs as humanly possible. When my father died, he was on 11 prescriptions. I have no idea how he kept up with it all with different dosages, etc.

Going on cpap made a huge difference but I was not able to go off of it.

Everyone with any of the symptoms listed below would do well to read all of Dr. Park's blog entries on reflux - http://doctorstevenpark.com/index.php?s=reflux

How many of you with sleep apnea also have reflux issues. Your symptoms don’t have to be heartburn or indigestion. It can be throat clearing, post-nasal drip, coughing, hoarseness, a lump sensation, throat pain, and even tightening.

When in deep sleep, due to our muscles relaxing to various degrees, the smaller your jaw size, the more likely you’ll stop breathing and wake up partially or completely. During this process, a vacuum effect is created, actively suctioning up small amounts of your stomach juices into your lower esophagus or your throat.

ChicagoGranny wrote:Everyone with any of the symptoms listed below would do well to read all of Dr. Park's blog entries on reflux - http://doctorstevenpark.com/index.php?s=reflux

Yes well I have been using cpap for almost 6 years now so the current reflux problems are not OSA related.

BlackSpinner wrote:Yes well I have been using cpap for almost 6 years now so the current reflux problems are not OSA related.

You were not in my mind when I posted that. You have a depth of knowledge that I could probably add little to, and I would guess you have read most of Dr. Park's blogs already.

CPAP does help tamp down my reflux, but I find that I am still having it(though more mild) EVEN on medication and EVEN with CPAP and EVEN watching my diet.

If I eat dairy, nothing stops it. I'm trying to be better about not eating dairy. I'm good most of the time, but then I "fall off the wagon".

Sigh . . .

Being human sucks!