I’ve had daily enemies my whole life: bloating, wheezing, shortness of breath, etc. They’re nothing new, but this new symptom is just plain annoying! I suppose it’s due to my increased food intake producing more stomach acid. It used to just be that I was supposed to take Zantac to help my enzymes not get destroyed as fast, but now it’s a matter of daily functioning.
I’m wondering if anyone else is experiencing such a brutal burn, so let me describe it. There is a strong pain, as if I swallowed battery acid, in my throat/windpipe just below my Adam’s apple. Nothing above and nothing below hurts. No amount of eating or drinking cold things make it go away. The only relief is an hour after Zantac or prevention via Zantac.
So, anyone else burning away, too?
It sounds like heartburn, all right. Could be acid reflux as well, but your doctor will have to fill you in on that. You'll want to curb it, though, and soon. Chronic heartburn in cystics can actually help to culture bacteria, since you're breathing in that acidic air. Most doctors will prescribe Nexium, and you'll find it works much more efficiently than Zantac.
Oh, wow! Thanks for the head's up. I'll ask them about that. I know they
said to not bother taking Zantac twice per day, so let's see what they say
about Nexium.
Prilosec works for me. But I was just talking to someone who said he gets pretty good results with Nexium. The other bad thing about heartburn/reflux is the damage it will do to the esophagus if left untreated.
The Dr. will probably also say something about increasing the frequency and reducing the size of your meals. As you can guess, that a scheduling mess!
Eating this much is already a second, wait, third full-time job…
We were looking at Prilosec OTC yesterday… I'm going to e-mail Rolfe about it to see if that will be any better than Zantac. It's twice as much, but I'm just about taking 2 Zantac per day now.
I've been on Nexium for years. It works. However, it has a potential downside called c-diff when you're on IVs. I know this because I've had it several times and it's nasty. So, if your doc prescribes Nexium, try and take the lowest dose that works and check with your doctor to see if it's okay to go off it during IVs. Also, there is some commentary on the web that by using Nexium, you're reducing one of the best defenses your body has – stomach acid. Make your you have a doctor who knows what he or she is doing it comes to heartburn. Do you see a gastro doc?
Yep! I have had acid reflux for years and have to take Prilosec every morning to get over it. The CF hubs never had acid reflux but that may be because he used to down water like it was going out of style anyway to help keep the mucus loose. Are you drinking a full glass of room temperature water each time you eat? That may help.
Not at the moment, but I would have if I wasn't able to finally put on weight.
I drink plenty, but I won't be able to be persuaded to drink lukewarm water. ๐ I like my flavor, so I'm primarily a Gatorade and tea man.