Gerd cough making me miserable.

[Fedora10]

l am new here and would love advice. Consultant is calling me at end of month to discuss. At last appointment suggested doubling dose to 80mg. Said no last September but I am feeling much worse now. Gerd cough back now with a really sore chest. 40mg of esomeprozole daily (taken for 2 years) no long fully working. Also coughing now less acceptable!! Really appreciate some help.

[Chickadeeday]

Have you gone back to your doctor to tell them what is going on? You don't say your age or how long you've had it and why you think you have it. But honestly this can be seriously to do with deadly or not deadly consequences and therefore its absolutely imperative you seek professional advice.

[Uneym in reply to Chickadeeday]

I am now 66. Had odd bouts of heartburn over the years but started coughing a lot añd also had trouble swallowing. Had an endoscopy that found what was referred to a a slider. A hiatus henia. Impression was it was nothing to worry about. Cough became persistent and chronic. My local doctor put me on 2 weeks of antibiotics and then esemprosole. That was a life changer I started to be able to swallow easier and got more sleep though still had to sit up to stop cough. I asked to be referred to consultant because stated to get a sore chest i think from coughing and also was worried at idea of taking tablets forever. Consultant suggested more tablets I aid no. he suggested to see how I feel 6 months later. Now I feel worse. Cos of CoVid my appointment is by phone so want to be clear. I feel sure now I want an operation. Thanks for the support

[Chickadeeday in reply to Uneym]

Thanks for the reply. Well, I started having problems a year ago and I am 59 so it has been a matter of lifestyle changes. The older I get the more I realize I must take responsibility for my health and try not to rely on doctors or band aid medicine unless

it's absolutely crucial. The fact is nobody cares but ourselves! haha So I would be looking beyond a good and caring doctor , at what you are eating and drinking and doing with your days. Do you eat plenty of fruit and veg? Do you drink plenty of water? Do you get enough sleep? Are you overweight? Do you drink alcohol? Do you drink a lot of coffee or tea? Do you exercise? Are you happy in life? Do you have too much anxiety? Do you have a meaningful goal and pursuit in life? That is what I am doing and never get close to perfect but doing what I can to aim for all the things I know follow a better path. Good Luck!

[Mauser1905]

Welcome Fedora10,

As you are seeking advice, please read the oesophageal patient's association' reflux awareness pages in the link belowopa.org.uk/awareness.html

In my view reflux should be treated for root causes via surgery and LINX treatments where lifestyle alone cant resolve the issue. Long term PPI or H2 blockers arent root cause but only day to day symptom management. This is how I got my cancer diagnosis.

Each case to its own diagnosis and prognosis, hence my advice is generic and only your grandson team can advise you specifically.

Good luck.

[Uneym in reply to Mauser1905]

Thank you so much. I honestly feel the same and refused to double the dose but as it got worse was wondering about options. Feel much more confident now. Also red the info.

[Mauser1905 in reply to Uneym]

Typo grandson was meant to be hands-on

GPs typically keep on managing the issue forever as not everyone reacts badly nor gets cancer, hence the trouble for few getting it harder to get the hospital referrals in time. Altogether a greater debatable topic.

Having said that question the approach taken as being in vain now, if the throttling options of different types acid treatments, lifestyle actions, successive dosage increase hasn't helped to resolve the issue, means the root cause issue has persisted significantly and now requires fixing by the GI team inthe hospital.

[Uneym in reply to Mauser1905]

Thank you this is helpful

[iMissyB]

Hi Fedora10, you are on the right site to help yourself, just read through the many posts and see the kind of things that can help, ie food and drinks to avoid, measures to take. It’s not clear whether you refused the 2x daily ppi dose or your consultant refused to give it to you? I had a lap Nissens op at the same time as a hiatus hernia repair to fix my Gerd misery and it worked a treat, for over 18 months I had no PPIs, the recurrent chest infections stopped and I could sleep laid down again (yay!) but I met my now husband who eats a lot and scuppered my own results by starting to eat bigger meals and more sweet stuff such as daily puddings! I’ve put too much weight on and got the cough, which came back after 18 months and the frequent clearing of my throat, stomach pain if I eat and more so if I don’t eat. For the last 4 yrs I’ve been back on PPI meds and since I saw the consultant I’m on esomeprazole x 1 daily but I’ve been told I should take it 2x daily. I want to come off these as they are making me lose my hair but it’s better than oesophageal cancer! I’m finding that taking my nightly codeine helps with the diarrhoea and eating smaller meals, cutting out sugar from my diet and chewing each mouthful of my food until it’s the consistency of baby food helps with preventing post eating stomach pain and bloating. I was having gaviscon liquid nightly before bed but recently I’m finding that it effects my throat and chest for some reason. Hope you get a good result from speaking to your consultant, please keep your chin up, educate yourself by reading others stories that way you will feel supported and you will realise that these are very common problems and you are definitely not alone! Hope you will let us know how you get on. Best wishes x