Slippery elm

[Mum007]

I suffer badly with a rolling hiatal hernia and Gerd. I have been on esomeprazole on and off for a few years now. To be honest it doesn’t really work and after being on it for several days it makes my intermittent restless legs a nightly thing. I have tried just about every medication there is to heal my gut, natural and medicinal but the pain and gastritis always comes back. I am currently trying slippery elm, this gel can help coat and soothe inflamed tissues in the gastrointestinal tract. This may be beneficial for people with acid reflux. Unfortunately after taking it twice a day for several days my restless legs are giving me sleepless nights again. I am sure that it is the slippery elm as I came off it and then went back on it again. I am just wondering if anyone knowledgeable can explain to me why this herb which contains a substance called mucilage, gives me terrible restless legs. I currently take no medication for rls or Gerd other than iron tablets which I take 2 hours after the slippery elm.

[DicCarlson]

I don't have any info about Slippery Elm - but I had GERD so bad it made my teeth hurt (stomach acid into my bottom front teeth) and coughing all night. It sure didn't help with RLS insomnia! I assumed I had Small Intestinal Bacterial Overgrowth (SIBO) -and used the herbal treatment from here...

siboinfo.com/herbal-antibio...

You could also try d-Limonene - natural orange peel oil. Pretty good explanation here...

articles.orangeburps.com/20...

[Mum007 in reply to DicCarlson]

Thanks. Have tried everything including d limone, digestive enzymes, probiotics, DGL, apple cider vinegar etc etc. Presume nothing works because I have the less common rolling hiatal hernia as opposed to a sliding one which means it’s stuck in a permanent position causing constant Gerd.

[Marksllama]

My sister has had the exact same experience with slippery elm causing a flare up of her RLS. She actually has the RLS sensation in both her arms and legs. Unfortunately the slippery elm seemed to be helping with her stomach acid and pain but it's not worth it when it causes the RLS. She can't sleep or do much of anything when the RLS flares up as I'm sure you can understand. She is on a disability income and can't afford to be on the internet so I look things up for her. She asked me to reply to your post and see if you ever found anything to help with your GERD &/or RLS. Any info or advice you might have would be much appreciated! Thanks!

[Mum007 in reply to Marksllama]

I have had severe GERD for many years. I was diagnosed with a hiatal hernia but now they say I don’t have one!! I also had gastritis and inflammation of the stomach. I have taken many ppi’s but they all eventually cause restless legs and arms. I have tried many natural things like slippery elm, d-limonene, zinc picolate, apple cider vinegar. Too many to mention. The only one I think gave me the best relief was mastica but you have to take it for at least a month to see if it works. Wine, alcohol, fruit juice, fatty food, fizzy drinks and large meals are all known irritants and for me in particular chocolate.

Some foods to avoid with restless legs are sugar, including sugar free alternatives and alcohol, Also many medications make restless legs worse, blood thinners, cholesterol and heart medication, antidepressants and many more. If your mother is on any medication including cough or cold medicines then start a new post on health unlocked and someone will advise you if it is causing restless legs. Also has she had a full iron panel done by the doctor. Find out the full results and don’t just take the doctors advice that it is normal as normal is not the same for anyone with restless legs.

[Marksllama in reply to Mum007]

Thanks so much for the reply. My sister has been feeling like she's the only one in the world to have a 'natural' remedy trigger her restless legs. It helped her a lot to know she's not the only one. She's actually had severe bursts of stomach acid without reflux for about 3 years and only recently did it start to reflux up into her throat. It began about a month after surgery to deal with a twisted bowel and hernia repair. The drs can't figure out why it's happening and at the same time she's got a large abdominal hernia (opened up along the incision from the hernia repair)that can't be fixed until she loses about 30 lbs. The only thing that settles the pain from the acid is to eat so she has to eat even when she's not hungry & has gained a lot of weight. It's a vicious circle and she also has major depressive disorder that is unmedicated because she gers horrible rashes from all of the meds. Sorry, this is a long post but I am desperate to help her. She's waiting for appointments with a gastroenterologist and a dietitian but wait times are crazy here in Ontario Canada. Again, thanks so much for answering my post...just knowing she's not alone helps (although she's so sorry you're suffering as well!)

[Mum007 in reply to Marksllama]

if she’s on a load of meds I would definitely list them in a new post on the restless legs forum. There are a couple of people who are very knowledgeable on medications and they can tell you if they are exacerbating the rsl and give you alternatives to ask for. Has she tried bicarbonate of soda and water sipped throughout the day. It neutralizes the acid. Please get her iron levels checked for the rsl.

[Marksllama]

She is on several meds so I will post them and she needs bloodwork so I will let her know to be sure iron is checked. She's had very few episodes of RLS until recently trying slippery elm. I believe she has tried the baking soda and water but I will check when I talk with her next.

[Mum007 in reply to Marksllama]

make sure it’s a full blood panel including ferritin

[Marksllama]

Will do...thank you