Naproxen

[Jodiedebs55]

Hi

Iv recently been prescribed naproxen for severe upper chest pain from left arm pit alternating to the right , at first gp suspected inflammation so prescribed the anti inflammatory naproxen, I was in so much pain I started the course , pain subsided slightly but blood tests showed NO inflammation ? Angina was also ruled out , I'm hypo and have hashis, I'm obviously very careful about what I eat and what , if any , drugs I take , I thought anti inflammatory drugs would be safe but iv just read they can cause ulcers , holes in stomach wall and reduce stomach acid which is definitely not good as I already have low stomach acid, I'm going to stop immediately but wondering if any other members are familiar with naproxen ? Research scared the hell out of me 😳 thanks in advance

[jimh111]

Naproxen is a powerful NSAID and can cause stomach or gut problems, fine if you need to take it. I would first get all cardiac possibilities ruled out just to be certain (I've no expertise in this area). If all is OK I would try seeing a physiotherapist just to see if they can help, it's non-invasive and you will know if you are getting better.

[Jodiedebs55 in reply to jimh111]

Thankyou, iv stopped taking them I took 13 in total , I already have leaky gut so obviously I'm not impressed gp still prescribed them

[humanbean]

The usual method of protecting the stomach when taking NSAIDs is to take drugs like PPIs e.g. omeprazole and lansoprazole, or an H2 receptor blocker like ranitidine (also known as Zantac).

I take naproxen, and I also take ranitidine. I couldn't live without the naproxen, my chronic pain is too severe. As a result I have no choice but to take the stomach acid blocker. My gut isn't healthy, but I don't feel I have any choice.

If people take NSAIDs (like ibuprofen or naproxen) without some way of protecting the gut then they are likely to get ulcers and other gut problems. I took lots of ibuprofen in my 20s for excruciating period pains. I ended up with a duodenal ulcer.

Incidentally, I really don't understand why or how PPIs or H2 receptor blockers protect the gut. I just know from my own experience that they do. But it is at the expense of nutrient absorption.

It really must be up to you to decide how you are going to deal with this problem you have. How well can you live with the pain without relief?

This may be irrelevant, but I've had lots of chest pain over the last few years. I eventually discovered it was caused by severe iron deficiency. I didn't get much help from the doctors and so I started learning what I could about testing iron and iron-related measures, learned about supplementing, learned how to interpret my own iron test results, and I now keep my chest pain at bay. I lose iron very quickly if I stop supplementing, so I always take a maintenance dose now. But bear in mind that supplementing iron isn't something that people should do unless they really understand what they are doing and what risks they run. And most important of all is that they must test themselves regularly to make sure they aren't poisoning themselves with too much iron.

Is there any chance your problem is muscular and a physiotherapist could help?

[Jodiedebs55 in reply to humanbean]

Thankyou so much this is very interesting and useful info , I found it didn't relieve the pain at all to me fair and blood test revealed no inflammation so gp just advised paracetamol .. hmm like that would help eh ,

[humanbean in reply to Jodiedebs55]

Paracetamol hasn't done anything for me since before I hit puberty, sadly.

[NWA6]

Have they mentioned costochronditis? That’s an inflammation of the lining between the ribs. I had that a few years ago. Your symtoms sound similar. I took naproxen for a couple of months. I suppose it helped but still very painful. I had no problems with my gut. HTH

[Jodiedebs55 in reply to NWA6]

That's interesting you should say that as it was briefly mentioned then nothing else done , iv stopped taking them as I read they interfered with the stomach and if taken long term cause ulcers and internal bleeding I already have hashimoto's so I dare not risk it and they did nothing for the pain , thanks for your reply

[lew-ann]

Hi

I have been taking naproxen 500mg twice a day (1000mg) for over 5 years I was prescribed omeprazole originally but have not been prescribed it since 2015, it’s a good anti inflammatory but useless painkiller but everyone is different. in the beginning I got a little heart burn and only recently had a blood test to check liver function

But you really should talk to your own Dr. as dr google can be quite scary

But in the long run even combined with load of other meds I have had no issues as of yet

[Jodiedebs55 in reply to lew-ann]

Thankyou for your reply , the blood test say no inflammation so gp suggested paracetamol which is laughable as the pain is excruciating and I don't have a clue what it can be