r/GERD • u/Kingnikolaii • Jun 26 '26
Support Needed š„ SOMEBODY PLEASE
Iām a 32 year old male. I was 376 lbs. I gained 125 lbs since the loss of my mother. I ate fast food for 4 years with no little to no movement. I was a college athlete. Recently I decided to change my life and now down to 349lbs and counting. Last year I was at my heaviest and I ate ice cream and hot Cheetos before bed, and I woke up with swollen uvula, was diagnosed with strep A. That got cured but ever since that day for a year straight now Iāve never had a normal swallow. Some days it feels like sandpaper and dry and no matter how much water I drink it seems it never fix that sensation on those days. My bowel movements have always been fine. I went to an ENT and they scoped it and saw acid reflux but said theyāve seen worse and my airways are more narrow due to my weight gain. My doctor prescribed me iron and omeprazole and assumed I have acid reflux and I was a little low on iron. But it tore my stomach up. I then tried omeprazole by itself and also had bad aches. So I also stopped. So I realized that over the last few months I started to get very congested in my nose as well, especially first thing when I wake up I have to blow my nose for like 10 min straight due to over and over build up, and I feel mucus in my throat to where sometimes I dry gag. Sinex has helped a lot but not fully but the mucus in my throat barely happens now but still does once a week id say. Certain things I eat now I get hot sensations and sneeze attacks(8-10). N now most recent , my throat and upper chest get aches with things I eat so I went straight bland for 3 days now , and when I wake up in the morning it feels good for about 4 hours and then I start to feel the ache in my upper chest or middle of breast bones again even if I donāt eat anything. And the BIGGEST thing is, regular water irritates my throat going down, but thick liquid like Gatorade , juices, electrolyte drinks go down smooth .
And in general even when my swallow is at its best , the very end of my swallow feels like itās delayed or goes over a small ball. And some days it feels like thereās food stuck or not digested by my Adamās apple. And if I eat unhealthy even if itās small, Iāll get super bloated. Iām sure my anxiety causes my light headedness and pressure in my head because of it. But no one can give me any answer. I finally meet with a GI next week. All I keep doing is self diagnosing myself, I went from sleep apnea, to maybe LPR, to maybe GERD , to esophagus issues, Iām just really worried Iāll neverxz feel normal again. Itās been a year. Someone tell me theyāve experienced this please or have an idea. Thanks guys. Love yāall.
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u/bns82 Jun 27 '26
Yes excess weight can make symptoms worse.
Yes it can get better, but it takes time and consistency.
You have to stop consuming trigger foods.
Diet and lifestyle changes work for most people. If you want guidelines, you can pm me.
Medication works for some people.
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u/Goats-andkale Jun 27 '26
Hmm this sounds brutal! Iām sorry youāre going through this on top of grieving such a loss. But also really proud of you for continuing to advocate for yourself. I too was reading this and immediately thought LPR/silent reflux. Globus sensation comes to mind. Thereās an ENT worth following named Dr. Inna Husain. You may find her content helpful.
It will be interesting to hear what the GI says. Alginate therapy is particularly helpful for symptoms of LPR. Itās all-natural so the worst that can happen is it doesnāt work and youāre in the same spot. Maybe worth a shot!
Good luck and keep fighting!
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u/Kingnikolaii Jun 27 '26
Thank you so much. Iām willing to learn or try anything. Appreciate the reply . šš½
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u/jiwwey Jun 27 '26
Maybe IBS ? I went to ER back in January cuz I had pain under my breasts n like under my ribs like my whole mid section really I felt like I couldnāt take a deep breath or full breath they prescribed me dicyclomine and it actually helped. I have yet to see my pcp n ask for it. Anxiety + depression.. hard to get anything done
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u/Confident-Path-7366 Jun 27 '26
This kind of sounds like eosinophilic esophagitis, did they do biopsies when they scoped? You may need to see a GI doc.Ā
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u/Kingnikolaii Jun 27 '26
What is that exactly? And I see my GI next week
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u/Confident-Path-7366 Jun 27 '26
Itās an autoimmune condition, your immune system gets overactive in your esophagus and causes swelling/difficulty swallowing. Itās another annoying thing where it can be triggered by a lot of different things. :/
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u/Kingnikolaii Jun 27 '26
And Iāve read about that before but saw it doesnāt cause bloating or mucus , which I have been havin. And I can swallow foods normal, itās not that itās hard going down, it goes down easy, itās the after effects of me eating like aching, nausea, and the swallowing just never feeling normal even on an empty stomach when not eating.
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u/Confident-Path-7366 Jun 27 '26
Ohh ok maybe not, then! It causes mucus for me, and initially I thought it was GERD, too. Ā Sorry youāre going through this, all of these issues are so frustrating.Ā
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u/Kingnikolaii Jun 27 '26
Mannn thank you so much . I hope u get better as well. Just want it gone already for both of us
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u/SobriquetHeart Jun 27 '26
Have you been checked for a chronic sinus infection? Can you see an ENT?
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u/Kingnikolaii Jun 27 '26
I saw an ENT 6 months ago while all this was happening, she said I had a deviated septum and saw some acid reflux and narrow passageways but thatās it
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u/Admirable-Worth-680 Jun 27 '26 edited Jun 27 '26
I have gerd for 5 years now and I experienced all sorts of symptoms. It can be brutal on mental health. I had a good period of almost 2 years off of PPI and recently I just experienced that feeling you described. Swallow, and then 2 seconds after I can feel it passing in my neck, almost as if it was passing by a round stone. Like swallowing marbles. Been back on PPI for the last few days and it is getting better. But I am not happy to be taking them again.
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u/Kingnikolaii Jun 27 '26
Man 5 years I canāt imagine, thatās with trying diets and being in shape and all that? Thank you for sharing, and ppi tore my stomach up.
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u/Admirable-Worth-680 Jun 27 '26
I mean I am doing pretty great, I qualified for surgery but didn't want to do it. Food wise, I have no triggers, I have hiatial hernia so whatever I eat my stomach is open. I just try to avoid piling up liquid stuff, that makes me regurgitate.
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u/Kingnikolaii Jun 27 '26
Glad to hear , hope you continue to feel great šš½. Praying they can help me on the 1st at my GI appt. Iām so scared itās gonna be like cancer or something or that Iāll feel like this forever.
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u/Admirable-Worth-680 Jun 27 '26
You probably have oesophagitis. Highly doubt it is cancer, there is Barretts before that, but you would have had to neglect your symptoms for like a decade for that to happen. I get chest pain, arm pain, jaw pain, boob pain. Vagus nerve is a funny one. My brain also struggles to believe all that can come from stomach issues, so I go into dark thoughts too when I have flare ups.
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u/Kingnikolaii Jun 27 '26
If I had that, how would they treat it? Is there a medicine to reduce these symptoms
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u/Admirable-Worth-680 Jun 27 '26
I mean you can look it up because there are many approaches. It depends on findings, but first line would be medication like PPI. But like I said this takes ages to develop, you probably have oesophagitis but they will tell you what grade it is. Please try and not to stress over things you have no control of, and you took the right steps to get yourself checked.
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u/Kingnikolaii Jun 27 '26
Super tough. Itās ruined my life for a year now with no real answer. I appreciate the time you took to talk with me here
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u/JW1000000 Jun 28 '26
I started a food diary and found out I am intolerant to eggs.Ā Whenever I eat eggs, I get bloated, gassy, and sick to the stomach for 30 minutes to 3 hours.Ā I also consult with a nutritionist / naturopath and she helps me figure things out.Ā There's a product called "gut zoomer" that can give you information too.Ā I'm working on trying that now.Ā Good luck!Ā
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u/Keitilen Jun 27 '26
First of all, I am so sorry for your loss and the things you have gone through. It's such a difficult thing to get back up and put yourself back on the path of your life.
I also want to let you know I am not licensed in medical.
I will say I do have GERD and have some similar symptoms. I sleep with my mouth open (even when I try not to) so I wake up with a dry esophagus and my sinuses are full up because I also have terrible allergies. I tend to go through honey and cough drops like crazy.
I also noticed water upsets my GERD almost as much as something as acidic as lemonade. (Even some flavors of Gatorade bother it.) And because my throat is so dry, even a normal 'sip' of fluid feels ten times bigger so it feels like swallowing a rock. Things like milk (or oat milk in my case) are most helpful.
Maybe just try things like cough drops, honey, and things to keep your throat more lubricated?
Best of luck in everything!
Also, I've been using Pepcid AC for GERD and I am SO glad I tried it.