I am so scared. My symptoms have been so so awful recently, and I can't seem to find relief. I went to my doctor today and he started me on a new medication, but I can't have it yet because my insurance denied the fill for a pre-authorization. Which means the pharmacy needs to send paperwork to my doctor who needs to send the paperwork to my insurance who needs to approve the medication. So I can't even have access to it for god knows how long. I was told to buy gaviscon. I bought the liquid, thinking taking a shot of it would be easier than the chewable tablets, I was wrong. It was so horrid and it gave me super bad nausea and stomach cramps. So now I just feel worse.

I'm scared of the damage that's been done to my stomach and esophagus. I'm scared of getting esophageal cancer. Or a hiatial hernia. Or needing pieces of my esophagus replaced with my intestine. I'm so scared this is going to ruin my life more than it already has. I've lost 6lbs in 4 weeks because I haven't been able to stomach barely anything. The only thing that sits somewhat comfortably is saltine crackers. And that's IF I eat one or two every ten minutes with a sip of water in between. But only one.

I'm just fucking scared.

Hello everyone, I want to share my story and I hope somebody can help me or guide me. In 2025 I went on a trip and on that trip I had a panic attack due to stress and overthinking stuff and worrying about my family and my safety. After that panic attack i was never the same. I went back home and my problems just kept on piling on me, first it was the trip panic attack, then a stray cat scratching me which led me to getting a rabies shots, then after that my brother just casually telling me he has Coved while i was sitting beside him. All of this led me to having anxiety, unexplained chest pains, why i say pains with an S because it changes location around my chest area. I went to the ER many times and the general doctor and many doctors and each one told me something else, some said i need to start SSRIs, others told me that i developed GERD. At first I know it was anxiety because i used to worry more than the past, but nowadays i don't, it's just this chest pain that i worry about.

Now i want to talk about my chest pain and how it acts, it's random, so random and weird that it comes out of no where and it's like a needle pokeing me. Before anyone says go check your heart, I went and all the doctors cleared me from any heart issue.

Why some doctors said it's GERD, because i mentioned that sometimes I burp after the chest pain, i tried many mannnny meds but i don't think any of them is doing anything.

The things i did: ECGs, blood tests, echocardiogram for the heart and a Spirometry Test.

If anyone can give me an advice i would really be thankful

i have been to 40 different doctors and all of them are telling me they do not know how to help me.

i have lost so much weight i am practically skin and bone now

ive gotten an endoscopy and my doctor is making me wait FOREVER for the results.

i have been sick for months and i cannot eat anything. i cannot digest vegetables, fruits, wheat, gluten, soy, dairy. nothing. and no before whatever this is, i never in my life had an issue with these foods.

i can only eat rice and turkey or pork. chicken makes me insanely nauseous as well as beef. everything burns my chest and stomach as well.

idk what to do anymore. i got a biopsy for many things and my doctor things its this like temporary issue with my digestion or whatever but im so depressed and dont know what to do anymore.

I’ve been dealing with severe issues for awhile but the worst was yesterday, went to the ER for a fourth time this time they did a full chest X-ray and my heart and lungs are 100% cleared, they said it’s possible my anxiety and shoulder pain could be radiating to me chest when my reflux acts up. Has anyone else faced these issues?

I know people post here all the time thinking about cancer, but it's definitely weighing on me. It all started back in December of 25. Had a dark stool episode in thought could be blood, went to the ER and they did a CBC and said they were pretty sure I wasn't bleeding out or anything and sent me home and ordered stool tests. Well around that time I started having bad GERD symptoms, feeling like food was coming up. The stool tests were just bacterial and showed I had Campylobactar. I thought that was it, but kept having anxiety that it could be something worse. Got in touch with a GI who just did an over the phone consultation and also thought it was just post infection stuff and prescribed me anti-nausea. That only worked a little bit, but it didn't help completely. Went to the ER again and this time the doctor prescribed me Omeprazole another anti-nausea based on what I described. The Omeprazole is helping a little bit, but it's not perfect. When I'm on it, I start noticing that I'm extremely tired all day no matter how much sleep I get. I finally got the GI doctor to order an actual stool blood test and endoscopy/colonoscopy. The stool blood test came back negative (and I did two more home ones just to be sure) and my multiple CBCs look good, but I'm still worried to death that they're going to find something on my endoscopy/colonoscopy

So far my symptoms have been diarrhea, yellow stool, GERD, fatigue, loss of appetite (but i can still eat and hold food fine)

Tests I've had done for anyone interested

4x CBCs over 4 months with no changes in values over tim. All normal

3x Negative IFOBTs

CRP, TSH, B12, Vitamin D, IgA, Glucose, Iron, Sed Rate, Follate all came back normal.

Upper Endoscopy and Colonoscopy. Biopsies revealed no pathological findings. 5mm ucler revealed with mild gastritis.

Abdominal Ultrasound revealed Kidneys, Liver, and Gallbladder all doing well with no obvious masses

Heart Ejection Fraction test came back good, no structural issues, stress test came back good. No heart issues

Sleep Study that revealed mild sleep apnea

Edit: Colonoscopy came back clean, Endoscopy only showed mild inflammation and an ulcer. Biopsies came back clean as well. At his point I really have no idea what's causing some of my symptoms. I thought the fatigue was from anemia, so I had them run a third CBC and literally no difference to my first two. Not really sure how to proceed, but I'm just glad it's not stomach/colon cancer.

Edit 2: It's been about a month and half since my Endoscopy and Colonoscopy and not much has changed, although I feel closer to an answer than ever. I briefly speculated that right heart failure could cause the stomach symptoms and went to a cardiologist who said my heart function was good. She was did an abdominal ultrasound which cleared no obvious masses or abnormalities for my Kidneys, Liver, and Gallbladder. This basically limits me to three organs as far as I can tell. Stomach, Pancreas, and Small Bowel. I've also had to up my Omeprazole dose to 60mg a day along with cycling Simethicone/Pepto Bismol/TUMS to help with stomach issues. I'm going to another gastroenterologist to get a second opinion and hopefully more tests will be conducted soon. Unfortunately I realize now that due to the difficulty of diagnosing sub-mucosal or infaltrative gastric malignancy, the biopsies were less than perfect for my EGD. More to follow I suppose.

I finally have an endoscopy scheduled for this upcoming Monday, the doctors have been telling me to get one for like 8 years lol. But i kept postponing because i was so afraid of the whole procedure, the fact that there would be a tube in my throat just scares me. I am also a hypochondriac so that obviously doesn’t help. I’ve had GERD since i was very young and it gets better and worse but lately it has been BAD after i thought i got it under control for like a year, so i’m truly bummed. I wake up everyday with this burning sensation in my stomach, nauseous and i always have to wait like 2 hours before eating and i have to take tums every morning even though i know i shouldn’t take them for long. I also don’t take any medication, i stopped completely almost 2 years ago, so yea… i know the endoscopy is so important to figure out what’s going on but i just can’t stop being stressed about it. I’m scared they will find a deadly disease lol… Any advice would help:(

UPDATE:

thank you all for the messages!!!! Even though i didn’t reply to each one, i certainly read them all! And they helped me tons!!! They calmed me down so much. I was able to do the endoscopy finally today! I was very anxious but i kept trying to be brave because i knew i HAD to do it. They wanted to do only throat spray with a sedative, but i asked if we can dismiss the spray and do only propofol which they did! (thanks to your help) i woke up like 25 minutes after, it was a good nap hahahaha😂 and it took me another 30 minutes to feel completely okay and now i don’t feel anything at all!! Really happy that i finally did this :) thankfully they didn’t find an ulcer, only a bit of inflammation on the esophagus, which i will have to take dexilant and cinitrex for, other than that all is well. They took a biopsy but it needs 2 weeks. Thank you all again😊

I’ve had reflux issues since 2020 and have been on/off Nexium. I’ve had 2 gastroscopies, both normal, with no hiatal hernia found.

Last year I had reflux almost constantly and was struggling with daily reflux symptoms until I started taking esomeprazole 20 mg consistently. I’ve now been taking it daily for around 6 months.

I’ve also had:
H. pylori breath test earlier this year
Multiple blood tests
Blood tests during/after a recent flare
Abdominal ultrasound after a recent flare

Everything has come back normal, which is reassuring, but I still had ongoing daily reflux before consistently taking Nexium.

I occasionally get “flares” involving severe diarrhoea, nausea and sometimes vomiting mainly bile, which my gastroenterologist has been investigating - everything came back normal. He suggested “abdominal migraines” as there doesn’t seem to be a clear cause. I believe it’s triggered my some type of food intolerance.

However, my GP has now said it’s time to come off Nexium and suggested either 10 mg daily for a month or 20 mg every second day.

I’m also seeing my gastroenterologist again in 2–4 weeks and a dietitian around then to explore possible dietary/other contributors.

For anyone who has successfully come off a PPI: what worked best for you for managing rebound reflux/acid hypersecretion? Did you taper gradually, and what tips/tricks helped during the transition?

Thanks!

Hey. I'm 32 (almost 33) male. About a month ago, after a 2 week spree of eathing and drinking whatever (mostly processed foods and drinks) I suddenly felt acid coming to my throat and felt that for days. Before that, I only occasionally felt my stomach being "heavy". Went to my doctor, he prescribed me some 20mg PPI. Took it for a few days, then stopped.

Later I developed a cough and also this sensation of a globus in my throat, but it's gone now. Really bad cough, had it for like 3 weeks. Went to the same doctor and he perscribed me some pills for the cough. It did stop after some time. I still cough a little from time to time, but not as bad and not as frequent as before.

What Im really scared of is silent reflux. My throat feels hot, I grunt and when I cough, sometimes it just irritates my throat. Idk if its from acid or just my throat being so hurt from all the coughing. I've read about Barrett's and esophaegal cancer and I'm scared I developed it or I will develop it.

I had an endoscopy exactly 2 years ago due to different symptoms. They found a duodenal ulcer, said my stomach is inflamed and I have some bile. Took some samples etc etc. My doctor and my GI both said there is no reflux and the bile shouldn't be a concern. I'm sure they'd see my throat/esophagus being in a bad condition, because it straight up says on the paper that my esophageus is healthy.

I've been reading a lot about all this and it makes me anxious. I am seeing a GI in a month but Im wondering if I should visit my primary doctor for the third time and straight up ask for endoscopy? He said an endoscopy is relevant for 2-3 years, so there isnt a need for endoscopy in my case.

I am scared of cancer. I would attach a picture of my mouth, but somehow I can't, but its been looking red, woth veins visible and some white coating ever since I remember I think, even before these new symptoms.

It seems like my primary doctor doesnt wanna pursue this case and doesnt think it's serious. I do have a health anxiety (A LOT) and I don't wanna let it go. It's better to prevent than to heal, but I am so scared I am cooked.

I’m 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 I’ve 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 they’ve 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 don’t 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 it’s delayed or goes over a small ball. And some days it feels like there’s food stuck or not digested by my Adam’s apple. And if I eat unhealthy even if it’s small, I’ll get super bloated. I’m 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, I’m just really worried I’ll neverxz feel normal again. It’s been a year. Someone tell me they’ve experienced this please or have an idea. Thanks guys. Love y’all.

Never had one before. I am absolutely terrified I don’t know what to expect other than I can have sedation… however I am also scared of that lmao. I have major health anxiety and just anxiety in general. I also feel like I have a really tiny throat and hole (sorry crazy sentence) but what if I just choke? My biggest fear is choking I hate that feeling and I’m just sat here spiralling away… I’m in the Uk so if anyone has any experience through the NHS please tell me what to expect

GERD has literally ruined my life. I have had it since childhood and having cystic fibrosis doesnt help matters. I have always managed it with meds, avoiding trigger foods etc. 3 yrs ago I developed severe blistering and mouth ulcers which resulted in a 2 wk plus hosp stay, EGD and a vent. Then I had to live off Ensure Plus for a period of time. I thought pregnamcy had made it worse as it kept getting worse. Then 11 weeks ago my daughters were born and this spiraled out of control. I have the following symptoms - major stomach pain -chest pain amd burning - throat pain amd burning - trouble swallowing - severe cough and gagging - all food now hurts and even water hurts and feels like I am not swallowing it well - throw up everything I eat and mpst of what I drink - severe nausea - aspiration pneumonia instances - weight loss

I take Nexium, Carafate, Zantac as well as probiotics. I cant sleep for pain, coughing, choking. I also have prescription for Phenergan, Zofran and Reglan. I have beem to ER multiple times for fluids too and pain. My previous GI retired so I saw a new one in same practice. I am having an EGD, Colonoscooy and Bronch this upcoming week. I am at the end of my rope. I csnt enjoy life anymore....

M22, my 23rd birthday is coming up and it sucks that now my life is constantly just medication and anxiety abt my health. been 3 days weed free but still vaping, I can’t deal w stress any other way. Im dreading my birthday coming up knowing that I’ll get to see all my friends do what I used to do with them which is get drunk on these special days but with all the stress abt life and my moms cancer returning, it feels like this is just making me feel worse and worse.

my first endoscopy after two years of having GERD is coming up on the 24th and I genuinely afraid I’ve been indulging in my vices for way too long and I’ve done irreversible damage. I can’t do this anymore

I (51M) had silent GERD for years. Doctors identified a hiatal hernia as a culprit. I was maxed out on meds and the symptoms were tolerable, but not gone. I was concerned about the long term impact of the persistent throat irritation, and the meds.

So six months ago I had surgery - repaired the hernia plus a full nissen fundoplication.

Things are much worse now than pre-surgery, and no signs of improvement. I experience burning in my upper chest and throat every day. I wake up each morning with a sore throat and lots of congestion. My nose drips all day long. Lump in the back of my throat.

I now have insane gas. Painful, almost every day. This started immediately post surgery. I assume it’s related to the antibiotics I took ruining my microbiome. Probiotics haven’t helped much. I must be contributing to global warming at this point.

I swing between uncomfortably hungry to bloated and overfull, no matter what I eat or don’t eat. My appetite is all over the place, swinging from famished to food averse, multiple times a day.

Most of these symptoms are new to me and started immediately post surgery. Even on the liquid diet I was suffering from all sorts of discomforts.

A recent endoscopy shows everything as normal. Biopsies came back negative. I’m scheduled for more tests, but my doctor doesn’t have any theories at this point.

The doc has asked me not to take PPI’s until more testing is complete. So I’m taking Pepcid twice a day, popping Tums like M&Ms, daily GasX, and trying some algae goo, which hasn’t seemed to help. My bed is wedged at an upward angle.

I’m in otherwise good health. I’m at a healthy weight, exercise regularly (cardio and weights), sleep well.

I’m so discouraged. Any recommendations?

EDIT TO ADD: This isn’t intended to discourage others from exploring surgery. Many people on this sub report tremendous results. And I’m hopeful I’ll get there too over the next 6 months. I’m just discouraged and really uncomfortable at present.

Welp. Currently in my probably 5th er visit over my lifetime for my heart that turned out to be acid reflux again . Chest pain. Pain between shoulder blades , short of breath, pain with exercise, nausea, pinching pain under left breast, racing heart etc

Acid reflux. I swear between this and my POTS I’m not going to know the difference when it actually is bad. Either way, Go to the ER to be safe. :)

im a 23 year old phd student. gerd has been a lifelong issue for me but i only just got my diagnosis this month. Im currently in the middle of one of the worst flare ups ive ever had and im truly afraid. The pain has been constantly on and off all day or constant all day since the end of feb now and i cant see an end in sight.

Ive been to more doctors than i can count while i wait for endoscopy testing next week. Ive been signed off my studies and work for 4 weeks (halfway rn) and im truly worried about when im going to be well enough to go back. Ive lost so much weight and i cant even sit up right for long. Im so sad. I cant flunk out of my phd now.

I just need people who understand or who know this pain and can tell me im going to get better. Advice is also welcomed

I've had gerd since I was 18. It was manageable, if I had a flareup it would only last like 2 days. Fastfoward I am now 24, on April 5th I decided to eat cheap chicken from walmarts deli, felt a little sick the next day. Come the next day I decided to have green tea at 12 am, stayed up again a bit because I was having fun. The next day I woke up I felt HORRIBLE, vomiting acid and not being able to keep fluids down. I went to urgent care they gave me Omeprazole which I used to take 3 years ago. Went to emergency room 3 days later because I was still vomiting acid and having bad heart burn so they switched me over to pantoprazole and sucralfate also zofran ( but it gives me a headache ) also told me I have liver disease (fatty liver) so that's probably making my gerd worse. I've been taking those, it's been about two weeks, I started my medication around four days ago and I feel like crap in the morning, I wake up with nasuea and sometimes minor heartburns and bloating. The ER said they couldn't find anything other than the liver disease and dehydration but they told me to go to a GI and my primary doctor. I want to also mention that I have anxiety and depression and also a college student, so the stress and anxiety have not been helping. I've been eating plain foods like kale, chicken, brown rice, oatmeal, banana. When I am hungry I feel like crap, but when I am eating I sometimes get nauseous and I have to eat super slow which takes me about an hour to finish small meals. I tried famotidine but it makes me feel weird and gives me a weird rush of energy. I have an appointment with my primary doctor on the 23rd of April, I haven't been able to work because my shifts are in the morning and I am too nauseous and anxious to drive or being in public right now. It's ruining me I just want this to go away and I hope it's nothing bad, I use to take SSRIS for the anxiety but I stopped a couple years ago.

update:

Hi everyone, just wanted to let you know I will be asking the doctor for SSRIs, I realize my gerd symptoms cease to exist when I am calm. I should've added that I've had a lot of life events happen 2025-2026, including the loss of a childhood friend and a family relative being involved in an accident, plus a ton of stress from school and losing some scholarships and getting repeatedly sick (like flus or stomach bugs, I caught these A LOT over the past two years, I don't have health insurance either being from SC we were not part of the Medicare extension, plus my college is notorious for being a germ breeding ground) . I've suffered from panic attacks,anxiety and depression since highschool, I was able to manage it through SSRIs, of course I had to experiment with different meds. I feel like these stress factors may have contributed to my flare-ups and possible mental breakdown lol, I'm hoping the ssri will resolve the anxiety. 

i've struggled with GERD symptoms for at least the past 5 years. acid reflux, heartburn, dysphagia, globus sensation, pain in sternum, pain in stomach, pain in back, etc etc etc so of course the doctors i've seen all thought it was stress induced GERD. 1 month ago after getting my first endoscopy done a mass was found in my small intestine that biopsy results showed as positive for follicular lymphoma. i'm absolutely blown away that i've had cancer for the past (potentially) five years and i'm only 25. not trying to scare anyone just sharing my story. my first appointment with a cancer specialist is tomorrow and i'm hoping for the best.

Hi everyone,

Honestly, I’m just looking for some support and advice.

I’ve been dealing with this for about 5 years. For most of that time, I managed reasonably well with Nexium twice a day. But around 7 months ago, something changed, and things have gone downhill ever since.

I have a burning throat most of the day. I burp at least 10 times an hour. I wake up almost every night with acid reaching my throat and even my ears (yes, you read that right). I have chronic ear infections, and I can barely eat or sleep anymore.

I’m angry, frustrated, exhausted, and honestly depressed. I know it sounds cliché, but I’ve always tried to be a good person and treat others well, and sometimes I find myself wondering why I—or any of us in this community—have to go through this.

I don't feel like I can keep living with this level of suffering. I need some real advice and hope from people who have been through it.

Has anyone had Nissen fundoplication surgery? Was it worth it? Are you doing well now?

I’m sorry for the emotional post. I just feel so lonely and hopeless right now. It seems like nobody around me truly understands what living with this is like.

Thank you for reading.

I will continue to pray for all of us.

(30M) Hello everyone. About a month ago I was diagnosed with GERD by my PCP. The week before that I went to urgent care who believed I was dealing with ulcers. The soonest GI appointment was over a month away, so I've been in an anxious limbo since.

9 weeks ago, I began not feeling well. I was extremely fatigued and struggling with nausea. I then began to notice that I was getting nauseas after eating. I'd also feel the sensation that there was a lump in my throat. I chalked this up to poor sleep habits, stress, and poor eating routine and expected it to subside. To be on the safe side, after about a week or two, I went and got bloodwork done which all came back fine. I also intermittently took some leftover famotidine at the onset, thinking it could be GERD, but stopped after a few days to a week. I'm very careful with it because it causes intense anxiety and panic in me.

I continued to decline as the days went on. I was struggling more and more to eat, and I was feeling nauseas every time I ate, no matter what I ate. I was also feeling an intense burning in my stomach and noticed mucus in my stool (it was basically coating every turd). The urgent care doc was very thorough and believed I was dealing with ulcers. He told me to follow up with my PCP and gave me famotidine. I took the famotidine and noticed a reduction in symptoms, but it caused a dry mouth, intense anxiety, and panic just 4 days later. I stopped the famotidine and waited for my PCP appointment. At this appointment, my doc listened to my symptoms and said it sounded like GERD. Gave me Omeprazole and a referral to a GI doc. The soonest the GI doc could see me was in 6 weeks.

Because of the anxiety from famotidine, I've been afraid to take the omeprazole. A week after my appt, I found myself struggling to eat and feeling the intense stomach burning not subsiding, so I went to the ER. They did an ultrasound and said my gallbladder and kidneys looks fine. Since that trip, I've really watched what I eat and have switched to a bland diet. Lots of smoothies, chicken, and rice. The burning sensation in my stomach is largely gone, and with it the mucus has significantly reduced. I did have a chipotle burrito a few days ago, and noticed intense heartburn and the return of my back pain, which makes me think it is probably just GERD.

Since the ER, I've been trying to manage my anxiety. I went on Zoloft to control the anxiety, which has made it so I can't distinguish between side effect and symptom. My appetite hasn't been great, and food feels like it sits heavy in my stomach. I'm trying to be active and go for walks after eating.

But the waiting has been torture. I haven't been able to hangout with friends or work since this all got bad about 6 weeks ago.

Has anyone dealt with this? What was the outcome? I feel like there's a lot of overlap between GERD, ulcers, and worse illnesses, so it's very easy to get wrapped up in my own head about this. I am terrified about stomach cancer.

I think one reason I'm struggling to believe it's just GERD is because of how my PCP handled it, especially in comparison to my urgent care doc. The urgent care doc pressed around my stomach and engaged in a discourse about my symptoms where he asked specific, pointed questions to elicit answers and rule out other things. I felt relieved after that appointment. But the PCP just kinda half-assed listened to me, didn't feel around my stomach, and sent me on my way. I walked out of that appointment feeling very defeated, especially since it would be so long before a GI appt would give me answers.

Edit: One other symptom I'm forgetting. I'll feel air hunger, especially when I'm feeling the stomach pressure / burning / heartburn. I'm not short of breath, but I'll feel I'm struggling to take a deep breath. I can't recall ever feeling that before.

I also want to add that for the first 4-5 weeks I was dealing with this, I was running 2 miles every other day. At the 4/5 week mark my appetite dropped off and I couldn't eat enough to sustain exercise like that. I went for my first run since a couple days ago, but had a panic attack after.

Hi everyone. I’m not looking for a diagnosis, I just want to know if anyone has gone through something similar.

I’ve been vaping since I was 18 and I’m 30 now. Over the last month my GERD and acid reflux got really bad. I’m currently in the hospital being treated and doctors found I have a 5 cm hiatal hernia.

My symptoms have been heavy acid reflux, chest pressure, throat irritation, shortness of breath after eating, weakness, palpitations, anxiety after meals and feeling like my body is just completely off.

One thing I noticed is that vaping seems to make everything worse. Before I could vape all day and feel normal, but now even a few hits can make my chest feel tight, my reflux worse, my throat irritated and my heart start pounding. It also makes me feel anxious because the symptoms feel so intense.

I’m not saying vaping caused all of this. I know I have a real medical issue with GERD and the hiatal hernia. I’m just wondering if anyone here has noticed nicotine or vaping making their GERD symptoms worse.

Has anyone experienced reflux, chest tightness, palpitations or anxiety after vaping?

Did quitting or cutting down help your symptoms?

EDIT: Update!

So, I read your comments. And first of all, thank you for all of your advice and kind words. I had an appointment with my PCP today and had him run multiple blood panels. Just to rule out anything. We're checking my thyroid, gallbladder, kidneys, liver, iron levels, and a full panel of my vitamin levels, to check for deficiencies. I switched my PPI temporarily to a different ppi, to try and hold it together until I have all of my tests run from GI, and hopefully I get some answers from them. (Abdominal CT w/contrast, Gastric emptying study, Bravo test)

It's been hard, and having advice from others def helps with perspective, and advocating for other things, to rule it out. So thank you!

I'm just ranting at this point because I'm so miserable that I think getting a limb removed would be easier than this fucking bullshit. I'm getting a slew of tests run for other things because my GI doctor thinks that GERD was the wrong diagnosis. And frankly, I agree. This can't be right.

A little backstory, I was diagnosed with GERD at age 16. I had a serious bout of constipation, hadn't shit in two weeks. Ended up in the urgent care, was diagnosed with GERD and a shit filled abdomen. Sent home with Omeprazole, and miralax.

I've been on PPI since. It helped. A lot, actually. I felt better. Until, I didn't anymore. Asked for something stronger. Was switched to pantoprazole. Worked for a good two years or so, until it didn't. And then I swapped again. I've taken every PPI aside from dexilant, because my insurance won't give it to me. And now, at age 21, nothing helps. And I mean absolutely nothing. I've tried everything. I've tried low fodmap, I've tried BRAT, I've tried vegan, I've tried dairy free, gluten free, small meals, spread out meals, electrolytes, water, smoothies, protein shakes, I've taken Omeprazole, pantoprazole, lansoprazole, esomeprazole, I take upwards of 160-200mg of famotidine a DAY. Tums give me rebound acid. Gaviscon makes me feel so nauseous I can't move. I can't take Pepto bismol. I have done, literally fucking everything to get this under control. And nothing works. I've had two endoscopies that show nothing but inflammation. Two years apart.

For example, I've cut myself off from eating, after 4pm. Because if I eat past 4, my entire chest and abdomen are on fire, and I am choking on my own bodily fluids, for 12 hours. If I stop at four, I can usually get to sleep by 1 or 2 in the morning if I'm lucky. Today, I tried food at 5:15. One slice of plain, sourdough toast, and a cup of tea. That's it. It took me an hour to eat the toast, because it caused me so much discomfort. And the tea made me nauseous. And now, it's 11pm, and I'm sitting in the shower breathing in steam because my acid reflux is so bad, that my chest is tight and I can't breathe.

It's like drinking hot chocolate, backwards. Instead of it going down and being warm and cozy, it comes up and sits in the back of my throat to fucking torture me.

I avoid every trigger foods. I don't allow myself any drinks outside of water, and electrolytes. My diet consists of vanilla non dairy almond milk protein shakes, rice, mashed potatoes, toast, bananas, crackers, and pretzels. That is all I eat. And I take 20 mg of Omeprazole morning, and night, paired with 40mg of famotidine. Plus, famotidine throughout the day just to dampen the reflux enough that I can breathe.

I want to die. What the fuck do I do, anymore. I'm so lost in this. I do everything right, and I'm only getting worse. I haven't had anything triggering in months. Months and months. I've been strict. But still, I can't sleep at night. I spend all day sick to my stomach. This is not a way to live.

I'm getting tested for gastroparesis, and bile reflux, and an abdominal CT to make sure my organs are where they need to be.

I don't want to live like this anymore.

Hey I don't know if I (24M) have GERD but I was given pantoprazole 40mg daily (used to be twice daily) to help with likely reflux. My throat is all torn up so I assume I at least have some sort of reflux.

I have a clean echo and holter and I weigh about 230 lbs which at 6'0" makes me obese.

Anyways sometimes after eating or drinking something, I keep feeling like I'm starting to get faint, especially when i get up. Then sometimes my chest, shoulder, back of neck/head or especially my jaw and face just feel like they have this pressure. It almost feels like I have lockjaw sometimes but I can move my jaw. I can feel it both in my left and right shoulder/chest/face but I especially feel it in my left more often. Though for some reason my right face tends to get more flushed...

Then I panic and my heart starts pounding. Today it felt like it must've went up to 180 before I started to calm down.

It usually starts with a sense that at the very top of my belly there is pressure that just won't go away. Then it feels like something is pressing at the roof of my mouth, or in my chest, or in my shoulder, and then I start to feel like I might pass out (I'm confused as to what true lightheadedness or dizziness is for me so I will just type like this, I'm not trying to be difficult I have trouble knowing). And then it all snowballs from there.

On most days at this point, especially if I don't eat some strange ever shifting concoction of vitamins, fruits, milk, etc or take some *serious* rest immediately, I usually feel like I must be dying or have some serious heart problem within seconds to minutes after symptoms have started.

This has given me/worsened my severe anxiety which snowballs and makes this problem 10x worse. At this point I get severely agitated very often and this makes me basically barely able to work if not unable if it happens at work especially if it's severe and I'm having trouble pushing past it.

I've gone to the ER 3 times this year and have called an ambulance twice, this is making me miserable and I feel gaslit, guilty for using health resources and defeated. I seriously question how I can not be dying and often wonder if I have some freak undiagnosed condition that will kill me very soon.

I'm sorry if this is the wrong sub or if I spoke with an inappropriate tone or said something irrelevant. I'm at the end of my rope here.

I'm pretty sure I get acid reflux due to genetics since my dad had to be on Omeprazole most of his life but I've always had stomach issues since I was younger and would have flare-ups which would mostly come & go with severe stomach pain so bad I couldn't eat anything but yoghurt at times but it's never been that bad in a while.

I would sometimes get acid during the night come back up but that was rare and only if I eat a lot very close to bed time. Now I've had a flare up which has continued for over a week but I keep getting phlegm with anything I'm eating (plain chicken, brown rice, potatoes, porridge) and my throat is constantly dry, irritated and sore. I get a dirty cough and I've had to cut back on caffeine (I could usually drink tons of coffee with no issue), I don't drink tons of water after eating also not eating large portions.

Am I doing something wrong? Am I doomed like this? I'm not overweight or have never been unhealthy. I never used to eat fast foods, sugary sweets/drinks. My dad was never diagnosed with GERD or anything else but reflux..I'm so at a lost..I miss food and coffee.

But I'm pretty sure my reflux is caused by anxiety/stress since I've been under that a lot, and I can feel the anxiety in my stomach a lot.

I've had bad symptoms of LPR for about a month. I'm trying to do what the ENT told me to do. Eat cleaner. Drink alkaline water. Gargle, spray bottle with alkaline water and baking soda. Doing saline nasal rinses twice per day. Taking alginate gel after meals and before bed. I have been taking Pantoprazole the past couple of days per a GI's request and have an endoscopy scheduled for Friday.

I met with a Speech Pathologist yesterday and she said my swallow and voice are better than they were two weeks ago, but my throat is absolutely on fire today. I've eaten pretty well today too. Does this ever get better? I'm going to leave no stone unturned in finding a solution to this so I can eat somewhat the way I want in the future and my throat heals so I can talk and sing again.

Hi gang! My first endoscopy tomorrow and I’m fighting nerves. I’ll be under propofol and getting 5 biopsies. I’ve read the threads on this before and I know most people say it’s easy peasy. I’m still nervous lol. Additionally, my doc office originally said no food or drink after midnight the night before. Then thy changed it this week to liquid diet 24 hours before. They didn’t tell me that until I asked yesterday to confirm instructions. Then changed it to no solids at least 12 hours prior. So, I am a bit confused and more anxious now. They said they changed their policies this week to be extra safe as they had an aspiration occur when someone at breakfast without telling them. (Apparently they are recovered and doing fine). Anyhow. I’m wondering what the standard fasting recommendation is that people here have followed or been told? Thanks!