Acid reflux

[Jirorii]

hiii,

i currently believe i have acid reflux (was told i have it by a doctor) and i have been prescribed lansoprazole and peptac to take for it. there's quite a story behind all this but it's complicated to get into. i'm 19 years old and my symptoms started with stomach ache for a few weeks, which moved onto sickness and diarrhea. i got chest pains and was prescribed meds for acid reflux.

i'm taking lanzoprazole twice a day, and peptac twice a day but at the moment i've been experiencing worrying throat pain which includes a tight throat, sometimes burning, a feeling like my sinuses are filled with liquid and earache. this has been happening on and off, occurring every few days for a couple of weeks now.

is this something i should be worried about and is it an immediate threat to my health? i feel as if something bad might happen and it is worrying me but the doctor said to try that series of meds for four more weeks before i can have an endoscopy.

any advice and reassurance would be gladly welcome.
thank you for reading

[paranoid-viking]

I have had acid reflux since i was...maybe 12 years old or younger. Have had it for decades now and I am taking medicine for it. I am alive and well, but if I forgot to take it I get a dissgusting feeling in my stomach and throat.

It is not an immediate threat to your health but you should check out on what diet to have if suffering from acid reflux. Lots of good advices aroound. Maybe you should avoid spicy food for a start.

[budgie1979]

Sounds like maybe you had a viral infection and it led to the reflux? If so, most likely a short course of meds will clear it up and you'll be back to "normal". If it doesn't clear up, you'll have the endoscopy and they will possibly confirm that you have reflux and keep you on the meds longer. Nothing to worry about at this stage. Reflux can cause health problems if left untreated for a long time (like, decades), but you are very young and can avoid those issues by taking it seriously and doing what the doctors recommend as far as diet and medication.

The throat and ear irritation can be caused by reflux so I would expect that to improve once you've been on the medication a few weeks. I initially got diagnosed with reflux by my ENT because I was having a persistent sore throat and sinus/ear issues. Unfortunately, the throat irritation probably takes the longest to clear up of any of the symptoms. I think it took me a full month on omeprazole before I stopped having the irritating cough, and I still get a sore throat if I am do things like indulge in an alcoholic drink with dinner or eat something too spicy/acidic.

[adventurine]

Acid reflux isn't pleasant but it isn't an immediate threat no.

I had an endoscopy for a different reason (I highly recommend you ask for sedation if you get one, I did mine awake and I wish I was sedated while it happened) and it revealed that I had a hiatal hernia. So I can be prone to acid reflux only mine is silent.

I learned to control mine through diet :) Part of my bed is propped up as well so I don't have too much bother in the night with it.

I find that for me personally if I'm really bad and medicines aren't helping I'll make myself a almond milk and banana milkshake and it really helps me.

It might be worth talking to your doctor about lifestyle changes that can also go toward helping managing your symptoms :)