Thursday, September 03, 2009 mrharrell asks

Q: Nexium side effects are horrible, but it eliminates reflux. What do I do?

I am 25 years old and never had a health problem in my life. I lost my job in January 2009 and coffee/stress gave me reflux. It is not the typical heartburn that I have felt seldomly in my life. It is a raw "heat" and gagging feeling down my throat and sometimes stomach pains that I get about 20 mintues after I eat.

I have eliminated all acidic foods and drinks, but if I don't take Nexium, I still get it. Nexium 40 mg helps a lot, but the side effects are unbearable. I have thought about taking the 20 mg, but I don't want to purchase it if it doesn't help (no perscription coverage). Prilosec helps for about a day if I don't take Nexium, but reflux symptoms return after I do not take nexium for a couple of days.

It's hard to decifer what to do somedays. Take Nexium, No reflux, but terrible side effects? Or don't take it and live with the reflux which makes me miss work sometimes?

I just want to see if anyone else is living with such a horrible problem and what they do to fix it. This has been a disparing experience for me, I cry myself to sleep sometimes because of the reflux or the side effects from the medicine. I am desperate for information because my new insurance policy will not cover any medical expense related to a pre-existing condition. I just want to feel better. Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

Answers (2)

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mrsrlp

9/ 3/09 2:39pm

Hi mrharrell,

What kind of side effects are you having from the medication? I take it also.

mrharrell

9/ 3/09 2:55pm

Hi there, thanks for replying. I get some headache, diziness for about an hour, I have had severe abdominal pain on my right side by my liver one time, which was so bad I had to stop the Nexium for awhile. I also get diarreha from it, that is the most frequent and common side affect. It's not so bad that that I can't take the nexium, but it does disrupt my life and I have to pump myself full of Immodium in order to get rid of it. I don't like taking very many pills, so this has been a difficult transition.

Do those sound similar to what you experience and if so, are there any remedies? Do you take 20 or 40 mg? thanks!

mrsrlp

9/ 3/09 5:56pm

I do not have any side effects, then aggain I am on so many powerful drugs that I may not know it is due to the Nexium. Have you tried Acid? It really works and it may not bother you. Ask you doctor to change you memed. Your Rx should never cause you any distress, if so you really need to get off it. Would you believe that before I was put on Nexium, I would drink a glass of H2O with baking soda. I did that for years to relieve heart burn. It worked too. Let us know what you find out from your doctor.

Susan

Jan Gambino

9/ 4/09 6:02am

Hello! I agree with Susan. The medication should not cause a lot of pain. Any medication can cause side effects but it sounds like the side effects cause a lot of other discomfort and even necessitate further medical treatment. See if the doctor would recommend another acid reducer medication. There are many to choose from both prescription and over the counter.

I wonder if you have changed your diet to reduce symptoms. My teens can greatly reduce their symptoms by careful eating. Another non medication treatment is to elevate your bed with pillows or a wedge so that gravity can control the reflux while you sleep.

Jan

mrharrell

10/19/09 1:39pm

Hi Susan and Jan,

Thank you for your suggestions and responses. My doctor took me off Nexium and prescibed Prevacid. I also had an encodsocpy done last weekend and the doctor said I looked fine, but they took a few biopsies. I am not wondering what could be wrong. I had an ultrasound done, and that came out clean. I will hear back about my biopsies this week and then I guess we'll go from there. I have read more and more about this laproscopic fundoplication procedure and I'm nervous to even consider it. Apparently, the success rate is high, but the recovery time is also significant. I just started a new job and I do not accrue any vacaction or sick leave for 3 months. I want to be able to feel normal again, but I do not do well with the thought of spending months in recovery and not being able to eat solid foods for a long time.

We'll see what happens I guess. I ordered some Slippery Elm Bark powder to try, I'm going to stay off my meds and see if I can't try a homeopathic remedy for awhile. The Nexium destroyed my intestines and it will be a long time before I recover from irregular bowel movements and nausea. I'm glad to be off the drugs, I'm starting to feel normal, even without the Prevacid. Maybe I was over medicated? Who knows, I'll keep you posted on any turn of events. Thanks again for your help.