Reflux - Is it still with you?

One of the things I remember reading while I was researching gastric bypass surgery was the fact that GERD "went away". I only had mile GERD, so it was just one of those pleasant side-effects of the surgery. While I was being scoped recently, to identify a pain, the radiologist mentioned that while I was drinking the barium it was backing up into my esophagus! Reflux? No!!! Since then I have had several nighttime episodes of serious reflux - where I have (sorry) aspirated the liquid into my bronchial tubes and my sinuses and suffered for a week from the effects. What I would like to know is . . . Has reflux become a thing of your past or is is still present? My doctor (PCP) prescribed Prevacid SoluTab which helps a little. My surgeon said to try it but sounded sceptical.

IT IS GONE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I had the worst GERDS EVER! It would cause choking in my sleep and at times, I couldnt even breathe...I was on Prilosec for over 3 years prior, then switched to Protonix. I am still scared to eat anything that has red sauce in it for fear of that feeling, but it is surely gone. Good Luck to you... Christmas Baby

I have this unreasoning fear - based on nothing - that I ate so much before I had the surgery that I stretched the hole into my stomach and ruined the valve that keeps the food in. These recent bouts don't seem to be related to any specific food or time of eating before I go to bed - they just jump up in the wee hours and make me miserable. I have been carefully watching in case there is a pattern. Thank you for the luck - I need it on this one!

I had it before my WLS and didn't have any problems w/it for about 1 1/2 yrs. than it started up again. My surgeon did an endescope to see if I had an ulcer and what was causing the reflux/gerd. What happend next was a nightmare (too long to go into) you can read my profile if you want to know more. Anyway, my surgeon isn't practicing right now so I had to find another dr. Unfortunetly my ins. won't cover any Bariatric Surgeons so I had to get a GI doctor. He orderd an upper GI and I am having esopagus spasams. Which is what I thought was going on. He told me the only thing he can advise if for me to eat slower. But besides the spasams, I feel the food and even liquids, come back up. Funny thing is I don't have any burning w/it. Not like heartburn. I pray this goes away soon. It can get very uncomfortable at times. I pray you find relief soon too Elizabeth! Your Gastric Buddy, Jeannie Lap RNY 7-8-03 290/148 Below Goal PS in Oct. of 04 and more to come!

OMG! They didn't find anything like ulcers or tumors or anything else when they did the CT scan and upper GI on me either. Just the reflux. The food and liquid do come up and you are right - they don't burn like they did before surgery. I do have the pain right in the center of my rib cage (assume that is where the stomach sits) that causes me to push in by crossing my arms across my belly - kind of like the pregnancy pose - to get relief. Eat slower . . . What a concept. I've been working on that all my life and even more so since the surgery. Thank you for sharing your experience. I'll work on it.

OMG...Jeannie..I will have to read your profile. THIS IS AWFUL. I had spasms at one time and my dr and I could not figure out what they were related to. I have never had children so I cant relate that either..It was this terrible pain in the middle of my esophagus, not burning, but like someone had kicked me in the diaphragm and I would gasp to get my air. I dont know if this was some sort of GERDS coming back on me or not, but I went on a week or so of Protonix and it is gone again. Have not had those symptoms again. It is just awful what some people have to endure PRE AND POST OP. Christmas Baby

I had acid reflux awful bad prior to the surgery, but have only had 2 episodes in the past 13 months since surgery. However during a barium swallow test a month or so back, I too was told that the barium backed up. I thought that was what I saw on the screen, but thought my eyes must've deceived me. I have had two strictures in my throat and was told it was due to scar tissue from acid reflux in the past. My doctor recommended Nexium (the purple pill). It does the trick really well.

Nexium! The Prevacid isn't all that great - perhaps I should ask about Nexium. Thank you so much for your answer. All this stuff that turns up as a result of our past isn't what we wanted! I wanted to return to the perfection I was born with! Oh well, I'm a Leo, I must be pretty close!

I didn't have acid reflux before surgery, I developed mine at about 3 1/2 years post op. Darlene

Do you take any medication to relieve the symptoms? My PCP and my surgeon seemed to think that there wasn't anything that could help due to the RNY. As I said, the Prevacid helps some and I am interested in whether Nexium works or if there is anything else that has been proven to work on our restructured digestive systems. Thank you for your response.