Here is a simple, short, but informational video about acid reflux or GERD (GERD stands for Gastro Esophageal Reflux Disease. "Gastro" refers to the stomach. Esophageal refers to the esophagus , the tube that carries food from the mouth to the stomach. Reflux means to back-up or flow backwards.)
I have been battling acid and heartburn for years. Growing up and until I was about 25, I fasted (i.e. abstained from food and food-like drinks) from 1 to 2 weeks several times a year. During these times, I experienced the strongest and most painful heartburn. I naturally attributed this to the fact that I was fasting. Still, as the years have gone on and my love for spicy food has continued, my struggle with heartburn became a daily one. I am now 29, and have not fasted but maybe a few times over the past four years. Still, my heartburn has steadily increased to the point where I now take one of the following pills everyday in order to avoid the pain…
This pill is the ONLY pill I have ever taken daily and for this long. I would say I've been taking the pill for about a year now, with some stretches here and there without it. The fact that I take this pill has been weighing on my mind, even though I am VERY GRATEFUL for the relief it has brought from a VERY PAINFUL ailment. I have been uneasy simply because I have never been a pill-popper, and I am skeptical about the non-preventative, treatment based, money-making nature of our healthcare system. I have heard so many stories about "wonder-drugs" that end up turning out to cause major health problems in other areas of the body over time! So, while putting this foreign chemical capsule into my body every morning has been a "life-saver" of sorts, I can't help but wonder if somewhere in a dark corner of my body, there isn't a nice little tumor building up as a side effect!
Well, last night, after doing more shopping and cooking my first "Lifestyle-friendly" meal with my family, it hit me – HEARTBURN! Of course, since it came on a couple hours after I ate my dinner, it was already too late to call my friend/coach to ask her about my delayed release acid pills. Because it was day one of "the lifestyle," and because my friend had strongly encouraged me to cut EVERYTHING out, except those things allowed under this new approach to eating, I had decided not to take my acid pill earlier in the morning. Well, that's all it took – missing one dosage – for my heartburn to return. And what usually adds to the pain of the heartburn is the pressure I end up getting in my head as the acid seems to climb up higher and higher into my esophagus! This leads to an eventual pounding headache and a last-minute dash to the market for my backup plan and instant relief on those days I do forget to take my morning pill…
Fortunately, the heartburn didn't get too bad last night. I went to bed worried that I might wake up with a terrible case of burning and pressure. But, praise God I didn't. I am guessing that a combination of the better, less-acidic ingredients of the meal we ate, and drinking the better water throughout the night sort of was working to counteract the reflux effect. Either way, I was glad that, even though I hadn't taken my daily pill and hadn't popped antacid tablets, I was fine in the morning.
That's it for now. As I said, I am anxious to see how this new approach to eating helps my acid and heartburn problems.
No comments:
Post a Comment