GERD problems

Ok i was finally recently diagnosed with GERD after an endoscopy. Iam 20 year old male and 165 pounds so weight is not an issue. They found that i have a hiatial hernia as well as a weak les sphincter. Anyways my GI doctor put me on kapidex after followup. I prefer kapidex to protonix and i was doing pretty good until this morning when i had a random bout of nausea. Luckily i had some phenegren left so i took it and got better. I have already bought the special pillow that raises my head while sleeping and i think has really helped me.

GI doctor also gave me some probiotic pills and i finished the trial 4 days ago but still not sure if it really did anything. So when it flared up today i also got diahreeah which is rare for me. Only thing different i ate the night before was an chocolate ice cream bar which i never eat because GI doctor said to avoid dairy products. My biopsies came back normal and so did ultrasound and blood tests (Heliobactor, e.t.c.). Anyways it flared up this year after a stressful situation but before that i was symptom free for 3 years without medicine. Why was there such a break in my acid reflux? I am scared to go off a PPI at the moment because last time i did back in april i had the worst rebound ever. I remember vomiting for 2 or 3 days straight. Thats the thing with my symptoms is i get the vomiting as my main symptom. Heartburn is just a secondary symptom in my case. Only thing i can think of is during those 3 years i was working all the time and staying active and thats maybe why i didnt have any problems. Now that i am jobless iam not very active. Can someone give me some tips?

[Ratnakar Kini, MD]

Hi,
Stress can worsen acid reflux disease symptoms.
You may follow stress relaxation techniques and take PPI also for adequate control of GERD symptoms. Lifestyle modifications also needed ( some of which you have already done)-
Lifestyle modifications -
1. Head elevation while sleeping
2. Small frequent meals
3. Going to bed 2- 3 hours after food
4. Avoiding bed time snacks
5. Avoiding smoking and alcohol
6. Avoiding tight fitting clothes
7. Avoiding cola, citrus drinks, carbonated drinks, tea, coffee, spicy food
8. Weight reduction

[jamie999934]

just to follow up on my info it has been affecting me now for 9 months straight now.