GERD and other symptoms need advice/worried

[Rosemary349]

Hi Everyone

I've just typed out this message on 'ask Dr Parker' (I've never used that service before but when it said a doctor is online now I thought I'd get an immediate answer, I've now been told that I'll get one in due course, no one is online)...anyway I thought I'd just put the same question here and see if anyone here can help or has any experience of this.  I don't get a lot of GERD symptoms, though I get them occasionally.  I think I may have a virus, but as you will see from the letter I have other worries...especially as I live alone.  Thanks for reading it.  :-)


"I'm very nervous because I witnessed my father die in front of me of a heart attack after having 3 days of indigestion (no classic chest pain).  This was 6 years ago, he was 64.

I'm 45, female.  I've had stomach discomfort since last saturday.  Some of it has been GERD like, some of it more around the naval, last night GERD again and then diarrhoea, which then relieved the GERD immediately.

I've also felt like I was 'glowing' all week, but my temperature is always low/normal (I have hypothyroidism).

The other worrying symptom for me is that my legs feel like jelly on and off and usually coincides with some kind of stomach discomfort.  I don't believe the legs symptoms are anxiety, I know that feeling, this is different.

I spoke to a doctor mid week on the telephone and told him all my fears but he said it sounds like a gastric issue and that the jelly legs is anxiety.  I was reassured but now, it's saturday, a whole week has gone by and the symptoms still keep coming and going.

My mum thinks it's viral because she felt stomach discomfort in the week and felt faint (she never does).

I'm too scared to call 111 here in England because if I mention GERD I will have to automatically go to hospital for heart tests and it scares the hell out of me now.

I guess the question is, is it not unusual to have jelly legs, repeated GERD and stomach discomfort, etc, with some sort of stomach bug?  I'd rather stay home and not worry but I'm worried enough to ask these questions.  Thankyou."

[selmaS]

  Glad to hear you got a reply.

That is all we can do, one step at a time.....do try to relax and I pray you feel better soon <3

[Rosemary349]

Thanks so much for that Selma

I have wondered if I've got some kind of flu type illness due to the fatigue and wobbly legs and yes as you say that might have led to a flare up of the stomach issues.

Taking it a step at a time.  

The doctor on ask the doctor has replied and said it's unlikely to be a heart issue, although of course has told me everything to watch out for.

[selmaS]

  No worries, I understand and an not imagine what you went thru to witness that.....so I understand how you feel, but keep in mind stress will add to how you are feeling and make you feel worse...it adds to the reflux symptoms...

GERD or flu symptoms depend on the individual we are all different...but when in a flare of GERD symptoms I have had it take a month or more to calm down....diet and lifestyle factor in to how long it will take....so try to relax, mind your diet, and I would also suggest keeping a journal to see if there are triggers to your issues.....keep track of how you feel....up beat, down..etc along with what you eat, drink etc....this may help you figure out what is going on.

The flu it typically a week....but as I said we are all different as to how long it takes to feel better and if you have reflux the flu will trigger symptoms to flare so some could be from the flu and the rest is reflux....I know it is a vicious circle. Hang in there.

[Rosemary349]

Thanks Niko

I think once I'm better I will start questioning my thyroid treatment and I've taken note of your points.

I can't be reassured re the fact that there's no history of heart issues because I've learned from what happened to my father that there often isn't any history. For most people it doesn't creep up on them and give warning, it presents suddenly.  It's the scariest thing in my life right now.  :-( But perhaps I should allow myself to be reassured a bit, because.....well this is what I was trying to get at with my post, these symptoms could be a stomach bug and if so I need to deal with them the way anyone else would.

[Rosemary349]

Thanks Selma

After my dad died I had a whole battery of tests and then again 2 years later, so that would be 4 years ago now.  I was reassured that I did not show any signs of heart disease but I'm never going to be reassured because my dad never showed any signs either.  I also know that a heart attack often presents without any warning, so often it is a typical presentation.

I guess what I'm asking here is what are typical signs of stomach problems also, because I know many people out there would just give it time.  I'm just wondering how much time does the average person give it?  How long do stomach bugs take on average to get better?  How long does a flare up of GERD take to get better?  It's not just GERD.  Today there isn't any, just the odd twinge lower down in the stomach and wobbly legs.  I would think that I was getting better if I hadn't had this all week (I seemed almost back to normal on Thursday and then not, so I'm not trusting it anymore)

thanks for listening to me, I'm too scared to go off to hospital right now, I've been once before about a year ago and I was put on a heart monitor and then left in a busy ward for hours before they came back and said all tests were normal and that it was just indigestion....while I was in there I knew that if I died in there it was so busy no one would see or notice until it was too late.  Sorry to sound dramatic, I've been told I've got ptsd over what happened.

[selmaS]

  Hi and welcome to the GERD forum,

I would agree with most of what the above poster has suggested except, if you have not had your heart tested, I would suggest you do so....your father suffered a heart attack after dealing with days of GERD like symptoms....so do make sure that is ruled out as a possibility.

Not sure if you had any testing to see what is going on, but low levels of vitamins and minerals can also cause some of the issue you described.....so blood work may be a good place to start.

Keep us posted on what you find out.

[TheLightSeeker]

Hi Rosemary.
I'm so sorry for your suffering and the loss of your dad under those circumstances and so young.
If you have no history of heart issues, then chances are that it has very little to with heart involvement..
I recommend you take a holistic approach and take steps to improve
your health naturally to the point where you do not suffer recurring episodes like this present one.
You need to arm yourself with knowledge, to feel confident enough to take health matters in your own hands..
The NHS. doctors and hospitals should be used  mainly for emergencies, surgeries and very acute conditions where they a better record..

Something tells me that your hypothyroidism is still under-regulated.
I heard that you cannot get Armour prescribed (not NHS approved).
If you are taking Levothyroixine or synthroid there might be an issue
with that as any form of T4, converts to reverse T3 if you have thyroid resistance.
This alone would make matters worse for your thyroid function as it further reduces the available T3 (which is the one your body uses-T4 is storage hormone)
What many people don't know is low thyroid function affects greatly the
gastro-intestinal, neurological AND cardiovascular systems!
Recovery from virtually any condition is much more difficult!

You may need Cytomel only (T3) or a combination with natural desiccated thyroid. This is a very delicate condition to treat and has to be monitored
carefully, in order achieve proper thyroid regulation.
But who can help you, when the health care system is so dysfunctional?
Can you go private to a knowledgeable private consultant or Naturopathic doctor?

An elimination diet would be also helpful in the future after you get over this bout of whatever it is viral infection or other.

Hope this helps,
Niko