hiatal hernia

I have finally found the answer. I think I have a hiatal hernia! My doctors all think I'm just nuts, so they keep prescribing medicines that either make the problem worse, or make me feel like I'm on another planet. I keep trying to tell them there is something else. I have had a pain in my chest since I was 12. No Dr. could ever come up with a good answer as to what caused that. They all gave me a different diagnosis. Now, I'm 38 and I'm getting closer to the truth. 7 years ago, I gave birth to my daughter and the nausea has been with me since. For 4 years now, I have had trouble going to sleep most of the time. It's like I fall off of a building right as I drift off...like 15 times a night. I started feeling fluttering and palpitations. the cardio tests showed a healthy heart but a sensitivity to the amount of adrenalin my body produced in surges. After doing a lot of outdoor work and heavy lifting, I got worse. Tons of gas in my stomach. The more gas in my stomach, the worse I felt. Dizziness, weakness, palps, confusion, voises seemed more distant. I ended up in the ER, (waste of time) two times when it got so bad that I really felt I wouldn't make it. It lasted for at least 7 hours each time and I felt bad the rest of the week. Both times though, there was a link between what I had ingested and how I felt. I'm sure it aggrivated the existing problem and brought on these terrible symptoms. I had drank an energy drink, taken a decongestant for my irritating allergies that have stuck around for a year now,  ate chocolate and had a little bit of Dr.Pepper.  Normally, that wouldn't be a problem. Now it is, and I'm sure it has everything to do with my stomach. We know our bodies, don't we? We live in them all of our life. We know when something is off, besides just our minds. I have read several things that say that anxiety can be a side effect of a hiatal hernia. Chicken and egg..one can cause the other. In my case, it was probably something that started in me as a child and got worse with each labor and delivery. the last child really made it worse, and the heavy lifting topped it off. However, getting my doctor, or any other doctor, to belive that, is a different story. It's like a movie where someone is trying to make people believe them, but no one will. So frustrating!
I'm going to the gastrologist next week. Maybe, he'll have it together and know exactly what's going on and how to deal with it so I don't have to for the rest of my life. I want my life back. This is terrible. You never know when an 'attack' will happen next. It was fuel for my fire when I found that one of my good friends had the same thing happen to her 8 years ago. She too, had anxiety and never put the hiatal hernia and the anxiety together. She went through counselling and all the meds, but at the same time she was seeing a gastro specialist and he put her on 'Aciflex'. She's taken it for the 8 years and is completely better, even with the small hiatal hernia. I'm getting closer guys! I can feel it! Let them say I'm crazy!! All I care about is surviving this and growing old.

[joelee]

hey i have had very similar things happen to me i have had chest pains and i am dealin with the same thing. i have had all the tests all the way up to a cath and i'm still havin palps and my dr. keeps sayin THERE IS NOTHING WRONG WITH YOUR HEART but i know something is wrong i keep havin chest pains, dizzeness, light headed, palps and i didn't get the palps until after the cath. I do have a hiatal hernia but i think its more than that

[Sheanean]

I'm going to a gastro Dr. tomorrow. I just pray he's smart. I'm so tired of this. I have to find out what's going on in there and get it fixed. The more I look into hiatal hernias, the more I feel that is the problem. I also wonder about my adrenal glands. From what I've read, several people have ended up with adrenal tumors who have hiatal hernias. I don't know if there is a link, but I know the problems I'm having are my stomach, the acid, GERD, dizziness, adrenal rushes that make my BP shoot sky high and constant belching. I also have had thinning hair, very dry, flakey skin, pain in the left side of my neck, (I've read that a hiatal hernia can irritate the thyroid) I get very tired easily, I get chills so bad I can't function.....It's all connected. I'm not the only one. I just want to hear more success stories. Need some hope. This isn't something Im ready to live with for the rest of my life. I won't give up that easily.

[bbillcee]

sounds very much like what i have......what results have you gotten?

[Sheanean]

No hiatal hernia...I went to the right doctor who sent me to the right cardiologist. He did a tilt table test and diagnosed me with neurocardiogenic syncope. I'm on a high dose of beta blocker and it's helping.