Hi,
I am 29 and have suffered from GERD for several years now with little relief. I've had a few periods of time in which it has "calmed" but in the last year it has been much more consistent. My main symptoms are moderate to severe pain in my upper stomach (in the middle but not on the sides of the body), extreme bloating (I look like I'm 5 months pregnant), and foul-smelling gas. There are periods where I am in pain for days with little relief regardless of bland diet and medicines. I have these episodes numerous times each month lately. I went to a GI more than 6 mos. ago, and she did an upper endoscopy. I was negative for H. pylori and the only thing she found was stomach inflammation in the upper stomach. She then said it was GERD. I have been off and on various PPIs after having absolutely no luck with Tums, Pepcid AC, etc. Recently, I started getting loose stools on a regular basis (which never happened before) which were associated with the stomach pain (i.e., I would have a loose BM and within 30 minutes, I was in extreme pain). I was told it could be the "fillers" used in the offbrand PPI causing side effects, so I went back to name brand Prilosec. 1.5 weeks after starting Prilosec again, I have had three days of massive pain and loose stools. I am starting to wonder if the PPI is doing more bad that good. I eat a low fat, vegetable-rich diet ALWAYS, and I eat bland foods when I am not feeling well, but not on a regular basis. Ironically, white wine makes my stomach feel much better (every time), as does lying ON my stomach. When I am in pain, lying on my stomach is the only relief, which seems weird considering one would think an acid reflux problem would get worse when lying down. My doctor is very unhelpful and I need to find a new one, but will likely have to wait several weeks to get in for a first appt. Any advice (particularly from professionals) in the meantime would be GREATLY appreciated! Do you think it's possible I actually have low acid, or a different problem? Thanks!