How to live a normal life? PERMANENT treatment??

[kendra_hope]

I am 18 years old. Since July 2009 I have suffered from terrible stomach problems. I went back to my doctor and he reffered me to a gastroenterologist. She did an endoscopy and told me I had gastritis. She put me on Omeprazole and told me to not eat caffeine, alcohol, spicy food, etc. It is now April 2010. I have been on the acid reducers for seven months and for a while they were working and I was able to eat and I felt good. I went back to the stomach doctor for a check up and she told me to stop taking the omeprazole and take something less strong like zantac. I was off Omeprazole for maybe three weeks when one night in March 2010 I ate some chips and some strawberries and I ended up getting sick. I started taking the Omeprazole again hoping it would ease my stomach discomfort. It hasn't. I went back to the stomach doctor, yet again, and all she told me was to take the acid reducers and watch what I ate and to stay away from acidic foods. I am constantly watching what I eat because everything ends up huting my stomach in some way and makes me feel sick. For a while, after everytime I ate, I would get this burning feeling in the back of my throat and it was extremely uncomfortable. I would take Maalox thinking it would help stop the burning feeling. I think it helped a little but in the end it would just make me feel even more nauseas.  I try to not eat food past seven o'clock at night because I am always waking up in the middle of the night with this feeling in my stomach that feels like a big bubble. The feeling in my stomach is like this bubble and it makes me feel like i have to burp or get sick to my stomach and it keeps me from sleeping.
I am willing to try anything to help. I just want to be a normal teenager. For more information on my story ask me and I will post my whole story

[kendra_hope]

yes. Thank you for understanding! Everytime I talk to my friends about it they just think its gross. I have a doctors appointment tomorrow and hopefully they will give me new ideas. But Im not getting my hopes up because Im afraid they will just tell me the same things over and over again.

[darkest_embrace]

i know how you feel Kendra, I have had all your symptoms for last 9 months, and its been hell. It affects every aspect of your life, and not alot of the tablets given by doctors seem to work very effectively. Im currently waiting to see a GI for an endoscopy, but even after that and any diagnosis given, cures for GERD seem rare.
It really ***** to see others now enjoying food etc. and people like us have to watch everything we eat. Ive been on every pill and liquid antacid, but find no relief, and my doctors really dont want to know.
I have real problems sleeping as acid is permanently burning my throat, and the burning in my chest is immense.
I hope you get some relief from chatting on here, and reading others stories as well..
=)