reflux / gerd / apnea problems anyone?

[danlightbulb]

Hi all,

Last night i woke up and couldnt breathe. I had to jump out of bed and cough harshly for 10 seconds or so. Some flem/bile came out and it burned my throat. Believe this to be an acid reflux problem. I have had it before but only since i started lifting.

Often at night i feel my throat burning in the region of my larynx / back of throat.

Ive read up and this is almost certainly some form of reflux. My concern is that it is caused or made worse by lifting and i want to see if anyone else gets this. I only seem to get the choking episodes after a gym session, and it had also stopped during november when i hardly lifted at all due to colds.

Ive also read that increased abdominal pressure can cause a hiatal hernia whereby some of the stomach gets pushed through the diaphragm.

Ive booked in to see a doctor and in the meantime will be getting some antacids, but its the correlation with lifting and the potential hernia which most concerns me currently.

Anyone have any experience?

[ColoWayno]

Do a little research. The antacids might not be helpful. In fact, you might find you need to take Betaine HCL with meals (yep, hydrochloric acid).

Jordan has a link up somewhere.

Ah, this is it:

http://chriskresser.com/what-everybo...heartburn-gerd

[Greg Esres]

Anyone have any experience?

Both, actually. If I sleep flat on my back with my face pointing to the ceiling, I'll have apnea attacks. I'll usually have a dream where I'm drowning or something, and I'll wake up gasping. If I sleep with my head tilted to the side, I don't have this problem. I haven't had an attack in a very long time, but there was never anything in my throat.

My GERD issues are speculation. Long after I solved the apnea problem, I would still wake up with my heart racing and feel a bit nauseated. Some internet research suggested GERD might be the culprit. The doctor put me on Prilosec, which reduces the acidity of the stomach. It can take several weeks for it to have an effect, but I've seen a lot of improvement.

I'm not sure of any lifting connection. Perhaps you aren't sleeping as soundly if you work out too close to bedtime GERD wakes you up. Maybe it's aggravated by whatever you eat after your workout, since GERD is usually a problem after eating.

I agree that antacids probably aren't a good idea, because their effects are very short-lived. You can get Prilosec (or Nexium) over the counter now, and that's likely what you need. But you'll need to take it every day before eating; it's not something you take when you have a problem.

And don't take Betaine HCL; if you have GERD, more acid is the last thing you need. It's now banned as an OTC medication and can only be had from purveyors of quack medicines.

[Adam Skillin]

I know it got so cool to talk about that it's not cool to talk about anymore, but eliminating wheat (and eventually a Betaine HCl protocol a la Kresser's series linked by Wayno above) cured my GERD.

The former cured the exercise or no good reason-induced reflux that occurred almost daily, and the latter eliminated the occasional heartburn I'd get from eating a very high-protein meal.

[danlightbulb]

Thanks for the replies. Seems to be alot of conflicting information out there.

i don't have a heartburn problem, and no other digestive problems. Since starting lifting i have had a dull ache around my ribs near my sternum. I assumed this was just some muscular stress from the lifting but i wonder if it could be related to my problem.

I've had a sore throat and persistant cough for ages which are symptoms of reflux.

Fundamentally its not the reflux per se that is worrying me because its common, but its the possibility that the heavy lifting is damaging my internals somehow and causing this.

[Str8shutr]

Lift the weights, Dan.

[danlightbulb]

Lift the weights, Dan.

i know, i am. But im still nervous. There genuinely seems to be a correlation between this problem and my lifting days.

[ColoWayno]

I know it got so cool to talk about that it's not cool to talk about anymore, but eliminating wheat (and eventually a Betaine HCl protocol a la Kresser's series linked by Wayno above) cured my GERD.

The former cured the exercise or no good reason-induced reflux that occurred almost daily, and the latter eliminated the occasional heartburn I'd get from eating a very high-protein meal.

Also, add some Kefir. Do your own research, though. The argument made by Esres above is about as superficial as it gets.

[Adam Skillin]

Also, add some Kefir. Do your own research, though. The argument made by Esres above is about as superficial as it gets.

Agree.

[vanslix]

None of this constitutes medical advice and is just the wild ramblings of the village idiot.

I'd start with an H2 blocker first like generic Pepcid (famotidine). Take it at night but take the prescription level dose (40 mg for famotidine). Most docs haven't listened to pharmacologists/pharmacists that this class works better at night. If it doesn't control it for you, than escalating to a PPI like generic Prilosec is worth considering. Keep in mind those take several days to start working. Use the Pepcid in the meantime if that's the route you go.

Elevating the head of your bed helps a lot of people. Avoid any trigger foods that you can identify like the usual culprits of spicy food, tomato sauces, etc. Adam is correct in that wheat intolerances may be the culprit, too.

Hernias are common. Asymptomatic hernias are common, too. Obesity is usually the biggest risk factor but there's certainly a family history risk, too. You may have had the susceptibility and it happened with weights. And it could've just as easily happened taking a big shit if you never touched a weight. Or, bending over to start the lawn mower, or picking up a big kid, etc. I wouldn't stop lifting. Surgical correction of mild to moderate hernias don't have the best long term data in the world. If you decide to go the surgical route, I'd ask what percent of patients in clinical trials are symptom free 10 years later with whatever procedure they're advocating. This all goes out the window if you're getting significant parts of your stomach or bowels through the hernia.

And I would say Kessler's argument is as about as speculative as you can get. Clinical trials are a bitch and it's great when you don't have to have hard data to sling your opinion. If it worked for you, Adam, that's wonderful. I wouldn't take that away from you. I would speculate that a wheat intolerance may have played a bigger role but that's crystal ball wild guesses. But from the white coat side of the line, I can tell you that for every person it worked, there are a shit ton for whom it didn't. And untreated chronic reflux is not to be ignored. Barrett's esophagus is nothing to sneeze at.