Gastritis- acute or chronic?

Digestive health
1

I am a 24 year old female and around 9 weeks ago I started experiencing constant nausea, excessive belching, tender upper stomach and generally heavy feeling in my stomach as though my food wasn't moving.

I have been experiencing these symptoms for 9 weeks and have been taking lansoprazole for 8 weeks (30mg twice a day) and ranitidine (150mg twice a day). I  was diagnose with mild erythematous gastritis after upper endosocopy 6 weeks ago. I was tested for H.pylori which came back negative so the only advice I was given was to continue PPI for 6-8 weeks which has done virtually nothing for my symptoms. I have also been taking sucralfate (2 1g tablets twice daily) which helps a small amount but if i miss a dose then I am worse.

I have been back to my GP who has referred me to see a gastroenterologist but i have to wait another 10 weeks for the appointment. In the meantime I am completely miserable and my life is on hold (i am off work). 

I don't drink, smoke, take anti-inflammatory drugs or have any of the other causes of gastritis. This just seems to have come out of nowhere and changed my life.

I have changed my diet to eating mostly fruit, veg, lean meat (mainly just chicken) and have cut out dairy as this seems to particularly aggravate he symptoms.

I have also tried

- DGL licorique 

- aloe vera juice

- milk thistle

- slippery elm

- acidophillus tablets

I have tried 2 different anti sickness tablets- cyclizine, domperidone and metoclopramide but none seem to help and just me drowsy sad.

Does anyone know how long it can take for this to go away? Will it ever go away? I am at my wits end and just want to be able to get on with my life but can't for feeling constantly sick and uncomfortable.

2

Hello.

It is strange how your gastritis has appeared with no apparent cause. How did they test for h pylori? The docs missed my infection first time and picked up second time by endoscopy. I wasn't happy as my stomach was ruined because of it.

I am healed now (12 months down the line) and it wasn't a quick fix. Private message me and I will send you a report I wrote about my experiences. I send it to other sufferers and docs to educate them.

And you are on too much acid blocking meds. They can cause you to feel ill as well as they can slow digestion and make you bloated and gassy. I didn't like being on ppi and weened off it ASAP. H2 blockers were much better to tolerate although not as strong.

3

Dear Hallie,

                  I had similar symptoms and I stopped taking lansoprazole.

I can't ensure that it will work for you. At least consult your G.P. before you try this, but try two weeks without the lansoprazole would be my feeling . Cannot see anything else in your diet . But the lansoprazole was really bad for me.

It's a protein pump inhibitor and doesn't suit everyone. The object is to reduce acids in your tummy. Good luck and try to keep calm, have a simple healthy diet early to bed etc.  E.

                  

4

HI Paul,

I was tested by both stool sample (before taking PPI's) and by biopsy from endoscopy (whilst taking PPI) and both came back negative.

I did try to go down to 1 lansoprazole a day instead of 2 and and i felt incredibly nauseous (more than usual) so went back onto 2.

I will message you as I would really like to hear about your experience with this awful condition.

5

Hi Eric,

I did try to ween off the lansoprazole and go down to 1 tablet per day but it made me feel even more nauseous sad

6

Try omprazole I think instead of the lansoprozole. I am better with lans rather than the other, I have spelt it wrong but the docs will know which one

7

Oh dear, yes, that is very frustrating and disables normal life so much.

I have no idea why your gastritis started, 

but my daughter has gastritis out of the blue being h.pylori negative in several tests, too. We are almost a year in (honestly saying gastritis, hearburn, nausea and vomiting being the smallest of her problems currently)

The only clue we had was bile reflux (seen in gastroscopy) into stomach and bile can irritate stomach lining.

One thing that strikes me in your story are the therapy trials in regards to duration.

If I read correctly your symptoms only started 9 WEEKS ago and you have trialed a lot in that time.

Unfortunately many of your tried remedies and medications you need to try for much longer before giving up the one or other trial as 'not working': 

e.g. domperidone and metoclopramide each need many weeks before one can tell, if they work or not (6 weeks per medication minimum before effect = 12 weeks just for those two meds to trial). 

Doesn't mean they would help in the end though, true,

still could be without effect, of course (domep. and metoclo. are usually given to gastroparesis people, who need to get the food faster out of stomach into guts since their time is slowed down - can be measured in gastric emptying study-, food too long in stomach can cause nausea).

And if you get drowsyness as side effect....who can trial for 6 weeks.

Also probiotics take weeks, if not months before one can tell, if they worked or not since it takes a long, long time to alter anything in gut flora, if the taken probiotics reach it at all (very different mixes and products on the market).

Probiotics won't do much for your gastritis anyway, since the stomach likes to be without bacterial flora and goes into kill bacteria with its acid, hence probiotics are preferrably in stomach acid protective capsules or in a huge dose if taken as powders.

These are all medications/remedies that do not work instantly like a usual over the counter pain killers.

Hang in there, trial a food diary maybe.

Maybe you find food that does agree with you better than other food.

We trialed different diets (min 4 weeks each) to no avail, but that doesn't mean, it wouldn't make sense for other people.

We have one definite (typical) vomit trigger so far: chocolate. ;-) the smallest piece within a minute back out and gone. 

My mum decades in with gastritis (but ulcers gone thanks to PPI) cannot tollerate any restaurant food.

Just as 'our experience' share.

Gastritis is often a long road, but doesn't mean forever.

Some swear by meditation. Stress is often said to trigger gastritis.

Please keep on trying different gastritis healing suggestions.

Best of luck!

8

Hi there,

So sorry to hear your daughter and mother have suffered so long! I can't bear the thought of having this for years!

Anyway, yes I see what you're saying about trialling the different home remedies and medications. With the home remedies I pretty much trialled them all at once as I done a lot of research on the Internet and tried to do everything I could to help myself. So yes ive been taking all of these things for most of the duration but im not feeling better yet.

With the domperidone and metoclopramide my doctor advised me to take them on an 'as and when needed' basis due to their potentially very serious ( and irreversible) side effects when taken long term. Because of this ive just been taking them when I feel particularly nauseous but they haven't helped much.

I am going to carry on with my strict diet and try another supplement and see how I get on in a few months.

Best of luck to your daughter!

9

Thank you!

All the best and pls keep us posted, also when something helped be it diet or supplement or medication or imaging or diagnosis.

(My mother can live a normla life, if she stays away from fatty food or restaurants, the very bad time with her ulcer and pain is in the past, so that's good, glass half full, not empty.)

Good luck!

10

Hi Hallie, how u feeling now? Did anythung helped?

I am also having similar symptoms as urs. Constant nausea. Feels like food is stuck not moving down. Lot of burps. And bloated stomach.

Do feel fullness early? My diet no longer is same..

M also trying to find answer, this thing is very Irritating.

11

Hi Hallie,

I have similar problem as you have, tender stomach and stomach pain, its been 8 months now with no relief. plz share if anything works for you.

12

Hey,

Sorry to hear you have been suffering for 8 months. Have you been diagnosed with gastritis?

13

Hey,

I am pretty much feeling the same. I haven't yet found anything that helps sad.

How long have you been suffering? Did they say it was gastritis?

14

At first they did diagnosed me with gastritis .. That time I didn't loose my appetite.. But now they have diagnosed me with functional dyspepsia.. I am prescribed me rabium..i helps but I doubt stopping it will again get me back to same situation.

I am advised to change my routine. And eat proper food.

15

Yes dear my endoscopy showed Antral Gastritis.

Do you still have tender stomach?

16

Yes very tender, not very painful but I feel very nauseous.

What have the doctors done for you so far? lansoprazole?