Hi all.
I had my POEM surgery in April 2016, so far I've had no major problems. I've had to start taking PPIs which was expected but overall I've been quiet well except for when I drink alcohol. I usually have a couple of drinks on a Friday or Saturday night. I've tried all different types of alcohol and each time I get bad heartburn, even with PPIs, then for a couple of days after I can't swallow properly. Wine, beer and gin kills me with heartburn, rum makes my stomach ache. Does this mean I have to give up alcohol altogether or has anyone found any drink that they can tolerate? I'm also very conscious of the fact that if I have heartburn I will have acid in my oesophagus and increase my risk of cancer. I am only 30 years old and my treat every week is having a couple of drinks with my husband, really didn't want to have to give it up forever.
Unfortunately what you have said sounds exactly the problem I have.
I did have to give up drinking alcohol but it wasn't just that I couldn't
tolerate as it was any mixer drinks too.
Are you absolutely sure it is the alchohol alone causing the heartburn.
I have found any vinegar based things and certain spices cause me
big problems and anything spicy in general.
At first I missed being able to enjoy a relaxing drink with friends and
family but have got used to it. I would rather miss the alchohol
than spend the rest of my night in pain.
You might find if you lay off it for a while you might get away having
the occasional one in the future.
I hope you find something that works for you, but try looking
into the food you have before the alchohol and make a diary
which will help eliminate what is causing it.
In our ‘rough and ready’ survey of 19 achalasia sufferers about food and drink that caused problems, wine came top in the drink category (scored 9) with fizzy drink next (at 8). The maximum would have been 19. Bread scored 15 for likely problems, for instance. We had comments like:
Starting meal with wine can lead to the oesophagus closing a little and making eating more difficult. Starting with water is better, leaving wine until later. Fizzy drinks all right some of the time. Some people have never been able to drink them. Beer can have same effect. Can lead to bloating. Swallowing not the problem so much as after-effects / reflux. San Pellegrino carbonated water seems not to be so gassy as others and can help digestion.
I wonder whether the reflux/heartburn is that one becomes more relaxed and that the lower oesophageal sphincter therefore allows more acid to flow upwards into the oesophagus; the alternative would be something specific that triggers off a reaction in the stomach / oesophagus itself?
So I think the answer to your question would be that about half of achalasia sufferers would be very wary of some alcohol, and that experiences can be very specific and personal.
L'alcool et le tabac ne sont pas nécessaires au bonheur, sauf si l'on est accro à eux. Si vous avez eu tant de problèmes après avoir bu de l'alcool et que vous avez encore essayé de trouver une boisson que vous tolériez, peut-être devriez-vous considérer que cela va au-delà d'un simple "plaisir" mais d'une habitude dont vous devez vous débarrasser pour votre propre bien-être. Comme vous avez eu besoin de l'opération POEM, vous avez un grave trouble et avez de la chance que, à part boire de l'alcool, vous allez bien. Peut-être devriez-vous faire autre chose avec votre mari que de boire. Allez voir un film que vous pourriez tous les deux apprécier.
I am a year post-POEM, not on PPIs and do not drink. One drink causes bad reflux. Alcohol is a common cause of reflux so it makes sense. Twice since surgery, I've popped a PPI and had one drink and have been able to tolerate that but anything more causes severe reflux and is doing damage to my E. When I chose to have surgery, I knew it meant no more drinking since my LES would be open. I was a bartender for years and love a good cocktail so it was hard but it's not so bad. When I recently had a drink, I got a horrible headache an hour after; it made me feel better about my decision to see how negative my whole body's reaction to alcohol was. Good luck.
Bonjour. J'ai subi une Heller Myotomie et une Fundoplication en novembre 2016. Puis une dilatation par ballonnet en mars de cette année. Pour moi, l'alcool est totalement exclu, pour toujours. Cela est dû aux médicaments, ainsi qu'à l'Achalasie [type 1]. Je suis pasteur et je ne peux même pas avoir un verre individuel [taille verre à shot] de vin pour la Sainte Communion. Avec même une gorgée, il y a une douleur instantanée lorsqu'il atteint le muscle du sphincter œsophagien. Chacun de nous est très différent quant à ce que nos corps pourront tolérer, en plus de tout médicament que nous prenons. J'aimerais beaucoup un verre de Baileys ou mon liqueur 'crème' préférée d'Espagne, mais c'est du passé. Peut-être serez-vous le 'chanceux' et pourrez-vous éventuellement tolérer la consommation d'alcool.
Alan, j'ai trouvé votre réponse ci-dessus très utile. Ce week-end, j'ai essayé une boîte de soda à la crème [vous les appelez boissons gazeuses au Royaume-Uni]. Cela fait presque 2 ans que je n'ai pas bu de soda. Le soda ne m'a pas du tout convenu... J'ai eu des brûlures d'estomac, et il y a eu une légère douleur au muscle du sphincter œsophagien. Donc, le 'soda' retourne sur la liste des 'méchants' ! Cela m'a été utile de lire, dans votre message, les statistiques, et que le soda, etc., est une chose aggravante pour l'Achalasie.