I like your forum-name btw since it was really a super moon few days ago.
I am sorry to hear you were traumatised by the gastroscopy.
It is a good, but yet invasive procedure and I do understand the aversion very much due to the procedure's nature.
My grandmother was tortured with it and injured, my mum flys through it like a yearly routine check up. So one and the same procedure can be very different, of course. Nothing to brush off.
Hopefully things have improved over the 10 years compared to your first endoscopy experience (was it more during or after bad experience?), because the 'knock out' my daughter got this year, was wonderful
(Propofol was given, a profound sedation under full supervision)
Maybe also different doc or location could do the scopes if you ever needed one again?
My family including myself have been through a lot;
my mum seems to have your symptoms, for decades -with hiatus hernia and GERD she needs the acid reduction for sure even ulcers in stomach and duodenum are long gone, the oesophagus is irritated and damaged,
-always depends on situation, if risks outweigh benefits-
I studied medical science and have years/decades of work experience in some different lab fields and it seems easier to read through publications/studies therefore. But that's all. I am not a medical doc.
I always loved -despite my love for chemistry- alternative medicine
(only exception: homeopathy, which must not be ever confused with naturopathy - then again 'belief' and 'placebo' effects are very well documented, too. But difference is important to know when coupling different treatments if they interact or not. Herbs are powerful.)
What helps one, might help the other, or might not.
Under the line there are some do and dont's
(e.g. like spacing PPI from other acid reducers simply due to chemical reaction)
The problem:
there are many very individual reactions re food and treatments apart from the common 'do and dont's'.
Even for PPIs are so many different brands, since they have different side effects on individuals, what is taken without headache by the one, causes strong headache in the other.
You mentioned H.pylori.
Have you tested positive for it?
(you don't need a gastroscopy for diagnose)
It seems Mastic gum (1000mg a day, split in two serves?) and Matula tea - better two months than one- both treat more antibiotically the bacterial H pylori infection.
Some take Sulforaphane (isothiocyanate from e.g. broccoli sprouts) with it. for H.pylori treatment.
It seems to have an effect even studied in medical trials.
We got more bloated from a certain probiotic mix, which can occur first week, but should wear off. It didn't.
Currently I am taking bacillus laterosporus (more a yeast killer and does not colonise in your guts, it's flushed out within 3 days, but while present does its duty) and some normal bifidus and lactobacillus mix hoping they would colonise. Sometimes a good e.coli nissle 1917 thick capsule for colon.
It seems to work against bloating.
Some swear by completely gluten free diet even not having the coeliac gene or being gluten intolerant (biopsies, blood immune response test),
I guess the effect is also due to monitor more what is eaten.
For me personally the intake of household common sugar is more a problem than eating gluten containing starch products, that get digested down to di-and mono saccharides.
In contrary, my daughter's belly pain is less with bland white bread.
One needs to keep a food diary as annoying that is.
How is slippery elm going? I could only take the capsules, not the powder as it is really slippery.
Deglycyrrhizinated licorice and slippery elm are taken by many, who have wheened themself off PPI or during that period.
There seem to be no interaction of slippery elm with PPI.
As usual not taking straight together at same minute since you don't want to fibers of slippery elm to bind anything.
Hopefully you find something that helps!!
Trial and error, taking a long time, frustrating.
Ah yes, and many do a GERD diet:
mainly vegetarian for a while.
squash on its own or in a soup, greek yogurt, switching to lactose-free milk and soy milk, cutting out caffein, alcohol and fats......
Apparently also
Kefir has to be introduced in tablespoon amounts
due to the microbiotic composition, that might play havoc at first in guts.
But if it was due to some protein in the product, that causes the problem, you could experiment with different bases (different milks, coconut water) of kefir.
If also with small amounts and in different bases the problem occured, I would not take it anymore, but again, you can trial around a bit, maybe too much at once re bacteria or maybe the basis of product is what troubles and not the bacteria composition at all?
All, all the best!