It’s confirmed; I have both GERD and an ulcer. Seems that modern research points to Helicobacter pylori (hee-lih-co-bac-ter pie-lor-ee) being the root cause of most ulcers, and that stress does not cause them – but it can aggravate them.
As a teen, I used to have fierce, fierce heartburn. My mother used to think I was just making fun of her cooking, and sweep me aside. My father thought I was being melodramatic, but at least acknowledged that there are times you just need some Tums or Rolaids. Since then, I’ve had recurring issues with my gastrointestinal system, but have either ignored them, or been told to ignore them by medical professionals (including my parents).
When, recently, the pain became so bad that I couldn’t eat normal foods without being in pain, and not eating was causing its own problems, I finally switched doctors and had a bunch of tests done. They’ve finally found a cause, and while I’m hopeful this is all that’s going on, I won’t yet rule out the possibility that something more is going on. Really, I just want to go back to a normal lifestyle of decent, well-seasoned meals, the occasional glass of red wine, beer, or a martini, all without farting uncontrollably or having to lie down for hours on end. It’ll be nice to stand up for more than 30 minutes without keeling over.
I’m sure your doctors have already told you this, but one of the worst things you can do to your stomach when you have this is … skip meals. People often ask me how I manage to stay relatively fit and healthy even though I enjoy fast food like there’s no tomorrow, and though I can probably thank good genetics and portions that are not overly large, I also feel I have to attribute part of it to having 3 square meals a day. Even then, I’m not perfect. It’s best if you are able to stick to a regular schedule with meals. (It seems our bodies prefer set routines.) My meal times, on the other hand, vary from day-to-day based on how “on schedule” I am. That said, I very rarely skip meals, breakfast in particular.
I wonder if this is explained by breakfast being my favorite meal of the entire day? :)
Anyways, treat your body right and get better. :)
Thank you Eug — actually, they’ve told me to have more, smaller meals, less often, because of my GERD. I generally haven’t operated that way (was raised being told that snacks would spoil my meals!) but I’m taking the advice to heart.