So I see this drug company commerical for acid-reflux treatment, and it hits me.

[thecrow]

82. Me too..

I had the inherited valve defect that many in our family (in the past) have died from. I had an eroded esophagus (looked like land mines went off)despite taking medications for acid reflux.... and I was suffering from esophageal spasms... sort of like a heart attack... you can't breathe, and your chest tightens...Went to a Gastointestinal specialsit and he told me that I MUST HAVE the operation (Nissen Fundoplicaton) and that would save my life!

Had the operation, but still was having the spasms and bizarre shoulder pain after eating. Insisted that my doctor send me to Johns Hopkins for a workup. After testing, they prescribed (in addition to a double dose of Prilosec 2x a day) BENTYL. Two little blue pills taken 30 minutes before I eat. Saved my life!I took the first two, ate a big dinner, and... NO PAIN! The Bentyl helps motivate your digestion and helps with releasing the stomach muscles so your stomach "stretches" when food is introduced. That was my problem after the operation...!
So you unbelievers can go on about folk remedies and decry the use of pills, but for me it was the answer, and if you actually had this condition, I doubt you would be so blithe about the various ways to treat it.

And... anyone who had the fundoplication operation (I also had a hiatal hernia repair at the same time) and are still having problems, please go see an good internist and ask about Bentyl or another motility med.
I am pretty normal now, though I cannot burp or vomit ever again and have to be very careful about where I eat. I eat normal, real foods (preferably without labels... always did) and take probiotics and live yogurt cultures. The only downside is that my belly bloats because of the lack of burping (every time you swallow, you swallow air, and that bloats you if you cannot burp it up) and of course, if I get food poisoning or a stomach virus, I get sicker than most, because I cannot barf and have to wait it out.
Several of my relatives (great grandmother, great aunt etc.) died of this complication before these cures were invented.
But my life has been SAVED, and I am grateful to Johns Hopkins and modern medicine for that.