Gastritis is inflammation of the stomach lining. It can be extremely uncomfortable. Symptoms can include abdominal/stomach pain, indigestion, a feeling of “fullness”, cramping or flutter sensations near the top of the stomach or just simply a feeling that something is just wrong.
The first step is to stop self-medicating and seek the advice of a gastroenterologist. Depending on the doc and their approach to handling this frustrating problem, you may have an upper endoscopy to confirm the diagnosis. When you have an endoscopy, they will put you to sleep and slide a tube down your throat equipped with a camera to view your stomach lining. Compared to other procedures, this one is quite simple and relatively risk free. The great thing about this procedure is the doctor can rule out any serious problems that could be causing the same symptoms. Untreated gastritis could lead to ulcers and worse things, so it’s something you want to address urgently and completely. The doc may take some tissue samples to find out if you are infected with a bacteria called h. pylori. Anyway, don’t mess around with your health and get this checked out.
After you received your diagnosis, you have to stop doing the things that have irritated your stomach. If your doc said you have a bacterial infection, then you’ll have to take some antibiotics. If you don’t have an infection, it may take some sleuthing to find out what is causing your problem. The most common things are excessive alcohol consumption (which tends to dissolve your stomach mucosa and expose the tissue to stomach acid). The next most common irritant is smoking. Stress can also hurt you as well as too much coffee, flours, certain medications like nsaids or irritants, chemicals and believe it or not, certain vitamins like Vitamin C in high doses.
Because your stomach is now irritated, your doc will most likely prescribe an acid blocker like aciphex. Although, I personally dislike the idea of taking an acid blocker, it’s a quick way to stop irritating your stomach. If you stop irritating your stomach by quitting coffee and stopping the other things, you’ll be off the acid blockers in no time at all.
I have discovered some simple natural remedies that can heal your stomach quickly. I’ll write about these in future posts.
It can take several months to heal gastritis. With patience, following a simple diet and the remedies I outline,you’ll be off the medication quickly and you’ll have a brand new stomach. You’ll feel like a million bucks!
What are some other remedies for gastritis. I also have barrettes esophagus
Hi Nigel,
Sorry to hear. Elevate the head of your bed so the stomach acid doesn’t irritate your esophagus while you sleep. That helps a lot. Also, if you are overweight, lose the weight. Low carb will help a lot. There’s a lot of research around these problems and the gut microbiome. My reflux symptoms improved after I took antibiotics and went very low carb and lots of raw veggies to rebuild my gut.
Work with your doc who is hopefully up on all the latest research.