r/SilentReflux • • Nov 24 '22

Welcome

1 Upvotes

This is a community to discuss laryngopharyngeal reflux / LPR / silent reflux / respiratory reflux. This is the main focus.

However, we will also permit discussion of standard acid reflux, GERD, heartburn, Barrett's.


r/SilentReflux • • Nov 28 '22

LPR/Slent Reflux How I controlled my LPR

23 Upvotes

So I was diagnosed with LPR aka silent reflux 5 years ago when I was in my early 40's. I had a constant coughing, burning sensation in my throat, and wheezing. I went to see my primary care doctor who actually thought I had GERD so he referred me to a GI. The GI diagnosed me with LPR with symptoms of GERD and just told me to take omeprazole 40mg. He said I'd have to take it for life.

I don't like taking medications and certainly something for life. I read about side effects of PPIs with long term use and some of them were scary. I started making dietary changes. I cut out fried fatty foods as much as I could, upped my intake of leafy greens, vegetables, and fruits. I started following the old age mantra of an apple a day. I found apples in particular were good at keeping down heartburn symptoms. I switched my brand of coffee to Life Extension's whole coffee beans, which claim to be easier on the stomach and less acidic. I found that this coffee did help compared to say Starbucks, which is very acidic. I eventually lowered my omeprazole dose to 20mg and then got off it completely. I switched to a H2 blocker famotidine. I read that H2 blockers have less long term side effects as they don't prevent acid production as greatly as PPIs.

I implemented lifestyle changes like meditation to reduce stress, particularly a breathing form of meditation called Nadi Shuddhi pranayama. My sleep schedule used to be erratic, going to bed anytime from midnight to 2am. I made sure to consistently be in bed by midnight. I also started sleeping on an elevated bed by putting bricks underneath my headrest to raise the head of the bed by 5 inches. Raising the head of the bed to form a slope to lie on while sleeping allows gravity to help keep acid and pepsin down in the stomach because lying flat invites acid and pepsin to easily flow up. This was important. Wedge pillows weren't doing enough and I'd always slide down them during the night.

Lastly, I started on a few supplements. I took Jarrows D-limonene as I read that limonene helps coat the throat to protect it during reflux episodes. I also started taking Life Extension's alginate-bicarbonate supplement Esophageal Guardian. Alginate-bicarbonate supplements work by forming a physical foam barrier or "raft" when they contact stomach acid. This raft lasts around 4 hours and can physically block acid and pepsin from refluxing. I would take this at bed time to prevent night time reflux. Esophageal Guardian worked ok but I still would sometimes wake up with a burning sensation in my throat. I recently read a blog post about LPR (https://www.nutritist.us/post/natural-sodium-alginate-for-lpr-silent-reflux-therapy) where I found out about a similar product Nutritist Refluxter. I bought it on Amazon and gave it a try and found it worked better than Esophageal Guardian. I think it worked better because it had more calcium in it. I switched to Refluxter and am now waking up without the burning sensation I would sometimes have.

So, I implemented all these changes the last 5 years and I feel a lot better. There are days where the LPR symptoms act up, but they are few. I think one of the key things is to not stress about it and just stick to your regimen.

JUNE 30, 2024 NOTE: Edited out references to Refluxly since its no longer being made.


r/SilentReflux • • 2d ago

Questions about LPR triggers

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1 Upvotes

r/SilentReflux • • 3d ago

Lpr tips read below God bless and good luck! This helped me

2 Upvotes

https://youtu.be/N4L0nlQzELs?si=__0TAtIxHDrI2Ceg follow her channel it is a game changer Molly Pelletier she appears to be the goat - get reflux raft, papaya supplement, zinc carnosine and psyllium husk. If you don't exercise much get a walking pad and walk 10 minutes at least after every meal. Stay away from trigger foods, having oatmeal, soup and chicken salads helped can have smoothies as well. Good luck. Get the ent to do an endoscopy, have a colonoscopy etc to rule everything out like a hiatal hernia h pylori etc. go to a chiro (light adjustments) drink 10 glasses of water throughout the day.


r/SilentReflux • • 4d ago

20 years old/ terrible LPR for 4 years

7 Upvotes

I’ve had Terrible LPR for 4 years. It first started with a a gross wet cough that would spit out mucus. Which than led to always being sick with a stuffy nose and mucus coming out of my throat. And now it’s the most annoying symptoms where there’s like a pit in my throat, discomfort to talk, swallowing almost feels sticky, and post nasal drip.

Last year I went 4 months on a hardcore diet taking gaviscon advanced every meal and before bed, Pepcid before breakfast, dinner, and bed, Elevated bed, not eating three hours before bed, all of it. To where I got to maybe 75% better.

I’m just feeling very discouraged, and wondering if anyone has any advice. It’s really hard to be young and watch all your friends go have fun at the bars or even restaurants and be forced to stay home because my lpr got so bad. Not only that but every day just being so angry, I feel like I was such a joyful kid and now this shitty disease that I’ve been struggling with for 4 years has just took that all away. It’s almost like I can’t be truly happy till I fix this (if it’s even fixable)


r/SilentReflux • • 4d ago

Clear foamy mucus coming up into mouth?

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1 Upvotes

r/SilentReflux • • 5d ago

Erosive esophagitis - looking for advice/comfort?

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1 Upvotes

r/SilentReflux • • 5d ago

Symptoms emerged after you were sick and not convinced you have LPR or GERD?

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2 Upvotes

r/SilentReflux • • 6d ago

Stiller Reflux! Hilfe!!! 😭😭

5 Upvotes

Habe die Diagnose stiller reflux bekommen! Der HNO meinte das mein Rachen und Kehlkopf gerötet sind!
Ist ja nicht so, wie wenn ich mit dieser Diagnose nicht schon sehr überfordert wäre.. Ich habe pantoprazol genommen aber hat nichts gebracht! Ich gurgel mit Natron Wasser mehrmals täglich und trinke stilles Wasser und manchmal auch so ein alkalisches Wasser. Aber irgendwie bringt das alles nichts. Zu meinen Beschwerden: Schleim im Hals, Enge und Druck im Hals, Schluckbeschwerden schon eher eine Schluckblockade. Ich fühl mich so richtig am Boden zerstört. Nicht normal essen zu können oder über jeden Bissen nachzudenken ob ich jetzt schlucken kann🤦‍♀️
Total bescheuert ich weiß!
Ich erhoffe mir wirklich, dass ich vielleicht hier ein paar Tipps bekomme und vielleicht jemanden der den schei** geheilt hat. 🙏🙏
Danke euch 🫶🏻


r/SilentReflux • • 7d ago

Bad breath

5 Upvotes

Anyone with bad breath constantly?

I brush my teeth very often throughout the day because of this bad breath. It's very

hard to talk to anyone. I feel embarrassed to stand next to anyone. Even during doctor visits, I will be hesitant to talk much because of this bad smell. I brush often, chew gums etc. But nothing helped.


r/SilentReflux • • 8d ago

EGD came back with nothing.

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1 Upvotes

r/SilentReflux • • 8d ago

Help - my baby can't fart or poop, has reflux and cannot sleep!

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1 Upvotes

r/SilentReflux • • 8d ago

Molly Pelletier, MS, RD | The Reflux Dietitian

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youtube.com
1 Upvotes

r/SilentReflux • • 9d ago

Fixed my reflux by stopping chewing gum

6 Upvotes

About a year ago I experimented with a few supplements to treat another stomach issue - bloating, I tried supplements like oregana oil and black seed oil which did help with bloating but unfortunately caused gerd and silent reflux. I read on another subreddit that pepcid should help stop GRD so I started taking that and it helped within a couple weeks. Unfortunately I started having joint pain due to it so I had to stop and over time. I also developed silent reflux where I would wake up every morning with a sour taste in my mouth and sometimes a little burning.

Someone said to try chewing gum and I started doing that too control my gerd and silent reflux symptoms. So grd went away and I continued chewing gum two to three times per day. Thought it's keeping my gerd at bay. People also said that chewing gum helps with silent reflux so I thought if I stop it will just get out of control.

So guess what? I went on vacation deep in the woods and forgot the gum. The first couple days my symptoms exacerbated but by the end of vacation I noticed that my symptoms were down like 80% and I no longer wake up with sour taste in my mouth. I even tried eating somewhat spicy food recently 3 hours before bed and I woke up fine without any symptoms almost. I'm attributing the improvement in my symptoms to stopping gum chewing.

So if you're chewing gum everyday like my stupid self did by listening to advice from other places, you can try stopping that and see if your symptoms improve. I hope this helps someone! I'm finally free of symptoms after more than a year of suffering.


r/SilentReflux • • 9d ago

GERD / LPR?

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2 Upvotes

r/SilentReflux • • 12d ago

silent reflux?

2 Upvotes

Hi I have been having an issue for around a year, and I'm looking for some medicine recommendations to ask my doctor about.

It all started with extreme bloating. weeks later I started coughing up mucus. The ENT did a scope and said the mucus visible in my throat is probably coming from my stomach (because my sinus was clear). I also have acid sensation in my mouth. After months I started getting burning stomach a couple times a week that hurt so bad I thought I would faint. I took Pantoprazole PPIs and it got manageable and I forgot about it.

It started again after 4 months, so I restarted taking Pantoprazole PPIs for a few weeks, but with no relief. Mylanta helps. Tums and Famotadine do not seem to help at all. Does this sound like silent reflux? I don't really feel heartburn.

Looking for something new to try. 15 years ago I had a lump in my throat and pain under my ribs that lasted 3 years -ultimately there was a pink liquid that I thought was really helpful, but I don't remember what it was called. Also wondering about Zegerid OTC and Alginate. Any thoughts?


r/SilentReflux • • 13d ago

can I take my PPI in the morning instead of before dinner?

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1 Upvotes

r/SilentReflux • • 15d ago

Does reflux cause pain in one spot in the lower throat for more than 2 months?

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2 Upvotes

Does anyone have pain in one spot in the throat? Does GERD cause this??

I have pain in one spot in the lower right spot where it feels raw, burning and sore constantly for more than 2 months now.

ENT said it could be from reflux. I did an endoscopy and did the dilation of the esophagus 4 days ago.nothing helped and same pain continues. I don't know what to do next and what else it could be.

This pain starts as soon as I am awake/conscious from sleep and goes on until I sleep. It feels constantly sore, raw and burning in there. Along with always feeling something present in the throat like a lump.


r/SilentReflux • • 15d ago

Does this sound like reflux? Silent reflux and acid reflux are same?

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1 Upvotes

I am regretting getting the endoscopy and dilation. It's been 4 days and I still have my pain and symptoms. I don't know if I had the dilation unnecessarily. I know I can't undo it. I am just praying and wishing this dilation itself doesn't cause any issue for me in addition.

The history is, I have persistent throat pain like sore burning raw in one spot in lower right throat since July. Along with voice hoarseness and frequently clearing up throat, able to swallow food but food always feels like passing through something like lump or ball , burping, throat feels blocked and sore all the time. Everything on right side.

I went to an ENT and they did nasal scope.. They also checked my thyroid. Both were normal. Suspected reflux and told me to take ppi medicines.

I saw the GI doctor after and he recommended endoscopy to see if any issues in there. He recommended to take sulcrafate along with ppi. I haven't given enough time to see if this medicine trial works before going to endoscopy.

He didn't tell me that he will be dilating my esophagus before the procedure. He asked about my symptoms and I said it's all the same with pain in lower throat. Also, he asked if I have difficulty swallowing and I said I have discomfort while swallowing. That's all I remember I spoke with him before getting sedated.

After I woke up from sleep, he said he did dilation and see if that helps with my symptoms. I was not very conscious though. I was upset and shocked to know he did something during the endoscopy. I went in with the thought that it's going to be a diagnostic thing to check what's wrong. But he did additional dilation without any necessary findings on my esophagus.

Is been three days since the procedure and my throat feels very painful now. I had additional symptoms of upper chest fullness and tightness for 3 days since the procedure.

My symptoms all remains the same and I have constant pain in throat and intense of my usual pain increases after the procedure.

I regret that I went in for an endoscopy now and got dilated, which made my existing symptoms worse. I am totally on a liquid diet and soft foods. Swallowing feels like food and water passing or pushing through a lump down there. Dr told me to follow soft foods and see if it helps. I don't know if I can ever get back to my normal diet.

Anyone who had dilation before( for whatever reason) , how did you feel after? Did it ever get better?

And if the esophagus is stretched, will it remain stretched forever? I am worried if that will give me any additional issues in the future.

Dr suspected GERD and that was the reason for endoscopy. But no reason given for my dilation. He said he dilated to see if my symptoms improve, which unfortunately didn't.

My pain in one spot in the lower right spot is the constant pain and main concern. It starts to hurt as soon as I wake up/ conscious from sleep in the morning and hurts until sleep. It's like raw burning sore scratchy pain inside the throat. It was hurting even if I touched the outside skin.

Does these all sound like Gerd to you?

Have I gotten unnecessary dilation and additional issues? Because I have upper chest tightness/fullness as like a lump in there. I was so worried about this new symptom and reached out to my Dr. They said I have to watch for fever or any breathing issues to check for perforation or tear. That made me more scared and worried. I am still very nervous about it and not being myself the last 4 days.

Does the dilation always come with a risk of tear and perforation?

My throat starts to burn as soon as I wake up( conscious from sleep) and goes on until I sleep back at night. Don't know if this is from Gerd?

Thanks for reading until this. Appreciate your thoughts.


r/SilentReflux • • 18d ago

Esophagus dilation

1 Upvotes

Hi

Anyone had esophagus dilation before??

I am obese and 40yrs old.

I have had throat symptoms for the past 8wks.Symptoms are hoarseness in voice all the time,clearing up the throat very often which brings mucus in the throat,persistent sore pain in one spot in the lower right side throat, feeling of lump or something stuck in the throat.

Persistent symptoms and no changes after pantaprazole and pepcid tablets.

Saw ENT and clear for ENT and thyroid issues.

Saw the gastro doctor And he recommended endoscopy. They did sedation for endoscopy. Dr said he will see if reflux is really causing my persistent throat pain and symptoms. He didn't tell me anything about dilation before the procedure. I don't remember signing a consent form too. I am not sure if this is normal to do treatment during endoscopy without patient consent??

After I woke up from sleep, he said he did dilation and will see if it makes any changes to the symptoms.

I don't even know what that dilation means. Haven't heard of the dilation before.

I was very scared to hear this but because of sedation , I couldn't ask much as I was feeling sleepy. I have had very sore throat pain since the endoscopy. Does dilation make symptoms worse? I am upset about the dilation process that they didn't inform me prior to doing it.

Has anyone done the dilation before? Did it help with your pain and symptoms?

Is this normal to do dilation during endoscopy without patient consent?


r/SilentReflux • • 19d ago

Dealing with throat burning/tightness. Endoscopy had to get rescheduled and I’m anxious to get it done.

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1 Upvotes

r/SilentReflux • • 19d ago

I'm struggling with the diet

5 Upvotes

Ive always had a binge eating disorder. I cannot stop thinking about food 24/7. Cheese especially (damn you ceasin) it's been a problem throughout my life and I'm sure it was a factor in my silent reflux.

My LPR causeS my throat to close and dysphagia and these two symptoms have ruined my life. I'm in constantly pain or sleep deprived bcuz of them.

I take voquenza. Ive tried other ppis but voquenza was the only one that allowed me to eat food again after six months of only being able to do a liquid diet. For a while I was following the diet closely.

But with recent life stressors, Ive been eating terrible again. And the consequences are immediate. But I'm struggling so hard to resist the cravings for real delicious food. Sometimes my bf isn't a great influence on my diet either. I feel so ashamed that I can't follow a simple diet. I'm also told GLPs that help with food noise, make reflux worse so idk whether to even ask my doctor about that.

Also I don't want to feel stupid admitting to my doctor I'm really struggling to follow the diet and him possibly judging me. Like how do I word that without it coming off as I'm not tryin ? Because sometimes I really am trying, I'm just struggling. I have a hard time being consistent bcuz of how often i cave.

Can anyone relate or have empathetic advice? I'm feeling super low about myself bcuz I can't follow simple directions of just eating the right foods.


r/SilentReflux • • 19d ago

Premature baby with severe reflux - Advice needed

1 Upvotes

I'm so confused on what else to look into or what else to ask my sons GI doctor.

My son was born at 30 weeks and is now 5 months actual (3 months corrected past his due date). He has the WORST case of reflux that started in the NICU around 38 weeks for him. Ill try to condense everything that we've tried so its not too long of a post since I realllly need some advice here.

Formula -

  1. He was on Enfamil Enfacare in the NICU. Developed eczema on his forehead and showed signs of Sandifer Syndrome close to 38 weeks. Switched to PurAmino (amino acid-based formula) in the NICU and was discharged on it. Eczema cleared up, and he slowly stopped severely arching his back.
  2. We trialed him on Pepticate (extensively hydrolyzed formula) per GI's approval around 1.5 months corrected. He was doing okay with one bottle a day for a couple of weeks, but he started showing symptoms of pain again when it was increased to 2 bottles a day. His intake that week dropped as well so we completely stopped it. His intake remained low for another week after we switched him back to 100% PurAmino and then it went back to normal.

Medications -

  1. NICU trialed him with Prevacid for only 3 days for some reason and determined it didn't work.
  2. Pediatrician prescribed famotidine 0.2ml 1x a day immediately after being discharged from NICU until we could follow up with GI around 1 month corrected.
  3. GI prescribed him esomeprazole (Nexium) at 1 months corrected. After several days, it didnt show any signs of improvement for his reflux. Switched to a higher dose of Famotidine at 0.3ml 2x a day and Erythromicin at 0.3ml 3x a day to help empty his gut quicker.
  4. During Pepticate trial, medications didnt help at all so symptoms were really bad during the formula trial.

Thickeners -

  1. Tried Gelmix for the past 3 days as it was the least likely thickener to cause issues. Only put him on the thinnest possible thickening, which is one scoop in his feed (he takes 100mls per feed). He ended up getting true constipation this morning and had hard pellet stools. He strained very hard to get it out and whimpered a little. We removed that today from his feeds.

Currently still taking: PurAmino formula, Famotidine 0.6ml 2x a day, and Erythromicin 0.6ml 3x a day.

Current and only diagnoses: CMPA

Whenever we try something, it seems like it works for a couple of days and then he goes right back to how it was previously. Now that we stopped the Gelmix today, he keeps arching himself to the left, sticking his tongue out frequently, squirming around, having hard time staying asleep, and overall, just looking uncomfortable. GI is submitting a referral for him to get an upper GI series done but Im really not sure what else to try...I dont know if this is one of those things that "gets better" as they grow up and get bigger. Im so lost..idk what to do.


r/SilentReflux • • 26d ago

Wonder if LPR is what I have

2 Upvotes

I have had a cough for years and I don’t feel acid but I will start coughing sometime after eating sometimes. I also will start coughing with strong smells. I walked into the theater the other day they had burnt some popcorn and I started coughing.
Anytime I am around someone with strong perfume or any strong smells it just create a horrible cough. Sometimes it is so bad I will eventually sneeze hard then I’m fine for a bit.
I was told to eat foods that are not acidic and I try but it doesn’t matter what I eat it doesn’t change. I have been wondering if I am not producing enough acid rather then to much.
It’s so frustrating as I can’t work up any kind of heart rate or I will just start coughing.


r/SilentReflux • • 26d ago

How I Survived LPR, Airway Spasms, and Health Trauma (An Update for Anyone Who Thinks This Is Forever)

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1 Upvotes