HeartBURN
 

Hi guys-long story that I dont really feel the need to go into-I have been getting ECT to try to treat my depression. Seems to be working but I have been getting some pretty bad heartburn from the muscle relaxers I guess. I have been trying pepto and CaCO3 but doesnt seem to be helping. What do you guys do for heartburn-dont think I can sleep at this rate.

Can't help with the heartburn, but good luck with the ECT! My parents neighbor went through a massive bout with depression and when all other resources were exhausted, he went for ECT. It worked very well for him! He's out of the depression, back to a bit of work (semi-retired) and it's as if he'd never been depressed. Hang in there!

Yeah, I have had 5 treatments so far-I dont like it, but it is supposed to be very effective treatment-90% remission vs 30% with drugs.

those are pretty good numbers 90 vs 30

Do not eat late in the day, if your stomach is pretty empty when you go to bed should help, elevating the head of the bed should also. Ask whoever prescribed the muscle relaxant. Antacids can actually make things worse sometimes.

Have you tried raising the head of your bed with blocks?

Also... Stay away from junk food or anything that bloats your stomach.
Things like beer, bread and potatoes.

Thanks for the tips-I am going to be seeing one of my doctors tomorrow morning.

Good luck with your treatment. It was effective for my mother in law but she did not do the follow up treatments after her initial rounds. She has lost ground again to the depression. It was good while it lasted.
I changed my diet to help with my heartburn, lowered the caffiene intake as well as alcohol. As mentioned above, the large filling carbs too close to bedtime are bad as well. Protonix helped heal some esophogeal damage but you don't sound to have suffered from heartburn long enough to do damage. Good luck.

Yeah the heartburn just started-my doctor told me to switch from ibuprofen to tylenol-will see if that helps.

I was told to take Pepcid AC or the other over the counter 24 hour pill. It is expensive ($0.50 per pill or something) but it worked for me.

I used to have horrific heartburn. I'd even get surges of stomach acid from drinking water. Damaged my esophagus to the point that it would spasm and close (this is not fun). Tried Prilosec OTC and it literally changed my life. They say not to use it for more than 6 weeks at a time, but I've been using it for more like 6 years.

The generic version of Prilosec that CostCo carries seems to work fine for me--and I have a multitude of problems causing reflux/heartburn.

Good luck.

I don't get heartburn very often, but I've taken Pepcid AC chewable tablets and they seem to work well. They disappeared for a few months but are now back on the shelves. Good luck with the ECT, sounds like you're on the right path.