GRIM--TURN AWAY--THIS WILL SHOCK YOU!!

I haven't had any meat for 5 days!  (Grim, I am still ALL CARNIVORE!)

I have been diagnosed with GERD and reactive hypoglycemia.  I do have the anxiety attacks, sweats, memory loss and I have collapsed a couple of times.  I now sleep propped up with the acid girgling away at night (yuck!).  I also have 6 meals a day.

Meat, fish & chicken seem to sit in my esophagus all day and all night making me one miserable b!$ch.  So, for the last 5 days, I've  had only protein shakes, protein bars, chicken soup, vegetable soup (can't believe I typed that!), tea, crystal light.  Now, I do feel better and not bloated.  I've also stop taking omeprazole as my PCP confirmed it can lead to weight gain in some patients.  The stomach is girgling at full blast now.

Gotta go in so they can look for damage to the esophagus and check for hiernas.   PCP warned me that if the GERD is severe, RNY is in order.

And yes, I've lost 5 pounds so far......weird.

Anyone else develop GERD and/or hypoglycemia after WLS?

Oh geez. Sorry about this. I've only had gerdd3 or 4 times, ever, and it's horrible.

Reactive hypoglycemia hits RNYers more often than sleevers, and it's almost always from eating too many simple carbs. And GERD is far too often a side effect of VSG, where RNY most often cures it. Many end up revising to RNY when the GERD won't go away.

Long term PPI use is a bad idea, but you could try another type from omeprazole. Temporary relief will help.

GERD in VSG can be created or made worse by a hernia, so you might want to asks your docs to check for that. 

I'll cross my fingers for you. No one should be kept from their meat.

I revised to RNY from VSG because of severe GERD on 7/1.  I was 2 years post surgery.  I also had a hiatal hernia reappear, but it wasn't large enough to be causing my acid issues, and repairing it alone, without revision, wouldn't have cured my problem.  

Honestly, I've never heard of omeprazole leading to weight gain.  I have heard of PPIs causing other issues, but not weight gain.  If I was in your shoes and PPIs worked to control my acid (for me, they did not provide any control or relief) I would take them even though your Dr. says you could gain weight.  The damage caused by the acid is far more concerning (to me) than a few extra pounds.  You may also want to try different PPIs like protonix, or dexilant.  They worked slightly better for me.

FYI - since my revision, I haven't had a single acid issue.

Stacy,

I've got several appointments lined up in order to get to the bottom of this GERD and Reactive Hypoglycemia. 

I seem to be the patient in the small minority--can't drink water along with a few other issues.

I thought the weight gain was unusual but I am off the omeprazole until Monday.

Glad to read you haven't had a single acid issue with the revision.

I was basically low risk for GERD post-op and I have horrible GERD.  I had to do Dexilant and only stopped it after my insurance refused to cover it any longer.  I was completely blindsided, as I had never hard GERD before in my life.  I also have a small hiatal hernia but the small size does not account for the horrible chest pain that put me in the ER last week.  Calling the GI doc to schedule the endoscopy tomorrow.  I have the exact same symptoms with "food sitting."  In my case, it's the hernia.

As for the omeprazole, a bigger issue than weight gain with PPI medications is that new studies show they may increase dementia risk by as much as 50% after very long-term use.  I'm way more worried about that than weight gain.  I think weight gain from omeprazole is one of the super rare/dangerous side effects for sure, though it's been a while since my pharmacology classes...

Please keep me informed about your progress.  And feel better.

When I heard about the dementia I was freaked out! I have been on nexium for 10 years! So, I started taking it every other day for about 2 months.  I had to go back to taking it every day because my acid reflux was so bad! One of my best friends daughter is a pharmacist. So, I asked her about that study.  She said its not conclusive and that they need to do more testing.  Now I can't remember the exact number but seemed like she said it was 88 older German people, that they got these results from.  But she did say its not good for your bones.