Leah B.
Servant of All
I just got home from the ER. To give you background, I just finished a course of prednisone a while back that I had to take for a COPD flare, but I was still having symptoms. I had gone to dinner and gotten even worse -- shortness of breath and chest pain, this squeezing feeling. Anyway, at the ER they ran all sorts of tests on me -- Heart monitor, blood tests for cardiac and pulmonary, panels for viruses and on and on. The verdict is in: It's my gastroesophageal reflux disease. Apparently, even on omeprazole, I have been suffering from breakthrough stomach acid. It can really do a number on you. The prednisone itself probably kicked this off. I want to say I'm proud of myself. I'll tell you why: I started to put two and two together. I told the doctor I thought I should have taken famotidine to deal with breakthrough stomach acid while taking the prednisone. She agreed. She also listened to my description of things I found baffling. I'll give you an example: I'm lying in bed getting pain in my chest and ribs and short of breath to the point where I have to sleep almost upright in my adjustable bed. Then in the morning, I wake up to find I've gotten lower in the bed and have been sleeping completely flat with not even a pillow. Also I'm able to go on my stationary bike for a half hour with no problem and crank out 40 chair squats. Almost same exercise tolerance as before the COPD flare-up but then with chest pain from doing nothing and this labored breathing. I told that doctor I thought this was a combination of reflux and extreme anxiety brought about by the COPD exacerbation. After all the tests were run, the consensus was exactly that. The treatment plan is for me to in addition to my morning omeprazole take 20 mg of famotidine before dinner for two weeks. I am very relieved it's not my heart or my lungs. In fact, I need to share this with you because I just can not get over it. I really do have COPD. My oxygen saturation was hovering between 92 and 95 for most of the time, which is not too bad. Then it went to 96 for a bit. Then I decided to do deep breathing. I got it to 98. Then I got it to 99. Then, unbelievably, I got my oxygen saturation to 100%! I did it twice! [I can only keep it there for as long as I deep breathe, but that's still awesome.] I was so thrilled, I took a picture of that 100 reading with my cell phone camera! All my hard work of exercising, never smoking again, and watching my diet and weight have paid off. Also I think it's safe to say that all your prayers have worked as well. I mean, I am not cured, but after seeing that 100% oxygen saturation reading, I'm not ruling out that possibility! All this being said, I'm happy, very happy, but also let down in that I do not like that GERD diet one little bit! Everything I love to eat and drink is on the no-no list -- garlic, onions, spicy foods, coffee, chocolate, orange juice with the pulp, and tomatoes. I LOVE tomatoes, and I love my niece's macaroni sauce. I think I'm going to have to come to some kind of happy medium. I already bought low acid coffee and low acid decaf. I can switch to black garlic for my supplement instead of a regular garlic supplement. I can take the famotidine before a family dinner or special occasion so I can eat what I want. I can pick between having a couple of chocolates after dinner or else eating tomatoes in my salad. I also need to know my trigger foods. I don't think cooked garlic is really a problem for me. I just -- I'm very happy my COPD is under control, and my heart is okay. I'm still upset about the GERD diet though. I think it stinks. I would just go for an increase in my omeprazole, but I know proton pump inhibitors can have serious long-term side-effects. [I take probiotics and certain vitamins and minerals to try to stave off those potential side-effects.] Hence, the compromise I am looking at with taking famotidine but not taking it on a daily basis. Anyway, there you have it. Thank you, Jesus, for answering my prayers about my COPD. Please pray in Jesus's name I am able to properly manage my GERD, especially with caffeine from coffee and chocolate. I love coffee. Besides drinking low acid coffee, I've already cut to two cups of caffeinated coffee per day. I think I may have to go to one. That could be very hard, especially if I ever have to stay awake so pray in Jesus's name for strength for me. Finally, please pray in Jesus's name that they come up with a better surgical option for GERD. The surgery they do have is rough. You end up eating baby food for three months, and it only has a 50% success rate. Thank you for praying.

