HEALTH Proton Pump Inhibitors And Blood Pressure Plus My Struggles To Get Off Omeprazole

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Wildwood

Veteran Member
Last year, in an effort to break the strangle hold omeprazole had on me, I switched to famotidine (pepcid) because I'd heard it's much easier to get off of than omeprazole. The switch from omeprazole to famotidine was painful to say the least but I toughed it out and dreaded the next step when I actually quit famotidine. I took my last famotidine about nine or ten days ago and I have to say, it has been a walk in the park compared to the first switch. I've been eating smaller meals and eating a little more often. I'm using tums and the icebreakers peppermint gum when the acid starts and they both work great. I alternate the two a few hours apart and use both about twice a day and supplementing with k2 to counteract calcium accumulation. I know tums has it's own issues but I'm just using it as a crutch until I get back to normal but I'm over the moon with how well this is going and how easy it has been. I'd tried to get off omeprazole so many times but I'd cave because the rebound acid was so bad.

My son was my inspiration. He quit Omeprazole cold turkey a few months back. His acid reflux was even worse than mine and over the years, he'd put about 60 extra pounds on his large frame but since he'd started out so underweight, it's not as bad as it sounds. He completely changed his diet to battle the reflux so I'm doing a little of that too. The change in him is huge...he's in a better mood. His ankle swelling is completely gone and even his face has changed. He looks like he did in his twenties and he has started walking and running a few miles every day.

The best news for me is my blood pressure and I'm praying this lasts. It hasn't been this low since I started taking omeprazole...strange how I never connected the two. I'm still taking a fluid pill ever day but if this lasts, I'll be able to quit that too. This is the third day it's been this low so I'm cautiously optimistic. I've also lost about 6 pounds. If my face loses the puffiness like DS's has, I will be a very happy camper.
 
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dvo

Veteran Member
Why the need to get off omeprazole? Not sure I understand. It sure works well and GERD is a PITA.
 
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SlipperySlope

Veteran Member
Omeprazole is treated like OTC Tums or antacids. If you carefully read about it you will find that they don't recommend it for long term use. My DH's doctor wanted him on it permanently. DH quit taking it when his ulcer got better and he was fine.

My son has been on it for years and has had one problem after another. Don't know if it is caused by Omeprazole but he was fine until he had been on it for about a year. He also had a bad reaction to Chantix.
 
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moldy

Veteran Member
PPIs are recommended to use for only 2 weeks at a time, for (IIRC) up to 3-4 times a year. There have been some studies linking their use to cognitive decline.

Just a suggestion from your friendly neighborhood herbalist: You might try ginger instead of mint. Mint has a relaxant quality that can make reflux worse (although if it works for you, I probably shouldn't question - but ginger might do more). Fennel is also great if you have a 'gassy' quality to your stomach upset.
 
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Wildwood

Veteran Member
dvo said:
Why the need to get off omeprazole? Not sure I understand. It sure works well and GERD is a PITA.
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Do a little research. The side effects are horrible and it's prescribed for constant use when it is only meant to be used a couple weeks at a time. I recently read an article that said 60% of all heart attack deaths are patients taking omeprazole. I didn't save it so can't give you a link or verify the validity but a simple search will find you all the evidence you need. IMHO famotidine is a much safer choice if you must take one and actually did a little better job managing my acid reflux.

Edited to add...the heart attack deaths were in people over 60.
 
kyrsyan

kyrsyan

Has No Life - Lives on TB
Morrocan mint has proven to be my sanity some days. Just that strain. For me and son, we don't get the reflux that mint can sometimes cause.
 
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Wildwood

Veteran Member
moldy said:
PPIs are recommended to use for only 2 weeks at a time, for (IIRC) up to 3-4 times a year. There have been some studies linking their use to cognitive decline.

Just a suggestion from your friendly neighborhood herbalist: You might try ginger instead of mint. Mint has a relaxant quality that can make reflux worse (although if it works for you, I probably shouldn't question - but ginger might do more). Fennel is also great if you have a 'gassy' quality to your stomach upset.
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Thanks Moldy, I will give ginger a try. I think the reason the gum helps is because my mouth is producing so much more saliva. Probably, another flavor would do just as well. I use to keep ginger lozenges all the time for nausea. I'll pick up some this weekend.
 
Southside

Southside

Has No Life - Lives on TB
I used Pepcid/Maalox for 35 years+. For some reason, 4 or so years ago, I noticed that if I didn't take an antacid on one day, the acid problem was not as great the next day. So, come hook or crook, I decided to quit them cold turkey, for 2 weeks. That was 4+ years ago, and I have taken antacids no more than 5 times in the last 4+ years. I was amazed.
 
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Wildwood

Veteran Member
moldy said:
PPIs are recommended to use for only 2 weeks at a time, for (IIRC) up to 3-4 times a year. There have been some studies linking their use to cognitive decline.

Just a suggestion from your friendly neighborhood herbalist: You might try ginger instead of mint. Mint has a relaxant quality that can make reflux worse (although if it works for you, I probably shouldn't question - but ginger might do more). Fennel is also great if you have a 'gassy' quality to your stomach upset.
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I've never heard of it...will look into it. I'm so allergic to wintergreen because it is a salicylate that I'm scared of any mint other than peppermint. I accidentally got ahold of mint gum several years ago that was not suppose to be wintergreen but it was a mix of mints and had a really bad reaction so now I'm afraid of everything except peppermint.
 
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Wildwood

Veteran Member
hiwall said:
I have tried to quit twice. The last time I held out for 6+ weeks but finally went back.
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I feel your pain. I highly recommend stepping down to famotidine first or even just switching to it. There will be some reflux at first but nothing like just quitting omeprazole cold turkey. My blood pressure got a little better with famotidine but now it's in the teenage years levels. This time, I will not go back to Omeprazole because, for the first time, I see that my eating habits are part of the problem.

I do intermittant fasting so eating just two larger meals a day was not helpful because I ate more at one time. These smaller meals are also making a huge difference in the reflux and I'm losing weight so am not fasting anymore.
 
et2

et2

TB Fanatic
I take Omeprazole twice a day to treat Barrett's Esophagus. Didn’t ever look into the side effects. :eek:
 
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Wildwood

Veteran Member
et2 said:
I take Omeprazole twice a day to treat Barrett's Esophagus. Didn’t ever look into the side effects. :eek:
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If you are taking it for Barrett's don't stop. You may ask your doctor about switching to something else. It may not cause you the issues it has me and it didn't work that well for me. It has it's place and Barrett's is probably one of those.
 
T

Tennessee gal

Veteran Member
SlipperySlope said:
Omeprazole is treated like OTC Tums or antacids. If you carefully read about it you will find that they don't recommend it for long term use. My DH's doctor wanted him on it permanently. DH quit taking it when his ulcer got better and he was fine.

My son has been on it for years and has had one problem after another. Don't know if it is caused by Omeprazole but he was fine until he had been on it for about a year. He also had a bad reaction to Chantix.
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My doctor took me off of it after a year. Once in a blue moon I’ll take one if the acid in my stomach is really bad. I’m glad you’re doing better.
 
TxGal

TxGal

Day by day
I had been on it for over a year when I stopped taking it last year. I know there is a protocol for tapering off, but at the moment I can't recall it. I was also using Gaviscon after meals.

I had the capsules, and I started cutting my dose in half. I would normally open the capsules anyhow and put the little beads in applesauce. I'd just count the little beads and do a half dose. I did that for about 3 months or so, and didn't notice a difference in my heartburn. Omeprazole always gave me really bad diarrhea, travelling in the car was a problem. I didn't really like taking it much, but it did help.

Then one night I had what I thought might have been a stomach virus with really bad diarrhea. Because the Omeprazole did that to me anyhow, I didn't want to add a dose on top of an active case of diarrhea. So, I skipped it. I kept waiting for the rebound effect, but it never happened.

Months prior to that, I had dramatically changed my diet. I went gluten free, dropped all acid foods, etc.

I think that's what worked - the change in diet.
 
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Wildwood

Veteran Member
Robin Hood said:
Having gone through a similar route, I have found that hibiscus & licorice tea as well as dandelion leaf & root tea have a very soothing effect on the GI track.

rh
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I have hibiscus tea and I'd completely forgotten it. I've been looking for something hot to take the place of half the coffe I'm trying to cut back on. I'd like to try the dandelion too...thanks!
 
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Wildwood

Veteran Member
TxGal said:
I had been on it for over a year when I stopped taking it last year. I know there is a protocol for tapering off, but at the moment I can't recall it. I was also using Gaviscon after meals.

I had the capsules, and I started cutting my dose in half. I would normally open the capsules anyhow and put the little beads in applesauce. I'd just count the little beads and do a half dose. I did that for about 3 months or so, and didn't notice a difference in my heartburn. Omeprazole always gave me really bad diarrhea, travelling in the car was a problem. I didn't really like taking it much, but it did help.

Then one night I had what I thought might have been a stomach virus with really bad diarrhea. Because the Omeprazole did that to me anyhow, I didn't want to add a dose on top of an active case of diarrhea. So, I skipped it. I kept waiting for the rebound effect, but it never happened.

Months prior to that, I had dramatically changed my diet. I went gluten free, dropped all acid foods, etc.

I think that's what worked - the change in diet.
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I suspect I have issues with gluten and have greatly reduced bread too. I usually eat one slice of the low carb bread for a foldover sandwich at lunch if I'm in a hurry. Getting off the famotidine has been pretty much a non event too, much to my surprise but I'm still walking on egg shells.
 
subnet

subnet

Boot
dvo said:
Why the need to get off omeprazole? Not sure I understand. It sure works well and GERD is a PITA.
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Its bad for the kidneys

Research shows that PPIs like omeprazole are associated with short-term and long-term kidney damage.
 
Quiet Man

Quiet Man

Nothing unreal exists
Thank you, Wildwood, for relating your experiences.

I'm recently diagnosed as having a duodenal ulcer, and was put on Sulcralfate in an attempt to heal it. Pantoprazole (another PPI) was also prescribed to cut acid production during the same time. At the end the 3-week regimen I tried slowly weaning off of Pantoprazole and phasing-over to Famotidine. Acid production went through the roof and I crashed hard. Things were bad before, but so much worse after. The doctor since quadrupled my Famotidine daily dose. I'm still in rough shape, but not as bad as at the end of the first round.

All that aside, there look to be some very good suggestions on this thread that I plan to investigate. Thank you, everyone, for your comments.

Regarding staying on a PPI/H2 long-term: This seems dangerous to me. Stomach acid is required to break-down food for digestion/absorption. Without it, you are coming-up nutritionally short.

ETA: In my area, the lead time to see a Gastroenterologist (i.e. for endoscopy) is about 90 days. Is that typical in other areas? It's a very long wait.

ETA2: There are many YT videos where people discuss how acid production drops as we age, and this leads to the various issues that we loosely refer to as GERD. Does anyone here have experience with using Betaine HCl with any degree of success?
 
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