Pomeranian

Greetings!

This is a brief posting from a newbie as I composed lengthy introductions a couple of times and got a message that I am not logged in.

Anyone suffer from gastritis? How long did it take to heal. I am two weeks in after combining aspirin with gin and tonics. I have not had any alcohol since this began Sept. 10. I am on a PPI and Carafate for treatment and get an abdominal ultrasound next week.

Thanks for reading.

MIRecovery

Not a doctor but I can tell tell you a whole litany of my problems vanished over the first 3 months of sobriety

Dee74

Hi Pomeranian
I used to get gastritis a lot - I think I've had it twice now - with much less severity - in 8 years. Cutting alcohol out helped immensely

D

Retread1959

Gastritis here as well, along with a host of other issues. I'm only a month in, but stomach and other issues seem much improved. I have an appointment in November with my gastroenterologist for an endoscopy and colonoscopy so I'm hoping by then he will see some improvement. If in doubt, talk to your doctor. We're not medical folks here, so it's always better to be safe than sorry.

Pomeranian

Thanks MI Recovery, Dee and Retread.

Hopefully this, too, shall pass. It has been rugged thus far. I am under the care of a gastroenterologist. I find him to be a little parsimonious with words in the explaining things department. This gastritis is new to me and hopefully a never-to-be repeated experience.

Retread1959

Yeah, mine is, too. They love to just do their tests and send you off with little discussion. I don't even think mine remembers why I originally was referred to him (IBS-type symptoms that I still have).

Pomeranian

Interesting Retread. I, too, have long suspected I have some degree of IBS. It seems to be a diagnosis reached by eliminating this, that and the other thing. I have found high fiber, low fat and attempts at controlling stress levels to be somewhat helpful.

BlueFairy

I'm not sure what gastritis is but I had terrible stomach issues when I first stopped, went to the doctor convinced I had an ulcer to find out I was....constipated. He recommended metamucil something like that twice a day--I had some Psyllium around and he said that was fine. I still need fiber every day but I'm much better 4 months in.

Pomeranian

Thanks, BlueFairy. Gastritis is inflammation of the stomach lining. I don't have constipation...quite the contrary most days but I have taken Metamucil (psyllium) fairly often as I find it helpful to a degree with my suspected IBS. Someone once described psyllium to me as "kitty litter" for the gut (Lol).

tea0005

I think I might have this problem, but not sure. I'm going to detox tomorrow and will maybe find out then. However, if I get enough alcohol in my system, it seems to go away and I can eat again. Did it ever go away after drinking a sufficient amount? That seems to happen to me.

Pomeranian

I don't know, Tea. As soon as I developed stomach burning and bloating I quit drinking and made an appointment to see a doctor. From my recent reading about gastritis one needs to discontinue the use of alcohol and other irritants lest the gastritis become chronic or an ulcer develop. Gastritis can be a precursor to stomach CA if left untreated and one continues with the irritant.

MelindaFlowers

This. I had severe health problems at 32 years old that were diagnosed as "acute" to see if they went away and it was the first doctor visit in years. I had extremely high BP too. My doctor called it "stroke level" and she said she was "worried I was going to stroke out on her" right in the office. I'll never forget those words. I can still see her expression too.

Long story short, I'm in great health now. I've been sober 16 months. So many health problems disappear with complete and total abstinence. I cannot stress that enough: complete and total abstinence. Oh, and you can't ever start again.

And they often disappear on their own. I was in no way a health freak when I got sober. I ate junky food and still healed and am now in fighting shape.

Simply not drinking alcohol which is poison and actually hydrating yourself with.....drumroll.....WATER does the body wonders. I do take a multivitamin every day.

I like this example:

"Doctor, I have the worst headaches....."

Doctor: "Have you considered putting down the sledgehammer and smashing your head with it?"

"Hadn't thought of that....."

alphaomega

I had it when I first quit. It was awful. It took almost 3 months for mine to clear. I really hit it hard the last time out. Drinking straight tequila thinking I could get away with murder.

I was on 3 different PPis at one point.

fantail

Tea, I had gastritis and it was that way with me, too. I don't know why exactly. But by the end of my drinking this time around the only way I could even eat was if I drank first, otherwise my stomach was too sensitive for food. Also my stomach would burn until I drank. No clue whether this was because the alcohol numbed the nerves, or if it washed some of the acid/bile out of my stomach temporarily... but definitely even though it felt better it was making it worse cumulatively. I ended up vomiting blood, quite a bit of it, twice.

The good news is that I was eating normal meals again after 2 weeks sober. A few weeks later some of the symptoms came back for a week or so, and I do still get touches of nausea and bloating (about 2.5 months sober now)... but I can eat dairy, spicy food, acidic food, whatever I want without triggering anything. From what I understand from my doctor (and also just how I feel) it seems that it is probably basically healed by now and should stay that way. I plan on getting another exam in a month or so.

OnMyWay7

There was a big improvement in a few weeks but really by 6 months didn't notice the issues gone

Pomeranian

Thanks to all who have responded. It is good to know there is light at the end of the tunnel as it has been tough. On Friday I have an ultrasound to investigate elevated ALT liver enzyme (43) and some other symptoms (itchy skin, backache). Must stay away from "Dr. Google" until after my gastro doc can interpret the results.

Soberwolf

Gastritis is the inflammation of the stomach lining caused by too much drinking I havnt had it once in sobriety as my stomach lining isn't get aggravated by alcohol

I only got this through drinking as soon as I stopped drinking it'd be 3-4 harsh days vomiting belly pains etc