Anyone familiar with frequent heartburn knows it’s the absolute worst. Getting it just every once in a while is bad enough. All it takes is one wrong meal or stressful event and you’re spending the rest of the day paying the consequences. That said, it’s easy to understand why frequent is beyond miserable. It means days, if not weeks, of that ever-worsening feeling that nearly takes over your life. If it happens to you often enough, you learn to make lifestyle changes. You master the list of foods to avoid, and try to manage anxiety as best as you can. Still, those awful episodes find their way in every once in a while.
As for me, I’m definitely far from a stranger to these incidents. My most recent was at the end of last year when Sarah and I were trying to buy our first house. This can be hard enough on its own, but throw in that we were doing it in the fickle Los Angeles market and it made for quite the taxing experience. Of course, I survived. But, by the time it was through I was basically one stop away from an ulcer.
Heartburn, unchecked
The fact that it got this far was completely on me. If frequent heartburn goes unchecked, it can quickly pile onto itself. First, it’s always on your mind, which absolutely lends itself to a vicious cycle. Secondly, finding a way to decompress can be nearly impossible. In my case I couldn’t go out to dinner with friends or have a nice wine and cheese night in with the wife. Other activities were out as well since I was in a weird limbo of needing to restrict movement, eliminating more athletic activities, and not being able to sit too long like one would need to do for something like a movie. Hot baths can help sometimes, but drought + bath = guilt = stress…you see where I’m going with this.
Why I put treating my heartburn at the bottom of my to-do list, I’ll never know. It would have been the easiest thing to take care of by far. Not to mention it would have enhanced my quality of life during this time immeasurably. But that doesn’t matter now. Why it doesn’t is that Omeprazole (I always go with the store brand since it works exactly the same but is usually cheaper) is a miracle worker. Only a few days into the two-week regimen and I was feeling better. And once I was done, it was like it never happened.
You no longer have to swallow Omeprazole
As much as I love Omeprazole, there is one issue that I have with it: it’s a pill you have to swallow. I don’t think swallowing pills is on the top of any list of ‘favorite things to do’. Throw in a wicked stomachache or worse, reflux, and it’s one of the last things you want to do. The good news is this issue has finally been addressed. Omeprazole now comes in a dissolvable form known as Omeprazole Orally Disintegrating Tablet.
Omeprazole ODT uses a MELTech formula that makes the tablet so much easier to take it’s ridiculous. No more anxiety about getting the pill down or wondering if you’ll be seeing it again shortly after (gross, I’m sorry, but it can be a true fear). It even has a pleasant strawberry taste as your spoonful of sugar. The new form is also perfect for when you’re on the go and don’t have immediate access to water.
While I’m still not looking forward to experiencing my next heartburn episode, having these tablets in my arsenal definitely makes me more comfortable with the idea. Next time I’ll be able to nip it in the bud without piling on the added worry that comes with taking care of the problem itself. Because life should be about enjoying yourself, not worrying about frequent heartburn. (Insert gif of run-spinning through a flowery field.)
