by K L Humphreys

Created on: May 04, 2009   Last Updated: May 11, 2009

Suffering from acid reflux is one of the most uncomfortable body functions I have ever lived through, and I will do whatever I need, to prevent it from happening again.

It's interesting that most people know little to nothing about certain ailments until it affects us, and then it's time for school to begin.

My education with acid reflux began on my 56th birthday after having a meal with my blended family. You might wonder what this has to do with this sort of pain, but when you combine certain elements with spicy food and a dysfunctional family you will understand as I did.

When the birthday meal was finished and I was driven back to my truck I had such indigestion that I was sure I was having a heart attack. I was eating and swallowing anti-acid tablets as fast as I could, but to no avail.

Soon after arriving home I was able to rid myself of this horrible pain by vomiting the entire meal. Then I began to read and research why this incredible ordeal had happened to me. Here are the reasons and they are very simple and happen everyday in different circumstances.

The first thing you need to know was my husband was out of town for a music convention, and we have only been married a few years and very rarely travel without the other. This contributed to my emotional state and I was not really in the mood to celebrate my birthday with folks who really didn't care in the first place.

Next the meal was fried food, which I don't eat often and so it was laying heavy in my stomach, and with the stress of my husband out of town, and a meal with blended family my stomach refused to digest my dinner.

So it stayed and began to back up into my throat and chest area, which felt like heart trouble. As I continued to study about this problem it became very simple that I needed to stay away from some family members while eating.

There were certain foods I should stay away from such as, tomatoes, citrus, spicy foods and now I had to retrain myself and eat small portions very slow.

If I didn't sit still after eating my circulatory system could not digest my food and my pain would begin. It's like watching a dog or cat they curl up, and sleep after eating so their bodies can digest properly.

Most people rush around and never give themselves time to eat the right foods, and allow their bodies to do what they were created to do, and that's eat and rest.

I did all that I knew to do but I was still drinking anti-acids and that only sent me to the toilet more times than I needed.

I finally went to the doctor and she helped me to understand the first attack I had did some damage and I needed medication to help my body heal, and it is working well.

The main point to all this is when you begin to suffer from acid reflux ask yourself some questions.

1. What am I eating?

2. Am I stressed physically, emotionally or mentally?

3. Do I give myself plenty of time to digest food?

You could eating too fast and not resting or you might have just come through a divorce or the death of a loved one and need to grieve. I found it amazing when I realized why I was having times of pain from acid reflux.

Sometimes following some simple rules might be enough, but going to the doctor could be the answer as well.

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