Readers Respond: What symptoms led you to your hiatal hernia diagnosis?

When did you first suspect you may have a hiatal hernia? Were there symptoms that prompted you to go to your doctor? Let others know your experience. Sharing your symptoms could prompt someone else with similar symptoms to see a doctor when they might not otherwise.

Heart Palpitations and Hiatal Hernia

I found out after having chest pain and upper back pain and not being able to take a deep breath that I had a hiatal hernia thru an xray. I had heart palpitations for the last 3 weeks leading up to this. After taking Zantac and Calfatrate, my pain is all gone and so are the heart palpitations. Thank you Drs. for finding my problems so caringly!!

—Guest Kimmy

hernia hell

Hi all i have been diagnosed with a medium sizede hernia i think mine is pretty severe choking in the middle of the knight bloating aching lots of spasms and tired all the time i realy think their is something to the vagus nerv though becouse i am getting pains in my arms and thighs warm sensation that runs down my leg my doctor is wondering if it is just do to the hernia but i believe it is because it all started in my throat had a barium that confirmed hh good luck to you all.

—Guest winterisbetter

hiatus hernia

Hi i feel really sorry for anyone who has the problems related to a hiatus hernia it makes life miserable. Was diagnosed march 2011 had all the symptoms pain under my rib cage burning all the way up to my throat fullness after eating a small amount of food it got so bad that i could only eat porridge for breakfast, low fat greek yogurt mid morning, half a tin of soup for lunch and the other half mid afternoon and then porridge for dinner with blueberries i did that for about a month and lost 1stone in weight. I had gastrscopy and found i had a hernia was put on Lansoprazole 30mg twice a day and a miracle medicine called Kolanticon gel to take every four hours and it works by stopping the stomache going into a spasm helpful if you have ibs it also helps with flatulence and hyper acidity you can buy it at the chemists they may have to order it in for you and it cost about £6 for a large 500ml bottle but it is great and i always have a bottle indoors.

—Guest suemum3

Hernia

I was diagnosed with a hiatal hernia a year ago. Lately it has been bothering me alot. The pressure sent me to emerg. My blood pressure also rises and the blood pressure medication doesn't seem to work. I am waiting to have a barium swallow and a stress test. I find that hot drinks make it feel worse. Also fatty foods. I have lost 12 lb. due to not being able to eat a normal meal. Even my seat in the car makes it worse. The position of the seat with the legs higher than the hips causes more pressure on the abdomen. I have added rolled up flyers to the rear of the seat and this has alleviated the pressure. I hope to find some answers other than acid reducers. I sympathize with all the sufferers.

—Guest Betty

Hiatal Hernia

I mentioned to my G.P that I regularly had problems with heartburn, burping and a feeling of pressure under the ribs. Infact, after several G.Ps at my local practice dismissing the symptoms as due to stress, over-weight or constipation, I gave up mentioning the issue. Recently, because of concern about a family history of bowel cancer, I convinced a doctor to refer me privately for colonoscopy and the consultant wanted to combine it with endoscopy for a thorough check. Turns out I have a larger than average hiatal hernia. It is a relief to know the explanation for my symptoms but what a shame I've to cut back on so many foods/drinks to manage the problem.

—carob.

hiatal hernia and gastritis

Well I suffered from bulimia since I was 13. I could never stop it. Slowed down as I got older and now I'm paying for it . Anyway I know that this is why I cannot get better. I had an endoscopy the dr. said I suffer from gastritis and a hiatal hernia. I went through excruciating back pain. It hurts more when I eat. The dr. gave me Vicodin. It helps but only for a short while. The worst thing I could do was add mayonnaise on my food. It's rich in fat so it's harder to digest, and there comes the pain again. It's not worth it your never happy so please avoid acidy chocolate or coffee.

—Guest lorena

hernia.wth gastritis

i just been throu an endoscopy procedure the dr. said ny body produces to much acid my stoma well, i was in a lot of pain so he gave me omeprazole 20mg in morning 20 mg at bedtime its working wonders,but you have to watch you eat definetly eo the pain will come back with revenge also have gastritis which makes it work .my dr said to me that the omeprazole two times daily will also benefit my hernia.by the way you can find omeprazole over the counter i hope i sent you some help. l.p

—Guest lorena

Had Lap Nissan but now it's come loose

Crazy as it sounds. I was told when I had the fundoplication that my problems were gone for good. Well...yes life has been grand being able to eat all the acidic foods like salsa, jalepenas, etc. This month which is about 7 years to the date, my hiatal hernia is back..it came loose. I don't know if I need to do surgery again. Solid food stops at the base of my esophagus and stomach and sets there until it feels like it is dissolved enough to pass on down.

—Chrissy8759

hiatal hernia

I found out about it when I was working at the call centre and I was losing my voice . The longer I spoke my chest was getting harder and sharp pains in both my chest and in my back . I could hardly breath . I was told by a lady at work to get it checked out , she had a hernia herself and seen the signs . I went got a chest x-ray and the hiatal hernia was there . What a relief , not all in my head . I wasn't faking it . I went on to the website and found the diet and have been eating heartburn free food ever since and have been feeling great but no coffee ,tea , chocolate , soft drinks , tomatoes and fatty foods , it is worth it and I have lost 15 pounds and have been at work and not losing my voice again.

—nweir1

Hiatal Hernia and all the works.

I have a hiatal hernia. It makes me have numerous problems. Heart, breathing, GERD, vision problems, faintness, etc. A hiatal hernia can mess with your vagus nevre and cause ALL kinds of problems. Take my advice and research the relations of the two conditions.

—Guest Sonia96

...continued I'm not a hypochondriac!

Findings: My voice box was fusing together meaning I could not reach my ' high notes'( my voice was getting deeper) I also had a hiatus hernia and a narrowing of the eusophocus! I am on lanzoprazole now ( acid blocker) and all my aforementioned symptoms have gone! Yeh! My acid reflux was so bad and so prolonged  that I didn't even feel it anymore while it silently burned and burned! It was through my own research that I learned about barrets syndrome and the possibility of that turning cancerous! Nobody cared to tell me that! My advice for anyone who has had bad acid reflux is to get it sorted early.  I'd like to add that I also had problems with my breathing, heart palpitations, lymph nodes swollen and a sensation of  there being a water bubble in my chest.  None of these were examined further and so i cannot say there are linked with the acid problem but I think they are all related. So just keep an eye on those symptoms as through research I have seen that both heart and lungs can b

—Guest Marie

This helps instantly

You know the symptoms-- the minute you recognize the saliva or that tightness in your throat, grab a spoonful of sugar. Any kind- white sugar, brown sugar, a pack of sugar on the table at the restaurant. Get a good spoonful into your mouth on top of your tongue. Don't swallow it, just let it melt in your mouth and go down your throat. I don't know why the sugar seems to relax everything. Within a short time you will feel normal again and can even finish your meal. You might have to have another spoonful of sugar during the meal. But you will be able to finish eating. Go slow, stay relaxed if you can. In the middle of an attack, a stranger ran up to my elderly dad and handed him a pack of sugar off the table. My dad did what he told him to do, has been forever grateful. I suffer from the same problem- this is a life saver. Hard candy is NOT interchangeable nor is honey or maple syrup. Plain old sugar is what works. This isn't a cure but it stops the attack instantly.

—Guest rb

I'm not a hypochondriac!!! I'm not!

I have had what i always called indigestion, acid coming up and burning my throat, but I got used to it. One day after I ate a chicken korma and rice dinner I has a hardness in my chest and I thought I could not breath. I was beating my chest and frantically walking around to  try to 'free' up my chest . I assumed I had some allergic reaction to the sauce so I just avoided it but this reaction happened again much later and also i began to cough    a lot especially after food.  There was a lot of phlegm So I began to think i was allergic to food!  Finally after 2 years of constantly coughing and belching and then the odd panic attack when my food seemed to stick in my chest, my poor husband had enough and insisted I go to the doctor. But it was only when I had a particular bad 'episode' and actually was vomiting when it passed that I relented and went. Long story short after the initial look into my throat, I had a barium swallow then endoscopy.

—Guest Marie

laparoscopic fundoplication

I recently had surgery. The aftermath has been miserable for 3 weeks. Hope it will improve. People with apthous ulcers in the mouth should consider possible gluten intolerance. The severe bloating, acid reflux, choking and difficulty swallowing are all too familiar. MD's patent recommendation tell you to lose weight - what a laugh! Upper endoscopy and swallowing studies finally led to the surgeon as a last resort. I am glad I had the surgery because the reflux and chest pain have decreased significantly. Advancing diet from liquids has been slow. Small amounts amounts of pureed foods are rough.

—frances3914

small hiatal hernia coupled with anxiety

A persistently scratchy throat and a subsequent bout of anxiety-induced acute gastritis led me to get a gastroscopy. The finding was a "small" hiatal hernia -- a diagnosis the attending surgeon seemed to brush off as no big deal. I have had acid reflux that I mostly treated with Tums, and I have been overweight and have had central obesity, but I've been working to lose weight through diet and exercise. I've lost a lot of the weight -- my BMI has dropped from 30.7 to 26.0 and continues to fall. I'm 36 years old. I'm doing this in the hopes my hiatal hernia doesn't progress. My doctors believe my condition is worsened only by anxiety, and that if this is controlled, so will the GERD associated with the hernia. It could be much worse.

—Guest pissed-off