sunflower15

I have had severe reflux for years, and ironically it was Aloe Vera capsules that calmed things down considerably. I was taking them for Interstitial Cystitis, and noticed that I wasn't having the same symptoms anymore. I still get reflux, but not as bad as before. I also have elevated the head of my bed about two inches and make sure not to lie down after eating. If I do have to lie down, laying on the left helps with stomach emptying a bit better. I saw where someone recommended the deglycyrrhizinated form of licorice (DGL) It won't affect your blood pressure, as regular licorice would. I take two chewable ones before bed and they really soothe the esophagus area. It must be awful to be so constricted in what you can take for this!

When I get severe headaches, it usually means that my unstable blood pressure has either plummeted or skyrocketed. Then I take extra Magnesium Taurate, lots of water, and oral saline solution. Banana Bag is good. you can order this online. I also sometimes drink a cup of Tulsi tea, which is an adaptogenic. It is really scary when it takes hours to bring it down, but I am afraid to try new medications because I rarely can tolerate them for long. Sometimes a snack food can bring on severe headaches so I keep track of those, too. I hope you find relief!

I was reading elsewhere on this site about people taking Diazepam with great success for these spikes. Having said that, I will add that I have been trying to taper off Klonopin, and now strongly suspect that this is causing these symptoms. I was started on Klonopin last fall and started tapering off in February of this year, due to episodes of agitation and irritability. It has been nearly three weeks since I stopped and now these symptoms have flared up! I really suspect that the withdrawal exacerbated these symptoms since I hadn't been having them for a long time. The trouble is, I have a new doctor who although very nice, is rather prejudiced against Benzoes. I have not been successful finding a doctor who is familiar with POTS/Dysautonomia issues, and who would understand this. I usually have atypical reactions to most drugs, but with the exception of Klonopin, I do really well with things like Diazepam, Ativan, and Xanax.

Last night, I had an alarming spike in BP, and no matter what I did, it kept climbing. Usually I have lightly salted water, and/or soak my feet in water with Epsom salts; this used to work with irregular heartbeat episodes. It went on for nearly twelve hours, and I was convinced that it would end me. I finally fell asleep, but it was fitful because of how hard my heart was pounding. Does anyone ever get this symptom, and if so, is there anything that can alleviate it?