Dockside Chat - Prescriptions and Dr appointments?

OK so I suffer from heartburn and acid reflux. I was taking Prilosec for a few years but it wasn't doing much for the reflux I get at night.

So 4 months ago I went to a doctor so I could get checked out. As I figured and was hoping he did a couple of quick tests and sent me on my way with a prescription for Nexium.

Nexium is a great drug, it eliminates all my heartburn and reflux. Now my question, is it normal to have to go back to the doctor every few months to keep the prescription? What does the doctor think is going to change? I'm 36 and have had heartburn issues for 15 years. Nexium fixed it but I need to keep taking it.

I think its all a scam. The doctor wants me in there every couple of months so they can bill my insurance company for the visit.

No, I don't think that is odd. Look at it this way, doctors have to protect themselves from the fools out there. Some people think when they get a script from the doc, presto, they are "cured". Never go back to see them even when their condition worsens. Then sues the doc for not "curing" them.

He is keeping on eye on you so that at the first signs the medication is no longer working he can present other options to you-such as surgery.

I am not disagreeing with you about it being a pain to go back. I have to at least every 6 months to keep my Crestor script. I's rather spend a little of my money now in hopes of keeping my health lond enough to spend the rest of it later. I see no sense in kicking the bucket tomorrow with a wad of unspent cash in my mattress!!

...Nexium is a great drug, it eliminates all my heartburn and reflux. Now my question, is it normal to have to go back to the doctor every few months to keep the prescription? What does the doctor think is going to change? I'm 36 and have had heartburn issues for 15 years. Nexium fixed it but I need to keep taking it.

I think its all a scam. The doctor wants me in there every couple of months so they can bill my insurance company for the visit.

Same here ScarabChris and YES, it is a scam. I did voice my opinion to my doctor and before he would give a longer prescription I had to get an endoscopy done first. Now after all of that my insurance decided not to carry Nexium any longer just this past year.

NONE of the over the counter crap helps at all.

OK so I suffer from heartburn and acid reflux. I was taking Prilosec for a few years but it wasn't doing much for the reflux I get at night.

So 4 months ago I went to a doctor so I could get checked out. As I figured and was hoping he did a couple of quick tests and sent me on my way with a prescription for Nexium.

Nexium is a great drug, it eliminates all my heartburn and reflux. Now my question, is it normal to have to go back to the doctor every few months to keep the prescription? What does the doctor think is going to change? I'm 36 and have had heartburn issues for 15 years. Nexium fixed it but I need to keep taking it.

I think its all a scam. The doctor wants me in there every couple of months so they can bill my insurance company for the visit.

Chris
In your 15 years did you ever get a pressure test on your Esophagus? Or a scope down your throat to check for erosion? If not find another doctor.

http://www.uphs.upenn.edu/surgery/clin/gi/gerd.html

OK so I suffer from heartburn and acid reflux. I was taking Prilosec for a few years but it wasn't doing much for the reflux I get at night.

So 4 months ago I went to a doctor so I could get checked out. As I figured and was hoping he did a couple of quick tests and sent me on my way with a prescription for Nexium.

Nexium is a great drug, it eliminates all my heartburn and reflux. Now my question, is it normal to have to go back to the doctor every few months to keep the prescription? What does the doctor think is going to change? I'm 36 and have had heartburn issues for 15 years. Nexium fixed it but I need to keep taking it.

I think its all a scam. The doctor wants me in there every couple of months so they can bill my insurance company for the visit.

Heartburn is not normal.

It is indicitive of acid reflux from the stomach into the esophagus. The fact that Nexium (or any other proton pump inhibitor) takes the pain away doesn't mean the reflux is not occurring.

Chronic reflux of stomach contents may cause a permanent change in the esophageal lining. (Called Barrett's Esophagus) These changes are usually identified during endoscopy. They may become precancerous. Esophageal cancer is a deadly problem with poor cure rates.

There may be a number of underlying conditions contributing to heartburn. (Hiatal Hernia, Esophageal ulcer, esophageal varicies, certain medicines or foods in the diet, or other infectious conditions like helicobacter pylori)

Expecting to go to a physician once and have them prescribe a lifetime of Nexium is simplistic at best. No competent physician is going to do that.

It sounds like next time you visit the physician, or any other physician, you should be armed with the following questions: "What's next?" "Should I have an endoscopy? Barium Swallow?, Referral to a Gastroenterologist?

Like you, I had heartburn for many years. I thought it was normal. In my early 40's I developed a duodenal ulcer. (Unrelated to the heartburn, but directly related to the Helicobacter Pylori infection) At that time, the gastroenterologist noted changes in the esophageal lining. He asked me how long I had heartburn? Years I said.

Long story short...... I had a hiatal hernia. I had a fundoplication. (surgery) No more Prilosec, no more heart burn, normal esophagus. That was 15 years ago.

Chronic Heartburn is not normal. Some abnormality is behind this. Getting Nexium or ranitidine or prilosec or any other proton pump inhibitor and presuming all is well is hazzardous.

Get to the bottom of your problem. If your current physician doesn't get to the bottom of the issue, find one that will.

Good luck.

Is Nexium now OTC? Prilosec here also but not working as well as it did a year or so ago.

Doc just put me on Nexium - $50 for 30 days worth, after insurance! He also is sending me for a double team :o a looksee from the top at the same time I'm getting it from the bottom (50 years old soon).

Chris, if you want an internal medicine doctor's opinion, feel free to IM. Much of the above information is accurate (but not all)

Chronic reflux is bad, and could cause cancer. Get it scoped!

Is Nexium now OTC? Prilosec here also but not working as well as it did a year or so ago.

no, nexium is rx only, prilosec and prevacid are both otc. You may try adding zantac 150mg at bedtime to the prilosec if the reflux is occurring when you lay down at night (zantac is an H2 antagonist which helps with nightly acid secretion).

prilosec 20mg is half the dose of nexium 40mg, and nexium is the most active form of omeprazole meaning that nexium is even stronger. this is why people have better success with nexium in most cases. i have seen some people double the dose of prilosec otc. prilosec otc 42 count is covered by some insurance plans, check with you doctor to see if this might be an option for you. PM me if you want to know anything else

Doc just put me on Nexium - $50 for 30 days worth, after insurance! He also is sending me for a double team :o a looksee from the top at the same time I'm getting it from the bottom (50 years old soon).


Print the Purple Pill savings card and give it to your pharmacy next time you have to fill the Nexium script.....you will pay no more than $25 after insurance.

https://www.purplepill.com/tools/purple-plus-savings-card.aspx

A little history on myself.

I am the cause of the heart burn and reflux. I will admit that I do not eat that great. When I am not on any heartburn or reflux medication I don't get the symptoms daily. Its only after eating crappy (but good tasting) food such as spicy and greasy stuff. It is espically bad if I eat these spicy and greasy foods while drinking beer. The acid reflux only happens at night when I lay on my right side which is of course the most comfortable way for me to sleep.

I do try to eat better but giving up the beer is tough. I did the best I could by only drinking lite beer like Miller Lite or Bud Lite.

Thanks for all the info guys, it is helping. If any of you guys have some info that you want to share privately please PM me. I just don't know what questions to ask.

There is a generic version of Nexium (OMEPRAZOLE DR) that most insurances will accept and doesn't count toward a max ins on RX payments.

You need to have your GP refer you to a Gastroenterologist. I have been down this road and waiting caused vomiting blood. Almost induced a heart attack and I have a perfectly good heart. I've had 3 endoscopies, a barium swallow, God knows how many tests and 1/3 of my stomach plus my Pyloric Sphincter removed. I seldom ate fried, I haven't smoked in 30 years, I was physically fit, drank socially, etc. The thing that caused the problem was 15 years of NSAIDS for chronic pain brought on by an arthritic syndrome.

Now I sleep in a recliner, carefully watch what and how I eat. I have several of the problems that dssmith mentioned. Had I gone to a specialist a couple of years earlier, I might have saved myself $100K in medical bills and problems that will never go away for the rest of my life.

Point is, get to a doctor that will send you to a specialist! Do NOT downplay acid reflux, it can kill you! or at least make the rest of your life miserable!

Chris- Sorry to hear you have GERD, so do I as a matter of fact. I had the surgery where they tie your stomach up around your esophagus. It worked for about 6 months and things returned the way they were before the surgery. It was a total waste of money, time, and pain.

Why did you get off of Prilosec? I was taking tons of Zantac on a daily basis and I switched to Prilosec before it was available OTC. I loved Prilosec and had no side effects at all from it. I've been taking OTC Prilosec for the past 10+ years and I have no reason to change to anything else.

I went to the doctor for about a year after my surgery and it was the same thing everytime I went in so I simply stopped going. I thought they would call me eventually to see why I had not been coming but they never did.

There is a generic version of Nexium (OMEPRAZOLE DR) that most insurances will accept and doesn't count toward a max ins on RX payments.


OMEPRAZOLE DR is Prilosec, not Nexium. It is my understanding there is no generic substitute for Nexium.

The doctor I went to was a specialist (Gastroenterologist) and like I said he did the basics. They took blood (I guess the results were good because they never contacted me) as well as blood pressure. The Dr was a bit rude and basically told me to stop eating the foods I like and stop drinking beer. Then he stuck his finger up my ass!

Needless to say I am a bit turned off with going to the doctor again. I have no desire to get finger banged every 3 months to stop heart burn.

Chris- did you hear the joke about the finger test?

Chris is in the doctors office and the doctor says remove your clothes. Chris asks where should I put them. Doctor responds over there next to mine...LOL

I actually fired my family MD a couple of months ago. He was NEVER on time and the last two appointments he was over an hour late. When I left the office I simply told them to remove me as a patient and give me the form to sign to transfer my med records. I still haven't gotten a new doctor but I am not in a rush. The next doctor will have to be relatively on time or else I will drop him too.

Russ

Chris- did you hear the joke about the finger test?

Chris is in the doctors office and the doctor says remove your clothes. Chris asks where should I put them. Doctor responds over there next to mine...LOLRuss:rofl::rofl::rofl::rofl::thumbsup:


Seriously Chris if you have had heartburn for 15 years I would find another doctor. It sounds like you need to be scoped (like I did 5 years ago) to see what is going on

PS
I never had a finger up my azz to check my heartburn:o

After years and years on Prilocec and Nexium my physician put me contact with a test group for a plication procedure for which I qualified after going through several tests. The procedure is a day surgery where they put a camera and a plicator down your esophogus to stitch the hiatal hernia. Not thinking I had it done the day before Thanksgiving but was able to cook dinner for 15 people and also eat anything I wanted. Part of the test was to go back for check ups quarterly for the first year then annually for the following four years. It's been 8 years and all is good. A bottle of OTC Prilocec lasts me for more than a year.

My Doc gives me 90 Nexium at a time with 3 renewals. That takes care of me for a year. Insurance pays all but 10 bucks each time. Best thing I ever took. No more reflux or problems of any kind. :)

Doc just put me on Nexium - $50 for 30 days worth, after insurance! He also is sending me for a double team :o a looksee from the top at the same time I'm getting it from the bottom (50 years old soon).

When I had mine the Doc referred to it as an "up and down".:roll :grin: :trout:

OMEPRAZOLE DR is Prilosec, not Nexium. It is my understanding there is no generic substitute for Nexium.

I need an embarrassed smiley here X. My mine point was that with my insurance is there's a maximum that they pay for name brand meds. I also have to take sucralfate 2X a day. Actually, I take about 16 pills a day and a pain patch and still in too much pain to go fishing. :(

Chris, I think you need to see a different Gastroenterologist if this one doesn't do more. Make sure you tell the doctor everything, this isn't something to be quiet about. Lying down is one of the worse thing you can do with GERD.

BTW, tell the doctor to use a different finger to stick in your mouth! :o :rofl:

your gastro is a loser, get scoped and see what the problem is

I got scoped 6 yrs ago. Told me to change my eating habits, that a flap was stuck open. Also, did somthing with a ballon, I believe they streched my esophagus.. I tried the diet thing, but no pizza (my favorite) soft drinks, tea, coffe, chocalate,tomatoes hell I might as well kill myself.. Been on prilosec for yrs, my script comes with 5 refills.. After reading this, I think I'm gonna go back and see the GI doc.. I will be wearing a plug though.LOL

They check for liver enzymes. Make sure that your not ruining your liver. Every 6 months or so they should do that

Do you take one pill a day or two? my doctor told me to take two one in the morning the other in the afternoon before diner i take the first in the morning at least an hour before i eat anything that means waking up earlier just to take the pill after almost six months i just take one in the morning also changed my eating habits and no more fried food so far so good.

Nexium worked wonders for me, it's also supposed to work toward the assist of repairing the prob. I thought I was choking to death several times....started taking nexium and doc said every day....I only took it as i needed it and it worked fast and after several (90 day) prescripts. I'm good now except when I eat stupid.... but I do know beer plays a huge factor.....I quit drinking and it made a huge diffrence....good luck

A change in eating habits is not a cure-all, but it sure helps plenty. Not as easy as taking pills though.

If it's mostly food-and-drink related, try some digestive enzymes. You can get them at a health food/herb shop/GNC type place. It helps your system digest food more easily and might help.

Chris
In your 15 years did you ever get a pressure test on your Esophagus? Or a scope down your throat to check for erosion? If not find another doctor.

http://www.uphs.upenn.edu/surgery/clin/gi/gerd.html

Had a good friend die from cancer if the Esophagus at age 58. Caused by decades of self treatment with OTC drugs. It spread and became untreatable. He left a wife and 6 year old from his 2nd marriage. He had Barrett's just as described in the above link. Hey man get it treated or you could be next.

My back doctor is trying to enforce it so I have to go once a month to get a refill. It sucks, because the medicine cannot be written with any refills. That is going to be 30 a month just for the doctor....

Sucks

David

Isn't this what Canadian and other online pharamacies are for? Just saying

Isn't this what Canadian and other online pharamacies are for? Just saying

The doctor won't or can't prescribe some narcotics (pain meds) without seeing the patient, it's federal law. Some of these drugs are hundreds of dollars online, if you can get them.

I go to a pain clinic and have to pee in the cup to be tested to make sure I'm actually taking what they give me and make sure I'm not taking anything else. It's because of the a-holes that abuse this stuff that has made it expensive and very inconvenient for people with real problems.

PPIs are not exactly good for you over a long period of time. Have you tried baking soda and water instead when the reflux hits you??

I've used Nexium for years - the only thing that has worked for me, but I still have to watch tomato products, especially pizza. It was prescribed for me after an upper GI. After 5 years, I had another upper GI, and a colonoscopy, since I was over 55. I told the nurse to please do the upper first...
I first experienced acid reflux while on a fishing trip to Grand Isle. Thought I was having a heart attack; given the medical facilities on Grand Isle, figured I was dead. Saw the doc when I returned to TN, and he figured it out. I have blood tests every 6 months to check liver function - small price to pay for getting my life back.

I have blood tests every 6 months to check liver function - small price to pay for getting my life back.

Ditto. I take meds for other stuff and also have blood tests twice a year to check for liver function (due to side effects of meds), sugar, cancer test, etc.

I made it to old age and retirement. I want to enjoy it for awhile.

Off the subject.......These jokes about the finger punch in the arse are truly funny. However, 6 years ago my GP felt a lump on my prostate, sent me to a Urologist for more tests, long story short, had all the treatments available for prostate cancer and they were successful. I had my 78th birthday a few days ago, only because my doctor did the “finger punch”.

With the hormonal treatment I’m on now, and forever, I expect to be an old, old man messing with you folks here on THT for a long time.

If your doctor suggests putting a finger in your arse don’t argue, just bend over.

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h211/rayteagarden/RayCharicture.jpg

I remember my first (only) "finger punch", I've had the complete Colonoscopy since.
I had put off and/or canceled the first examine several times over a period of a couple of years due to my reluctance to having it done. When I finally got in the exam room and the doctor said something about "missed" appointments, I said that this is not something I wanted to do. The doc paused for a minute and said, this isn't going to make eating MY lunch any more pleasant either. I stared at him, we laughed and then I bent over. Still not something that I'd WANT to do, but it is something that NEEDS to be done.

At least with the Colonoscopy, I wasn't awake for it. The prep for it the day before was NOT pleasant!

I had my full annual physical yesterday, which of course concluded with the drop your drawers cough and finger up your ass tests. I am good to go!

Off the subject.......These jokes about the finger punch in the arse are truly funny. However, 6 years ago my GP felt a lump on my prostate, sent me to a Urologist for more tests, long story short, had all the treatments available for prostate cancer and they were successful. I had my 78th birthday a few days ago, only because my doctor did the “finger punch”.

With the hormonal treatment I’m on now, and forever, I expect to be an old, old man messing with you folks here on THT for a long time.

If your doctor suggests putting a finger in your arse don’t argue, just bend over.

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h211/rayteagarden/RayCharicture.jpg

Great reminder and kudos to you for kicking that stuff in the arse! :thumbsup:

PREVACID!!!!! $27 for 42 pills and it WORKS!!!

I know I've already said this, if you have chronic heartburn/indigestion, get a diagnosis before long term self medication.

So if gerd gets to the point they want to drop a wire in your nose and down your throat what are they looking for?

So if gerd gets to the point they want to drop a wire in your nose and down your throat what are they looking for?

Go back to page one, lots of good info and links.

Actually, they go down your throat and the list is very long as to what they can find, including cancer. I knew a fairly young women whose esophagus ruptured and she drowned in her own blood.

:thumbsup:
If your doctor suggests putting a finger in your arse don’t argue, just bend over.

Same story with a twist--Health insurance was ending due to lay off -- Doc did the finger poke and said something wasn't right. PSA was 7.9 and biopsy (painful) found 16 of 18 picks Positive for Prostate Cancer. Radiation 6 days a week and hormone treatment for extended period and PSA now 0.2 and total remission.

GET THE POKE and if at all possible WATCHUL WAITING. Go to best Cancer you find (Moffett Tampa for me) for 2cd and 3rd opinion. I'm still here enjoying life and enjoying 6 grandkids and annoying ex,