I have been loving my time at home with my babies! Roman is 2 1/2 weeks old already – where does the time go? I’ve got to confess… I am so, SO happy not to be pregnant anymore. Not only is there the general discomfort that comes at the end, but there are a lot of medications you can’t take during pregnancy. I have battled acid reflux for the past 6 years (I even had surgery for it 2 years ago) and I have been really anxious to get back on a treatment that is more effective to control it. If you have digestive health issues… you know just what I’m talking about. You want something that works 100% of the time. But rather than just go back to my old medication, I was curious whether anything changed in the past year or so for treating chronic heartburn. So I used Walgreens Answers to chat with a pharmacist and find out what the current best recommendation is.
I was taking Prevacid while I was pregnant. It was the safer medication and I was only getting heartburn about twice a week. Which isn’t too bad (when I would have it all day long without any medication). But I really wanted something that worked differently to see if I could get rid of my heartburn altogether with daily treatment. Answers at Walgreens allows you to talk face-to-face with a pharmacist in-store, or chat with a pharmacist 24-hours a day to get advice about medications you are considering.
The pharmacist had two suggestions for me, and one was Prilosec – which I was taking before, and is available over-the-counter. It also fits our budget with a Walgreens brand generic available. You can read more about my shopping trip in my Google+ post!
What I also like about using Walgreens as my family’s pharmacy is the Balance Rewards program. I keep my card right on my iPhone – no digging through my purse looking for my card. I manage our prescriptions and even order photos right from the app on my phone.
And best yet, I earned 2000 Rewards points this visit just buying a medication I would have chosen anyway!
I really like the accessibility of the Walgreens pharmacists for my simple medication questions like this. It was so easy to log in and get answers to my “burning” questions. Haha. And, I’m happy to say that after a week on the new medication I’m already feeling much better! It makes it so much easier to enjoy this little guy:
Hey, I couldn’t resist sharing – can you blame me?? ;) But feeling better sure helps me focus on the most important things!
Thanks for the info! I didn’t realize Walgreens had the ability to talk to a pharmacist online – very cool! I had heartburn while pregnant, too – no fun. Hope you’re feeling better! Kisses to Roman :)
Adrianne, heartburn and acid reflux are awful …. and I had these while pregnant! I’m so glad your local Walgreens has been helpful. I love their rewards program as well.
Also, Roman is a cutie pie! :)
I didn’t know that Walgreens offered these services. Good to know! And…I wish I was there to squeeze that sweet little boy!
Sorry, when I read “burning” questions, I can’t help it, I had another “burning” in mind. lol. It’s great you can talk to a pharmacist online though, like Amy said – I always have questions, but rarely do the guys at the store have time!
Hehe, Roman is adorable! How great that you can chat live with a pharmacist online! I will definitely keep that in mind.
Oh gosh, you had to have surgery for acid reflux? How awful! I get esophageal spasms sometimes from acid reflux so I can only imagine what it’s like when it’s so chronically severe.
PS: The baby is adorable!
I also wanted to Congratulate you on your new Gorgeous Bundle of joy!
I know for fact that taking a tablespoon of Apple Cider Vinegar in a glass of water can get rid of Heart Burn plus many more benefits! It relieves heartburn and digestion problems.
Some of the other apple cider vinegar benefits are preventing stomach illness, dissolving kidney stones, curing nausea, asthmatics, Chronic Acid Reflux, migraines etc., lowering blood pressure and cholesterol, killing cancer cells and preventing their growth, reducing inflammation and curing arthritis etc. Almost all of the above benefits are proven in researches and hence you can feel the positive effects in your body. You can Google Apple Cider Vinegar and read its benefits. My family have been using it for years and its Great!
Also if you have a blood nose take a Table spoon of it in a glass of water and within a minute or two it will clot the blood and the blood nose will stop. Due to Apple Cider vinegar having Vitamin K in it.
Its bit hard to swallow because of a Strong taste that it has But so worth it!
Congratulations on your new bundle of boy!
I’m so glad you were able to find something for the gastric pain. I have been taking the generic omeprazole from Rite Aid pharmacy for a few years now. I just wanted to tell you that here in NE Ohio Rite Aid has a weekly sales flyer and about once a month they offer the omeprazole for a whole lot less than what you are paying at Walgreens. I know they have the uprewards program which may not be as enticing as walgreens, but I think the savings would be a lot more. Just my opinion in case you’d like to get it for less. I usually stock up for a few months at a time, too.
Hi!
Love the photo of your adorable boy! I suffer from acid reflux too so I (literally) feels your pain.
Best of luck with the baby and feeling better.
Hugs,
Maureen
I had heartburn while pregnant! It was terrible.
I’ve only suffered from heartburn a few times (all while pregnant) so I can’t even imagine trying to combat this on a regular basis. What a relief you were able to find a recommendation that’s effective and allows you more time to dedicate to your family!
Hello Adrianne. First of all I want to say congratulations on the new baby.
I would also like to share a short story about the fight my husband had with heartburn and acid reflux for almost 30 years. He’s taken just about every medication available including the ones you mentioned in this post. He also had endured a few medical procedures in hopes to combat his problem and he tried eliminating all spicy and acidic foods. Nothing really eliminated his problem. I’m glad that you have found something that is working for you.
By complete accident, just about this time last year, we discovered that his stomach issues were from flour. At the time I wasn’t looking for something to help him because as long as he took his medicine every day, he was ok. Not doing great. Just ok, even though he still ate antacids like candy.
I told him that I wanted to take flour out of our diet for a while. No bread, no cake, no cookies, no pasta… And for an Italian man who loves pasta and cake that was a major hurtle. Only 3 short days later he stopped eating antacids and no longer needed his medications. If he caves and eats a donut or a dish of pasta, he immediately has to reach for the antacids. As long as he stays away from anything that has flour in it, he’s fine. We eat fresh salads, meat and dairy without any issues.
I just wanted to tell you this because there may be an alternative to relying solely on medication for your stomach issues. I figure a slight diet modification has saved us about $70 per month in medication costs and he can now sleep through the night without the acid reflux waking him up.
Again, congratulations on your new baby.