Home Remedies for Acid Reflux | How Molly Beat GERD Naturally

Acid reflux can make eating and enjoying life difficult. The constant heartburn and discomfort disrupt daily activities. While medications like PPIs may temporarily relieve symptoms, they don’t address the root causes. Molly, a registered dietitian, shares her personal story of recovering from severe acid reflux through natural solutions.

Understanding Molly’s Acid Reflux Symptoms

Molly developed acid reflux during an extremely stressful period in college. After contracting food poisoning, her symptoms escalated to severe heartburn, regurgitation, trouble swallowing, chest pain, and disrupted sleep. Attacks woke her at night, and she feared eating. Molly desperately sought medical help and a long-term solution.

Key Factors Contributing to Her Reflux

• Chronic stress and anxiety depleted her nervous system and gut health.
• Underfueling her body led to nutritional deficiencies that impaired digestion.
• Food poisoning and antibiotics disrupted her gut microbiome balance.
• Constant worry created a negative cycle that worsened symptoms.

The Lifestyle Changes That Helped Her Heal

Molly implemented a multifaceted lifestyle approach to relieve symptoms and promote true healing:

• Eating smaller, more frequent meals to prevent overfilling her stomach.
• Scheduling an early, light dinner to allow full digestion before lying down.
• Identifying and avoiding foods that triggered her reflux, like coffee.
• Remaining upright for 2-3 hours after eating to use gravity to her advantage.
• Managing chronic stress through yoga, meditation, therapy, and socializing.
• Practicing mindful eating by deep breathing and giving gratitude before meals.
• Thoroughly chewing food to ease the workload on her digestive system.
• Maintaining proper posture and avoiding tight clothing around her abdomen.

These strategies stabilized her nervous system, supported healthy digestion, and prevented reflux attacks.

Natural Supplements for Soothing Relief

Two specific herbal supplements provided significant relief by coating and protecting her irritated esophageal tissue:

• Slippery elm powder, taken 400mg twice per day
• DGL licorice chewable tablets, 400mg twice per day

Aloe vera, marshmallow root, zinc carnosine, and melatonin also decreased inflammation and strengthened the esophageal sphincter. Molly recommends consulting a healthcare practitioner before trying new supplements.

The Importance of Dietary Changes

Elimination diets weren’t the full solution for Molly. She focused instead on proper nutrition to heal the deficiencies exacerbating her symptoms:

• Increasing gentle, lean proteins like eggs, poultry, and fish.
• Choosing cooked vegetables and low-acid fruits.
• Incorporating gut-soothing foods like oats, soups, and bone broth.
• Staying hydrated with herbal tea and alkaline water.
• Limiting dietary irritants like caffeine, alcohol, and spice.
• Supplementing with probiotics and digestive enzymes.
• Avoiding extreme diets and aiming for balance.

Caffeine was a trigger initially but now she can tolerate it in moderation.

The Takeaway – You Can Overcome Acid Reflux

With comprehensive lifestyle changes, stress relief practices, natural medicine, and proper nutrition, Molly fully recovered from severe acid reflux. She has maintained freedom from symptoms for years.

Her journey shows that healing is absolutely possible. With consistent commitment to lifestyle adjustments and natural remedies, anyone can gain control over their health. Molly now helps others overcome digestive issues through nutrition plans, coaching, and her gut-healing app, Flora. There is hope – reflux can be beat!