Stomach Ulcers

[szycag]

[*]Bullet Hell
[*]Caffeinated beverages
[*]Rocking out too hard to intense music
[*]staying up late

It's all taking a toll on my stomach and I'm wondering what I can do. I have a really shitty medical plan right now and I'm working on that, I know I probably need some pills, hopefully not surgery, but I'm wondering what I can do in the meantime. Because I don't want to stop doing things I enjoy. Although yes it's probably a good idea to avoid 2 and 4. I've stayed away from soda completely the last week, as well as meat. Still eating a few salty snacks though :d

[E. Randy Dupre]

I gave up caffeine about a year ago, when I started getting problems with my stomach. It was surprisingly easy to do - substittuted coffee for caffeine-free tea and didn't notice it affecting me much. Think it was more a mental thing of having *any* kind of hot drink to hand.

Is it definitely an ulcer? Unless you've actually had it professionally diagnosed as such, it could just be something like acid reflux. Can still be pretty fucking painful - had me doubled over virtually every day last summer - but at least your insides aren't rotting away to the same degree.

[Lloyd Mangram]

If they really are stomach ulcers then they're most likely caused by bacteria (H. pylori). Your doctor can do a quick and easy breath test to determine if this is the case. Following diagnosis, your doc may decide to put you on a course of antibiotics which should kill off the bacteria and put an end to your ulcer problem.

[cools]

Cutting caffeine out some years ago was one of the best things I ever did.

Quite sensitive to it now, so the desired effect can be achieved when necessary without ending up going round like a hyped up sleepless maniac all the time.

[GaijinPunch]

Stress is apparently awful for stomach ulcers. To get rid of stress, you basically need sleep, and cutting back on caffeine can't hurt. I can't imagine screaming at your monitor (and maybe punching it a little) would be of much help, so might want to play a Mario game here and there.

[MX7]

Quite sensitive to it now, so the desired effect can be achieved when necessary without ending up going round like a hyped up sleepless maniac all the time.

True Say. I've cut back to about a cup of strong Chinese tea a week, and it's pretty much like chugging a beer for me. Though in the absence of caffeine, I'm on to at least 3 pints a night

[elfhentaifan]

mental stress is causing it mostly and after a while, when i lived off of cola and coffee completely i started to have problems with my stomach (again) too.
Im always watching what i eat and drink now though.
Ill just stick to my single cup of coffee a day and thats it.
Im glad nothings affecting me currently, ive had it for a long time already, never again please

[Jockel]

Caffeine causes stomach ulcers?
Ew, i consume way too much caffeine :/

[Lloyd Mangram]

Caffeine causes stomach ulcers?

Probably not, but caffeine can exacerbate existing ulcers.

All this talk about caffeine and stress causing stomach ulcers is outdated. Unless you're taking a lot of aspirin or NSAIDs, the cause is most likely the H. pylori bacterium. Caffeine, acidic drinks + foods, and stress just exacerbate the problem.

@szycag: Until you get around to seeing a doctor, try eating a couple of clumps of broccoli every day. It just might help.

[GaijinPunch]

All this talk about caffeine and stress causing stomach ulcers is outdated.

Have chilled out people ever gotten them? None that I know of (young ones, anyway).

[Lloyd Mangram]

heh. That's a hard question to answer. Sometimes I wonder if anyone anywhere is truly chilled out.

OK, to be less dogmatic I should say stress/caffeine is unlikely to be the root cause. Or to put it another way, if it weren't for an H. Pylori infection disrupting the protective mucus lining of the stomach (or if not an infection, then frequent NSAID use having a similar effect), then stress and caffeine and acidic drinks would rarely lead to ulceration.

Bear in mind that young people these days are apparently less likely to have an H. pylori infection than the previous generation, depending on geography + standard of living.

[system11]

Caffiene can also slow your metabolism, and in my case was causing frequent mild headaches. I had to stop entirely, one of the best things I ever did.

[ZacharyB]

Yeah: Two guys won a nobel prize for discovering that bacteria are the root cause of stomach ulcers. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/4304290.stm

If you have a lot of indigestion or discomfort, perhaps it's also acid reflux or a similar condition.

[GaijinPunch]

I thought caffeine actually raised your metabolism? I love that shit though, and will not get off it any time soon.

Back on the stress bit, if it can do things as nasty as cause your skin to break out or give you a heart attack, it can probably do pretty much anything. That's the doctor inside me, who's really just a tree hugging hippy

[elfhentaifan]

if it can do things as nasty as cause your skin to break out

wait what thats caffeine that causes it?

[Jon]

Excessive alcohol consumption can be just as bad if not worse than caffeine.