McAdam (NS Canada) on 06/05/2024
I was suffering from breathing issues from a hiatal hernia.
I was on the 8/16 fast for 6 months, although I have had a good diet for many years.
I tried being even stricter on my diet, watched YouTubes for exercises, throughout the day I tried to push down my stomach. I went to a chiropractor for this treatment as well but to no avail.
Night time was terrible. I could never get more than an hour of sleep at 1 time. I would wake up and have to immediately stand up and then spend hours up in the middle of the night trying to get my stomach down in the esophagus so that I might try sleeping again. This went on for quite a while and I was sleep depriving and miserable.
I remembered that when I had been on a fast before it bought me some relief. So I went on another. This time I only did 40 hours which isn’t so hard if you start in the evening.
I think the fast must shrink the stomach enabling it to slide out of the esophagus. What a relief! I find joy in life again. I can walk without puffing and sleep for more than 1 hour at a time. The gasping for air is gone.
I am still watching my diet and consciously doing the stomach release exercises to try to keep my stomach from sliding back up.
I hope this helps others.
Finger Pressure for Hiatal Hernia Angelo (Toronto, Ontario) on 04/10/2022
The last 2 weeks for me have been absolute hell.
I've been waking up with this strange feeling in my stomach/lower chest that I thought was a tumor everytime I try to take a deep breath. Felt like my insides were out of place. I haven't slept much at all in the past 2 weeks because of acid, constantly burping and tight chest that would make it difficult to breathe laying down. I usually sleep like a baby. It got so bad one night last week I went to the hospital(and if you know me, I don't step foot in those places or see doctors unless I think I'm dying) I was burping for 4 hours straight. When I say burping I mean belching like I've been drinking pop all day and never drink that garbage. I couldn't stop and it was affecting my breathing. The pain from this hernia was there when I was trying to breathe as well but I didn't know what it was. I thought my lungs were just inflamed. I have asthma that acts up sometimes depending on how much I vape but never requires a puffer or actually worries me.
In the past few days I've gone from thinking I have GERD, COPD, cancer/tumors and a bunch of other stuff.
Ive started taking glutathione, msm, Apple Cider Vinegar with baking soda in the last few days. I've had some minimal relief from those but the pain to breath wasn't going away and feeling like my insides are out of place has been constant.
I tried this finger technique quickly (not truly believing I even have a hernia) and that breathing pain is gone!!! Not sure even sure I did it properly. I'm shocked. I'm going to continue doing this a few times a day or as needed.
Thanks again and God Bless this site. I'm writing this in 2022 and it unfortunately seems like this beautiful site is dead. The pharmaceutical industry has ruined health and internet censorship has made finding natural cures nearly impossible. Thank you Earth Clinic!
Rebounding for a Hiatal Hernia Donna (North Carolina) on 02/23/2022
What HAS worked for me is to use a rebounder, a mini-trampoline, several times a week for 8 or 9 minutes while I listen to a short podcast. I also have been taking some prebiotic supplements to aid and heal the digestive tract. Using the rebounder often sends me to the bathroom afterwards. I have not had an incident with the hernia since I started using the rebounder.
Elizabeth (Savannah, GA) on 02/17/2022
I used a juicer every day, & made homemade ginger juice, I drank a shot (from a shot glass, 1 oz.) of it, straight, on an empty stomach every morning for 14 days. I also had an inguinal hernia, diagnosed at the same time as the hiatal. My surgeon was supposed to repair both, but he told me after the surgery that the hiatal hernia had disappeared! Ginger did not just help the inguinal hernia, but cured the hiatal.
LindaD (Texas) on 01/01/2022
GayleS (Mississippi, USA) on 10/09/2019
I thank GOD I finally figured out my remedy and I thank all the people posting in here for all your input and knowledge. Within the last 3 months I read (I think) in Earth Clinic almost every post relating to hiatal hernia, low acid stomach, enzymes, digestion you name so I could get as much info as I could to figure out what to do. I even purchased Ted and Bill’s book on Amazon and all the meters they recommended to test your own health. By the way, it’s an awesome book and the meters work great they recommend! A little about me: I’m 62 years old, female, and was diagnosed 8 years ago with a hiatal hernia, acid reflux, and gastritis.
They also tested for H-pylori and it was negative. Docs wanted to put me on antacids, but I refused them knowing at that time they don’t cure anything. You’ve got to get to the real problem, I learned that working in health food/vitamin stores for years. My digestion in the last 8 years has been on and off good and bad. I used some supplements and baking soda for acid reflux and some digestive enzymes, I got by on that. I also narrowed down what foods were giving me trouble and stopped eating them or cut back. I am also type 2 diabetic and have a ton of food sensitivities. My mom had Crohn’s disease, sisters and brothers have digestive issues too. Gut problems run in my family. Within the last 3 month my digestive issues turned for the worse. The hiatal hernia would not stay down and it seemed like I couldn’t digest anything!! I was jumping with the warm water in my stomach after every meal with pain in my chest almost all the time from the hiatal hernia. All this ‘really’ got my attention to dig in on the post on Earth Clinic and read…read…read. After some trial and errors on trying different remedies, I finally figured out my unique remedy.
I used a combination of products mentioned in some of the post and made notes on what I ate, took, and if it helped or made it worse. Here’s what I’ve been taking for the last 5 days that’s WORKING. I’ve not had my hiatal hernia in my chest and no acid reflux.
Products I’m using: Ginger tea (made from fresh ginger), ACV mixed with water, eating foods that contain natural enzymes for digestion (I can post the list I created if you want to read it, let me know) and the one I’m most amazed with - Premier d- Limonene liquid drops made by Premier Research Labs.
Here’s what I do:
Every morning first thing: I drink a cup of warm ginger tea. I make it at night and just warm up. I don’t have coffee for about one hour after drinking it. The ginger tea gets the digestive system going (muscles). Before every meal: I drink AVC (I started with ¼ teaspoon and now use ½ teaspoon) in 8 oz. of water. While eating I drink the ginger tea. Not a lot, about one cup throughout the meal. It was suggested to drink with meals by someone, so that’s why I do it this way. Apparently helps stimulate digestion. After every meal: I drink 2 drop of the Premier d-Limonene liquid in 8 oz. of water after I’m done eating. Do not take it without food in your tummy. It even says on the bottle not too. I forgot one day and took it without food. My tummy didn’t like it.
This is all that I’m doing right now. I will post again to update everyone on my progress. I am so happy because I was so miserable. Thank you again everyone for all your posts.
John (Pa) on 08/29/2016
I hope my experiences/observations may help someone.
Dietary Changes and Other Tips for Hiatal Hernia Hippocrates (Missouri) on 07/13/2016
There is something you are eating and drinking that is keeping it aggravated. It is 100% a food allergy, or more likely, FOOD ALLERGIES!
Eating; for me it is all wheat and gluten, all dairy, all soy, all Allium plants (garlic, onions, etc), and I am finding Balsam of Peru and Balsam of Tolu hidden under "NATURAL FLAVOR". Keep a daily food journal and eat simple foods that you read the labels for and prepared yourself. Eat potatoes with nothing on them and wait 6 or 8 hours. Stomach feels good? Then it is probably ok. Then say, the next time you eat a potato with sour cream on it and it bothers you, you know that it wasnt the potato, but SOMETHING in the sour cream. Eventually you can narrow it down this way, might take years though. A skin prick test or patch test at a doctor can help somewhat narrow down food allergies, but they are not 100% reliable with foods, and many foods might show you are not allergic, when you actually are.
Drinking; DO NOT DRINK ANYTHING WITH MEALS OTHER THAN WATER, AND EVEN THEN ONLY SIPS! Do not drink much for the next 2 - 4 hours after eating other than sips here and there. NO carbonated beverages, EVER! If I have to have a soda, I get bottles of it and beat it on my hand or the table and slowly release the pressure and repeat until no more carbonation remains. Tastes flat, but has the flavor you crave if you have to have one. Unflavored unsweetened coffee and unflavored alcohols seem tolerable on an empty stomach, they can bother me a bit, but never drink them on a full stomach.
I always keep a bottle of water handy. If I can feel it bothering me, I drink a big mouthful or two and try to wiggle/stretch my chest around to get it to release while trying gently to burp. Then I repeat this until I start feeling better. Sometimes and rarely, I will sip like 1/8th teaspoon of sodium bicarbonate in a 16 oz glass of water (pint) and try to burp. If you can get the trapped air to release, it wont push on your heart and cause you to feel like you are dying.
I discovered that OFTEN you can actually little by little swallow MORE air into your stomach and get it to pull down the stomach and then you can burp out the swallowed air plus what was previously trapped. But this is trick is hard to learn when to do it, and when it will make things worse. I only mention it because often it works for me to help things out.
Drinking a 16 oz glass of water (pint) and immediately rebounding on a trampoline on an empty stomach daily can help train it to stay down where it should be, especially if you are avoiding the foods it does not like and drinks it does not like.
Breathing exercises, like the one where you suck in through a tiny straw or breathe out through the same straw can help strengthen your diaphragm.
Sleep with a bed wedge under your bed, or bricks under headboard. DO NOT eat a big meal within 4-6 hours of going to bed! I can do small snacks that do not bother me, but I generally avoid even them within 2 hours of bed time if I can.
DO NOT bend over or lift ANYTHING with in 4-6 hours after eating! You cant always avoid it, but unless your stomach is empty, you are asking to make things worse, both immediately AND long term.
I feel confident that you can potentially live a fairly normal life if you do as I have done. You may never have a 100% normal diaphragm again, but the trampoline and breathing exercises can help strengthen it so that it will keep your stomach where it should be more normally, especially if you avoid your personal food allergens and avoid the drinking situations that I mentioned.
Don (Queens, New York) on 11/17/2015
Have similar symptoms. Been using DGL tablets, (licorice) which doesn't affect blood pressure. Also start the day with Endefen, wonderful for digestive tract, recommended by my alternative MD. What really helps is peppermint sugar free gum. It helps after meals to get the gastric juices flowing and reduce gas.
Don
Re: Apple Cider Vinegar for Hiatal Hernia Monica (Culver Coty, Ca.) on 10/17/2015
I just read your article about the ACV and gave him 1 and 1/2 tblspn in 8oz of water and he finally fell a sleep feeling the pain go away. A million thanks to this article. I don't know how else to express this huge tip.
Dietary Changes Healed a Hiatal Hernia Ward (Atlanta) on 08/27/2015
I have always hated hospitals so I refused, I cured myself by not eating and drinking anything with acid eg: tomatoes lemon, oranges, beer, no white bread or pastries that was doughy. I only ate brown bread and veggies with meat no gravy not much fruit but I did add peppers to all my food.
After 6 months, my hiatal hernia was healed and my stomach ulcers gone.my doctor scratched his head. He had never known that one could heal hiatal hernia as the valve had been stretched open and surgery was the only option.
It is now 2015 and I do not suffer ulcers or hiatal hernia. Ulcers is sores in the stomach breeding on bacteria, kill the bacteria and the sore heals. I believe pepper did the trick.
Charles (Scotland) on 05/11/2015
Prioris (Fl., US) on 02/11/2015
I thought I had some of the symptoms of hiatal hernia but did not have any reflux so symptoms mystified. The pressure and pain against my diaphragm was intense every day. At least 4 months went by until I finally realized that my abdomen contained gas that was pressing against my diaphragm causing pain.
Once I squished the gas out of the abdomen area, the pressure let up and the hiatal hernia type symptoms went away. But the gas kept building up in my abdomen so had to continue squishing the gas out. I couldn't figure out why. It wasn't like the gas from eating food either.
I went to a long time practicing chinese doctor. she said it was a kidney infection. She gave me two things.
a) some type of bile salt for gall bladder and told me to take it with cranberry juice (i used one d-mannose tablet instead) in morning
b) I took an unknown herbal mixture at night to probably address infection.
After 2 weeks, the abdomen bloating or gas problem went away. My diaphragm still hurt from all that pressure but the pain went away after some healing. I could imagine that if I did not solve the bloating problem from my abdomen that it could have eventually led to a hiatal hernia. It was a very unusual bloating problem to have since it would occur even if I didn't eat much. It didn't seem connected directly to food nor did I have the reflux.
Rhett (Canada) on 06/05/2014
Ed (Ct.) on 02/24/2014
Not to cause confusion in this category but for the past 20 yrs. I have had hiatal hernias and acid reflux off and on. Reflux is a symptom of the hernia. Depending on severity, reflux is proportional to how long the hernia has been in place. In mild cases the hernia may pull back from the diaphram on its own. In severe cases or long durations, the stomach must be " pulled" down out of the diaphram. I go to a chiropractor that uses kinesiology, and has proven the technique works. And in most cases surgery is not needed.
To ease symptoms, as reflux during sleep you can lay on your left side which will reduce reflux especially after a large meal before bed.
I will add other info later
Sherry (Toronto, Ontario, Canada) on 01/27/2014
I have done an intensive search on the internet and have a document with testimonials from lots of sufferers who have had their hernias adjusted by either a chirorpractor or an osteopath or a massage therapist. I have presented those instructions to them yet they cannot fix it for me.
I have had h pylori for a few years, have tried to get rid of it by natural therapies but not sure if it has gone. I also have glaucoma in both eyes. I have floaters in my left eye and in the last year my vision has decreased in that eye.
Please help me, I do not want to have esophegal cancer, already I cannot swallow softgel pills, I have burning in my throat and cannot sleep at night despite elevating my bed. Now burning in my stomach has started.
I shall be very grateful if someone in the Toronto GTA or neary surburs have been fortunate to find a practitioner (massage therapist included-I have instructions on that as well) who have fixed hiatal hernias. Also, was the hernia fixed in one adjustment or did it require a few more visits?
Thank you so very much.
Sherry
Girlinterupted (, Durban, South Africa,) on 09/16/2013
Thewoman (Atlanta, Ga) on 05/23/2013
Marsh57 (Denver, Co, Usa) on 11/09/2012
Linda (New Haven, Ct - Connecticut) on 12/15/2011
