u/CallProfessional6655

For people who had confirmed H. pylori, I'm interested in what your symptoms actually felt like and how they changed over time, including symptoms you may have had months or years before diagnosis.

Did you have any of these?

1. FALSE-HUNGER / GNAWING

A hollow, gnawing or “hungry” stomach sensation even when you knew you weren't actually hungry?

Was it worse on an empty stomach or at night? What happened when you ate — did it go away, return later, or turn into burning, rawness or fullness?

2. STOMACH SQUEEZING / SQUISHING

Did your upper stomach seem to spontaneously squeeze, contract, bubble or make a wet/squishy sensation or sound while you were sitting or lying completely still?

I'm not talking about normal hunger growling or liquid sloshing when you move.

Was it random, after eating, after drinking water, or while fasting? Did it happen repeatedly for a while but disappear completely on other days?

3. ICKY / NASTY STOMACH FEELING RELIEVED BY BURPING

Did you ever get a hard-to-describe unpleasant, sick, “icky,” pressure-like or nasty sensation in your stomach that noticeably improved or disappeared immediately after you burped?

4. “MANUAL BREATHING” / UNSATISFIED BREATH

Did you ever become unusually conscious of your breathing, almost as though breathing felt “manual,” or repeatedly feel the need to take a deep/satisfying breath even though you were actually breathing normally?

Did it happen with stomach fullness, gas/burping or reflux, or did it sometimes occur separately?

5. STRANGE WHOLE-BODY HEAVINESS

Did you ever randomly get a distinct sensation that your body itself felt unusually heavy or weighted down, despite NOT actually feeling tired, weak, sleepy or fatigued?

Did it come and go, so that at other times your body felt completely normal? Did it happen around meals/stomach symptoms or seemingly at random?

Also, did your symptoms tend to flare for days or weeks and then disappear or change into different symptoms? Did you have unexplained stomach problems years earlier or during childhood/adolescence?

If you remember, please include how your H. pylori was confirmed (stool antigen, breath test, endoscopy/biopsy/RUT, PCR/GI-MAP), what your endoscopy showed, and whether any of these particular symptoms changed after H. pylori treatment.

I'm mainly interested in the symptom pattern and timeline, not assuming H. pylori necessarily caused every symptom.

For people with a hiatal hernia confirmed by endoscopy, barium swallow, imaging or surgery, what symptoms did you actually experience?

I'm especially interested in symptoms that started or flared around the same time as your hernia/reflux problems, came and went in flares, changed over time, or improved after treatment or repair.

Examples of what I mean:

• pounding heart, palpitations or noticeable heart-rate changes, including seeming unusually fast/slow at different times
• shakiness, internal tremor, muscle twitching or spasms
• nervousness, agitation, irritability, rage/bad mood or panic-like feelings
• feeling randomly warm or chilled despite having a normal temperature
• getting unusually warm after eating
• dizziness or lightheadedness
• brain fog, head pressure or a tight/buzzy-head sensation
• temporary visual changes - blurry/nearsighted at times or unusually sharp/clear at others
• frequent/urgent urination or needing to pee small amounts
• stuffy/sniffly nose, sneezing, sinus symptoms or unexplained nosebleeds
• acne, rashes, recurrent bumps or other skin changes
• tiny blood vessels/capillaries seemingly bursting or unusual small bruises
• strange vivid dreams or sleep episodes, such as dreaming that you're being shaken or can't wake up
• intermittent tingling, gnawing, burning, pressure or other strange sensations in the mid/upper back, especially if they seemed to occur around the same time as stomach symptoms, meals, or an empty stomach
• anything else that didn't seem obviously related to a hernia

I'm also curious which digestive symptoms occurred alongside those, such as:

• tightness/fullness high in the stomach or getting full unusually quickly
• dull/burning ache high in the stomach
• gnawing when your stomach was empty
• a strange empty/hungry sensation even when you shouldn't be hungry
• burping or excessive gas
• odd/stale-tasting or stale-smelling burps
• constipation or other bowel changes
• reflux/heartburn
• throat tickling/irritation or an unexplained urge to cough/clear your throat
• globus sensation - feeling like there's a lump, pressure or something stuck in your throat even when nothing is there
• sour/acid taste or fluid coming into the throat
• a strange stale, metallic, chemical or urine/ammonia-like taste or smell in the mouth/back of the throat that came and went
• symptoms several hours after eating, when you hadn't eaten for a while, or during the night

If possible, please include:

1. How was your hernia confirmed and what size/type was it?

2. Which symptoms did you have?

3. Were symptoms triggered by meals, stomach fullness/gas, bending, lifting, slouching or lying down? If you had back sensations, where were they and did they occur at the same time as your stomach/chest symptoms?

4. Did burping, standing up or changing position relieve them?

5. Were the symptoms brief attacks, flares lasting days/weeks, or constant?

6. Did different symptoms seem to replace each other over time?

7. Did you also have gastritis, H. pylori, ulcers or another GI diagnosis?

8. If your hernia was treated or repaired, which symptoms actually improved or disappeared afterward?

Also interested in unusual symptoms I haven't listed.

I'm trying to distinguish symptoms that genuinely tracked with the hernia from symptoms that may have had another cause.

For people who had confirmed H. pylori (stool antigen, breath test, biopsy, PCR, etc.), did you experience symptoms outside the usual gastritis/reflux symptoms?

I'm especially interested in symptoms that started or flared around the same time as the stomach problems, came and went in flares, changed over time, or improved after successful eradication.

Examples of what I mean:

• Nervousness, agitation, irritability, rage/bad mood or panic-like feelings
• Shakiness, internal tremor, muscle twitching or spasms
• Intermittent tingling, gnawing, burning, pressure or other strange sensations in the mid/upper back, especially if they seemed to occur around the same time as stomach symptoms, meals, or an empty stomach
• Pounding heart, palpitations, or heart rate seeming unusually fast/slow at different times
• Feeling randomly warm or chilled despite having a normal temperature
• Getting unusually warm after eating
• Dizziness or lightheadedness
• Brain fog, head pressure or a tight/buzzy-head sensation
• Temporary visual changes - blurry/nearsighted at times or unusually sharp/clear at others
• Frequent/urgent urination or needing to pee small amounts
• Stuffy/sniffly nose, sneezing, sinus symptoms or unexplained nosebleeds
• Acne, rashes, recurrent bumps or other skin changes
• Tiny blood vessels/capillaries seemingly bursting or unusual small bruises
• Strange vivid dreams or sleep episodes, such as dreaming that you're being shaken or can't wake up
• Anything else that seemed completely unrelated to your stomach

I'm also curious which digestive symptoms occurred alongside those, such as:

• Dull/burning ache high in the stomach
• Gnawing when your stomach was empty
• Tightness/fullness or getting full unusually quickly
• A strange empty/hungry sensation even when you shouldn't be hungry
• Burping or excessive gas
• Odd/stale-tasting or stale-smelling burps
• Constipation or other bowel changes
• Reflux/heartburn
• Throat tickling/irritation or an unexplained urge to cough/clear your throat
• Globus sensation - feeling like there's a lump, pressure or something stuck in your throat even when nothing is there
• Sour/acid taste or fluid coming into the throat
• A strange stale, metallic, chemical or urine/ammonia-like taste or smell in the mouth/back of the throat that came and went
• Symptoms several hours after eating, when you hadn't eaten for a while, or during the night

If you can, please say:

1. How was your H. pylori confirmed?
2. Which symptoms did you have BEFORE treatment?
3. Did the symptoms come in brief attacks, flares lasting days/weeks, or stay constant?
4. Did different symptoms seem to replace each other over time?
5. Did symptoms correlate with eating, stomach fullness/gas, or having an empty stomach? If you had back sensations, where were they, and did they occur at the same time as your stomach symptoms?
6. Did you have an endoscopy, and did it show gastritis/ulcers?
7. Most importantly: which symptoms disappeared after confirmed eradication?

Also interested in unusual symptoms I haven't listed.

I'm particularly interested in symptoms that were present BEFORE antibiotics/PPIs, since treatment itself can obviously cause additional symptoms.

For anyone who has tried DGL (deglycyrrhizinated licorice) for gastritis, ulcers, H. pylori-related symptoms, indigestion, reflux, or GERD: which brand/formulation did you find most effective?

Natural Factors and Nature’s Way DGL seem to be two popular options. If you've tried either—or especially both—which worked better for you?

Also interested in other brands if you found something more effective.

If possible, please mention:

• Brand/product
• What symptoms you were treating
• How quickly you noticed a difference
• Whether you took it before or after meals
• Any side effects (burning, bloating, gas, diarrhea, etc.)

I'm especially interested in people who have directly compared Natural Factors traditional 10:1 DGL vs Nature’s Way GutGard DGL, since they're pretty different formulations.

Anyone who has had suspected or confirmed gastritis, an ulcer, or H. pylori infection, if you took famotidine (Pepcid) for this issue, did it improve or worsen your symptoms?

Has anyone here had a negative H. pylori stool test but then later tested positive? Starting in Late December or early January 2026, I had a dull, burning pain in my upper left abdomen, approximately just under my left rib cage, and a weird full feeling after eating, and reflux that flared for a couple of months and started to go down but then flared back up a couple of times. Also, weird, random symptoms like feeling unusually nervous, tense, or tired. I wondered if this could be an H. pylori infection; the doctor did order an H. pylori EIA stool antigen test, which came back negative (result read "Not detected"). Was not taking any PPIs at the time, but the stool sample was very small and hard. Has anyone here had an H. pylori stool antigen test that came back negative (even without the typical PPIs causing a false-negative result) but later found out they actually had H. pylori? If so, what test have you found to be more accurate?