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2davidc8's avatar

Can the body heal itself? #4 in the series: Ulcers (please see details inside)

Asked by 2davidc8 (10189points) April 28th, 2018

For background, please see earlier posts in this series:
#1: high blood pressure/cholesterol
#2: arthritis
#3: neck pain/back pain

I am intrigued by the amazing capacity of the body to heal itself and reverse and recover from certain conditions, without drugs or surgery. Continuing in the series, I would now like to take a look at ulcers. Did you personally, or do you know someone who has stopped or reversed the condition without prescription drugs or surgery. That is, they did it through only diet, exercise, rest & relaxation, tai chi, daily walks & stretching, vacation, environmental changes (move to a drier climate, change of scenery), reducing stress, physical therapy, non-prescription drugs, vitamins, minerals, herbs, probiotics, prebiotics, homeopathy, massage therapy, acupuncture, reflexology, reiki, change of mattress or pillow type, electrical stimulation, light/laser therapy, Feldenkrais, meditation, Yoga, Ayurveda, more social interaction, saunas, Jacuzzi/whirlpool, mud baths, heat treatments, inversion tables, what have you…(any others?) OTC drugs like aspirin are OK. (Some of things on this list may not apply in this case, but they’re listed here so we don’t forget them when we discuss other diseases/conditions later.)

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9 Answers

JLeslie's avatar

The likelihood partly has to do with why the person has the ulcer. The majority of stomach ulcers are caused by the bacteria H. Pylori. You can do natural things to reduce the chance of an ulcer (symptom) from having the bacteria, but to get rid of the bacteria antibiotics are your best bet. Certain foods are less likely to aggravate the condition, stress probably does aggravate it too, but the days of blaming the patient for the ulcer are mostly over. The body sometimes can fight a bacterial infection on its own, but it’s difficult.

You can also get ulcers from medication. I’ve had this happen. Once the irritant is gone, the body will begin to heal. There are medications that can hasten the healing. I took the medicine.

If you have a bleeding ulcer it can be life threatening. If this is the case don’t play around with natural remedies in my opinion. Natural is simply not always better. When a woman is bleeding out from childbirth you have to treat her or she dies. When a person gets strep throat, it’s prudent to take antibiotics or you can develop rheumatic fever or rheumatic heart disease. If you have operable pancreatic cancer (like Steve Jobs) get the operation, nothing in nature is likely to cure pancreatic cancer, and that particular cancer is almost always a death sentence within years.

LadyMarissa's avatar

My uncle did & he had bleeding ulcers. He stopped taking the meds that his doc had prescribed for another ailment. He began drinking a lot of milk & buttermilk. He cut out all spicy foods or any foods that were considered to irritate the gut lining. He drank a lot of heated broth. He wasn’t cured overnight but his body did heal itself & he lived another 40 years.

2davidc8's avatar

@JLeslie My intention is for this series to eventually cover 12 to 15 topics, but I’m only going to discuss conditions or ailments that might, and I emphasize might, have some sort of non-drug or non-surgical intervention that could be helpful or even curative.
Cancer or emergency conditions like gunshot wounds are not going to be part of these discussions.

JLeslie's avatar

Ok. Got it.

I’ll just emphasize again regarding ulcers; it’s good to know the underlying cause.

2davidc8's avatar

@JLeslie Agreed. Ulcers can vary in degree of severity. And yes, bleeding ulcers can be dangerous and not to be taken lightly.
As to H. pylori, there are many different strains of this. Most are OK, or even good. It’s the bad ones that can cause ulcers and even cancer.

JLeslie's avatar

^^Yes, there are a variety of strains, but if the person is symptomatic it’s likely the culprit. Many people harbor the bacteria and don’t have ulcers.

Aster's avatar

I had H Pylori in the 1990’s , I think twice and was so weak I could barely move. I got the $300 kit of pills and was fine in two days.
Four years ago I made the terrible mistake of talking with and listening to my older daughter’s insanity daily. I was wanting to be nice so I kept at it as she ranted on the phone. After a few weeks I began bleeding one night. I knew that when I was listening to her I felt very stressed and just… strange. I knew my S/O would not call an ambulance in order to save money; he’d just drive me to the ER where I would possibly continue bleeding. So I waited until six thirty a.m. so he’d get enough sleep and I called 911. I clearly recall it being quite an effort to tell them my name and address and I was grateful they didn’t interrupt me. They came and got me in about half an hour. They were very, very blurred.
I spent three days in the hospital on liquids, had my stomach scoped and they let me come home . My s/o brought me food for one or two weeks in bed and then I was fine. I’ve had to block her numbers since. But we do email .

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