Taking this with success, depends on your specific internal injuries to your stomach/organs. For me, it was a lot of trial and experience until I got the dosage that helped, right. Until then, I could've sworn that it wouldn't work for me, but that was before I realized that I had a hiatal hernia after h. pylori. The infection was clear, but my stomach kept being pushed into my diaphragm by digestive gasses. I thought I couldn't take BetaineHCL due to inadequate flora in my gut, but it was the hernia. Eventually, I gave BetaineHCL another try and my pain went down by 70 percent, but stubbornly persisted until I found something called Centaurium, or Centaury. It has many other names. It's a powerful herb. You'll likely see my review of it under the product. In short, this herb, along with BetaineHCL, allowed the pain to disappear completely. That is, there's been 0 pain in the last 3 days, without medication or supplements, which has not happened since 2020. There were times when I had to stop using Betaine because the Centaury was more than adequate. I listened to my body and alternated as needed, until, a month later, I've been able to eat for the last 3 days without taking any medications or supplements. For those who are wondering about BetaineHCL, I must also offer what I know about using it with Centaury. Below is an update after using Centaury with BetaineHCL, for over a month. (I've been using BetaineHCL regularly since January 2022). Keep in mind, only a few drops of Centaury, throughout the day, were necessary for me to notice a big improvement and upgrade in life, fast. It balances the acid in your stomach, whether too much or too little and tightens the loose tissue around the esophagus (hiatal hernia). It can interact with BetaineHCL and even herbal teas, so don't use more than a few drops if you're using BetaineHCL, until you know your limits. Eventually, I had many days where I didn't require BetainHCL at all, but occasionally, I came back to it as I learned what I needed. UPDATE: It's just over a month later (August 28, 2022) and the Centaury (after using BetainHCL) has helped me heal so well, I've been able to eat normal foods without taking it or anything else, and without any pain, for three days. I'm talking hamburgers, coffee, pretzels, pancakes, sausage gravy biscuits, etc. So far so good. I'm still being careful around gassy foods and haven't tried dairy, but I feel better than ever. I'm getting my life back, with an improved diet (veggies every day, exercise, etc. I know that list of food is not what's considered healthy, but when you haven't eaten it in nearly two years, that's how you celebrate!). I also need the weight, I was down to 111 pounds. When your body has had enough of the Centaury supplement, it'll let you know to cut back on dosage. Diaphragm gets too tight. Just as the esophagus is effected, the entire digestion tube, including the rectum is affected with tightness. My doctor said Miralax for constipation is safe enough for daily use to counter any difficulties pooping, but I only resorted to it every 3 or four days. You don't want to come to rely on it, the body will "get addicted". (I also have gall bladder issues due to rapid weight loss and constipation was a problem), but now everything seems to be flowing through my system better than it has in over a year. In summary, the most effective parts of my healing consisted of realizing I had a hiatal hernia when it wasn't detected by doctors and resorting to taking BetaineHCL, which meant really LEARNING how to take it in a way that was right for my internal injuries, then supporting that with the Centaury herb, which really made an even greater difference. The Betaine dosage was never consistent, I think, because the needs of my stomach fluctuated from day to night, week to week, as its healing intensified. So I was in pain until I discovered what dosage worked best, and that always changed, right up until I found Centaury. Now, I'm amazed that I haven't needed any medication to digest a meals in three days. It's the best sign that my stomach has come a long way and is definitely healing. The best to everyone who needs to read this! Last note: It's not just physical and medical needs that require addressing, but mental and emotional needs as well, when trying to heal. Realizing how much tension and stress I carried around in my stomach/guts, has helped me to adopt the benefits of yoga, breath-work for relaxation, and meditation. Now, I immediately let go of tension in my body when I feel my stomach muscles clenching so hard, they push my stomach upward against my diaphragm. I never used to let my diaphragm expand fully. Now I'm learning how important that is for digestion. Good luck to everyone on their path to health and happiness.
