“Somewhere, something incredible is waiting to be known.”—Sharon Begley.

By the time 2011 rolled around, the laryngeal reflux was increasing in intensity, and I finally decided enough was enough, and I had a venting gastrostomy put in on May 26, 2011.

I can’t express in words what a difference being able to vent the stomach had. The instant I opened it, the air rushed out, and the stomach deflated like a popped balloon: the bloating just vanished. In hindsight, I definitely should not have put this off for so long. Indeed ideally, I should have it done before the reflux started, and then I may have avoided the reflux (and the burning throat, more on this later) altogether.

Definitely, clinicians, if you have a patient with bloating due to excess air in the stomach regardless of the reason, the proper treatment is to offer your patient a gastrostomy. I consider it blatant medical malpractice not to. No other intervention for such a condition will be anywhere near as effective as this.

But a lot was happening in the coming summer. For one thing, the whole bloating condition with its cycle within a cycle got disrupted. It was clear that the condition was morphing although it wasn’t clear to what extent or in what manner it would end up.