Hello, As you have described in your history you have H. pylori infection, which is an important cause of gastritis but it is completely treatable and for that you need not take any drugs for long term. The treatment regimen for H. pylori contains combination of antibiotics along with prilosec which should be taken for 14 days and then wait for a month and check for H.pylori infection to confirm that it has been eradicated. If the symptoms of GERD persist after eradication of H.pylori, then use of drugs to reduce gastric acid secretion may be required and side effects with the use of these drugs is generally rare and minimal. And they can be still reduced by using the minimum required dose of the drug. Its also important that you should follow a healthy lifestyle to avoid the recurrence or worsening of GERD and if possible to avoid the use of drugs if your symptoms can be controlled by following a healthy lifestyle without the use of drugs like everyday eating at proper timing, avoidance of fatty foods, alcohol, spearmint, peppermint, tomato based foods, chocolates, possibly coffee and tea, weight reduction if you are overweight, adequate sleep, cessation of smoking if you are a smoker, regular exercise, less spicy food, drinking adequate water etc. Wish you good health.