I have been suffering from heartburn for several days. I took nexium that I had leftover from a previous bout of diverticulitis . I began to feel better after about three days. I saw my nurse practioner today since my GP was out. She put me on prevacid once a day and told me to change my diet. She suspected reflux because my voice is scratchy and I have been needing to clear my throat frequently. she also had me get bloodwork to rule out gall bladder and Im getting an ultrasound of my gall bladder and abdomen to also rule out gall bladder. She asked if I had blood in my stool which I hadnt noticed. So, today, I checked my stool and it had a light red color throughout. Is that a sign of a bleeding ulcer? Or, is that more of a lower GI thing like hemorroids? I have had itching not to long ago and i frequently have diarrhea because I am lactose intolerant. Should I push my GP to send me to a gastroenterologist sooner? She said if I didnt get better after a 4 week treatment with prevacid I would be sent to a specialist at that time.