Coughing/Choking

[Pinkie24]

I'm looking for some people who had posted in a Forum that they had coughing/choking episodes that were very unique.  Mostly you are asleep, coughing wakes you up, you sit up, you start coughing, coughing, coughing, then suddenly it feels as if your windpipe closes and you breathe, talk, swallow, anything!!  This lasts up to 30-35 seconds (which seems like forever).  It is very frightening!  Eventually you can draw in small breaths and the episode subsides......  Has anyone heard of this?  Please, please answer me.  I've been looking for the people who wrote in before.  So far, I've had a sleep study, saw an ENT and need to know what to do next.  HELP!!!

[ohnoudidnt]

Yes! I have done it for years before I found out the culprit was my reflux. I have asthma and GERD. I would wake up as if Someone was cooking me.  Violently spasmodic coughing until almost vomiting.  Exhausting on my body. I now again am doing the same thing.  Wake up coughing like crazy with a tickle in my throat. Anyway I had gone to an allergist, a Chinese doc,  who after one look in my throat knew I had reflux.  By my description of symptoms he explained that my reflux was causing these symptoms not my asthma. He said that when you have bad nocturnal reflux your body's natural response to protect you from aspiration is to "shut down" the lungs.  At first I thought he was crazy.  I went home and did my research and find he was right. He and my pulmonologist work closely together now. As a matter of fact I found a new cause of another symptom. After I eat I feel like I can't breathe and cannot even tolerate a bra.  My doc explained that when I am in an inflammatory state with my lungs they get inflamed and push my diaphragm down.  Then when I eat the stomach pushes the diaphragm up causes me to feel like I can't expand my lungs. Hope my little bit of info helps you find some answers. Feel better.

[Pinkie24]

Yes, if you'll read my whole post I start choking & can't breathe.  It's very frightening.  Ever hear of such a thing?

[margypops]

I have woken coughing but had no trouble breathing it was just a dry cough lasted a couple of mins ..have you other symptoms ?

[Pinkie24]

On my question up above I noticed that I didn't say that you could NOT breathe, etc. (my mistake).  Maybe that's why no one has answered.  I appreciate any comments.  Thanks.