cannot swallow

[joapepe]

hello everyone, i just found this site.. i am suffering so badly.. i feel as if i cant swallow prperly and its ruining my life. i am physically well but have this strange thing now and then where i feel i cant swallow. I am turning into a raving lunatic, drinking wine just to be able to swallow. Does anyone else have this and how do you control it? i just got back off holiday, thought maybe it was holiday blues? i am scared. please help. x

[metacomet]

Hi Joa, well let me tell you that I'm here to help you. I'm a person who suffered a lot with that sensation, but a little more complicated cause I felt that there was something stuck in my throat  and COULDN'T BREATH! So I was on panic every single time and thinking about this every moment. I suffered a lot cause my regular doctor could understand what was happening to me. Well, let me tell you that with this are involved two issues of health really important to take care immediately, and since I'm telling you what really happens you will fell better cause the first thing is that you're ok, you're not going to die suddenly, it's ok and keep calm, as others said YOU CAN SWALLOW go to a mirror and drink a little of water watching yourself, you will see YOU CAN. For you to feel better and not to worry that much let me tell you that symptoms of a real bad disease like esophageal cancer or throat cancer that could be the worse scenario are not the ones you have. Symptoms of this are really radical like, real difficulty to swallow, whenever you can't really swallow the food, water or whatever you eat or drink comes back from your throat as if the way were closed so as far as I can see this is not your case. In the larynx there are two conducts, the esophagus and the trachea , the esophagus conducts the food and drink and the trachea conducts our air intake, there is a part in the larynx where this two get together to work and there is a function that closes the trachea to let pass the food or drink and then opens it again, well, in this part there are some little muscles that let this action happen and one possible thing is that you could have this function a little affected by ACID REFLUX. You say you drink wine to calm your nerves and relax this sensation, you may calm this for a little while cause wine has sedating properties but what you're really doing is worsening the situation, cause since you happen to have GERD (Gastro Esophageal Reflux Disease) you need to start protecting your stomach and esophagus with ANTIACIDS like Melox Plus, or Talcid, STOP DRINKING WINE immediately, even drinking water in big quantities could affect you. Even when you don't feel a hearth burn symptom doesn't mean that you don't have ACID REFLUX, maybe this happens when you're sleeping, so what really happen here is that all acids come out from your stomach, goes trough you esophagus and burn it (cause this has not the same protection as the stomach) the this goes upper to your "upper esophageal sphincter" burns it too and at last upper to your trachea and burn it too. When this organs are burned they get inflamed and the feeling of not being able to swallow or pass air comes out... Now... here's the part where the brain enters in action: As an automatic survival action, with this feelings or sensations that emulate a form of being chocking, the brain triggers a self defense mechanism in the body acting as it were in a real life or death situation and releases adrenaline and prepares the body to a real bad situation to escape or fight and this is called "PANIC ATTACK" and panic begins even when everything is ok, and you start to feel like going crazy and else... so the real solutions for this are:

-Stop drinking wine
-Do not fill your stomach, try to eat less than before
-Avoid any irritating meals
-Start taking immediately any antiacid like Melox Plus, 30 minutes after eating and before go to sleep and Omeprazol once a day in the mornings
-Upper your bed in the head side 7 inches
-Stay calm and think that this is not life threatening  
-Don't go to sleep after eating
-You may need an anti-inflammatory injection to reduce the larynx inflammation and feel better
-If you really can't control your bad feelings about panic you may need any anti anxiety medication, but this is ONLY if with all this I just let you know you don't get to feel better in your mind.

Well, what I just tell you is the solution for my very particular situation, and the result of visiting several doctors a area specialists like gastroenterologist, otolaryngologist, Doctor internist and even a psychiatrist and investigating by my own part.

You can follow my suggestions if you feel that your passing trough something similar but basically I'm almost sure you have GERD and this triggers your ANXIETY and PANIC ATTACKS.

Stay calm, get rid of bad feelings and thoughts and analyze your lifestyle you might need to make some changes.

Blessings!

Metacomet

[paint_me_green]

I'm currently going through the same thing as you. When I was 6 and 7 I would tell my mom I can't breathe, and just sit there and cry and try to breathe.
I have social anxiety but the feeling of "my throat closing" just returned last week, and I'm 22 now!
It only happens when I think about it or pay attention to my breathing. Sometimes it feels like I have a lump in my throat, other times it feels like the flap in the back of my throat is gonna close. It's usually at night but I have it right now also. I'm going to the Dr's on Monday to have it looked at and possibly get on an anti-anxiety for night so I can sleep.
I know it's a very scary feeling, VERY SCARY. But I truely do believe it's all in our heads.
Think of it this way, if our throats were really closing, the feeling wouldn't come and go. We would have just stopped breathing by now. True fact.
I feel for you sweetie, but you're not alone in this battle =) God Bless you

[joapepe]

thank you so so much.. you dont know what it means to me xxx am so scared but already feel so much better.. have thrown the rest of the wine away and grabbed a bottle of water next to me. just knowing you understand helps more than i can say x im sure its not physical just mental i hope x

[Julie359]

I  had this a lot when i was a kid and it caused a great deal of anxiety for me, just as the food reaches the back of my mouth i found that my swallowing reflex would cease up and the food wouldn't budge, i'd then be gripped by fear because i couldn't breath and i'd start to choke.  This would also happen when i'd least expect it and even now sometimes it happens... im not sure as to why??

I cope with this now by always keeping a glass of water by my meal side and taking water with me where ever i am, maybe instead of downing wine you should stick to water as you really don't wana end up with a drink problem adding to your troubles.  Also if it is out of control seek help through your docotor who can put you in touch with a therpist who could retrain you to you swallow and also refer you maybe to ENT to make sure there is nothing going on with the workings of your throat.

Good luck and keep us posted.

[cheshchesh819]

always here now you have found us you will never be alone again,you have not got to suffer in silence just talk to us.

[mammo]

Good for you!!!  Keep it up and stay with us!