Ice cream and esophageal pain

[essdipity]

Recently I got together with some friends and ordered a frozen margarita. Yum. But twice while enjoying it I got an excruciating pain in mid-esophagus. If I'd had some water warmer than the ice water I also had, I know the pain would have dissipated more quickly, but as it was it was terrible for about 20 seconds each time.

It's been years since I've had this reaction, and it was always from ice cream, which I have much more often than margaritas :-)  However, in much younger years I had it many times. Until fairly recently I'd never even heard of brain freeze. From looking that up I learned that the head pain is referred from the esophagus. I believe that others in my family used to get the chest pain, don't know about how recently. It appears that the big majority of people get neither. Maybe it's a hereditary reaction, I dunno. It does seem to be neurological.

I strongly doubt that this is even slightly related to MS, so guess I should have put OT in front of this post. But I'd like to hear who has brain freeze, who has direct esophageal pain, and who has neither. Thanks.

ess

[rendean]

Mary is correct about the name for the brain freeze and JJ is correct about ending it sooner.

I had my 3rd block yesterday. The 2nd block gave me 90 % facial pain relief and the 3rd was added for good measure.

The ketamine infusions are in 2 weeks.

The sphenopalatine ganglion is the target of this pain as well as "atypical face pain". It's  amazing what a medicated Q-tip can do!

Ren

[twopack]

I hope Ren is looking at this one.  The scientific name for brain freeze is sphenopalatine ganglioneuralgia.  Simply speaking, that's nerve pain of the sphenopalatine ganglion.  

I'm thinking that the momentary pain so many of us experience as part of enjoying an iced treat, is what Ren and Michelle and other TN victims experience for days and weeks on end.  No wonder they are so desperate for relief!

Ess, since I had surgery to correct my GERD and hiatus hernia, I also will sometimes experience the esophageal pain.  I do alright as long as I don't eat or drink too fast.  If I try to gulp things down, I don't think it can get through that new 'valve' and into my stomach quickly enough.  The prolonged tissue contact causes the pain and it can be intense when it hits.

You are just going to have to put that pickie finder up in the air and take dainty little southern margarita sips.  Such suffering!  Be sure to enjoy.

Mary

[Lulu54]

I thought brain freeze comes from the cold on the roof of your mouth and connecting to your sinuses?  ....  will have to check that out.

JJ is right about the tongue/roof of mouth connection - it helps to stop the pain much faster.

Stick to margaritas on the rocks and not frozen and you won't have this problem.  

-Lu

[supermum_ms]

I thought this was a common and normal reaction to cold food/drinks, though i do find i can eat a large amount of ice cream and nothing happens and other times i only get through the 2nd spoon and my throat and brain are screaming ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh.

I do know a trick that makes the ahhhh pain go quicker, all you do is put your tongue upto the roof of your mouth, push and hold until it stops, it should only take a few seconds.

cheers......JJ

[essdipity]

No nausea, just extreme pain in my esophagus.

ess

[doublevision1]

I got the brain freeze twice during the Russia cruise this summer, also from frozen margaritas.  I realize I gulped them down way too fast, they're so tasty I forgot about the tequila in them. :)  The first time it was so severe I honestly felt like I was about to throw up.  I didn't have pain in my chest, but severe nausea.  Did you get that too?

[jensequitur]

I do all right with frozen stuff, but I have frequent esophageal spasms.  The Baclofen helps keep them to a minimum, thankfully, as well as the chest and back spasms.

However, when swallowing, I have to be very careful to be 'relaxed,' because my throat will spasm, and the pain will go down into my esophagus.  Stuff like swallowing pills, especially.

[Sailorsong]

I will get the brain freeze and chest pain any time I swallow something really cold too quickly. Have alway been that way. This as well as my love for chocolate is why I eat Hot Fudge Sundaes. The heat from the hot fudge warms up the ice cream so I don't have these things happen.

Dennis

[essdipity]

Should add------------

Don't mean each time eating frozen stuff. Just now and then, unpredictably.

ess