Excessive mucus

[liacono]

I constantly feel like i have a cold.  My nose is always always runny, my throat always hurts.  This has been constant for a very long time.  No matter what i do, i am always having to blow my nose or have a sore throat.  What could this be?

[National Jewish]

A common cause for this is an allergy.  This can be to one or more of many things in which you have contact and can cause these chronic symptoms.  Another possible cause is a nonallergic inflammation of the nose and/or sinuses.  Many people think they have an allergy, but do not.  These both look alike.  In either case, there are many medications to treat these symptoms.  I would suggest you talk to your doctor about the use of antihistamines and/or nasal steroids for some relief.

[tmag]

Go see a pulmonogist immediately this is not normal.

[bmw1]

Or you could see your GP for an evaluation, or an allergist, or an ENT Dr, especially as it seems upper respiratory.

[allergy]

I have been having mucas in my throat for 6 weeks until a few days ago when I have finally found out what the cause was!! My old carpet was removed from one room but the padding was left behind. ( just didn't have the time to remove it, so I left it alone) Little did I know it would cause me so much discomfort. I started to get mucas in my throat. Not bad at first, but as time went on it got worse. I tried all the allergy meds I could find. Even tried Mucinex which help some what but it always came back. Than my doctor asked me If I have eated a new food? Or have I bought new furniture? A new pet? and so on.... I told her about the carpet. I came home, got to work on pulling the carpet out of my house and started to feel better about 3 days latter in which I also took Clartin( again )for good measure. Please try (for your sake) in looking at anything new you may have brought into your home, or work place, or wherever. Also any new food you have tried, perhaps liked, and still are eating. Just keep in mind that anything and I mean ANYTHING can be causing this to happen. Allergy,s need not come with all these symtoms like running nose, itching watery eyes, itching throat. It can just be one single symtom as it was for me. I guese that's why it didn't accure to me that it was an Allergy. But now I know better and I hope to help others with this entry.
Get rid of anything new, even if it's your $1,500.00 furniture piece, at least for the time being. Take it to a storage place. Than wait a few weeks and see how it goes. If it goes away...bring it back, one item or food at a time and if the allergy returns, you will know what had caused it. I took the time to write this entry in hope that it will help others. I have read peoples storys from lots of other sites besides this one, I just hope now, I can help others too. Good Luck!

[rickyc]

Here's a wierd one for you.  I am 62 years of age.  In fairly good health.  Had a chest x-ray last year...good.  I do however suffer from yearly allergies:  I mean all year long.  I take allegra and nasonex.  Seems to help a bit, but every morning I am hacking and sneezing and constantly clearing my nose.  Sometimes it even gets me gagging.  My question is this:  When I lay down at night to go to sleep, or in the morning upon awakening, if I breathe through my mouth very slow, I can hear a static crackling sound from somewhere in my bronchi...someplace.  During the day it's not noticeable of course unless I cup my hands over mouth and ears.  Even then it is extremely barely audible.  Go figure...

[HelenK]

My daughter, now 28 years of age and married, is a sports teacher involving quite a lot of contact with water ( such as swimming for infants, water theraphy, etc).She is also a PhEd teacher and personal trainer.

So far so good till in 2002 she started having a runny nose with constant blowing of the nose (with/without mucus). She was treated my a throat specialist who told her that she might have some kind of allergy. She was sent for test with negative results EXCEPt for extreme allergies to almost all kinds of antibiotics ( this is meant seriously) except for one which is called Zenat.  
She also had an x-ray of her sinuses which was negative except for a small polyp, which, according to the doctor, was too insignificant to be causing the problem. She was given nose drops.In short she became addicted to nose drops, being unable to breathe, sleep or work properly without them. When I heard about this I went ballistic. First of all, I told her, to change the nose drops to something innocuous and then I took to se another eye/nose/throat specialist.
The conclusions were the same: the young lady doesn't have any allergies, any problematic polys, etc. Let her continue with nose drops.

Meanwhile, this young lady continues suffering from a chronic runny nose. blowing of the nose, shortness of breathing, unable to sleep, constantly dry mouth, depression and constant fatigue. This has been going on since 2002.

At one point I started thinking that perhaps she was allergic to the chlorine in the swimming pool, or the air-conditioning in
places where she works... I don't know - I'm not a doctor!

I cannot stand to see her suffering so much with doctors unable to help her!
Is there anyone out there who has met up with this problem, anyone who can help her!

[ileen grace]

my son is 2&6months old and he have a sticky plegm for a week and i dont knoiw whats the right antibiotics for him!?

[Vicgraphics]

I have excess mucus EVERYTIME I eat or drink ANYTHING. This started about 15 yrs. ago. At first, it was only certain cold drinks. Now, over the past 2 years, it is everything I put in my mouth. I burp up air as well, but don't know if it is due to swallowing more to clear the phlegm from the back of my throat. I strangle in my sleep sometimes. My mother had an even worse problem and developed Spasmodic Dysphonia. Her vocal chords are permanently damaged and she receives botox injections every few months to get a not-so-good speaking voice. I don't want this to happen to me. I rarely get heartburn and am very healthy otherwise. I not only have never smoked, I avoid smoke. I'm reading lots of posts from people with the same problem, but with such specific symptoms, I'm surprised there isn't a more conclusive diagnosis available.

[Kathleen W.]

OK, I have found a forum that might help me.

I have light asthma....and after eating I sometimes feel that my food has lodged in my throat.  It is a frightening experience.  Sometimes I am forced to vomit (yuck)....and there is a tremendous amouth of mucous.  

I am also starting to suffer from FREQUENT heartburn.  

Geez!  What's up??????

I take Claritin D every day and Singular.

I do drink a LOT of skim milk....would that exacerbate this condition?

Thanks!
Kathleen

[Inanga]

Hi Kathleen. I  had a period of a feeling like something stuck in my thoat. It's horrible. I worked out is was sticky mucous. i find I had a food allergy to maize. Give me lots of mucous. To the point of coughing, nearly choking, sometimes vomiting from all the chokling. Also I'd swallow way to much and get a bloated stomach from taking down air too. before I worked out the food cause I learned to suck and spit the mucous so I could minizmise the swallowing. At least that reduces the flow on effects. It also stopped me needing to cough - the mucous didn't get down far enough to need coughing out. So my sore chest went away too. Avoiding foods containing maize is keeping me in a normal state. good luck.

[richmar]

Hi everyone,

I have a problem I need identified.  I have excessive mucus in the back of my throat almost all the time, 24/7/365.  My nose is clear during the day, but at night, as soon as I lay down, my nose gets very stuffed up.  If I lay on my right side, my right nasal passage gets clogged within minutes.  If I turn to my left side, the right will clear up and the left will become congested within minutes.  

This also causes snoring, and feels like a frog in my throat.  I do not have post nasal drip or sore throat symptoms, just the constant nasal stuffiness when I lay down, mucusy feeling in my throat at all times, and snoring.

Any suggestions, insight or help is appreciated!

Richmar

[Kathleen W.]

Hi guys, OK, I'm checking on the maize suggestion.  What do you think about milk?  I love skim milk....but haven't had any in 48 hours and for some STRANGE reason....for the first time in months.....I have less mucous and no heartburn.  Uhmmmmm......what do you think?

Yes, I'm like you too.....the mucous appears when I lay down....or should I say, it is much more evident when I lay down.

I am going to continue no milk....and now no maize.  However, ha!, please tell me what foods I need to avoid....is maize (corn).....as in corn based products?  I love Tostidos...please tell me they aren't maize based.  I bet they are.

Geez.......

Hugs,
Kathleen

P.S.  About the choking when eating....Thank God I am not alone.....it's frightening as heck!

[earl3]

I have had a bad cough for 2 weeks. Went to the Dr. told me I had Bronchitis, gave me an antibiotic, steroids for 4 days. My nose is running, I can't cough right,it's more of a hack than a cough, as soon as I get some mucus to break loose in my throat its right back again, giving me shotness of breath and some wheezing.As soon as I hack a little bit up the wheezing goes away for a few seconds until the mucus returns in the throat, then I start all over again. This is very uncomfortable. Doesen't seem to bother me to much when I sleep, but starts in again as soon as I get up. It seems that I have to cough so hard to break this junk loose, and after the hard work it;s right back. The Dr. has also told me to take Clariton which dries me up a little but causes me to have shortness of breath because every thing seems to get tight.

[Tony1G]

I can't believe there are as many people on here with the same problem I have..The "cold" that never seems to go away. The runny nose, throat clearing, coughing, gravelly voice. I've had this problem since i was about 9 years old and I'm 43 now. Why is it so hard to find the correct diagnoses/treatment? Something so common MUST have an easy cure..you would think.

[Joy77]

I can sympathize with everyone on here.  I have been having similar problems for about 8 months now.  I have been to numerous doctors and nobody has really been able to pinpoint what the cause is.  My main symptom is chronic post nasal drip.  I feel like I get so much mucus in me at times that I gag on it and sometimes end up throwing up to get my throat cleared out.  I also have a cough and constant throat clearing and very dried out sinuses.  I agree with "allergy" to start searching for the cause.  SOMETHING is causing it.  And you can't always count on your doctor to figure it out.  I have been driving myself crazy trying to figure out what it could be.  I don't know if it is something I am eating or breathing in.  I had some blood taken today for a RAST test to see if I am actually allergic to foods or anything else.  I had skin allergy tests done back in September and was told I was allergic to dust and mold but the results were very mild.  The allergist didn't think this would be causing my post nasal drip...  Kathleen, dairy seems to make mucus worse, at least for me.  Lately I have noticed whenever I eat cheese or ice cream I start hacking like crazy and have made myself throw up from coughing so much.  I feel my throat fill up with a lot more mucus when I eat certain things.  I don't think I am allergic to dairy, I think it is just irritating a problem that is already there...  Good luck to all.  I hope everyone starts feeling better really soon.

[janzibel]

I have a very serious mucous problem.  It occurs every morning or every time after laying down.  I feel a thick build up of mucous, which demands to be coughed up.  It usually starts out with a very thick rubbery brownish stuff, then to thick yellowish jelly like stuff & then eventually thick clear stuff.  That is the first round.  The second round starts about a half hour to hour later, of just coughing up thick flem.  I have lower back problems, which are made worse from the constant coughing every morning.  It consumes the first 2 hours of every morning of my life, & has for a few years now.  I think my pcp thinks it is all in my head, excuse the pun, & has no idea how extreme this is.  I have been to an ent, & actually 2 years ago had surgery to reduce my turbinettes, but it seems, the problem came back even worse than before.  My ent can't seem to help me either.  My next stop is, another ct scan & a visit to the allergist.  I am so frustrated with this condition & can't seem to get any solutions from any doctors, even the specialists.  This condition is getting worse with age & the medical folks just seem to dismiss it.  Any help would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks, and to all you other people out there suffering from this totally annoying, repulsive problem, lets all hope we can get some solid answers as to what this is & be rid of it.

[missylee]

I have been coughing up mucus for almost a year. i am 18 years old and in good health. i don't think it's my diet because i have changed it numerous times since the coughing. and i don't think its the enviroment around me because i have also moved 3 times since the problems have occured. from the moment i wake up till i go to bed i am constantly coughing up mucus, it is so imbrassing. i don't have to eat anything either to start these confulsions. i am really worried. it is worst in the morning, but throughout the day i am constantly clearing my throat of mucus. if anyone has a solution to my problem please let me know. thanks

[annahelen]

I wonder if anyone out there has found this website.
http://www.onlineallergycenter.com
It explains how to eliminate foods for 5 days in order to test for food allergy. Though Dr Roby believes that food allergy is often just a by-product of allergies to air-borne substances.
I haven't tried it yet, but I was very interested in the following page, which describes the phlegm that we are all so familiar with:
http://www.onlineallergycenter.com/bufferedvitaminc/
i too am convinced that my problem is caused by something I eat, drink or breathe but I just can't work out what it is yet. But it will be very hard work to eliminate all eight food types as he suggests, as I am a vegan, and there won't be much left to eat once I eliminate all of those as well!

[jtex]

here's the dirty little medical secret--most of the problems with mucus, coughing, runny nose, sore throat, etc. are caused by nasal drainage from a chronic sinus infection/irritation.  Doctors can't treat it well, because antibiotics don't reach the sinuses well, due to low blood circulation there.  I teach grade school (germ factory) in Houston (mold city) near oil refineries (worst air pollution in U.S.) so I got it all for 7 years--clogged sinuses, constant phlegm, hawk, spit, nocturnal mucus drowning, sore throat, lost voice, smell, and taste, chronic cough, Cipro, steroid sprays, name it.  Here's the real problem, recently from the Mayo Clinic. (Google: mayo clinic snot).  Once you get an infection, all the viruses, bacteria, mold, allergens, toxins take on a life of their own, and cause all these problems.  I tried a saline flush (like the ones listed on this website) and it worked a little.  Fortunately, i used to be a swimmer, so i remembered how to get massive amounts of water in and out of my sinuses.  I have developed what is essentially a powerflush of the sinuses, and once the Toxic Schmoo came out, my sinuses have worked perfectly all year, and all the symptoms disappeared.  The saline powerflush even minimizes the symptoms of a cold. It's a miracle.  The technique is easy, but complicated to teach, and will require a book.  Meanwhile, try the saline wash.  The Grossan tip has the right idea-- it's a flush, not a powerflush, but it might work.
Knock off dairy products and white flour for a few weeks, and that will lessen the mucus.  Good luck, a solution is in sight, for most of you.

[Puppyfeet]

I just came back from my mom and dad's this evening.  I take dinner there twice per week.  He is 93 years old.  She is 92 years old.  I have someone there with them all of the time.  He has excessive flem in his throat -- it is so bad that he can not even swallow much water (as of about two days ago) -- it takes forever to get any liquid down -- tonight I was trying to get him to eat some mashed sweet potatoes -- the mucas was so bad that he was choking and I had to stick my fingers down his throat to get it up.  I will call the doctor tomorrow, but after reading all of the comments, I don't hold out much hope.

I've just fount out that his liver isn't working well, and his kidneys have always worked at only about thirty percent, and they're doing worse also.

Do you think you can actually choke to death from this?

[DeeInLondon]

Hi,

Add me to the list sounds like what I have.
I've been suffering for about a week but several months ago it was for almost an entire month

Wake up inthe morning coughing up yellow / green mucus and then it goes clear but it's constant and so sticky - it won't even easily wash off the sides of the basin.

Last time I used to wake up inthe middle of the night choking - really horrid problem and the lack f sleep only makes things worse.

I am drinking extra filtered milk which we get here in the UK, helps filter out a lot of the bacteria in milk - hoping that will help but really don't want to give up diary if I can help it.

[Puppyfeet]

My dad died this morning.  I believe he went into liver failure.  But in any case, he's gone.

[awesome]

I have been coughing for almost 2 year now. The Drs. treated me for chronic asthma, which didn't help, for acid reflux, which didn't help.  I went to a research hospital and they began thinking outside the box and scoped my throat and saw it was very swollen and lots of fungus....so now am being treated for oesophogeal candidiasis and the medication is helping alot. The cough has decreased and I have not thrown up since on the meds. Those of you still having problems came to my mind and I wondered if anyone checked you for oesophogeal candidiasis?  or Moulds in the throat......? just a thought....

[yarray]

I need to vent, Ok here goes... (please read entire story if your going to give advise)
First off i developed this/these condition/s about a year ago and  it/they have brought a new meaning to hell on earth. It all started like i said about a year ago when i was living in my apartment and going to school when i came down with this post nasal condition. I have very thick secretion build up in the post nasal area(if thats even an area), which causes me to hawk and gag basically non stop threuout the day. I am a light smoker. i smoke around 5 cigarets a day(i know quit smoking)i drink dariy(actually tryed stoping but dosnt realy effect my condition - ot +) This hawking and gaging might lead to my acid reflux problems or mabey the acid reflux problems are just a totaly seperate case unconjoined with the mucus problem. Some times i don't even think i have a problem because some of the tell tell signs disapear. FOr example the mucus might disapear but im not sure if my nasal passages are open all the way, or mabey the mucus is just dried, because i still feel the urge to hawk and gag, but soemtimes i dont have any mucus to gag????????? I cant run or play sports because if i run or breath heavy it makes me want to gag. Even yawning sometimes makes me want to gag. I dont understand!!!!!!!!! Also my stomach(right around where the ribcage ends)always feels tense. Tense meaning uncontrolable urge to tighten my ab muscles, this confuses me because i think i might just have some sort of anxiety condition, but then i think its due to the constant gagging. But anyhow when i started having this problem i developed a problem with the gaging to clear the mucus which leads to vomiting. I always have this sensation to vomit(because of the feeling of mucus in my throat/lower nasal cavity), more so when in a stressfull situation or when i dont feel like i can gag ro hawk up mucus i become very panicy, which brought on panic attacks. Now the panic attacks started when i was in situations where i felt like i was going to vomit, and i would start to just freak out beacuse i didnt want to but the gaging was so strong that i would end up puking. These panic attacks happened for 2 weeks straight, i lost my job droped out of school and moved home, due to the panic attacks and nervous break down/loosing unhealthy amount of weight etc..
Here is where i get irritated beyond belief.
I was obviously somewhat depresed at the whole situation of me being sick and what not that i had to go see a doc. very quick.
I when to the doc. and told him that i was having these panic attacks DUE to my condition with my post nasal acid refux etc.
The doctor told my mom that i was depresed and put me on f*king zoloft(which did kill the panic attacks)and did nothing for my condition. SOOO after leaving the doctors i started to ***** to my mom about the doctor, and she started to say well mabey you are depressed, it runns in the family. WHY DOSN"T ANY ONE LISTEN TO ME, ya i might be depressed becasue of the fact that im vomiting and gaggin 24/7 and have no quallity of life. But instead of treating the root every one seems to just blow it off. Now 9 months latter i have been trying to come up with solutions on my own, i when to the doctor again told him exactly what i was feeling(i told him about cronic post nasal acid reflux anxiety becasue of all the problems), he gave my some more zoloft, actually told me to increase, gave me acifex, but didnt give a **** about what i said with my nasal problem. 130$ droped at another doctors office.
Threw all this i havn't been able to hold down a job in fear, or knowing that i will not be able to focus on my work. Every day is a strugle for me. My parents don't understand my condition to say the least. They think im lazey, along with all my friends and family. Well my my whole family thinks im depressed becasue my mom told everyone that. I had a job since i was 14, actually i had a full time job non stop from 14 to 19 40hrs a week restraunt work then worked at giant slicing meat. You gotta be a lazey person to work 5 years in a row without a vaction let me tell you. My dad is threatining to kick me out, honestly i think i wouldnt survive if i got kicked out which makes me worry about what goes threw there minds. My brother had a liver transplant with very educated doctors which leads them to think that the doctor i go to is treating me correctly. I have become very antisocial nd rarrly leave the house total oposite of what i was about a year ago. I dont like to leave the house due to the fact that i always feel like i have to gag, and if i cant gagg mucus ill vomit. If anyone has any suggestions please feel free to leave  a post here or email me at yar_rk***@****