Help swallowing problems and chest pains..what do i do?

Yes, to me it does sound like Achalasia.  I have had it for over 25 years and that was how I started out.  When your food comes back up, it it soured with stomach acid, or has it just been stuck in your esophagus ?  If not soured, that would REALLY make me think it is Achalasia.  I was so afraid to get tested back then, because I worried it was a tumor or blockage.  But life is SO much better since I got treated.  I would encourage you to go see a gastroenterologist who has experience with Achalasia, and go thru the testing to find out.  It cannot be cured, but they can do a LOT to make things much much better.

 

Well, with achalasia, I have been unable to burp or vomit anything out of my stomach for many years. If you are throwing up bile, it makes me think not achalasia. But everyone is different. I would see a gastroenterologist to get a diagnosis. Could be that you have a stricture in the esophagus that can be fixed. I would thoroughly research achalasia and is treatments and the pros and cons of dialation prior to surgical treatment. Know what you are dealing with. Not all gastroenterologists ate the same and not many know how to properly treat achalasia.

There is obviously a severe reaction in your throat or oesophagus that needs urgent investigation by a doctor.   The doctor would examine you and consider what else it might be, because diagnosis of achalsia cannot really be confirmed until you have tests like a barium swallow, endoscopy and manometry.

​I think it would be a good idea to list the foods that give you this reaction, and any that do not.  

​Achalasia is caused by the nerve endings for the muscles in your oesophagus not making the progressive contractions to take food down into your stomach.   Often, the lower oesophageal sphincter is clamped tight shut and does not relax.   Building up food creates pressure that leads to regurgitation.   If pills or spicy food remain in your oesophagus, that can lead to inflammation, and this might be leading to some of the irritation / reaction.   When the muscles go into uncoordinated spasm it creates a pain in your chest that might feel as if you are having a heart attack.

​Meanwhile concentrate on relaxation and avoid tension (if possible).   Make sure you keep drinking, and concentrate on soft food, and take in nutrition with soup etc.   Do not keep swallowing if the food has not passed further into your stomach.

There is more information on the website of the Oesophageal Patients Association under The Oesophagus

YOU HAVE A BLOCKAGE OF SOME TYPE!!!! I've capitalized the first sentence to isure that you relize how serious this is. Yes, the symptoms are quite similiar however, it can be more serious. See a physician immediately and if you don't have one, go to the nearest emergency room "NOW!!!" You must be loosing weight which is never a good sign. Please listen to what I've said, I know what I'm talking about.

Thank you all for the info/help.

Last night was rough. The feeling of something being stuck in my chest was unbearable. I finally got releif when i looked up home remedies for acid reflux. I chewed some mint gum and instantly vomited up my dinner. Not sure if this is just acid reflux or something more serious. Going to see a doctor tomorrow. Today i tried to drink/eat. Took one bite of watermelon thinking it would be light was so slow to go down that i got scared and stopped. Later i thought to try ice cream because its not solid and thought the cold would feel good on my throat. Same thing didnt feel right and stopped. With the many years i have had this the foods that seem to give me problems are any meat..chicken and pork are the absolute worst. Pasta and noodles have at times caused it. Bread and fries. Those are the main ones there have been more but i havent really kept track. Hoping its not achalasia or something that requires surgery. That would be a nightmare for me as i have 3 small children to care for. All i can do is hope i guess. Hopefully get some answers soon! Again thank you for your help.

I find that foods which become gummy / paste like, are the worst and get stuck often.  So breads, mushy chicken potatoes, stuffing.  Also some of us do much worse with hot or with cold.  For me cold locks me up, and warm relaxes and gets things to go down easier.  You might try a nice warm soup with small bits in it, and see how that goes.  At least to keep up your energy until you get this figured out.  Also, avoid soda as the fizz can build up in there.  Let us know what you find out.  And don't stress too much, I had 3 small kids too at the time and did just fine after I got treated.

At first I thought I had lost my marbles.  Like, how can I suddenly be bad at eating ?  Take teeeeeny bits with lots to drink, but still it gurgles and makes horrible noise, hurts like a heart-attack and comes back up.  But with treatment and finding out what things are good/bad for you it gets much easier.  I can even go eat in a nice restaurant and not have to sit near the bathroom LOL.  Hang in there.  The most important thing is to get a Gastroenterologist who has lots of experience with Achalasia.  Treatment outcomes are much better after a surgeon has done 50 or more procedures.  Getting it just right is something they are better at with experience.  They will want to do 3 main test for A.  The barium swallow where they can see in real-time if things get stuck.  A scope where you are sedated and they look down there w a camera, and the gold standard test is the manometry which prints out a graph of what your muscles do when you swallow..  That is the definitive test to know if it is A for sure.  Often you can do all 3 in one day and know the results right then.  Best of luck and let us know how you do.

Went to emergency room because couldnt get a doc appointment for a referral for 3 weeks..didnt want to wait. They couldnt do any tests. He said sounds like achalasia without me even telling him thats what i thought. Have me on a liquid diet. Got an appointment tomorrow with a specialist at a top hospital in my area with surgeons who specialize in achalasia.

That is awesome news !!  This thing isn't much fun to deal with but I promise you, once you get treated and learn about what works and doesn't work for you, it really is much better.  I barely think about it anymore unless I have a bad day and need to be more careful with my food choices.  I wish you all the best.  Let us know what they find out.  Will keep you in my prayers.

I have d achal

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