My story and how I beat globus sensation
Posted , 164 users are following.
I made a promise that if I got better I would share my story on this discussion board in the hope that I may help someone. All the posts on here were a great comfort to me when I was experiencing this awful condition.
It all happened about 8 weeks ago. I was in the theatre and just sat down to begin the show when I ate a sweet normally, took a sip of water normally and afterwards felt like I was having difficulty swallowing. My mouth went super dry and I felt like a had a lump in my throat and my tongue was enlarged (it wasn't). I thought perhaps I was having a reaction to something so before the interval I had to leave and get out of there. I felt complete terror and danger and thought I was going to die. My husband was worried and took me to A&E. I couldnt breathe properly but was not wheezing. I felt like someone was strangling me, standing on my neck and I was in a complete panic that came out of nowhere. Apparently I had a panic attack or severe anxiety episode. Well, I didnt believe this diagnosis because I had over the years suffered from anxiety on and off and bouts of low mood but even when I have faced the most difficult times in my life, never have I had a panic attack so wondered why on such a happy day I would develop this. Anyway the initial attack was only the start of my problems, I was told the symptoms of my choking sensation would go away within a few hours. It didnt. This made it worse and I was not so easily going to put this down to stress as most things seem to be these days. I went to my GP who said I did seem to have some swelling in my neck and ordered me an ultrasound. As I couldn't wait 3 weeks for the paperwork to come through I saw an ENT consultant privately who put a camera up my nose and down my throat and said everyhing looked perfect and likely to be globus sensation which is common when experiencing panic attacks and anxiety. This only gave me some comfort because I was still feeling these awful symptoms. After the 4th week I had scan and this showed nothing. My thyroid was perfect, which I suspected may be the issue due to my high thyroid antibodies, although I knew I had normal thyroid function. This was also some comfort. I was suffering, and it was really really getting me down. Having to get up every day and go to work was so hard and I was so anxious I was not sleeping or eating well. I thought I would have it forever. After a while I started to think, well this isn't going to kill me as time has proven, its not getting worse or better so I need to start trying things to see if anything helps. I also had a strange crawling sensation in my neck not on top of my skin but underneath - hard to explain. Also when I put chin to chest I felt like the part between my neck and chin was swollen. I tried breathing exercises, hot water bottles, hot baths, drinking red wine, taking NSAI's, drinking loads of water, trying to eat better, sleep better, watching funny films but nothing worked. I then found a couple of websites online suggesting a very simple neck exercise to do many times throughout the day and specifically for globus sufferers. I started to do this and over a week the symptoms started to ease and has got better and better to the point that its only 5% there. The most important part is to make sure your shoulders are always down and pushed back as far as you can. No hunched shoulders or it won't work. Then carefully, with mouth closed, ease your neck back as far as it can go, all the time looking up to the ceiling. You should be able to feel yourself stretching your neck. It may make you cough a little. Then roll your head a little to left and right and centre. It probably won't work the first go. you have to do it many times a day over a week or so.
My GP said that panic attacks can cause a lot of problems in the neck, real tension and muscles, and other structures and a horrid sensation of a lump in your neck. I have to understand now that this is the cause.
Apologies for the long post but it's a long story.
I hope it helps someone.
Good luck to you all and take care of yourselves.
x
35 likes, 1120 replies
marcy98154 chippy12
Posted
Thank you for posting this. I will try it. How are you doing currently? I have had this neck pressure for about 4 months now. It's driving me mad.
BlueSky1 chippy12
Posted
Thanks Chippy, I'll try this and report back. P.S. No diagnosis as yet, will see doctor in two days time.
jamie_95686 chippy12
Edited
Hi chippy I have this sensation after I had a camera put down my throat it's awful I literally just come from the doctors I'm 39 year old man who's in ok health in general I was diagnosed with a small section off Barrett's disease but it's all under control but the globus is driving me crazy I wake up in cold sweats thinking the very worst making it much worse with anxiety I will try your exercises or anything to get rid of this terrible felling thank you very much
Kind regards
Jamie x
Mikeglobus jamie_95686
Edited
Hi Jamie,
I feel your pain. I took an allergic reaction to spicy food one night and my uvula swelled up. Went to A&E not knowing what it was and the nurse was particularly rough putting the endoscopy camera down my nose and throat. That one episode has caused me so much grief. I immediately got a globus sensation that sent me into a spiral of health anxiety and stress. The feeling lead to crazy insomnia and depression - it was all I could think about. I too have reflux/acid issues which i assume will inevitably give me some kind of Barretts symptoms but for now am on Omeprazole. But this doesnt have to be the way with the globus though! I was on my own with no advice and couldnt find anybody who had gone through a similar thing. Not to mention the insane negative and useless information online regarding globus, seems to be one of those 'nobody really knows' type of things. I was filled with dread.
Ok so now the good news. This was about 3 years ago (roughy) and wow what a different place Im in now. The sleeping thing, as a side note, had a bigger mentally affect on me but thats my on psych than the globus. It stills haunts me a bit - knowing my mind can be so strong it stops me from sleeping even when Im exhausted. However the globus is barely part of my life. I still have a sensation a bit most mornings but doesnt cripple at all any more. Through the day I dont even think about it and night is normally fine. Doesnt stress me at all - maybe one or two 'episodes' a year but things could be worse. In general Im in such a good place with it all things considering.
Unfortunately it is a bit of a mental game, my understanding (or at least the way I think of it) is a neurological reaction causing my throat to 'close up' so the better I can re-focus my thoughts the quicker it goes away. The quicker it goes away the less it tends to come up. Its in your head.
In a weird way the whole thing lead me to alot of meditation, mindfulness type stuff that has actually helped me in general in life so Im grateful for that.
Easy to say but dont let it get to you. Its insanely intrusive but it can and will eventually die down if you let it. Stay positive and focus on the good things.
Best of luck on your journey, hope some of the things Ive said has given you some hope. If you have any question or want to pick my brain just let me know.
mj1986 Mikeglobus
Edited
Hey, Mike. Oh this sounds so familiar to what I'm going through just now. I was a bit stressed (way more manageable than now) when I had a smear test result come back inconclusive. I had to wait a couple of months to find out it was an infection and I went on antibiotics to clear it up. On the last day of taking them (9 days in total) I was violently sick. I had this weird feeling in my throat like acid was bursting up and my heart was racing. I then had 2 - 3 weeks of oral thrush which affected my uvula and made my gag reflex go crazy. My throat and tongue were quite swollen. I got used to waking up in the morning with them low in my throat and my tongue being swollen and having to adapt the way I talked so I didn't gag. It was hell.
3 months on and I'm still in hell intermittently. I took anti fungals and things got better for a while. I would still notice it sometimes since I have provisionally been diagnosed with acid reflux as well. But sometime 6 weeks beyond the first episode this all got on top of me and I honestly feel more close to losing my mind than ever before. This is on my mind constantly. I've started fearing panic attacks and having them (because it's a vicious circle), including when I sleep. I wake up shaking and my stomach is in knots. Between that and the acid reflux it's caused a lot of nausea. Which makes the throat thing even worse.
Again, I got back on track for a couple of weeks and started to feel a lot better, though I would still be wary through the day of this occurring and occasionally feel sick. I had a throat infection which again caused a swollen uvula but I rationalised it. But I relapsed at the weekend. Had a day with seering nausea and it made my throat and chest constrict, followed by random heart palpitaitons at times. People keep telling me it's panic attacks and I'm going back to the doctor to discuss everything but I'm a wreck. I'm scared to eat because of how it might make me feel, I'm scared to talk in case my throat closes over, I'm swallowing constantly. I'm terrified of when this attacks me. I'm terrified of reading things about people having heart problems and cyclic vomiting and this being a symptom of it. I'm terrified of going for tests and not knowing what's wrong with me, and perversely I'm scared this is anxiety because like you said, what does that say about my mind? Please reply, I need people just now. I couldn't get a doctor's appointment this morning and convinved myself it's always going to be like this and I'm going to die young (I'm only 30), I'm in a pretty bad way. It's not everyday - but the bad days are bad and I can relate to what you're saying about not sleeping big time x
Mikeglobus mj1986
Edited
I private messaged you but a few things in here I didnt mention.
Ok, so the swallowing thing. this was a MASSIVE issue I totally forgot about (im now doing it haha but I can genuinely laugh about it and I know it will be gone once I move my mind from it) - I swallowed CONSTANTLY. To the point my thoat was doing this weird clicking thing cause I was wearing the cartilidge out or something (thats how I imagined it in my head) - I use to walk around getting mad at people cause the could just swallow! Such a simple task. It was weird. But I dont do it anymore, its gone and I wont let it come back. And if it does Ill figure it out again.
The sleep thing - I use to fall asleep after hours and hours of stuggling and my body would jolt awake immedietely with my heart POUNDING and it felt like my arms and organs were pulsing (and the stomach knots too) - again almost impossible to explain the feeling. I would get so mad at myself through the night, why me? Why is this happening? Why wont my mind let me rest? Etc. It was all a horrible cycle but now I just say to myself 'if I dont sleep, I dont sleep' and just lay in bed reading or something. The acceptance allows my mind to move on and eventually before I know it Im asleep. Dont get me wrong, i still only sleep 5-6 hours a night but Im ok with that. One day Ill get the full night back.
Dont forget to try the usuals for the reflux, dont eat before bet, less caffeine bla bla - the usuals. Every little helps.
For the record my diet is horrendous now ha! But I dont eat late, thats a big one for me and how my throat and stomach deal with things.
Also the talking thing, so when it was bad I couldnt talk either, when i went to speak Id gag - its not pleasant but youll find away of 'getting over it' and before you know it it stops. You will have spells of all of the above coming back but youll get quicker and quicker at making it pass to the point its gone almost all of the time.
Have a read of my PM too and ask any questions you may have.
Sorry youre going through this
vanessa_42112 Mikeglobus
Edited
Thank you so much I believe you were the one that suggested tilting your head to the ceiling and making a kissing face! All of the sudden I get a pop, and the feeling is alleviated so much that I'm actually about to be able to go to sleep! After a long day of swallowing and feeling like I was going to pass out from not having the satisfaction of a full breath. It worked it worked it worked, its not completely gone but feels dramatically better 😭😭😭 really thank you!!!!
Mikeglobus vanessa_42112
Posted
Best of luck and I hope it keeps getting better!
Sandysnow chippy12
Posted
Ann
arciga831 chippy12
Edited
Thank you soooooo much ! I was desperate to find something that helped , i had my tonsils removed 15 days ago because i thought that was causing this sensation , but days later i still have this feeling and its making me miserable , in dont even want to eat or go to work because i feel like i am going to choke ! I was not able to breathe well for the past 2 weeks and also had really bad chest pain and after some xrays the Dr confirmed My chest area was healthy , and now im taking anti acids and i am able to breathe alot better . I highly belive this started back when i got H -pylori ,and after treating it my stomach never went back to the same PH level i guess and i really think all this problems including my Anxiety has to do with Acid Reflux ! If anyone had any tips or anything i would appreciate it ! Good luck everyone ! 🙏??
Cabanax4 chippy12
Posted
Hi,
I've had this on and off for years - tell dr about it they either want to do a million tests or think your exaggerating.
Basically - it's stress/anxiety --- it comes out of no where -- and you think your perfectly fine not stressed -- but your body knows better.
I've found lying down completely flat and trying ( it's not easy) to relax think about something else - helps
There's apparently no "drug" just for this
Other stuff that helps other underlying secondary symptoms - like the acid reflux etc,
Good luck, hope it helps
ellebi Cabanax4
Posted
mj1986 Cabanax4
Posted
After months of thinking I've intermittently going mad, mine turned out to be acid reflux! I dunno, because I know it's physical now and I'm not manifesting it I've started ignoring it (my stomach is more bother just now, truth be told). I guess the body gets distracted when there's a new focus. But acid reflux swells the back of my throat up sometimes, producing too much saliva (gross) and I also had oral thrush which kick started what has turned into the worst 3 months of my life in regards to health - in fact, just everything. When your health and mental wellbeing go you're so drained. I hope to get better soon! They think I have an ulcer and as crap as this outcome has turned out to be I'm gaining peace of mind in understanding my symptoms, and my GP is fortunately pretty good at explaining minute details.
Sk91Kalenjin chippy12
Posted
Thank you so much for the info and advice.
I have almost the same problem, it occured on 27th July,2016, after two tragic two tragic events befell me concurrently. First, I lost someone very close and on the same day, my car broke down and was written off. I didn't realize how these events had struck me, I only remember that on the same day I started feeling some lump in my throat.
At first, I thought it was something temporary that would go away after a couply of hours, or perhaps the following day when I wake up. Believe me, it has been 4 months, now, and I still feel the same globus in my throat. The first few months, the sensation was on and off, I could feel it twice or thrice a week, particularly in the evenings. Gradually, the sensation has increased; both in intensity and frequency. Nowadays I feel the globus sensation 24/7, it worsens when I talk loudly. I even feel that for the past 1 week that my voice is rough and have a feeling that I am losing my voice. Now more than ever, the condition is making me very uncomfortable, and that thinking about it has become the order of the day.
I'll try out the exercises you suggested and I hope that I'll get my normal life back, life that I can swallow saliva without feeling something up my throat.
N/B: I am under medication for acid reflux as prescribed by my doctor. Esomeprazole 40 mg x 1.
* I don't have history of anxiety and neither am I so much stressed up.
mj1986 Sk91Kalenjin
Posted
Hey,
I always get this when I'm at job interviews or particularly tense. At the moment I'm battling with acid reflux and God knows what's at the root of that - an ulcer perhaps? I'll find out over the next few weeks. But it's given me so much anxiety with my throat since one of my symptoms over the past few months has felt like my gag reflex is going. Stress played a part in that and exacerbated it. I don't feel as preoccupied with my throat now I know there is something clinical going on - as if by magic it's gone. But (supporting the doc's suspicion I have h pylori or ulcer) - I get worse when I eat loads.
That's not to say things don't become psychosomatic, and I have always suffered from a dry throat when stressed. It's so difficult but you need to focus on something else if possible. It sounds like the grief and stress you've encountered have literally got stuck in your throat and now your body has adopted that as a stress response (sadly my new body "tic" appears to be nausea because of all this stomach stuff going on) - blood annoying.
My doc also said our throat spasms in times of stress and when there is irritation in your food pipe. The latter is true of me just now but it's worth looking into - you could just be hyper aware of things now. Good luck with it, it's so draining! x