1. Community
  2. Gut, bowel and stomach
  3. Oesophageal Achalasia and Spasm

oesophageal spasms

Posted , 35 users are following.

britt
britt

hi im just 21 and recently diagnosed with the nightmare that is oesophageal spasm.

I have been getting sharp pains from a young age and the older i have become the worse they get and longer they last.

I have been given nitrolingual spray (usually for angina) from my doctor, however i no there are bad side affects and im scared of using it.

If anyone knows why these symptoms occur and how to help relieve them please please get in contact with me!

0 likes, 65 replies

65 Replies

Prev Next
  • David_B
    David_B

    Posted

    Hi Charette

    My post must have been a long time ago. I have since been diagnosed four and a half years ago as having AL Amyloidosis with amongst other things GI Tract involvement. I am afraid I can't be of any help. If these new symptoms have coincided with your starting to eat solid food again then maybe your oesophageal spasms are to do with that. Maybe it is very sensitive still , hope you haven't got the beginnings of an oesophageal tear or anything like that. People have ended up with that by just swallowing a hard chip the wrong way. On a different slant have they ruled out all cardiac possibilities.You must be your own advocate and ask as many questions as possible even if they seem silly.

    Sorry I can't be of any help and hope your pain and symptoms abate soon.

    David

  • AlanJM
    AlanJM

    Posted

    I am not medically qualified, Charette, but the hiatus hernia repair will have had some effect, and should have helped the reflux, because the lower oesophageal sphincter that is designed to stop stomach acid coming up into your oesophagus is connected to the muscles of the diaphragm.

    It may be that the surgery has affected the nerves to some extent, and that they will settle down.

    It might just depend on whether the pain is from heartburn/ reflux or whether it is oesophageal spasm created by the nerve system.

    For reflux, try sleeping propped up as far as you can. Try gaviscon - that will create a protective raft for a few hours, and the fact of whether this works or not will help to pinpoint the problem. Most reflux is acid and can be controlled by PPI medication like omeprazole that switches off the acid production in the stomach; but some might feasibly be bile, which is alkali, and won't be touched by PPIs. The hospital can test for it and suggest other medication of this is the problem. PPIs can come in different doses.

    If it is from the nervous system then it really needs further investigation - and a great deal of patience and ability to cope with frustration, but there may also be some medication that might help here as well.

    It is a good thing in the long term to have your hiatus hernia repaired, but it might just be the surgery has created its own after-effects that need adjustment and attention. As with all these issues that relate to nerve signals, trying to find relaxation techniques, massages etc can help.

  • Wheez
    Wheez britt

    Posted

    Hi britt, My daughter is 18 years old and has had esophageal spasms for 2 years. She gets sharp pain in the center of her chest. Sometimes she can go for a few weeks with no pain at all and sometimes the pain lasts for days. She is on omeperzole daily and hyosyomine she takes when she is in pain. The gi motility specialist we see has told us it is not know what causes them, but it often acts up from reflux and anxiety. This condition has caused her to miss a lot of school and other activities. We really do not know where to turn now with this.
  • kathy-redhawk
    kathy-redhawk britt

    Posted

    Hi,

    I am really hoping this email will help a lot of you.

    Had my first esophageal spasm when I was about 26.  Was rushed to Loma Linda University Hospital in California.  They treated me as a heart attack patient.  They were puzzled when they discoverd I had not had one. 

    I went for almost 40 years without a diagnosis.  Doctors could not figure out what was causing the crippling episodes that mimaced a heart attack. If it happened in public, people would want to call 911 and I would have assure them I was not having a heart attack.  Sometimes I would be doubled over moaning in pain for 45 minutes or more leaving me totally exhausted.

    By searching the internet myself, I finally figured out what was going on with me and informed the doctors.  Even the gastrointerologist didn't figure it out. 

    One day about 4 years ago, quite by accident I felt an esophageal spasm coming there was a glass of water sitting on the counter.  I picked it up and slowly drank some.  The spasm went away.  Now I do not go anywhere without water.  It sounds so simple but it works for me.  I sincerely hope that this will help some of you!

    A word of caution.  10 months ago, I had an episode during the night that lasted for 2 hours.  Water did not help.  I finally gave in and used nitro-glycerine for the first time.  It slowly quieted down.  The next morning my husband made an emergency appointment with a cardiologist.  Long story short.  After the first test, I was diagnosed with severe mitral valve regurgitation.  Had open heart surgery two days later. My valve is repaired and I still have spasms.  My point is that something else may be going on with you.  I had been diagnosed 3 years ago with mitral valve prolapse.  The cardiologist said it was harmless and to go home and live my life.  If something signifigantly changes, seek medical help.  Get checked out by a cardiologist and if necessary get a second opinion.  I almost lost my life. 

    Hoping this is useful to someone.  And my heart goes out to all of you for the pain and suffering that you have.

     

    • schoo
      schoo kathy-redhawk

      Posted

      Very interesting. But one thing it does highlight is that this condition is different for everybody. In my case, the very last think I can do is take a drink. My oesophagus locks up tight and cannot even swallow much less take a drinkl. Fortunately, none of my episodes have lasted more than about 40 seconds but on occasion, they have been so severe, I have begun to have darkening of the vision as if I was going blind and might even pass out. It doesn't happen often, thank God, but it's really horrible when it does. Oh, and I can't speak either! So no chance of dialling 999 either!
    • AlanJM
      AlanJM schoo

      Posted

      This is completely unscientific and non-medical, but a discussion about this retrosternal pain amongst a group of achalasia sufferers included people who variously found Buscopan, eating bananas, drinking Actimel, taking Manuka Honey, coconut milk, or fizzy water helpful.   If your oesophagus locks tight, as you describe, I can quite see that eating or drinking anything is out of the question.   I think it might be the nerves locking, and they need to relax / unlock before you can get going again.   Perhaps the nerve involvement is the thing that affects your vision / speech perhaps?   It is frightening, both for yourself and for others.
    • schoo
      schoo AlanJM

      Posted

      That's very kind of you. I would say my 'attacks' only happen a couple of times a year at most. The fading out, as I call it, is caused by the muscle spasm in the oesophagus and pharynx, ultimately involving the vagal nerve.

      I have found a way to make it settle which is to look upwards, stretching my neck as hard as I can and then, using both hands, stroking the front of my neck quite firmly and rhythmically. Much as you would instinctively do to a cramp in your calf. Well, it works for me! cheesygrin

    • AlanJM
      AlanJM schoo

      Posted

      That sounds a really good self-help option.   Well done!   The vagus nerve is a really important nerve system that affects all sorts of things to do with digestion and so on, but I had never thought, until you posted that information, about a massage of the neck helping it.
    • schoo
      schoo AlanJM

      Posted

      Well, I'm a nurse (a very OLD nurse!) and have a fair knowledge of anatomy and physiology! Since the vagal nerve is wrapped around the oesophagus and over-stimulation of it can cause syncope (posh word for fainting!) it seemed a logical thing to try - and it worked! But the pain is awful. You can feel the oesophagus dragging on your pharynx.
    • schoo
      schoo AlanJM

      Posted

      (Rats! I wish we could edit these posts! Hit reply by mistake)

      comtinuation .....

      I liken the experience to the oesopagus behaving like the new "X-hose" where it all contracts as the water runs out! 

    • schoo
      schoo kathy-redhawk

      Posted

      nitroglycerine will calm it down because it's a type of muscle relaxant.

      A word of warning to all - do not EVER attempt to eat or drink anything when you have an episode of this acclasia.

  • isabelle17
    isabelle17 britt

    Posted

    Hi all!! 

    I am so very glad to have found this discussion! 

    Just to provide some back ground into- I am a 24 y/o female, slim and healthy.  Around 2 months ago I had a chest infection which turned into glandular fever. In the weeks following aside from feeling pretty rotten I started to suffer from agonising chest pains (going pale, crying etc). 

    Being asthmatic I assumed that these were asthma attacks however everytime I went to urgent care they assured me my oxygen levels were fine and that my chest was clear.

    In the last few weeks I have been referred to a gastroenterologist. My pain has been a lot worse with symptoms at night such as - a dry mouth, severe chest pain, burping (or the need to burp) and general nausea. I'm on omeprazole at the moment but I feel as though the effects are minimal. I am also taking codeine for the pain. 

    I had an endoscopy last week which only showed  up thrush on my oesophagus from inhaler use. I have been using nystatin and this has now almost completely cleared up. Currently waiting on results of MRCP scan.

    Anyway any guidance or advice would be much appreciated - I've been so scared the last few weeks feeling as though I cannot breathe!! I am also so TIRED from lack of sleep.

    Thank you, I smile 

    • schoo
      schoo isabelle17

      Posted

      Well, sweetie - if you test it out you  will find the one thing you CAN do is breathe! When you have an attack, it's very  important that you focus on making yourself relax and breathing gently and deeply. Look up the anatomy of the larynx, oesophagus and trachea and keep it in your mind that this affects your oesophagus not your trachea so there's not reason you cannot breath.

      I know from experience it's all too easy to get panicky when you have an attack and that certainly can make it seem like you can't draw breath.

    • AlanJM
      AlanJM isabelle17

      Posted

      If you need an inhaler then this will indeed complicate things regarding getting your breath, and it sounds like the thrush won't help either. The nausea sounds like it might be food not clearing properly.   It can be a vicious circle because all that is bound to increase the tension and anxiety you feel, and this in turn make the motility / digestion process more difficult.   If you can (and it is easier said than done) find a way to relax yourself more then your body may respond.   But you do need expert medical care too.
  • chrissy56193
    chrissy56193 britt

    Posted

    Hi like you I have just been diagnosed with o.s. I avoided salads, fruit, fried food, pastries, everything they say can cause indigestion. Then it was stress that brought it on! No, couldn't be happier when bam you get it and you think you are having a heart attack. This has been the case for fifteen years and after having all the tests done and seeing the consultant, today he has put me on metocloprimide, one tablet three times a day.  It's wait and see time but I hope this helps. Watch this space I will report on the outcome.
Back to top
Prev Next

Report or request deletion

Thanks for your help!

We want the community to be a useful resource for our users but it is important to remember that the community are not moderated or reviewed by doctors and so you should not rely on opinions or advice given by other users in respect of any healthcare matters. Always speak to your doctor before acting and in cases of emergency seek appropriate medical assistance immediately. Use of the community is subject to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy and steps will be taken to remove posts identified as being in breach of those terms.