Think I have Alachasia..
Posted , 9 users are following.
Hi AlI,
I have recently been posting on this forum, probably posted a few times prior to this all i did was lurk and read other people's posts on various issues they may have been struggling with.
I have posted my story here before so i wont bore you with the specifics but my swallowing problems began about a year ago choked on a piece of chicken and since then have not been able to eat properly. So far i have had x2 endoscopys done, x1 laronsopys done, x1 barium swallow done all which have shown no issues apart from slight redness.
i have suffered with acid reflux for about 5 years now, but this is under control with lansoprazole.
my symptoms are:
tight throat muscles.
feeling of tightness in throat.
feeling of anxiety and that the food is stuck in my throat.
feeling of being full although i drink a ton of fizzy drink and water when i get tight throat muscles due to feeling like the food is stuck.
so now the consultant has referred me for a manometry test which i believe is the test which measures contractions in your osophagheus.
im absolutely dreading a diagnosis of alachasia, i do not want baloon dilations or surgery. i just want to be normal again.
0 likes, 15 replies
Cathuk moh73296
Posted
tbh it sounds like anxiety rather than achalasia. I have similiar symptoms but dont have A
moh73296 Cathuk
Posted
its absolutely killing me and partially ruining my life tbh.
neil32387 moh73296
Posted
HI moh,
I recall exchanging messages with you a few months ago, where the feeling was that simple stress or anxiety could be the culprit. The manometry will help with that verdict. Though will not help with the anxiety in the interim. I totally understand that! JUST HOLD IN THERE..
For interest there is a new achalasia charity that offers help and advice - just search for 'achalasia action charity'...
Warmest, Neil.
moh73296 neil32387
Posted
Thanks Neil, i have had a look at the charity good advice. im just awaiting a definite diagnosis of some sort!
AlanJM moh73296
Posted
I think that having the manometry test will be a good thing in that it might well rule out achalasia or indeed confirm it. Your condition sounds different from what most people with achalasia would probably have, but you do need a good diagnosis as a means of achieving some form of resolution. Relaxing when you eat is easier said than done, but you do need to try and do this somehow whether you have achalasia or not. Sometimes medication can help, and relaxation therapy of some sort that would suit you.
moh73296 AlanJM
Posted
Alan,
thanks for your response 😃
what symptoms are normally associated with Alachasia? if you dont mind me asking.
AlanJM moh73296
Posted
Achalasia is a condition where the peristaltic muscles (situated round your oesophagus between your throat and your stomach) do not work properly in pushing the food you swallow down into the stomach. It is normally the nerve endings rather than the muscles themselves that do not work. So you swallow food but it gets stuck in your chest when the muscles by your diaphragm d not relax enough to let food pass through. So food can remain in your oesophagus for a long time. Sometimes it has to be regurgitated. Sometimes there is pain because of muscle spasms. If you google the website for Achalasia Action charity there is a booklet 'A Patient's Guide to Achalasia' that you can download for more information.
I hope this helps
Trisherbell moh73296
Posted
When you have the manometry, relax as much as you can. I know that is a difficult thing to do, but it will help. Before mine I googled and watched videos of it, so I knew what to expect. I also practised not swallowing. Weird, but it helped me massively, as they need clear readings of the swallows they ask you to do. I also found making pictures out of the marines on the ceiling helped.
I wish you all the very best.
Greeka moh73296
Posted
Sounds like manometry testing is the avenue ahead of you. It's the only way that I could find out how to proceed forward.
I am currently treated by Dr. Rami El-Abiad at the Digestive Disease Centers at the University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics. If you live in the midwest USA and can get in to see him I would highly recommend seeing him.
There are a couple of surgical procedures that could help you moving forward depending on your situation.
I would HIGHLY recommend that whomever is treating you knows their stuff before you choose to do anything surgically.
angelic-blanc moh73296
Posted
I have the same issues as you too. I am afraid of choking ever since I have a piece of cabbage and cracker stuck in my throat.
I'm going in for a gastroscopy tomorrow to rule out anything. I'm afraid of the procedure. I think that if my gastroscopy is clear, I'll most probably get a referral letter to see a psychiatrist. I think largely is due to mt anxiety, like even before i try eating a certain food, I already don't look forward to it and keep thinking about what might happen.
This might be a post traumatic experience issues..
I really hope you will feel better soon. I wish I can be normal again, I miss eating food without thinking about it and I miss having cracker, cake and bread..
jerry0185 moh73296
Posted
Doesn't sound like achalasia. Choking isn't a symptom.
I've had it for 45 years and now so bad I'm going back in for whatever it takes.
Manometry test is awful - couldn't do it
samson_of_Judea moh73296
Edited
Sounds like anxiety and your anxiety may have caused you reflux which in turn has affected your esophagus. Im going through this right now, hard to swallow certain foods lately as of earlier this week, I had a gastritis flareup two weeks ago and its barely going down, but now my esophagus is irritated and tight . I do have the pharyngeal dysphagia though since last Tuesday, its very trouble some. I hope I get over it. Its starting to become a little more manageable but I have to be careful what I eat and how I eat. I can drink liquid no issues. I really hope it doesn't get worse or progress into something else.
AlanJM samson_of_Judea
Edited
I think gastritis can make things worse. The nerve system runs through the whole digestive tract so what happens lower down can also have an effect higher up in the oesophagus. I hope it gets better soon, but meanwhile you could try Gaviscon Advance to create a prtoective layer to encourage the gastritis to improve.
jerry0185 samson_of_Judea
Posted
So after numerous tests and three balloon operations in Jersey (not New Jersey), I moved to Scotland and the conditions just got worse.
I was able to go private and asked them to do anything. Usual barium test and x rays, whereupon the doctor said it was acid reflux scarring the oesophagus that was the problem and operations to enlarge the gullet were only making this worse. Made sense, as the previous balloons seemed to make things slightly better, then worse much later.
He then prescribed me Omaprezol and discharged me.
Several months later I've had hardly a problem: can put a mouthful of food on without waiting for the previous one 'going down.' Can enjoy wine with meal, as before had to drink 2 pints of water. And less stress which I'm sure has a knock on benefit.
So all those procedures over 10 years - wrong treatment all saved by a very common prescriptive drug.
If this is any help, then good
AlanJM jerry0185
Posted
That is good news!
and all going to show the importance of having the right rests done and interpreted properly.
One thing that you might want to check in due course is any signs of Barretts oesophagus. There is more information on the website of Action Against Heartburn.