Dysphagia probably related to my anxiety disorder

[Chrystalie]

Hello

I'm a bit hopeless but it's probably because it's been 6 really hard months.

I'm drinking nutridrinks since start of december because just enable to make the food go down.

I'm currently followed by a therapist and also checked at the hospital for possible GERD or any other thing that can be the cause.

I also met an osteopath that told me that the left side of my throat is so tense that it's like paralysed. But waiting for medical results, she couldn't say if it was emotional or physical.

Time pass and I start to wonder if my generalized anxiety disorder is not taking over my life. So okay, let's say that my emotions are indeed blocking my throat at the point I can't feed myself anymore, what can I do about it? Is it something that can fixed?

I am terrified because I don't what is going to be the outcome of this, will I ever be able to eat again? (I do miss food each day, sometimes it makes me miserable)

Is anyone in the same situation?

[Beevee]

Yes, it can be fixed. You will be able to eat again. It is just anxiety making you think and feel that way. Anxiety sufferers are very good at building up fears about anything and everything and natural when your nerves are in a sensitised state. Anxiety makes you think something is wrong with you or that you can't cope with daily life and/or presents physical symptoms caused by tension such as a lump in the throat, blurred vision, jaw ache to name just a few. All of these are symptoms of stress and you have probably reached the point where you are now feeling stressed about being stressed. You are in the anxiety cycle whereby fear produces adrenaline (excessive energy which floods your body) which makes you even more fearful and so it goes on and on. Been there, done that, got several t-shirts.

I can't say that I was terrified of eating but like I said, a person with sensitised nerves is extremely susceptible to conjuring up all sorts of fears which really don't exist. The root cause is always the same. Fear or fear of fear. Fear is the culprit, fear is what keeps your anxiety alive. You've said it yourself. You are terrified so you avoid the thing that terrifies you. Anxiety loves avoidance, it thrives on it, can't survive without it. By avoiding, you send messages to your brain that there is a threat (eating) so your natural fear/flight mechanism keeps you on a high state of alert. If this happens over a sustained period, your nerves become sensitised so you start to feel anxious all day, every day. You then worry over the smallest of things about all sorts of things. The medical profession give it the label of GAD but it is just anxiety playing tricks on your mind and body. Nothing more, nothing less.

To recover, stop avoiding and face your fears which are a figment of an anxious mind and don't exist when the mind and body is calm. Allow yourself to feel anxious and be ok about not feeling ok. Create a space between you and the scary thoughts that flash into your head and just observe them. Learn not to give them any respect and to not get involved with them Acknowledge them, say hello and watch them come. They are just anxiety finding an outlet. They want to escape and you must let them. Fighting the thoughts just blocks their escape so they stick around.

As for eating, so long as there is no physical blockage, go ahead and eat, even if the thought of it makes you feel anxious. It is likely to be tension in the threat that makes it feel that it is hard to swallow but won't be blocked. It is the same type of tension that people get in the muscles of the chest wall, leading anxiety sufferers into thinking they are about to have a heart attack. The same type of tension in the blood vessels in the eye that causes blurred vision. Teeth grinding cause tension in the jaw muscles. It is all tension caused by worrying about the way you feel.

Don't fight any of the thoughts and feelings and go with the flow. Accept it all and offer no resistance. This approach will gradually relieve the tension in your mind and body and the symptoms will start to disappear.

Probably rambling on a bit (late night) but hope you understand the message I am trying to get across.

[Chrystalie in reply to Beevee]

Thank you for your message. Your words are really powerful