Desperate need answers

[Hikeemah]

Good morning I'm a 45 year old female who back 2021 I had contracted COVID after that went away after eight days I started having a phlegm ok then the phlegm stated getting thicker it has been four your since the change now I can't hold food don't get me wrong I can chew the food swallow but when the food goes down it gets stuck right on the side of my neck to me it feels that way I have been to several gastrointolgists no one can give an answer one doctor called it a esophageal non motility disorder I had three egds barium swallow chest X-rays you name I done it. So know I want to die I can't get answers refuse to eat because eveytii eat I burp and it continues for like forever and there goes that feeling is something stuck I manually regurgitate every time I eat. I have lost over 80 pounds since the start of this issue and loosing more weight every day I'm sooooooo sick and tired of this . Anyway who has or is experience anything like this please share. Thank you everyone for answer me thank you

[Alberta56]

I'm so sorry you're having this trouble Can your doctors not do something like prescribe a liquid diet- hopefully something you can keep down until they can find a solution. We are not medics on this forum, so sadly we can't offer more than commiserations.

[Patk1]

This is awful.we here find that we r increasingly having to b proactive to get the care we need.id make an appointment with Yr gp, armed with a list of what u need,starting with a ct scan x

[HungryHufflepuff]

this sounds beyond awful and I’m so sorry you’re having to deal with this with no help. Covid has left people with all kinds of After effects. Unfortunately there seem to be varying degrees of support and understanding. Have you tried Carbocisteine ? It’s a medication that helps get rid of the phlegm. Thinking of you and sending lots of good wishes.

[Hikeemah]

Can I damage my throat so bad from manually regurgitatating all the time. Now I just don't want to eat ever again nor drink. I will slowly die from starvation. I just wanted my quality of life back.

[Troilus]

This is going to sound very naive but have you tried Gaviscon dual action or similar? It sounds a lot like stomach acid to me. I’ve experienced the lump in my throat like something is stuck that I can’t swallow - frightening- but it went within minutes of taking an antiacid drink.

Also, your consultant gave you a diagnosis. Did he recommend any treatment? If so it might be worth ringing their secretary to see if you can get an early appointment, maybe through cancellation. If not, go to see your GP. Be honest about what you are doing and the effect on your mental health. He can also prescribe something to help you clear your chest more easily.

In the meantime steer away from spiced foods. Maybe go for some kind of protein shake or soup.

Wishing you well.

[Dollypeg1234 in reply to Troilus]

it sounds very much like a Hiatus Hernia which I suffer from and the doctor advised Gaviscon Advance the relief is amazing if that’s the problem good luck,

[Shirazmataz]

this sounds a terrible situation for you. When the medics did those tests surely they could see what the problem is that is causing you not to be able to keep food down? Did you have the camera down your throat? How do you cope with liquids? That diagnosis is just a description of what the problem is. Please take a look at this site i found on the net. It rather describes your problem.

I am wondering if you need to see a speech therapist that specializes in Dysphagia.

nidcd.nih.gov/health/dysphagia

please don't give up.

[Uresider]

The feeling of having a lump in the throat is quite common with any form of gastric problem, ask your doctor to consider a CT scan for evidence of a hiatus hernia.

[Biker88]

I had a similar problem with food getting stuck in the oesophagus just before the stomach. I had previously been diagnosed with a lazy oesophagus after a barium swallow and I have a hiatus hernia. My GP sent me to the gastroenterologist for gastroscopy, this showed my lower oesophagus was inflamed and any “scratchy” food (toast) was aggravating it and causing it swell and close up. The inflammation was due it excess stomach acid because of the hernia, I was prescribed Omeprazole high dose and the inflammation settled down after a few weeks, a follow up gastroscopy showed it had all settled down. I’m now on permanent Omeprazole, the hernia is at a size were surgery could be considered but my lung conditions currently rule out general anaesthetic. Before the diagnosis I was having to eat very soft food in small portions which didn’t aggravate the oesophagus

[Hikeemah]

Hi everyone thanks for all your responses yes I have had barium swallowing test done ok accept the pathologists says that my food does come up and slowly goes back down said it was spine or something like that is hitting against my esophagus also I wanted to know about a prolapse rectum can that be a problem with my issues

[Nula2]

Hi Hikeemah and welcome to this lovely forum 🙋‍♀️. Sounds really horrible and can't offer any tips but I find harder to swallow food now (not the same thing I know) but I try to eat only soft food like fish, well cooked broccoli and cauliflower smothered in mayo. I know it's not going to solve your problem but thought it might help a bit 🤞. Really hope you get some medical help soon. Take care xxx

[lvn0619]

I developed a pain left side of neck to ear. Noted difficulty swallowing and accumulation of phlegm. Symptoms worsened and I became severely malnourished to the point they had to put a feeding tube in. I too had multiple GI studies which were initially normal. I had a FEEs study done and both the radiology and speech therapist identified pharyngeal dysphagia with weakness of laryngeal walls. The concern was aspiration and continue weight loss. I had the feeling tube placed and begin speech therapy aimed at strengthening swallowing muscles. After 4 months I had gained half my weight back and was able to swallow food. I had Covid approx two months prior to onset of swallowing problems. I was also evacuated by a neurologist who confirmed diagnosis and stated theses nerves could regenerate. Forced vomiting can erode the esophagus and is dangerous. Perhaps an evaluation by a neurologist, ENT and a speech pathologist would be helpful .also I blended soups as I could initially swallow small amounts of thin liquids. I had been admitted to two hospitals initially. It was my pulmonologist who arranged for Ent and speech pathologist evaluation at Mayo Clinic . I saw the speech pathologist closer to home who specialized in swallowing difficulties and prescribed swallowing exercises which worked over time. I hope my information is helpful.

[Hikeemah in reply to lvn0619]

Thank you. Do live in New Jersey can I have the doctor that helped you? If that's ok

[lvn0619 in reply to Hikeemah]

I live in Florida. My pulmonologist at Mayo referred me to a neurologist and speech pathology department for further testing. The ENT eval with the speech therapist present recommended further testing as she could not help me. The speech pathologist did a bedside swallow exam and recommended the FEES exam. "Flexible Endoscopic Eval of Swallowing, This was the first test in which she could see the accumulation of mucous and evaluated swallowing with different food consistencies., Then I had a videofluoroscopic swallowing study also know as VFSS, modified barium swallow study. This was done with the speech pathologist and radiologist in the radiology department, Multiple views of swallowing different food consistencies under fluoroscopy. The pharyngeal dysphagia (2nd phase of swallowing) was diagnosed. The speech pathologist recommended tube feedings as I was so malnourished which i did myself 4x daily after a two day hospitalization to make sure I was tolerating the feeding. As my swallowing with therapy improved, I cut back on the tube feedings. I still have the the Mikey tube in place because I am on meds for a chronic lung condition which could cause weight loss. I will have tube out once I am maintaining my weight on the meds. Your primary, ENT or GI physicians can order these tests. My neurologist did multiple tests but they were normal, He did say because the nerve is short, it could regenerate over time. My understanding is that there wasn't a test specific for pharyngeal nerve evaluation.. The speech pathologist again specialized in swallowing problems, ie stroke patients with dysphagia or any medical diagnosis of dysphagia. I googled and called a few before I found the speech therapist locally that specialized in dysphagia and swallow training.

[Ern007]

HI - I did a barium swallow test also, I had to eat a biscuit while walking slow on a treadmill, they shoved tubes up my nose and to this day, I still have swallowing problems.

Maybe your GP might want to to have a CT Scan . GP would be able to give better advice than we can, let us know, good luck.