View Full Version : Doctor and Physio disagree!
I don't know where to go from here.
I have had GAD for years along with panic attacks etc.
I choked on food twice in March 2012 and a few times more in the following months. Due to this I have terrible trouble eating and drinking. Complan is keeping my weight steady at the moment but any other type of food is very difficult. I have tried a number of AD and although some ease the anxiety of eating basic foods, it doesn't help the swallowing or make it any easier at all. To swallow I always have to have liquid in my mouth, so if I have toast (my main staple food) I need to drink some tea and swallow tea and toast together. Been seeing physio for a few months now who massages my throat and neck muscles as they are constantly tight and tensed up. I also have stretches to do daily in the hope they will relax the muscles a little.
Anyway, physio says there is definitely a physical problem with anxiety making it worse. Doctor says it's purely anxiety. I know that anxiety is playing a massive part in this problem, but I also believe it's physical because the choking happened first and the anxiety jumped onthe back of it.
When I'm attempting to eat, my already tight throat tightens even more and the muscle pushes on my wind pipe, making breathing difficult.
After 16 months of this, I'm getting pretty fed up and just wondered where to go from here. I have had a barium swallow and a camera up my nose, into my throat and nothing physical has shown thankfully, but what do I say to my doctor next time I see her? Surely if it's a muscle problem then something else needs to be tried?
I took sertraline for 3 months which helped ease the anxiety about eating/chewing etc, but as I said swallowing wasn't any easier, so although I know a massive part of it is anxiety, it isn't the only problem, and there is definitely something up with the muscles.
Any thoughts on this guys and gals?
It would be helpful to know if there are any alternative causes for this kind of thing? Does one exist?
MS crops up but I don't have that, not much else. I'm just sick of it now. I'm really hungry at the moment but can't even get a cup of tea down. I think, because AD haven't worked I'm being left to my own devices. I'm keeping my weight steady by using complan, but I don't want to live on that forever. No-one seems to be doing anything now. Physio helps a tiny bit but not much and not for long. If I didn't have the complan I'd be living on the odd piece of toast now and again. Hardly living is it and the problem I'm having now is that it's making me very angry because no-one seems to care.
Just a thought dazza,
you agree it's anxiety(and who wouldn't havnt that) like you say physio helps a little. Do you think it helps because you are getting it massaged, your body is then getting relaxed hence it helping for a while.
Is there such a things as say a muscle relaxant? Why not ask the doc
Hi Clio
The massage area is very specific so I dont think it actually fully relaxes me, it just releases the muscles in my throat temporarily because they are always tense.
I asked the Physio yesterday if the Diazepam I take (since March last year) is helping me because its easing anxiety, or if its relaxing the muscles, and he said a bit of both. I think Diazepam does relax muscles but to be honest Im sick of taking it, Im on 5mg a day at the moment, been on it for as long as I have had this problem, and amazingly it does still help a little, I was on 20mg a day at one point, and that really does help, but Im fed up with taking it so gone back down to 5mg a day.
My doctor has agreed that AD's do not work and generally make it worse at times, so I have been left with a relaxation CD (tense and relax various muscles) and told that this is my medication for the next month. Sadly I cant swallow that either so it isnt much use.
Im just completely fed up with it all now, Im just attempting a vanilla complan again for the 3rd time today, and although its quite nice, Id much prefer a bacon sandwich. Because Im not losing weight as quickly as I was previously there seems to be no concern, but if I stopped the complan my diet would consist of toast and Diazepam and the weight would fly off me. I feel like im being turned into a junkie because without the Diazepam I wouldnt even be able to eat toast, but I dont want Diazepam, I just want to be able to eat.
I will google muscle relaxants now, but I think its mainly the Diazepam type drugs that do it.
---------- Post added at 21:48 ---------- Previous post was at 21:29 ----------
Just googled and cant find much, I might ring the doctor and ask her when she is in on Friday. Im wondering if I could liquidise a bacon sandwich, but I dont think it would be very nice so might give it a miss.
Aghhh dazza that bacon butty sounds disgusting lol
My sister used to have to liquidize food so had gastric sleeve done and she couldn't eat food.
Can you not try this? Or as it become a fear now of drinking/eating.
Excellent getting down from 20mg to 5mg diazepam,I'm surprised you didn't get withdrawal symptoms. Thinking about it I bet there is only diazepam! But you never know.
I really feel for you it must be absolutely terrible for you.
Yeah there is a fear, quite a big one, it seems to have spiralled over the past 7-8 months, Im only getting about 1000 calories in me a day and not losing weight at the moment which is a bit weird, I think thats why my doctor isnt too worried, but she isnt the one living on complan.
You can have botox injected apparently, so might ask about that, but also decided to go and see her Friday and ask about muscle relaxants, you never know there could be something else couldnt there. I need her to understand that although anxiety is possibly 95% of the problem, there is still at least a 5% problem thats more physical than mental and it needs looking into.
Yer, I'm positive she wouldn't want to live off complain/toast every day. Ask her this.
It's because your weight isn't going down, 1000 hardly anything is it. You body must be used to it now that's why your staying the same weight.
Basically it's like an eating disorder frightened of food going into your mouth. You need therapy on a regular basis. You need to be more assertive with her, can you not take somebody with you as GPS feel a bit more intimidated when there's two people.
Really hope it goes well for you, push push!
I will take the other half in with me. She has said its an eating disorder. I was referred for CBT but upon entering my 1st appt was told I was being discharged, so I had zero therapy, I do think it would help, they just dont want to give me any, but I will push for some more help, Ive just gotten so used to this way of life now that it has become normal for me, but something needs to change.
Thanks for the support Clio, I appreciate it :)
Do you have other symptoms? White coating on your tongue maybe? Digestive issues, bad taste in your mouth? Anything else? I am of the firm opinion that a yeast overgrowth in your gut can cause many symptoms - I've had just about all of them, including feeling like I have food stuck in my throat. Doctors don't treat for it sadly. Do some research into candida and ignore the stuff you see about it only affecting severely immune compromised patients. It can affect anyone. I'm being treated for it finally. The problem with going to the doctor is that they look at each symptom individually and treat the symptoms, but don't look for an underlying cause. I'm seeing a naturopath who is treating me and I'm starting to see results.
Hi Lilharry, its funny you should say that!
I do have a white coating on my tongue, sometimes pretty thick, it also gets sore, sometimes a bit numb, and im also lately getting little black patches/spots on it. Doctor says its because Im not eating proper food, which would normally 'clean' the tongue and make it normal. She took a swab about 2 months ago, but weirdly no results came back at all, so she did another last Thursday.
She has also given me Nystatin a few times, which makes my tongue a little more sore but seems to clear it a bit.
I do have stomach problems as well and take Nexium 40mg daily due to excess acid because I have GERD.
I have for the past 2 months been using Actimel and Yakult daily (good bacteria for the stomach) as I have looked up thrush, and thought these might help, but cant say they are really. Ive also tried organic apple cider vinegar in a bit of water, but no matter how much I dilute it, it causes stomach pain hours later. Also tried to use it as a diluted mouthwash but that burns my tongue, as does every other mouthwash.
So tongue problems for quite some time.
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