can't swallow

I've had this problem on and off for almost 10 years. I've tried therapy and drugs and nothing has helped. It has gone away for long periods but then returns for no reason that I can figure out. I think it has a lot to do with anxiety and stress and panic. But it doesn't help to know that. It just makes it more frustrating that it's all in my head. I've had every physical test done with no results. I do have a hiatal hernia and GERD though.
BTW: what happens to me is that every time I go to swallow, it's like my throat is not ready, my tongue pushes the food to the back of my throat by I can't swallow at that time. Sometimes I have to cough it out and then try again.

The only advice I can give is to eat slow, chew a lot, continue chewing right up to the swallow, drink lots of water while eating (sometimes this is the only way I can eat - wash it down with water). If you have no problems swallowing liquids, like me, this is the best way ive found to eat. Eventually you get used to it and forget that you have trouble swallowing.

Hang in there.

M

I too cannot swallow. I have alot of air in my mouth, and my muscles inside my mouth do not push the food back properly. I went to an ent, nothing wrong with my throat tongue pharynx or larnyx. I had a barium test. It came back normal. I lost 25 pounds since Feb of 2010 it is now May of 2010. I have tried many different relaxation techniques and tried some relaxation meds. Still hard to swallow. Im going to a gastro doctor and they are going to put me under to check out my esphogaus and stomache. Then im going for another barium test where a speech therapist will be present and the xray will show everything from when I try to swallow . The worst is the air that I constantly feel in my mouth. NO Relief. I cant wait till they find out whats wrong. I want my life back. Im scared.

I too cannot swallow. I have alot of air in my mouth, and my muscles inside my mouth do not push the food back properly. I went to an ent, nothing wrong with my throat tongue pharynx or larnyx. I had a barium test. It came back normal. I lost 25 pounds since Feb of 2010 it is now May of 2010. I have tried many different relaxation techniques and tried some relaxation meds. Still hard to swallow. Im going to a gastro doctor and they are going to put me under to check out my esphogaus and stomache. Then im going for another barium test where a speech therapist will be present and the xray will show everything from when I try to swallow . The worst is the air that I constantly feel in my mouth. NO Relief. I cant wait till they find out whats wrong. I want my life back. Im scared.

No, mootard, when you have trouble swallowing you never forget about it. No matter how "used to it" you are, it is always difficult. I don't know how it is with you, but my swallowing problems never go away. Water makes swallowing easier, but it is still difficult.

Hey dude

I found this question; and I thought I'd share my story with you.... just in case this is still going on for you or anyone else here in particular

Some years ago I had the same problem; didn't know wot it was... Its like my throat just didn't like swallowing. Its crazy. It would be so often that I even got scared of my tongue; because sometimes I would get so frustrated and panicked that I thought I couldn't feel my tongue or if I were going to swallow it or something. I would get REALLY anxious and it would take a lot of time to calm down(by occupying myself with some other activity that made me try to ignore it); and this would happen a lot even at night when I was falling asleep. I would just sort of jolt myself awake and get anxious over my tongue and not being able to swallow spit for my dry throat; and I'd cling to my pillow and bury my face in it, tapping the fabric with my tongue to reassure myself my tongue was still there-then practice swallowing while thinking about other things. It would be so horrible sometimes that I wanted to call out to my mother, from my room.
It STILL does it to this day occasionally; but I think its just some mental thing, something in the back of our heads that became a phobia over some time. This goes for the inability to swallow, as well.

So; if the medical tests don't work; it'll be up to you emotionally. It's PROBABLY an emotional issue; which only YOU can control. Don't think about swallowing. Just do it. I know it sounds difficult as it may be a discharge of a sort in your health; but try your best to ignore it and think of something that makes you feel excited or enthusiastic, deep inside. And just do it. Heck, if it helps, even take a warm bath and relax yourself of all thoughts about it-And don't focus on WHY your doing it, but doing it just because you feel like you want to. It helps me.

I REALLY hope it helps for you too. Seriously; my condolences. I will be hoping for the best of you.

Sarah

I had this problem when i was a kid but i forgot about it and now im 19 and its back and its scary... sometimes it goes away and it constantly comes back..

ive cried so many times and ive prayed for help i havent gone to the doctor for it.. but i just want it to go away.. i do think its mentally but its really hard.. and i just want to be able to swallow normally again.

Don't worry about it deary
If its back, it Isn't a critical health condition... Mine returns occasionally as well, I'm only 15... However now I've done quite a lot of research.. The case might be because your body lacks the necessities of iron or certain proteins, without the potential nutritients your body may react in paranoid exaggerations-So eat more things that contain lots of iron... If it doesn't help, whenever it happens, just bury your face in your lap. This will cause the blood to rush to your head and you'll regain composure. Trust me, it helps. Because you probably panic a bit when you can't swallow, right? Most people I know with this, such as myself, experience a kind of hysteria in moments like that. Could be a disorder as well. But the best thing to do is to relax. Just don't even think of it

Hope this helps, if not, let me know here

Summer I know exactly how you feel... I have experienced / am experiencing the same as you. This fear developed as a child-disappeared MOSTLY for over 10 years (with me just avoiding certain difficult foods throughout that period) and returned 1 year ago... It's a real struggle I KNOW. I have confided in my boyfriend which has been a HUGE comfort to me but it is very difficult for someone else to understand if they have not experienced the same thing. I believe life changes have helped slightly... New job has changed my focus and I have noticed that has helped.... X

I'm seriously going insane, i try so hard to tell myself that this is all in my head, but it doesn't help! i haven't eaten right in over 2 months.. im afraid that this will kill me.. i dont want to die.. and i'm going crazy my family doesn't know only my sister and still nothing.. i feel like it will never end! please please just make it end!

I have had this problem for 2 months. Started out one day out of the blue where I wasn't able to swallow liquids. Eventually I found that I could drink frozen drinks (those slushy drinks at convenient marts). Just this past week, I have not been able to swallow them or any food. I feel like my mouth fills up with too much saliva and I'm constantly spitting it into a dixie cup. Sometimes the saliva feels real thick, and other times it feels too thin. I'm 5'5" and only weigh 108 lbs so I cannot afford to lose any weight. I spent yesterday afternoon in the ER hooked up to an IV for dehydration. I had a barium swallow done a few weeks ago and it came back normal. I go in monday for a modified barium swallow, where they have you eat things coated with the barium to observe your swallowing. I do not know how I'm going to be able to do this seeing that I cannot swallow anything now? My doctor put me on chlonazepam for anxiety and it is doing nothing. I'm going to another doctor this afternoon to see if they can change the drug to something stronger. I do not want to live my life in a drug induced state, but I'm desperate and terrified and I'm tired of crying and feeling so thirsty and hungry. I was told a scope will not show anything with me, because my problem starts in my mouth. It's like i've forgotten how to swallow. If I figure out how to fix this I'll post back and in the meantime if anyone out there has any ideas to help me, please let me know. I'm at my wits end!

Hello everyone, I have a similar problem, going on for a couple years now...I simply cannot swallow food on my own, everytime I take a bite I have to drink a big drink of water, I drink LOADS of water. No trouble drinking, but once I did my usual and the food was so stuck that the drink just rolled around on top of the food (felt like that) I couldnt breathe b/c the food was stuck, my heartrate jumped and I was trying to stay calm but the inside of my body was freaking out-I was at work and the called the ambulance-so embarrassing...finally the food went down but the experience left me shook up-well just today that same thing happened again-at home, I was trying my best to be calm remembering what happened last time-but my heart felt like it would pound out of my chest...(this is what happens when you cant breathe!) finally I went to the bathroom and stuck my fingers down my throat, all the liquid came up, and very little food ( I had only take 2 bites anyways) this helped for some reason-I was able to breathe again, but shaking. Now, I am scared to even take a drink-wth is this

Same problem here. I'm a 28 year old male and I've had it for about 2 months now. I'm fine with liquids although occasionally panic when I take a drink. When I try to eat anything no matter how much I chew I just can't initiate the swallow. Drinking sometimes helps it go down but recently even that has stopped working.

When it first started it felt like I had something stuck in my throat which went away but the swallowing problem is still here. At the moment I feel like I have a ball of mucus stuck in my throat which I can't swallow or bring up.

I went to my doctor's 2 days a go and he didn't seem interested at all to be honest but has fobbed me off to a local hospital which could take 2 weeks to be seen. I've lost about one and a half stone since this started and have no energy whatsoever. The only thing that I don't seem to have trouble swallowing is chocolate funnily enough but I have a feeling that is what is making me feel like I have excess mucus in my throat.

I'm about to cut down on all dairy products to deal with the mucus but as for the swallowing problem I'm really at a loss Anybody with any info it would be greatly appreciated,will post back with my doctors results in the hope it may help somebody.

Regards Karl

I'm still unable to eat or drink anything during the day. It will be 13 weeks this wednesday since this all started. I know the exact date because i wrote it down on the calander. I have had numerous medical tests done. Two barium swallows, and after my 2nd trip to the ER to get rehydrated, they found a doctor who did an endoscopy. I've seen an ENT doctor who put a tube down my nose and into my throat, and he said it checked out okay. So, so far, all test results are clean, yet I"m still not able to swallow and to say I feel like i'm starving is an understatement. I go in for a CT scan of my neck tomorrow and some other special test the ENT doc ordered that can check to see how the muscles are working, this coming thursday. My doctor thinks it may be physchological because i can swallow liquids in the middle of the night if awakened from a deep sleep. But the minute my mind wakes up, it's over. I know the ensures and gatoraid that I gulp down in the middle of the night are what's keeping me going. I'm also taking xanax (which is not helping) and have been given paxil, which I'm afraid to start taking, because i know it increases your appetite and i sure as heck do not want to feel any more hungry then I already am! I am in misery all day long. I look forward to going to sleep at night just because i know i will be able to wake up in the middle of the night and drink the ensure. MY doctor told me if i lose much weight i'd need a feeding tube because my weight was low to begin with. I actually would love to have a feeding tube right now...if it would take away this constant gnawing feeling of hunger and thirst...bring it on! Waiting to fall asleep at night, is not living...i'm wishing my days away and i'm just so tired of trying to find the right doctor who can figure this all out and help me.

Somedays are good and others are just bad, but now i cant even swallow any saliva, it feels like i produce too much of it and then just spit it out, i literally carry around a bottle wrapped in foil and spit in it.. all my friends and family think i have alcohol in the bottle but i just say "its so my water stays cold" im so tired of feeling this way.. and i have forced myself to swallow my saliva sometimes of the embarrasment i get from pulling out that bottle, i cant stand it anymore.. and i still cant swallow my food. it will be 5 months since this first stared.. help?

Hi Summer! I'm not sure if my first post went thru or not, so I may be repeating myself? I have had this problem for four months now. I know just how you feel. I cannot drink anything during the day, only in the middle of the night, which I then drink 4 ensures and gatoraid and as much water as I can. I miss my coffee and soda, but have to drink what's best for me when I can drink. I got to a point where I was not able to even eat, I was terrified. I have seen numerous specialists and had many tests done and all came back okay. I too have trouble at times swallowing my saliva. I carry a dixie cup around with me and spit into it when I feel like i have too much saliva in my mouth. Other times my mouth feels too dry to initiate a swallow and then I panic. It takes a lot of work, but I am getting better. After seeing a wonderful ENT doctor, who took the time to watch me chew and assure me that I was not going to choke, because everything is working as it should be, I started my uphill climb! My g.p. put me on xanax and paxil. I've been taking it for about 2 weeks now, but the paxil makes me shakey, so my doctor changed it over to prozac in liquid form and he changed the xanax to ativan. I will start them today. Which makes me nervous because I do not like taking new meds for fear of a reaction to them, but I promised my doctor I'd listen to him because I had gotten so desperate. This problem was consuming me....and a few times I just wanted to give up. Thank God I didn't, because like I said, I am on the road to recovery. I can eat only certain foods, wafers, toast, poptarts, mac and cheese and yesterday i ate a tuna casserole. I count my calories and try to get in 1000 to 1400 a day. I never thought I'd count calories to GAIN weight! I am maintaining my weight now. I see a hypnotist who really helps me relax too. I have an appt with a psychiatrist this next week. I really think you should tell your mom and dad and family about your problem. It helps having a support system. My husband has helped me a lot, as has my mom. Just knowing that they are all praying for me, helps me so much! I'm praying for you. It will get better....it just takes time, prayer, and mind over matter.

same issue here...really bad. I am trying to survive on ensure, pudding, yogurt, peanut butter, cheese...not much more. i too have issues swallowing saliva at times, esp at work or in meetings (i guess the "anxiety" increases then even if i am not actually concerned about anything going on). My issues started like 10yrs ago and have gone through various phases. I've been dealing with it ok for a year but i am in a bad patch and hungry and energy-less. gaaaah. send me a personal message (either of you!) so we can connect outside of this site too!! we need support.

Hi Summer! I'm not sure if my first post went thru or not, so I may be repeating myself? I have had this problem for four months now. I know just how you feel. I cannot drink anything during the day, only in the middle of the night, which I then drink 4 ensures and gatoraid and as much water as I can. I miss my coffee and soda, but have to drink what's best for me when I can drink. I got to a point where I was not able to even eat, I was terrified. I have seen numerous specialists and had many tests done and all came back okay. I too have trouble at times swallowing my saliva. I carry a dixie cup around with me and spit into it when I feel like i have too much saliva in my mouth. Other times my mouth feels too dry to initiate a swallow and then I panic. It takes a lot of work, but I am getting better. After seeing a wonderful ENT doctor, who took the time to watch me chew and assure me that I was not going to choke, because everything is working as it should be, I started my uphill climb! My g.p. put me on xanax and paxil. I've been taking it for about 2 weeks now, but the paxil makes me shakey, so my doctor changed it over to prozac in liquid form and he changed the xanax to ativan. I will start them today. Which makes me nervous because I do not like taking new meds for fear of a reaction to them, but I promised my doctor I'd listen to him because I had gotten so desperate. This problem was consuming me....and a few times I just wanted to give up. Thank God I didn't, because like I said, I am on the road to recovery. I can eat only certain foods, wafers, toast, poptarts, mac and cheese and yesterday i ate a tuna casserole. I count my calories and try to get in 1000 to 1400 a day. I never thought I'd count calories to GAIN weight! I am maintaining my weight now. I see a hypnotist who really helps me relax too. I have an appt with a psychiatrist this next week. I really think you should tell your mom and dad and family about your problem. It helps having a support system. My husband has helped me a lot, as has my mom. Just knowing that they are all praying for me, helps me so much! I'm praying for you. It will get better....it just takes time, prayer, and mind over matter.

mine is just not being able to swallow my saliva while im alone,, it's all in my head because when im with someone,(family, at work) i do ok.. it's definitely anxiety and depression. i have had this problem on and off for years and it's normally while im going through a lot of stress. like now im going trough a divorce.. it makes me mad because other people can function ok but me, i cant drive anywhere without feeling anxious my throat gets so dry i almos pass out it is only getting worse,, i feel like im going crazy and i dont know how ill be able to ever be normal again

Hey Veronica, I know what you're talking about too. I had problems swallowing my saliva and still do at times, and it does seem to be when I'm most stressed out or thinking about it a lot. I'm now seeing a pyschiatrist and still taking prozac and lorezepam. I do not like taking these drugs, but I have to admit that they have helped me a lot. I hope to be off of them within a year. I get angry and frustrated wishing I could just be normal again. This all started with me after 2 yrs of stress. I lost my dad at the start of 2010 and lost a grandson at the end of that year. In between this, my youngest daughter back home, she was in a an abusive relationship (married to a certifiable nut) which was an answer to a prayer (for her to get away from her ex) but at the time she was drinking very heavy which worried me, and then her ex started sending us death threats via email and phone messages. I was terrified in my own home. Got a security system and had the police here more then a few times. No one seemed to understand the fear I was living in. This guy not only threatened to kill us all, but he'd go into detail as to how he was going to do it. We finally got an order of protection, but even with it I did not feel safe. Because like I said, he is truly insane. Diagnosed with drug induced schizophrenia, bi-polar, and manic depressive. Add to this that he doesn't take his meds and he drinks and he's a time bomb waiting to explode. I felt like it was one hit after another. Right before I lost my ability to swallow i was misdiganosed with COPD (which is what my dad died from). What I had was scar tissue that is not harmful. I was also sexually abused as a child. So, I have had my share of stress...but why on earth my mind decided to deal with it in this way baffles me? I remember looking at a soda one day and thinking "what if i can't drink that" and from that point on i was unable to drink anything during the day. My doctor tells me it's like my subconscience is fighting my conscience. Which is why i see the hypnotist. Anyway, I have my okay days and my not so okay days....i keep praying for all good days again! Just to feel normal, be able to drink coffee in the morning, and a beer if I want in the evening. To be able to eat anything i want and go out to eat with my husband all seem like luxuries to me now! I'm praying for you to recover. You're not going crazy..one doctor told me that if you think you're going crazy, you're NOT..it's the ones who don't even realize it, that are nuts! My heart goes out to you!

Hey Veronica, I know what you're talking about too. I had problems swallowing my saliva and still do at times, and it does seem to be when I'm most stressed out or thinking about it a lot. I'm now seeing a pyschiatrist and still taking prozac and lorezepam. I do not like taking these drugs, but I have to admit that they have helped me a lot. I hope to be off of them within a year. I get angry and frustrated wishing I could just be normal again. This all started with me after 2 yrs of stress. I lost my dad at the start of 2010 and lost a grandson at the end of that year. In between this, my youngest daughter back home, she was in a an abusive relationship (married to a certifiable nut) which was an answer to a prayer (for her to get away from her ex) but at the time she was drinking very heavy which worried me, and then her ex started sending us death threats via email and phone messages. I was terrified in my own home. Got a security system and had the police here more then a few times. No one seemed to understand the fear I was living in. This guy not only threatened to kill us all, but he'd go into detail as to how he was going to do it. We finally got an order of protection, but even with it I did not feel safe. Because like I said, he is truly insane. Diagnosed with drug induced schizophrenia, bi-polar, and manic depressive. Add to this that he doesn't take his meds and he drinks and he's a time bomb waiting to explode. I felt like it was one hit after another. Right before I lost my ability to swallow i was misdiganosed with COPD (which is what my dad died from). What I had was scar tissue that is not harmful. I was also sexually abused as a child. So, I have had my share of stress...but why on earth my mind decided to deal with it in this way baffles me? I remember looking at a soda one day and thinking "what if i can't drink that" and from that point on i was unable to drink anything during the day. My doctor tells me it's like my subconscience is fighting my conscience. Which is why i see the hypnotist. Anyway, I have my okay days and my not so okay days....i keep praying for all good days again! Just to feel normal, be able to drink coffee in the morning, and a beer if I want in the evening. To be able to eat anything i want and go out to eat with my husband all seem like luxuries to me now! I'm praying for you to recover. You're not going crazy..one doctor told me that if you think you're going crazy, you're NOT..it's the ones who don't even realize it, that are nuts! My heart goes out to you!

My anxiety level was so high, my nerves were shot my mind would race all day long thinking about negitive things and thinking something bad was going to happen, my main problem was i was terrified i was going to choke on something i couldn't swallow certin things id just spit it out,and nothing tasted good i had no appetite. I lived on soup and ensure. i finally decided to talk to my doctor about going on a low dose anxiety medicin (which i was scared to go on cause once again my mind was telling me that i was gonna die from it) so he put me on 10 mg ( i only weighed 98lbs) of Paroxetine which is a generic of Paxil...it has been almost a month since i started taking it and though it thats not very long yet, i've seen quite the improvement i feel alot more relaxed, my mind doesn't race with all kinds of negitive thoughts all day long, i sleep better at night, im not as moody, and most importantly im starting to get my appetite back! i still cant swallow like tough steak without cutting it into tiny bites, but i dont get that panicy feeling when i put it in my mouth like i did..Anxiety and stress is a horrible feeling and affects people in all kinds of ways. I hope everyone is able to start feeling better, And know that it doesnt hurt to talk to your doctor about options to get yourself some help, sometimes all we need is a little nudge to get back on the right track. Hope You all have a great day!

Hi lk11693! I'm happy to hear that you found help too! I, like you, was afraid of the meds I was prescribed too. I was switched from paxil and xanax over to prozac and lorezepam. I was told to up the dose on the prozac from 1/2 tsp to 1 tsp (I can't swallow pills so had to get liquid meds) after two weeks on it. It took me awhile longer to get brave enough to up it to the full tsp. But I did, and I'm feeling better with each new day! I still have times during the day when I cannot drink liquids, but those times are getting less and less. With food, I am able to eat more with each new day too. Haven't tried to conquer steak yet, but I did eat some chicken. Having my first glass of iced coffee in over five months tasted like heaven! I'm still recovering....but I've come a loooong ways! At my worst, I was not able to eat anything or drink anything, unless i was awakened from a deep sleep in the middle of the night, then I drank ensure and gatoraid. For three days I had NOTHING to eat...I felt like i was starving! I was ready to give up at one point...surviving on 200 calories a day was not easy. I thank God that my mom and family and friends were all praying for me. I know God heard them and answered them and I'm in awe of His healing me! I hope and pray that you continue to get better and better with each new day too!

Hey everyone,

Just wanted to share my experience. I've had this for as long as I can remember, I'm 28 years old now. I can sometimes swallow whole food right when i start a meal. But the second i take a drink with my meal i have to then take a drink before i can swallow each and every bite of solid food. I'm totally fine with liquids, ice cream, chocolate, even salads are ok. But any other whole food once i take a drink, i really can't swallow it without the help of a beverage. I've done this for so long that there are meals when i dont even think about it anymore, however, when i'm out to dinner with people i notice how many times i have to reach for my glass in order to swallow my food and i wonder if anyone realizes. During those times, its a big pain in the butt and it could be frustrating when i want to order a steak or burger but then don't because its probably going to take me longer than anyone else at the table to eat it and its really hard having a conversation with people with food and water in your mouth and having to focus on swallowing that. Any recommendations from anyone? I haven't confided in any doctors because I'm able to cope with this for the most part, although it is an annoyance. I would love to be able to swallow whole foods without the assistance of a beverage one day. I might have to confide in some doctors soon and see what they think, i'm assuming this is a mental thing since i've had it for so long. Hope everyone on here is able to get some help, you guys have helped me with your posts and hearing that i'm not alone in annoying swallowing problems. Thank you! And if i figure out any miracle solutions i will be sure to post about that too.