Throat issues

[jw927458]

Hi everyone,

I have been doing pretty well the past couple of weeks with my anxiety. However the past couple days, It feels like I'm having problems with my throat. It feels like when I eat, food gets stuck and I have to clear my throat to get the sensation to go away. It's not a pleasant feeling. But is this a symptom of anxiety? It's not sore, it just feels very tight.

[alex1993]

yeah, I get tightness in my throat. not necessarily when I eat, just whenever I feel very anxious. Your body can just mess with you like that even if you arent thinking anxious thoughts

[bhamlaxy]

Throat tightness is definitely a symptom of anxiety. It is almost certainly not something else unless it is accompanied by having a sore throat or visible red swelling.

[wendywooh]

i too suffer from a feeling of something in throat and i panic about maybe my windpipe is too small and i will be unable to breath

[bhamlaxy]

maybe my windpipe is too small and i will be unable to breath
That's definitely a scary thought, but when you get it you just have to counter it with some rationality. Your windpipe is definitely big enough- you haven't died of not being able to breath for your entire life.

While breathing fears can be really scary, you just have to try and understand in the heat of the moment that you will not stop breathing. That has never happened. No one just stopped breathing and died during a panic attack. Your respiratory system is INCREDIBLY resilient. Think about it- you can breathe automatically without even thinking about it. You even breath when you sleep, or when in a coma!

In the midst of a panic attack we are often looking for a threat- something that is endangering us. We often naturally look to our breathing since we need it to live, can momentarily control it, and often is altered when we panic. But in the moment you just have to focus on taking natural breaths (or try and distract yourself and don't even think about breathing) and remember that you will not stop breathing under any circumstances.

[MandD]

Agreed with the above- if you can be sure of anything, its that you definitely will not stop breathing. The windpipe is made of firm cartilage and is not going anywhere, held in place by lots of muscle tissue and other things. It can't even be made smaller in any way. So don't worry, you won't ever stop breathing!

[richy1991]

Hey can i ask do you actually get food stuck or does it just feel like it?