fear of swallowing food ?

[liram]

hi

a few weeks ago I had trouble swallowing food at launch.

ever since I have a fear I would choke to death on my food.
I am afraid of eating large meals and avoid them.
I eat very slowly, taking very small bites and drink a lot of water every few swallows.
I eat very few types of food, ones that are I believe, after chewing - are in texture easier to swallow.
I have no problem with soups for example or bananas. I don’t eat a steak for example.
if something seems to be too much to swallow and feels like it’s a little stuck in my throat - I panic ! my heart beat increases dramatically, my whole body shakes, I breathe heavily, I feel like my throat is locking/narrowing , not letting the food down.

to my understanding, in case the food doesn’t go down, the worse that could happen is that I vomit - and it just goes out the way it went in.
even though I know I can eat anything just like anyone else and just like I did before that “hard to swallow” event happened - I can’t do it and panic, acting like I described above.

is this phagophobia ? what can be done to make me the way I was before that “hard to swallow” event ? can medication of any kind help ?

please help, this seems to be getting me suicidal which is really scaring for me, my life is ruining before my eyes

[PanicCured]

This sounds like you have some psychological issues going on then you need to seek help from a professional immediately! Please make an appointment with a very good therapist who deals with anxiety, phobias, and suicidleness. You don't need to feel the way you do and there is lots of help out there. Please make the call right now!

[hopeNfaith88]

Hey Liram :)

There are two tubes in your throat, one for air and one for food. Choking occurs when food goes down your airway instead of your esophagus. When you swallow, your airway is covered so its impossible to choke. Choking happens when you accidentally breathe in through your mouth while you chew and food goes down your airway. If you eat slowly and chew your food well before swallowing you wont choke.
When i was 11 i had this problem. I had a choking scare when eating beef stroganoff (its my favorite meal and i was inhaling it) and i jumped up from my chair and had to cough for awhile. It traumatized me a bit. I had trouble swallowing for about a month after that. After this experience, I really had to force myself to swallow and i would jump up alot while eating because i would panic mid swallow. It eventually went away on its own. Heres my advice: chew your food well before you swallow, and take your time eating. Always have a drink like water when you eat too. Even if you have something not go down all the way when you swallow, like a string of cheese or a noodle,just swallow some water and it will. Or reach in and pull it out. Something being stuck in your food tube like a noodle wont have any affect on you being able to breathe and is totally harmless.

[liram]

This sounds like you have some psychological issues going on then you need to seek help from a professional immediately! Please make an appointment with a very good therapist who deals with anxiety, phobias, and suicidleness. You don't need to feel the way you do and there is lots of help out there. Please make the call right now!

I talked to someone on the phone. she helped.
I'm not in danger but I can't eat nearly anything without fear as long as this is going on.
I can't find anyone that actually has experience in treating this phobia. all I am offered are medications that I am told can not solve this problem, only make me feel "better" in general.
isn't there anyone on this board that had this and can help me? is there really no way out of this nightmare ? how can someone live under constant fear of eating?

[hopeNfaith88]

Its called dysphagia. Anxiety causes it. Im tellin u i went thru it when i almost choked a few years back. You dont need a therapist that specifically treats your specific phobia... You need one that specializes in phobias and fears in general. They can help you immensely. I found a phobia specialist to help me with my claustrophobia, agoraphobia and health anxiety. The approach is very similar sometimes even the same to work through any phobia.
You have to be patient. Its a mental thing that you have complete control of even though it doesnt feel like it.

[bhamlaxy]

Choking would definitely be unpleasant, but you just have to remember your body was designed to swallow food. We have evolved and done so well as a species because our throats are so well designed to NOT choke. It's a very very unlikely possibility. Every day billions of people eat food, and only a couple choke.

[IloveGod]

I had anxiety really bad this year where I thought I was allergic to everything. I would eat something and feel like my throat was closing. I actually ended up losing a lot of weight. I would get so anxious about it. That subsided but I started getting other anxiety symptoms. :(

[kari90]

This exact thing happened when I was about none years old! That's when my anxiety began to fully take hold. Before that it was the feeling like I was about to vomit. But I drank water with everything! One bite of food was one sip of water. I had very clear skin, but I lost weight which was bad because I am fairly small for my age and I wet the bed often.

[kari90]

It's nothing to worry about, you wil not choke, but I know that it feels like it gets lodged up in there and you panic for a moment the swallow. It will stop eventually, but until then try talking to friends, watching tv or doing a puzzle to keep ur mind of lf the swallowing situation. It's an early sign of an anxiety disorder

[arsenalfun]

I think only cure for this is time and patience.