Difficulties Swallowing with Fibromyalgia

By Helen Watts 

Recently a couple of my friends with fibro had posted on Facebook about problems swallowing.  Although I’ve never had swallowing issues I do often have what I call a ‘lumpy throat’, a feeling that something is there so I wondered how others found this so turned to the Facebook groups and asked.

‘ZS’  “I didn’t realise it could be related, I’m always getting food stuck which is why my youngest teenage daughter has put the Heimlich manoeuvre into action on several occasions”.

‘TP’  “Yes it’s awful, I choke on my own saliva all the time too, can just be watching tv and start choking”.

‘WM’  “I have a swallowing problem, choke easily, almost feel as if my throat closed up, bit too much food or too much liquid and it wont go down, feels like it’s forcing open the gullet”.

‘LSS’  “Yes a permanent lump, feels like food gets stuck going down so after a few mouthfuls it has to be washed down with water. Soup is my go to food or a Slimfast shake if I can’t face food”.

‘PB’  “I always have a problem swallowing. I have started choking a few times, it’s very frightening”.

‘SMC’  “Yes definitely, it's almost like I forget how to swallow, food just kind of sits at the back of my throat, my mind is saying swallow swallow but my body's saying how do you do it”.

‘KT’  “I get pain in my throat sometimes just swallowing water, it's like it bubbles up and gets stuck”. 

‘OS’  “Terrible swallowing, feels like my tube is shallow and uncomfortable when swallow like its closing up then get a pain as it goes down”.

‘SS’  “I get a lump like an egg in my throat and it really stresses me out, the more I stress the longer it stays. It effects my eating dreadfully”.

‘JST’  “I've been diagnosed with severe reflux and I take omaprezole and gaviscon. However the feeling of something at the back of my tongue hasn't completely gone away I only have to miss 1 tablet and it's back”.

‘NM’   “I get times where it's like my muscles have forgotten how to swallow and can't get the swallowing reflux to work, not even to swallow saliva. Its passes after a couple of minutes but can repeatedly re occur for the rest of the day/ week”.

‘LB’  “Yes I have a constant lump in my throat. It feels like something is stuck. The more I stress about it the worse it gets and I panic that I will choke on food. Dry food is worst. I also take Omeprazole as and when this gets worse. I often feel like my throat is closing over and can't breathe”.

‘CK’  “I just get a feeling like something is stuck at the back of my throat. Like when you take a chalky pill without enough water and it sticks until you can drink more to wash it down.  Except there is nothing there and no amount of drink helps. Haven’t managed to work out what triggers it or why it eases again yet”.

‘SC’  “Lump in throat, can’t swallow properly, dry retching sometimes with vomiting, gagging and choking when I do eat, feels tight in chest both eating and not eating, or when I’m drinking, all the way from throat to stomach. Food and drink getting stuck in oesophagus”.

‘KR’  “Yes all the time. I'm so pleased I'm not the only one but so sorry you all have it too.  When I eat I always choke. I find that every time I eat something it gets stuck in my throat and it won't come up or go down and no amount of drink will wash it away. There always seems to be a lump in my throat as well, sometimes I can't even swallow when not eating. I now live on soup and mashed potato as it's easier to get down. One Dr did say well what do you expect you have fibro and you have muscles in your throat so of course you will have problems swallowing”.

‘MP’  “Wow! I thought I was just a bit odd but seeing all these comments I realise its very common. My throat feels like it's so dry it is going to stick together. I also feel when I drink it gets stuck and I can’t swallow and I'm going to choke if I cant force it down. It makes me feel quite panicky and fear full so I have to space out my drinking to relax my throat. I often stretch my neck  which helps reduce the feeling of my throat sticking together or choking”. 

‘AW’  “I struggle sometimes with swallowing... I feel food going down and was shocked to learn this wasn't normal as I have had this for so long I forgot what it was like not to feel it.  I have to have sauces or gravy on my food to help it go down too.  Not all the time thankfully although I have no idea what my swallowing is going to be like until I actually swallow something. I seem to take in lots of air too and often get quite violent hiccups when I eat, which got embarrassing when eating out”.

‘EP’  “Yes, I had a barium x-ray. It showed that the muscles that help me swallow and move food down were not working in the correct order and some not at all. This causes me to choke. Advice is, small portions, small bites, chew well. It still happens. My throat just feels like it just closes randomly when I'm not even eating too. Like a spasm. Most unpleasant”.

‘IT’  “Yes,I have many problems with swallowing, whether it be liquid or food I have so many bouts of choking it is now getting to be a major success if I get through a meal without a coughing fit.... even brushing my teeth makes me gag”.

‘AH’  “I regularly “choke”. It’s not just food but can be water, tea or even my own saliva. I have to drink when eating as food often seems to get stuck and won’t go down. Anything granular eg crisps, nuts, cereal, etc can be problematic. But it can be any food or liquid”. 

‘JW’  “I feel like I have something constantly at the back of my throat. I can eat okay. But sleeping is really difficult as I feel like i can't breathe. I do choke often when I drink and now I think about it I do the same with food but not as often. But I tend to eat soft foods in general”.

‘JG’  “I do occasionally have a problem with swallowing which feels as if I have forgotten how to swallow but it doesn’t affect my diet. Things often ‘go down the wrong way’ when caught unawares”.

‘GG’  “I have reflux and get swollen glands in my neck which make swallowing difficult. I don’t eat much food but drink lots of fluids  and soup instead”.

‘MA’  “Me too, acid reflux feels like I’ve got a lump in my throat”.

‘RC’  “When I’m really fatigued I often choke on liquids, even my own saliva”.

‘MM’  “When I loose energy in my throat my tongue begins to twist in ways it normally is unable to. At times it feels like I'm going to swallow my tongue, the first time it happened it was absolutely frightening and can last for hours leaving me extremely exhausted”.

‘AH’  “I sometimes feel like my throat muscles don't know how to work, then I can't swallow, it's frightening. It only lasts a few seconds, but, it feels like forever”.

‘LL’  “Sometimes I have trouble swallowing anything it gets stuck in my throat. I’ve had a camera down my throat and up my nose and I was told I have a hiatal hernia. I didn’t even think about it being fibro related”.

‘VC’  “Yes sometimes my pills get stuck and I need lots of water and huge gulps!”.

‘GC’   “When I’m taking tablets they get stuck and take ages to go down”.

‘AD’   “Sometimes I do actually get pain down the middle of my back swallowing. Boiled eggs in particular are difficult to swallow”. 

Reading these comments it’s unbelievable how many people have difficulty swallowing. Maybe this needs to be added to the NHS list of symptoms? Do you agree, do you have problems swallowing?  Why not come over to the Facebook groups and join the discussions.