Went to the doctor today. The reason being was I am having a hard time ingesting food, and I constantly feel as if my gag reflux was checking in some over-time. It was not a neurologist, just my internal medicine doctor. For weeks, I had a horrible case of the hiccups, always choking on food, the thought of eating made me gag even though it smelled delicious and eating has become a chore.
For example, eating hard food felt like it was going down the wrong tube. That is the closest I can compare it to.
It was discomforting (to say the least) to find that my symptoms came back to my MS. I was diagnosed with Dysphagia.
Definition: It seems like swallowing would just be second nature, not something we have to think about in order to do safely. However, swallowing is a complicated process that involves all sorts of muscle coordination and feedback to and from the brain through certain nerves and neural pathways. Multiple sclerosis (MS) can damage any of these nerves as well as the area of the brain responsible for coordinating swallowing, the brain-stem. This can lead to swallowing difficulties, called Dysphagia.
And what does Dyspagia feel like?
- Difficulty chewing
- Coughing while eating or immediately afterwards.
- The need to swallow more than twice.
- Choking sensations.
- Food sticking in the throat.
- Weak, soft voice.
- Feeling that it is hard to swallow food or move it to the back of the mouth.
- Aspiration, meaning food or drink is going down the windpipe into the lungs.
And why I'm in panic mode:
Dysphagia can become so severe that people become dehydrated or malnourished. If the tips for managing swallowing difficulties (such as chewing your food thoroughly and adding thickener to your drinks) don’t work, it may be necessary to use a feeding tube. Aspirated food or liquids can also cause aspiration pneumonia. This is a particularly dangerous lung infection, and it is the number one cause of death in people with MS.
This is what my cousin Johnny passed away from.
My doctor called my neurologist immediately and informed him of my situation. It usually takes a pretty damn long time to get an appointment with a specialist, but in this case, my neurologist made me his first priority on Monday morning.
This could go two ways:
1. I could be admitted into yet another rehab for speech and swallowing therapy. They would want to watch me for the next few days because at the rate I'm losing weight and not eating (or picking at food), the idea of malnutrition was brought up. I would also need a scan and ultrasound of my throat.
2. I could possibly have a nurse come to my home and hook up the IV's again. Also, I would have a therapist come to the home to monitor me.
The thought of going into the hospital does not deter my worry -- the thought of death does.
