Awful Lump in throat!

That lump in the throat - isn't it awful?  I have had GERD for years.  I have been diagnosed with Fibromyalgia for years, too.  But in the last few years, I've had terrible problems swallowing - feels like a lump - or tightening of my throat.  I was on prilosec, now on protonix - 2x/day for the acid.  No acid, but still have reflux.  Have had to change the way I eat, sleep, socialize, etc.  Problems at first with liquids - now with all food.  If I can eat or drink standing up - it helps.  I've lost nearly 100 pounds - still have a few more to go to be a normal weight, but this hasn't helped either. 

I've had a swallow study done and been scoped.  Now I am scheduled for another scoping for more stretching, but I don't know if I want to bother - it didn't help the last time.  Wish I had some encouraging words, but am looking for help, too.  It's debilitating AND depressing, isn't it?Take care  ~  

I too felt like I had a lump in my throat. It was never there when I woke up in the morning but would most times appear about 3 hrs later. I started keeping a log of what and when I ate, seeing that I was told by an ENT (who scoped my throat - thru my nose), a Gastroenterologist (who did an EGD), and my General Practitioner, that it was GERD. I started the log hoping to avoid the lifelong medicinal remedies these doctors were pushing. To make a long story short, I continued to research 'lump in throat' on the internet. After 8 months of this lump and finding no pattern from the log I was diligently keeping, I finally stumbled across an article on voicedoctor.net where Dr. James P. Thomas suggested that my specific symptoms could be from a Cricopharyngeal spasm. I then remembered that I had severely burned my throat w/scalding hot coffee around the time my symptoms appeared. I decided to do an extreme test - I did not talk for an entire day - AND THE LUMP NEVER APPEARED that day. I have now been lump free for a month by just speaking softly and sparingly. (My husband is happier than I am with this remedy!!!!!). Good luck.

Post Edited (tutulady) : 2/10/2007 7:49:32 AM (GMT-7)

I hate that lump feeling. I get it both high in my throat and behind my sternum. I felt better first thing in the morning, but things would go downhill the rest of the day.

I recently read that this feeling can also be a symptom of IBS.

friendlygal said...
Silvara7, I didn't know that it can also be a symptom of IBS. I know that it can be a symptom of stress/anxiety and many times people with IBS have stress...

Is the lump in the THROAT a symptom of IBS??

I didn't know it was a symptom either, friendlygal...  Until I looked it up because I was having globus as a symptom.  That and my GI seems to treat me as only an IBS case and I wanted to prove it was something else....  Oops.

There are different subsets of IBS according to the region of the GI tract which is affected:

• globus is characterised by a tightness in the throat and difficulty initiating swallowing

• oesophageal spasm causes chest pain and difficulty in swallowing

• non-ulcerative dyspepsia symptoms include belching, bloating, abdominal distension and upper abdominal pain

• classic IBS involves recurrent abdominal pain and alteration of bowel habit

• rectal spasm causes severe, sudden, lancinating pains in the rectal area.

The rest of the article is Here.

It turns out I do have a hiatal hernia and that can cause the same symptom.  It's awful!

Thanks friendlygal, I hope you're doing better soon.  I understand what it's like when you deny yourself a beloved food, then cave in and try it and it doesn't seem to make any difference.  When things were at their worst, it seemed like no matter what I ate, I felt ill.  I also understand how debilitating it is to have all these symptoms.  I lost 10 lbs in about a month dealing with it all.  I just didn't eat much of anything, and when I did it made the lump just unbearable.  The colon cramps were the final straw.