Globulus hystericus.... or That lump in throat feeling
Ok, so this is really starting to get on my nerves now and has been brought to my attention after experiencing this feeling quite badly during a short walk to the post office today. It made me feel quite unfit and a little panicked.
I have a feeling in my throat (not sure if I have mentioned this before) and it feels like a ball or a small tablet is just lodged in my throat and won't go down. It feels as though it is in the back of the throat and feels worse when I press the part of the neck at the base which dips inwards between the collar bones. It isn't painful at all, just a really unpleasant feeling which makes it feel like you can't swallow or breathe properly (even though I can). As you can imagine, feeling like you can't breathe after lung surgery isn't so great!
From what I have read online this is due to an inflammation of the muscles in the throat and is likely due to anxiety or stress. Another possibility is that it is reflux acid. The strange thing is, it comes and goes throughout the day. When I am focused on something else the feeling will usually disappear, which leads me to believe it is probably anxiety related. The silly thing is that due to the nature of the operation and the fact that I am already more focused on my breathing, this feeling only makes anxiety worse and seems to be a never ending cycle!
I really do feel like I have been getting better these past couple of weeks however, which is why I am unsure why I have this feeling. I remember having it post surgery, on the night that I felt I couldn't breathe, but it has only started up again these past couple of weeks which I find both strange and annoying seeing as how my fitness is much better and my pain is basically nill, bar some muscle aches.
I even went to the doctor to ask about this last week but she wasn't very helpful. I mentioned both anxiety and reflux and she basically brushed me off and told me it could maybe be bruising from the tube during surgery. Why then is it only just happening and surely that would be painful?
I am currently looking to just monitor the symptoms until next week when I have my follow up appointment. In the meantime I will take some tablets for acid in case it is reflux, and I guess try and do some meditation.
It would be interesting to know if anyone else has suffered from this. I have read post op anxiety is common and sometimes you may not know you have it, so perhaps this is why and I will just have to try and overcome it.
I have a feeling in my throat (not sure if I have mentioned this before) and it feels like a ball or a small tablet is just lodged in my throat and won't go down. It feels as though it is in the back of the throat and feels worse when I press the part of the neck at the base which dips inwards between the collar bones. It isn't painful at all, just a really unpleasant feeling which makes it feel like you can't swallow or breathe properly (even though I can). As you can imagine, feeling like you can't breathe after lung surgery isn't so great!
From what I have read online this is due to an inflammation of the muscles in the throat and is likely due to anxiety or stress. Another possibility is that it is reflux acid. The strange thing is, it comes and goes throughout the day. When I am focused on something else the feeling will usually disappear, which leads me to believe it is probably anxiety related. The silly thing is that due to the nature of the operation and the fact that I am already more focused on my breathing, this feeling only makes anxiety worse and seems to be a never ending cycle!
I really do feel like I have been getting better these past couple of weeks however, which is why I am unsure why I have this feeling. I remember having it post surgery, on the night that I felt I couldn't breathe, but it has only started up again these past couple of weeks which I find both strange and annoying seeing as how my fitness is much better and my pain is basically nill, bar some muscle aches.
I even went to the doctor to ask about this last week but she wasn't very helpful. I mentioned both anxiety and reflux and she basically brushed me off and told me it could maybe be bruising from the tube during surgery. Why then is it only just happening and surely that would be painful?
I am currently looking to just monitor the symptoms until next week when I have my follow up appointment. In the meantime I will take some tablets for acid in case it is reflux, and I guess try and do some meditation.
It would be interesting to know if anyone else has suffered from this. I have read post op anxiety is common and sometimes you may not know you have it, so perhaps this is why and I will just have to try and overcome it.
I'm experiencing the same thing right now.
ReplyDeleteJust starting week 6 of recovery from a tension pneumothorax on the left side (bleb popped). It went full-collapse within 10 mins, thankfully the same thing happen 5 years ago on the right side so I called an ambulance within the first minute or two....condition rapidly got worse during the ride and I had a needle aspiration done immediately after arriving at the emergency room...later that day: bullectomy and pleurectomy..spent about 9 days in the hospital due to a prolonged air leak....
I can't remember if I woke up with this sensation or if it developed over the course of the day but it doesn't seem to be getting worse which I'm taking as a good sign although I distinctly remember having the same feeling at the very beginning of the recent collapse.....can't remember if I had the same sensation 5 years ago.
Currently still taking Lyrica to help manage the pain which makes monitoring difficult but I wont hesitate to call an ambulance if i feel it getting worse.
The anxiety from the first one was pretty awful, this time around I'm sort of relieved to know that both lungs have had preventive measures taken which takes the odds of a re-occurrence on either one from about %70-%80 down to about less than %5
for any doctors out there who are curious - 30,male,5'11", 156lb
Hello Andoo, sorry it has taken me such a long time to reply. I stopped keeping up to date with my blog (life got in the way!) and I have just now decided to take a look and seen your comment.
DeleteI really hope that you are doing better now, I can relate to your experience since I had a large collapse on the left side whilst travelling on my honeymoon...of course it decided to collapse whilst I was on the other side of the world!
Having the drain inserted in A&E was pretty scary and the pressure feeling in the chest and my heart was not something I had experienced with my right side collapse. I also ended up 11 days post op before the lung stopped leaking, you definitely start to feel frustrated but fortunately after day 9 they did at least let me wear a small portable drain so that I could go outside.
Anxiety is definitely one of the scars of this experience, I am going to write more about it I think soon, but I hope you are getting help to deal with it. I know what you mean about having both lungs now 'fixed' I am the same now, but I still get anxiety and recently panic attacks too. I have got some help though and have found that CBT really helps.
I really hope that you are doing well now.
Emma
HI Emma, Just read your blog and pleased I found it as I have had 2 small sp's that didnt require drains or anything and now have been advised to have pleurodesis. I gather from your above post that you have had a collapse since your surgery? Are you glad you had the surgery done?
ReplyDelete