Re: Re: Hi...I'm new

[Guest guest]

I went back to Dr. A, but my sister found a good person in St.Louis Park who does fills. . .My next fill will be local, I think, although I much prefer to stick with Dr. A. imokalla <imokalla@...> wrote: Where do you get your fills? Do you go back to Dr A or somewhere in MN?> Hi all. Nina told me about this site. I have decided to banded with > Dr A. Hopefully in August if wverything goes OK. Even with all the > research I've done I still have so many questions. I live in > Minnesota and I am a nurse and I feel very confident in going to Dr A > after all I have read. > > I have a few questions if anyone would care to explain. > > I have seen PB and TOM mentioned on this site a lot but never in > anything I have read. What do the initials mean?> > Regarding the post-op diet from what I'm reading I should have a > supply of protein shakes to have at home? Anything else the first > few weeks?> > How about

vitamin supplements? Do I need a multivitamin and > calcium? Anything else?> > Thanks for all your help. I'm looking forward to this new journey in > my life!!>

[Guest guest]

Just to add to 's insightful message, when a gastroenterologist was trying

to diagnose me, I remember him telling me as I was drifting off to sleep that

he had narrowed my condition down to one of two diseases.  When I woke up, he

told me that he had diagnosed me with having achalasia. I asked him what he

thought the other diagnosis might have been. He said " esophageal cancer. "   I

have not complained since.

 

Postscript: 3 years later I dumped this NYC doctor for a doctor in Baltimore,

200 miles farther away, who I stayed with for 10 years until he retired. The

NYC doctor did not like that I asked too many questions, whereas the s

Hopkins (Baltimore) doctor made me feel like I was his only patient.

 

From: puddleriver13 <puddleriver13@...>

Subject: Re: Hi...I'm new

achalasia

Date: Friday, December 2, 2011, 2:25 AM

 

Hi, Lynn!

Welcome!

If I look back over my life, I have to wonder if somehow it (IT!) wasn't always

there, just waiting. . . . I remember so clearly being 8 or 9, having dinner at

my Aunt's, and sitting alone in the kitchen, eating, long after everyone else

had finished and was in the living room watching TV. She even went to far as to

praise me for not gulping down my food like my cousins (and the grownups, lol!)

In my mid thirties, I started having esophageal spasms. They seemed to cluster,

and then disappear for a year or two. Always to return.

So maybe, whatever the setup is, it was simply always there? In my case, the

most *important* part seems to be the huge closure of the LES. The

" unswallowing " seems to simply be a way the body is protecting itself against MY

FORCING down food that there *isn't* room for in the esophagus.

During my first pregnancy, when I was vomiting many times every day for 8

months, it got easier and easier. It finally got to the place where a simple

cough would start the whole process. Seems like the body is saying: well, this

can't be fixed, so let's make it *easier.*

THIS year, I kinda thought I was home free: the awful inability to swallow, and

that whole clutching feeling in the neck pretty much went away. What I *didn't*

notice, was that the *unswallowing* had increased, exponentially. When I

noticed, I was days away from ER, messed up electrolytes and massive

dehydration.

I don't thin Achalasia is the most awful thing that could happen to any of us,

though it is indeed a life changer. Still, my sister in law who died of breast

cancer at 44 after five years of fighting it, and leaving six little boys, had

it a whole helluva lot worse than I do, and I try to remember that when I'm

headed for a pity party.

So if it IS Achalsia, try and think about what a pretty sounding name for a

major icky condition, lol!

BTW, I'm up tonight because I'm hongry, and nothing will stay put. Nothing's

gone down and stayed down since around noon. Going to try to sleep it off in a

bit, and hope tomorrow's better.

Again welcome. Lotsa love in this place, and lotsa very good info!

xpx

>

> Hi and welcome to the site.

>  

> I was undiagnosed for over a year and a half and was finally diagnosed this

past July and had my HM surgery in August and I have been pretty good with

eating since then. I do have a few foods which I still have a little trouble

eating but as long as I can eat I am great.. I had alot of tests done also

(endoscopy, barium swallow, etc.) and everything was always normal. Usually the

manometry is the test that can tell if you have achalasia which is how I was

finally diagnosed. Good luck with everything and I hope you figure all of this

out soon.

> in Philly

>

>

> ________________________________

> From: lynnej73 <lynnej73@...>

> achalasia

> Sent: Monday, November 28, 2011 10:54 AM

> Subject: Hi...I'm new

>

>

>

>  

>

> Hi all. Not sure if I am dealing with Achalasia or not. I started having

swallowing problems in June. Went for Endoscopy at the beginning of October. Dr.

told me everything was fine. All biopsies (celiac, stomach polyp, EE) came back

negative and they put me on prevacid thinking it was acid reflux. After

increasing the does of prevacid at 6 weeks, I still had no improvement so I went

to ENT thinking they could help. They did a scope of larynx and said it looked

consistent with laryngeal reflux. He also ordered a barium swallow. The

radiologist told me he saw food particles in my esophagus even though I hadn't

eaten since the night before. He also said the barium is staying in my esophagus

and that when that happens they suspect a blockage. Since my endoscopy was

normal, he said it looked like achalasia. The muscle was very tight. I had to

walk the halls until the barium pill dissolved. I'm not sure it ever went into

my stomach.

>

> I have health anxiety and was handling this all pretty well. Now, I am

starting to get scared and anxious. The ENT called and wants me to go in to

discuss results on Friday. I am nervous that there was a blockage that they

missed though I realize that is not likely or achalasia which is scary in and of

itself. Sometimes, I have to work to swallow, sometimes food gets totally stuck

til I bring it back up and lately I've been coughing alot (choking?) when

eating. I also burp a lot when eating. It is like my body is working against me

trying to swallow. I'm trying to push it down and it's trying to bring it up.

Other times it is not too bad. I am watching what I eat and rarely eat bread

snack type crackers or fried foods and I try to eat by 6 at night or I end up

miserable and cough and burp all night long. Ginger root tea seems to help as

well.

>

> I can't figure out how I ended up with this. When I was pregnant, both of my

kids were up under my ribs causing lots of pain and I've suffered for years with

a cramping pain under my rib that would wake me up at night. It never lasted

long enough to go to the ER and would be ok after drinking lots of water and

burping. Gall bladder always came back fine. Dr.s couldn't figure it out and I

figured if it hadn't killed me yet then it must be ok. Now I think those were

spasms that could've finally affected my swallowing.

>

> Sorry for the rambling. It feels good to get all this out to people who

understand what is happening. It is crazy to tell people, you can't swallow and

choke on food. I eat so slow too. Doesn't help that I have two school age kids

and we are always on the go with one thing or the other. Eating is so social as

well. The world revolves around food!! It is so frustrating!!! Lynn

>

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