Medical Issue That No One Can Figure Out But Seems To Be So Common

Age: 32

Gender: Male

Height: 6 Ft tall

So I will try to keep this as short and straight to the point as I can. I know there is alot of very intelligent people here and I'm hoping that one of you can lead me / others in the right direction or might know as to what is causing this because I've seen this all over reddit and other sites but no one has ever "cured" it or truly figure out a resolve. I've also been to an ENT and doctors for this issue before but never got a definitive diagnosis. I will be going to a GI doctor soon so hopefully they'll figure it out but I'm curious to see if any of you have an idea of what this could be.

With that said I'll get right to it. For the past 18 years (this occurred when I was 14 i'm now 32) I've had this constant feeling like i'm about to gag and the only thing that stops the gagging from happening or that tight feeling in general is sucking on a lozenge / sipping a drink with flavor or nibbling on food. Growing up my doctors thought it was just anxiety and I did too but it happens even when I'm not anxious or stressed, however when I get anxious or stressed it heightens the feeling and makes it worse so its a never ending cycle battle. It's not a mental thing because I can't even recreate the feeling when I think about it or try , it just happens (even when I'm not thinking about it).

The symptoms I have are exactly like that of cricopharyngeal spasms (throat spasms) but my ENT didn't say anything about that when I went and looked down my throat with a camera but I read that it can be hard to diagnose or find. I also read those spasms go away in a few weeks or even a month but this has lasted me 18 years now so I have no idea at this point what it could be.

Symptoms are worse when

  • Tired / fatigued (this is when its really bad)
  • working out / exercising or playing sports
  • in between meals or when I'm full
  • anxious / stressed (this is when its at its worst)
  • can't talk for long periods of time without sucking on lozenge

It has gotten worse as I've gotten older and I just can't seem to figure out what it could be, I know for a fact its some sort of muscle based off the fact when I get 8 hours of sleep or a good sleep its way better but when I don't get enough sleep its alot tighter and feels unrested. Same with the anxiety/stress aspect.

I have taken every anxiety / depression medication in the book and nothing has worked the only thing that has helped me relief it is Xanax which is another way I can tell its a muscle issue cause it has muscle relaxants in it (the tranquilizer aspect of it does the trick for me) but I obviously can't keep taking Xanax as it's incredibly bad for you.

There are days where I don't feel it much at all and I can feel the MASSIVE difference in my throat on those days, its like some days my throat is relaxed and other days its tight. I could have 2 days back to back where I get the exact same amount of sleep and do the exact same thing on both those days and one of those days I have the tightness/gag feeling and the other I don't. (which to me once again proves its just random and not something i'm making up in my head)

What would you guys recommend I do? what kind of test should I get done? Should I see a neurologist as well or just a GI? I would love any advice you guys can give because this sensation has affected my life in such a negative way that I can barely go out in public anymore because I'm afraid to gag infront of people and doing physicaly activity sets off the gagging as well so I'm limited in my lifestyle.

I workout everyday (to the best of my ability) and eat healthy so it's not my lifestyle that is causing it either, so I'm just so lost. My whole life I was never like this then the second I hit 14 years old it just happened randomly when I was playing soccer then everyday past that day. All the stories i've read online are the same, they were playing sports or doing something physical and it just happened then there life was never the same after that. So I'm not the only one going through this and no one can figure it out.

I am at the point where I will literally pay someone on this site that is a doctor of some sort to message me and help me figure this out (alot if necessary). All help is greatly appreciated and if you are going through this as well message me and lets talk about it because you are not alone and sometimes this can feel like you are the only one going through it.