Hello everyone! I'm a new member and am so relieved to have found this forum! I'm desparate to the point of extremes.

I guess I'll start from the beginning. In 2005 at age 16, I started having problems swallowing. It came on suddenly (when I was drunk, I must admit). I took a bite of food, tried to swallow it, but it felt like it hit a wall and wouldn't proceed down my throat. This problem continued on for a while. So I switched to strictly liquids. Soups, drinks, noodles. Things I couldn't choke on. I started having problems with that. So then I just started eating whatever I wanted, in very small portions and bites. I'm still suffering from this problem today.

One day, I started having a problem concentrating. On my way to work, I suddenly didn't recognize the road I was on. It was brief. I was able to get out of it pretty quickly. But it scared me. Over the last few months, I've had troubles with my memory. Not remembering what I was just thinking about or talking about. My thoughts seem to almost collide in my head, then jumble up so that I'm thinking about two separate things at the exact same time. They overlap each other and I'm unable to separate them until I clear my head completely. Sometimes I repeat thoughts in my head. Over and over. I'm also having a hard time spelling. You wouldn't believe how long it took me to figure out how to spell relieve less then five minutes ago. lol I still don't know if it's right. But I'm a great speller. Or used to be..

Anyway. I was looking up these concentration issues when I stumbled on a dysphasia website. Someone described my exact swallowing symptoms in a forum. I didn't know there was such a thing. So here I am, 6 years later, 22 years old, wondering if maybe my swallowing problems aren't because of some problem with my head. So I called my doctor, told him my problem, and had a Modified Barium Swallow performed. They basically just fed me a lot of food and watched it go down my throat. The results were normal, which means no problem with my throat.

Turns out, my sister has been having a problem swallowing, too. A nurse I know suggested a food allergy. So I started looking, and found gluten.

I have a problem with my ears. I wake up almost every morning, unable to hear out of my left ear because of the wax buildup. My doctor gave me some wax removal stuff once but it didn't work. I used to get canker sores regularly. Not so much anymore. I think the last one I had was two weeks ago or so. I have my concentration issues and swallowing problem, of course. The swallowing problem isn't instant. If I eat fast (which is rare), I can normally get everything down without conflict. But if I eat too slow, my throat feels like it's swelling or it gets tired and I'm too afraid to eat anymore. I've also started noticing a sore throat. It always hurts closer to bedtime, when I talk and swallow. I have a regular problem of my hands hurting terribly and falling asleep. I thought it was because of work, like carpal tunnel. I suppose it still can be. I've been having a hard time breathing recently. Just the slightest thing, like lifting a box, make me breath heavier. I have been a smoker since I was 16, so I could just have bad lungs. But I've also worked in this job for two years and I just started having problems breathing last week. I have a weird rash thing on my elbows and knees and it's spreading. They're just small bumps, almost look like zits or infected hairs, but they don't hurt (unless the hair folicle is trying to come out) and itch rarely. But it's spreading. I have little red dots, barely raised, on my legs and upper arms. I also have a pain regularly in my lower right abdomen.

I went to my doctor yesterday for my Barium results. He said they were normal and the only thing he could do for me was to send me to a motility expert and help me relearn how to swallow. I suggested a food allergy, making my throat swell so that the food can't get down. He said "Ehh, I doubt that's the problem," but recommended me to an allergist anyway. He recognized that my left tonsil was more enlarged than the right and asked if I was having a sore throat recently. I confirmed that I had and he suggested I see someone about it.

Basically, my doctor has been useless. I got home yesterday and just cried because I'm so lost and have no idea what to do anymore. An allergist can't help me figure out if I have a gluten sensitivity. My doctor doesn't think I have a food allergy. I don't know where to turn or what to do. I'm just so nervous, and I want to go on a gluten-free diet, but if it doesn't work, I'm just going to be MORE miserable and lost and confused.

Does what I describe sound like a gluten sensitivity? If not, does anyone know anything else it may be?

Thank you so much for taking the time to read this.
Blessings,
Beth

I can't say if you are celiac or not but gluten can mess up a whole lot of things. I had physical problems as well as neurologicial.

You could remove all gluten from your diet for a month or so and see if that helps. Get a celiac blood panel done. Or do the stool testing through enterolab.com. My bloodwork always came back negative. Enterolab gave me the answer I needed.

I hear your frustration with doctors. It took several years for them to finally figure out what was wrong with me. Thankfully I found a specialist who thought outside the box and that was a huge help.

Hope you find the answers you need soon.

You might want to read Dangerous Grains by Braly and Hoggan. I gave it to my doctor after reading it and suddenly the doc understood.

were you checked for EE?
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eosinophilic_esophagitis

Eosinophilic esophagitis simply means your immune system reacts with eosinophil-type leukocytes (white blood cells) instead of other-type leukocytes. The immune system is capable of a broad reaction to any particular antigen. The key lies in, yes, finding the antigen.

Nicotine is a nightshade protein, tobacco being a nightshade. Nicotine is a PROVEN antigen to a large segment of the population. You could have sensitivities to many antigens. You are ingesting so many candidates that it's impossible to sort them out simply by eliminating them one-by-one. If you eliminate one, another five could continue causing the same problems. And you wouldn't know anything.

Stop smoking. Stop eating anything which tastes sweet, including fruit. Stop ingesting grassy grains (wheat, barley, rye and oats). Stop ingesting legumes (peanuts, beans and peas). Stop ingesting nightshades (tomatoes, potatoes and peppers). Stop ingesting milk and cream. Stop ingesting tree nuts.

No, don't make up the difference with other equally hazardous plant products. Fill in with meat, green non-legume veggies, rice, white corn, white cheese and animal fat. Keep this diet up for a month, then start reintroducing foods one at a time in three day increments. If you react to a food, re-eliminate it and stabilize before moving on to the next food.

Do I need to say it? Don't return to tobacco. Ever.

If you follow this regime you will at least get the answers you are looking for. You will probably cure your problem. If you don't follow this regime, you won't know much about it .......ever.

I am on this website because I, too, am trying to figure out if I have problems with gluten. So, I cant tell you my experience with it or help you in that field.
I do remember something I read about smoking years ago. Are you still smoking? Do you ever smoke after drinking alcohol? I don't know if this is your problem, but when you drink alcohol, it changes the way the cells in your throat absorb things. So if you drink and then smoke within a certain period of time, the smoke penetrates your throat cells alot more then if you didn't drink. The irritation from smoking could be enough to make your throat swell and cause problems with swallowing. Even if you do not drink, I would think that smoking can still cause inflammation in the nose/throat area. If you have quit smoking then that is different. Has your doctor looked in your throat at all? Does it seem to be inflamed?

There was this show on tv that spoke about silent acid reflux causing swelling and permanent damage to the throat. I would maybe look into that to see if your symptoms look familiar. I am not a doctor so please don't take any of what I said as "medical advice." They are just suggestions.

I don't know much about gluten intolerance, but I think I read that some people get acid reflux from it. So, if you were indeed having problems with gluten, maybe you are having "silent" acid reflux and would benefit from trying to take an acid reducer before going to sleep every day for a period of time. I would ask your doctor about it.

Another thing I just thought of:
I know that people with hypothyroidism can develop problems swallowing because of an enlarged thyroid gland/goiter. I don't think it would have shown up on the test you took, but it would show up on a thyroid ultrasound. Also, have you ever had your thyroid hormone values looked at? I've been researching many things online, and it also seems that thyroid disease problems can be aggravated if a person has a gluten problem.
I think that it would be worth getting your thyroid checked out. An ultrasound of that area in general sounds like it may be helpful.

Your situation is definitely intriguing to me- I feel like there definitely might be something medical going on- reading the articles I read, I would probably start at the thyroid because hypothyroidism is a fairly common problem.

I am new to this site also. I will tell you that I have myasthenia gravis with some swallowing issues. I also have Sjogrens syndrome. Then to top it off I have a hubby who has celiac sprue, which is gluten intolerance.

You have a very mixed bunch of symptoms and I am wondering if you would consent to seeing a rheumatologist or an immunologist. Immunologists are more apt to look for disease processes that involve the immune and autoimmune response of the body. This could be of immense help to you.

You have issues that don't stick out like a sore thumb, so to speak, but with a good physical and blood work something might just stick out like a sore thumb for a doctor.

While searching for a doctor please start a journal and keep track of the issues that are bothering you. It can be of great help to write these symptoms down. Often when we get in the doctors office our "brains go out the window" and we can't think of a darn thing. Very frustrating and oh, so human. Please know that I will be thinking of you and keep us informed of how things are progressing. Good luck. 69gto73

Actually some people believe that acid reflux can be caused by a lack of acid in your stomach. You might want to look into this before taking the acid reducer.
Here's an article about it: **