The weirdest thing happened to me last night.

[Cacee3029]

Posting here for traffic.

went sleep fairly early last night but was awoken at midnight and felt like I was choking. I jolted up and stood up and it went on for about 10 seconds or so then stopped, scared the poop out of Dp who thought I was dying. Felt like it was all in my throat. Chest and lungs felt unaffected, just felt like my throat was closing over.

It was like I I was making real deep choking noises but not a cough like a bark almost. Can't really explain it. I sat down took some deep breaths and it stopped. Was awake for a while after, like nothing has happened today.

I did have a little bit of a sore throat before bed and now today which isn't too bad and not all that unusual for me either. I have been suffering with acid reflux for the last 6 months or so on and off. Not severely affected usually. Whilst feeling like I was choking, I had an intense burning feeling in my throat. I did eat appallingly yesterday which didn't help. Could it be reflux related? Maybe I choked on some stomach acid or saliva?

I do quite often need to cough after eating with acid reflux.

Anyone else ever had this? Should I be concerned as a one off??

I get this from time to time and it’s terrifying to an observer!! I have done since I was a teenager - I looked into it years ago and apparently acid reflux can touch the voice box which sends it into spasm, which wakes you up gasping until it relaxes. Horrible when it happens!

Yes, my OH. He had it about 4 times in his life. He said it is the scariest experience he's ever had.

It is the windpipe coding down. It will always open again before passing out but it is very troubling. He thinks eating very spicy food just before bed might be a contributor.

Thankfully hasn't happened for a few years now.

My ex husband has larangeal paralysis once years ago and it was awful, he felt like he was dying. I had to take him to a and e anc it looked like a heart attack. As far as I know he’s never had it since. He was suffering from acid around the time too.

It's acid m. Speak to your doc about medication if rennies etc isn't working. The acid is burning your throat and you wake up choking on it. Not nice but easily sorted.

Thank you all for the quick informative replies - I didn't think I would get much of a response. New to me!

I get this quite a lot. It is horrible. I keep a bottle of Gaviscon by the bed, which helps.

I think you should consult your doctor if it continues. They might want to run some tests to rule out anything serious.

I took nexium for 6 weeks as advised by doctor which really helped. Ever since I've been trying to control with diet and hasn't been too bad but the last few days I've been stress eating which hasn't helped at all. Some days I get no reflux at all but some days it's awful. Often it doesn't even present as burning - sometimes it's more trapped wind chest pain kind of thing and regurgitation!

Definitely acid reflux. I've also experienced it when I ate a big meal before falling asleep.
It is terrifying, very painful burning & what feels like death-choking. I have never made that mistake since.

It is probably acid reflux. You'll probably need to take a proton pump inhibitor every night before bed. I'd ask for a GP appt - they'll probably need to prescribe omeprazole or similar. (Think nexium is a similar thing but omeprazole is an older version (basically the same thing) and the prescribed version is available in generic.)

I get this and as an asthmatic it really scares me but yes is mainly acid reflux. I’m now on omeprazole twice a day for the acid reflux and have also been told to double my allergy meds to help cope at night, I take fexofendadine twice a day too and touch wood it’s been fine since…. Get back to your GP

Diet wise, might be worth dropping dairy for a while as that’s a mucus enhancer …..

Thanks all! I have spoken to doctor, wouldn't see me (my doctors are a shambles atm). He just told me to buy and take nexium so he wasn't much help tbh. I'll have to contact them again if it carries on.

I did eat really badly yesterday - stress eating!

It sounds like this, I get it due to post nasal drip over the decades.

It's also triggered by acid reflux and can happen exactly as your described.

Mine is always in the day, usually if I've started to choke on a drink or something. Very frightening. I passed out the first time it happened, list bladder function, and the body relaxing as it lost consciousness stopped it.

I now have special ways to calm and start up my breathing, but it's taken 15 years to not be fearful of this.

Ultimately it won't kill you. I think knowing this helps. As you pass out and your body relaxes the function (breathing) returns. Really frightening though.

Laryngospasm refers to a sudden spasm of the vocal cords. Laryngospasms are often a symptom of an underlying condition. Sometimes they can happen as a result of anxiety or stress. They can also occur as a symptom of asthma, gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD), or vocal cord dysfunction.

I've had this a few times, usually when I've had something sweet touch a certain part of my vocal cords and it feels like my throat is closing up. First time in front of my in laws they freaked but my husband was like meh she'll be alright in a minute 😂

@Cacee3029

Thanks all! I have spoken to doctor, wouldn't see me (my doctors are a shambles atm). He just told me to buy and take nexium so he wasn't much help tbh. I'll have to contact them again if it carries on.

I did eat really badly yesterday - stress eating!

It's obviously not good to link eating with emotion but I'm sure you know that! If you do have to then make sure it's during the day not in the evening to avoid this acid. Is nexium expensive? Can't see why the GP isn't prescribing omeprozole instead 🤔 unless it's because he knows you'll pay more on prescription for that than you will over the counter for nexium.

Nexium I think is about £8 for 14 and you might need 2 per day (which is a prescription dose not an OTC again which should be a discussion with the doctor). Even at 1 per day you're talking more than prescription charges. I didn't think nexium was licensed for long term OTC use. I wouldn't think you need your doctor to physically see you - a telephone appointment or even an eConsult would do it. I think actually asking the question "do you think I should be prescribed something for this: the NHS website says OTC nexium shouldn't be used for more than 14 days" would be the most likely thing to get you what you want (or literally ask for it to be prescribed). I've found doctors are usually quite good if you just tell them exactly what you want.

Yes, I get it. It's from acid reflux. I once suffered the whole next day because it was so bad (wasabi almonds before bed was not a great idea). I try not to eat too close to bedtime, and if I do, I take something for it before bed.

Thank you for posting this OP. I have had this twice and it was awful. I thought it was a panic attack rather than physical as it stopped when I stood up but acid reflux makes sense.

I had this a few times a couple of years ago, always in the middle of the night. I was struggling with stress and anxiety at the time so I've always assumed it was linked to that. I haven't had it since.

Thank you everyone for your replies. It has made me feel a little better. I also suffer from anxiety and if I have something on my mind (most of the time) I sometimes wake up at night with a racing heart - but this felt different. Chest was completely unaffected. I also get panic attacks, but again this was different.

As for the doctor, I had a massive ball ache with it. I did an e consult as getting through the receptionist was impossible. They texted me the next day to say they would ring in 2 weeks. He basically diagnosed me over the phone with reflux. I was already trying nexium myself and said to carry on with it for 4 more weeks and it did help, just taking one first thing. I don't usually have too much prob during the night. My symptoms are usually a morning thing though. That gp call was a while ago and I've managed to control it now with diet and rennies mainly and not eating before bed which is the key. I've been eating crap the last few days as I've got poorly dc and eating for convienence and eating too many sweet treats. Back on track today. Thanks everyone 💕

It really didn't last for long and it suddenly stopped. But Dp looked scared. We like to keep each other on our toes. He fainted in the night recently when he woke up and stood up with severe stomach pain and I pooped myself then. Thankfully that was a one off for him too!

@stickybear

I had this a few times a couple of years ago, always in the middle of the night. I was struggling with stress and anxiety at the time so I've always assumed it was linked to that. I haven't had it since.

It can be panic attack/anxiety related, I suffered with this for a few weeks during intense trauma therapy, I would regularly wake throughout the night feeling like I was choking, would launch out of bed scrambling around the bedroom gasping for breath. It was terrifying but it passed, it was definitely psychological, I do see these threads coming up a lot regarding similar, I think we also have to consider that knowing what Covid does to your breathing, hearing of people on ventilators etc may be having some psychological effect on people.

It seems ops issues are definitely due to acid reflux though.

@Cacee3029

Thank you everyone for your replies. It has made me feel a little better. I also suffer from anxiety and if I have something on my mind (most of the time) I sometimes wake up at night with a racing heart - but this felt different. Chest was completely unaffected. I also get panic attacks, but again this was different.

As for the doctor, I had a massive ball ache with it. I did an e consult as getting through the receptionist was impossible. They texted me the next day to say they would ring in 2 weeks. He basically diagnosed me over the phone with reflux. I was already trying nexium myself and said to carry on with it for 4 more weeks and it did help, just taking one first thing. I don't usually have too much prob during the night. My symptoms are usually a morning thing though. That gp call was a while ago and I've managed to control it now with diet and rennies mainly and not eating before bed which is the key. I've been eating crap the last few days as I've got poorly dc and eating for convienence and eating too many sweet treats. Back on track today. Thanks everyone 💕

It really didn't last for long and it suddenly stopped. But Dp looked scared. We like to keep each other on our toes. He fainted in the night recently when he woke up and stood up with severe stomach pain and I pooped myself then. Thankfully that was a one off for him too!

Might be a bit of both then (acid & anxiety) thing is it is difficult if you suffer with anxiety as you can rely on food to comfort yourself, I do this. Op if you are craving something sweet have you tried the rice cakes like Kallo blueberry or Morrisons caramel are my favourite, they are only £1 a pack, they taste like sweet popcorn, very little calories & help with that anxiety/sugar fix that can be needed sometimes.

My DH has this sometimes and it’s a combination of reflux and sleep apnea. Might be worth looking into if you have other symptoms of it.

@crispsarny I'll have to try it, thank you! I've been eating well lately but the last few days have been hit and miss! 🤦‍♀️

@kwiksavenofrillsusername

My DH has this sometimes and it’s a combination of reflux and sleep apnea. Might be worth looking into if you have other symptoms of it.

The first thing that come up when I googled was sleep apnea. What are the signs? I do snore at times (not all night as did the snore app thing which recorded me) and some nights more than others but I don't feel like I could have sleep apnea but who knows 🤷‍♀️

Acid reflux: I suffer. To mitigate I am prescribed LANSOPRAZOLE which I take before a meal. 30 mins is ideal but not critical if I take it when I sit down to eat.
I eat early so as not to go to bed freshly full. No beer and chips in same meal and movement like a short walk after eating is better.
I think pharmacie will sell Lansoprazole, especially after chat with pharmacist.