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Swallowing Problems: How did yours start? Had two occasions now of 'forgetting' how to swallow mid-swallowing. But only at evening meal?

A MyMSTeam Member asked a question 💭
Lancashire, United Kingdom
April 11
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MyMSTeam

How did your swallowing problems start, and why might they happen only at evening meals?

Your experience of "forgetting" how to swallow mid-swallow is something other MyMSTeam members have described too. One member shared a very similar experience: "It only happens to me at night so far. It's like I forget how to swallow Show Full Answer

How did your swallowing problems start, and why might they happen only at evening meals?

Your experience of "forgetting" how to swallow mid-swallow is something other MyMSTeam members have described too. One member shared a very similar experience: "It only happens to me at night so far. It's like I forget how to swallow, and I have to grab my water bottle to actually swallow, then I'm okay. But it's pretty scary."

This pattern of swallowing difficulties occurring primarily at evening meals could be related to MS fatigue accumulating throughout the day. When you're more tired, the nerve signals controlling your swallowing muscles may not work as efficiently.

In MS, swallowing problems (dysphagia) happen when lesions form on the brain stem and interfere with nerve signals between your brain and the muscles in your tongue and throat. This nerve damage causes these muscles to become weak and uncoordinated.

About one-third of people with MS experience some degree of swallowing difficulty, and it can occur at any stage of the disease. It's important to mention this to your neurologist, as early recognition helps with management.

Some helpful strategies include:
* Taking your time while eating
* Cutting food into smaller pieces
* Taking sips of beverages between bites
* Sitting upright while eating
* Avoiding distractions during meals

A speech-language pathologist can evaluate your swallowing and recommend specific exercises to strengthen these muscles.

April 11
A MyMSTeam Member

Well... I've finally found out how it started to get me to the point where I needed a feeding tube. MS. It completely destroyed my gi tract, from the rutta to the tutta. I had been struggling with food going down slowly and ended up having surgery, the Poem method to correct the Jackhammer esophagus (form of dysphagia). At that time, I didn't know I had MS. The procedure seemed to have work for about a year or so but slowly and progressively worsened over the years. Doctors assumed because I had that initial surgery that I couldn't possibly still be having issues. It was because my ms caused my swallowing mechanism to fail (no normal peristalsis). So not only was I choking on solids and liquids, My stomach was paralyzed to where the food wouldn't move and would stick in my chest causing chest and back pain. All test to check my structures were normal so again, I wasn't believed. It wasn't until October of last year that I received the ms diagnosis so my disease had been smoldering for 20 yrs. The area of my brain that controls my stomach and swallowing is where my biggest plaque is deep in my brain stem so it can't be fixed as it's, I'm assuming a very old lesion. This is my new normal. Feeding tubes.

August 6
A MyMSTeam Member

When I was first diagnosed, I had big trouble swallowing (dysphagia) and biting my lips and tongue. Thankfully, both have slowed to a manageable point. I wish I had a solution to this issue that I could pass along. However, it slowed down by itself, I didn’t do anything special to stop it. Good luck! I hope your trouble with it goes away for you soon.

April 11
A MyMSTeam Member

happens to me occasionally

April 11
A MyMSTeam Member

Kat I always keep a bottle of water or green tea setting beside me to help me with swallowing. It always seems to help me with that

April 11

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