Epiglottis..funny word I always laughed at. It happens to be a source of some of my troubles. I did xrays of my swallowing yesterday and had difficulties getting down 3 various barium drinks and a type of thick graham cookie. All the technician would say was that I had a "lazy epiglottis". It's basically like a tiny bridge that opens when you eat to protect your airway and lungs. Mine doesn't like to open and is slow about it which explains why I've been aspirating, choking pieces of food, can't breathe at night...a lot of things. I have to wait until Monday for the doctors to read the entire results and what they say can or can't be done. I've read you can see a speech therapist to try and strengthen the muscles and get it working better again. I've read a lot of things since yesterday morning. Some of it scares me. Some of it leaves me thinking we have a chance to improve a lot of things.
Parkinson's Disease is in the family and has shadowed me with fear since I was an early teen. This is a symptom but as far as I could tell I have none of the other symptoms. I am relieved they finally found a solid reason for my swallowing issues as 2 separate doctors failed to see it or take me serious. If I had not pushed the issue last week, the specialist was going to settle with nothing "physically" wrong with me that would affect the airway and choking. Guess what? She was dead wrong. That part makes me so angry..if you saw the patronizing way she looked at me after giving me the results of the endoscopy and colonoscopy when I said there is something else, something missed that is causing me this trouble. She insinuated it could be psychological. I am eager to speak with her directly. This, unchecked, could turn into something very serious if it isn't treated correctly. Stand your ground.
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