The anguish of suffering the hysterical bolus

You feel pressure in your throat. It seems like you’ve got something stuck. You swallow with difficulty and, as If you continue doing this – to check that everything is fine – your throat becomes narrower and narrower.. You try to calm down, but the feeling persists. In the end, your nervousness increases and you may shed a tear. You are experiencing what hysterical bolus is.

The hysterical bolus, also known as lump in the throat as referred to in the article Pseudoneurological manifestations of somatoform disorders, is a symptom of anxiety. This causes the person who experiences it to have the constant feeling that your throat is going to close and he will stop breathing. Although this seems real, in reality, it is not going to happen.

Why does hysterical bolus appear?

The hysterical bolus is one of the main symptoms that indicate that there is an anxiety problem. The vast majority of people who suffer from it manifest this feeling of suffocation. However, we must keep in mind that this is still a sensation. At no point will they drown. In fact, even if they have difficulty swallowing, if they try to drink a glass of water they will have no problem doing so.

What does happen is that the hysterical bolus “gets worse” if we believe his lie, which is that we are going to stop breathing. In these cases, the feeling of suffocation may increase and the person may begin to act in a desperate manner. This does not mean that if we are aware of what is happening, the hysterical bolus will disappear quickly. No, this doesn’t work like that.

Despite having experienced it on more than one occasion and knowing that nothing bad is going to happen to us, the hysterical bolus will make us shed a few tears due to the desperation of having it for ten or fifteen minutes without it seeming to subside. If this is something that happens to us regularly, we would do well to ask for professional help. There is something in our lives that is causing us anxiety and we are not knowing how to solve it.

Causes of hysterical bolus or balloon

There is no consensus among specialists on the etiology of the condition. However, following current evidence, we can highlight the following conditions.

Gastroesophageal reflux disease

According to specialists, Up to 26.7% of cases of globus hysteriques are due to gastroesophageal or laryngopharyngeal reflux. Furthermore, it was Malcomson himself who first reported this association in his patients (he found a 60% relationship). Although there is no unanimity on the matter, it is clear that this disease plays an important role in developing that distressing lump in the throat.

Abnormal upper esophageal sphincter function

Studies and research have also been found that associate globus hysteriques with elevated esophageal sphincter pressure. This condition is rare, although it is common among esophageal sphincter anomalies with a 55% prevalence, according to evidence.

Esophageal motor disorders

Some experts and researchers point out that some cases can be related to esophageal motor disorders. In fact, evidence indicates that up to 64% of patients who present with globus sensation manifest certain abnormalities in esophageal manometry. Among these, 29% correspond to esophageal motility disorders.

Characteristics of the hysterical bolus

Although we can now get a closer idea of ​​the way in which the hysterical bolus manifests itself and how a person who suffers from anxiety experiences it, there are certain characteristics that need to be mentioned:

It appears when we are calm: the hysterical bolus does not appear in moments of greatest tension or anxiety. He does it when everything is calm. This is due to the accumulation of that which is not doing us good. The problem with this is that it prevents us from identifying the problem.Causes us to speak with difficulty: Even if we are not going to drown, the sensation of drowning is produced by a tension that is centered in our throat. This tension usually makes it difficult for us to speak, making us do so as if we had a bad throat.

Ignore symptoms of anxiety

If we have ever suffered hysterical bolus, it is likely that we have ended up in the emergency room. What they do to us there is an examination in which they tell us that there is nothing that is blocking our throat. Therefore, in many cases they give us a pill and send us home. But none of this will solve our problem.

Ignoring anxiety symptoms can have serious consequences. One of them is that we will not be able to see what is really causing it in us. Anxiety is nothing more than a warning that screams at us “stop! Something is not doing you right and you are not realizing it.” But, if we ignore her, she won’t go away. On the contrary, it will try to warn us that there is a problem that we must solve in multiple other ways.

The hysterical bolus may be the first warning with which anxiety tries to make us realize something that is happening to us. If we don’t listen to him, then, will try depersonalization, somatization of emotions, chest tightness or facial paralysis (Bell’s palsy)among other options.

The ideal is that we go to a professional to resolve what is causing us anxiety. Because this can appear at any time. Does not warn or give alarm signals so that we can prepare for its appearance. He does it this way so that we realize what is happening to us requires immediate attention.

Warning signs

Now, although most of the time the globus sensation rarely requires immediate medical evaluation, It is important to be alert to other signs that may indicate the presence of other more severe disorders. and that are cause for concern. These are:

Pain in the neck or throatWeight lossSudden onsetPain or chokingRegurgitation of foodMuscle weaknessLump in the neck that is seen or palpableProgressive worsening of symptoms

In the presence of some of these symptoms, go to a health professional immediately. Well, it is likely that the ballooning sensation is due to something beyond stress or anxiety.

Treatments available for globus hysterique

Finally, there is no single treatment that relieves all cases of globus hysterique, since it will depend on the circumstances of each person. Sometimes, it is just enough to understand and reassure the affected person or to understand that the ballooning sensation appears with certain moods.

However, if there is an underlying depression, anxiety disorder or other behavioral disorder that seems to be causing additional symptoms that harm the patient, then psychotherapeutic and/or psychiatric care is ideal. In some cases, medication will be recommended to relieve all the symptoms..

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