Lump in throat ⋆ Causes ⋆ Consequences ⋆ Treatment

People often experience a lump in the throat. Everyone has experienced this feeling at least once in their life. The feeling of a lump in the throat most often occurs without physical reasons, after experiencing stress. At some point, you notice that something is bothering your throat or starting to feel sore.

For some people, this feeling remains for a long time and even begins to cause discomfort when swallowing. In this case, other accompanying symptoms may occur, for example, sleep disturbances, increased levels of anxiety, decreased mood, etc. But there is no need to rush to conclusions and think about the presence of some complex, incurable disease or physical damage.

In the vast majority of cases, this feeling has psychological roots, and treating a lump in the throat is not difficult and responds well to therapy. However, in advanced cases, when it is not treated correctly or the process is prolonged or untreated for a long time, complications develop. Therefore, in order to undergo high-quality therapy and get rid of a lump in the throat, it is necessary to undergo a psychological differential diagnosis.

We carry out full differential diagnosis and treatment, which is completely successful in more than 90% of cases. There are many different options for disruption of higher nervous activity and the formation of sensations of a lump in the throat.

Our slogan is from quality diagnosis to complete recovery!

Find out what may be causing that lump in your throat! When is a complex disorder likely to occur? What to do when you feel a lump in your throat?

What can cause a lump in the throat?

The sensation of a lump in the throat occurs as a result of the occurrence of any disease. However, the most common cases are when a lump in the throat is felt after suffering stress or experiences. The feeling of having a lump in the larynx, if associated with psychological reasons, does not pose a health risk. It is not uncommon for this feeling to go away on its own within ten days or a week. However, when this sensation occurs, discomfort often occurs. Depending on individual characteristics, this inconvenience may be felt in different ways. Incorrect identification of the causes and ignorance of the factors that form this sensation often leads to serious consequences and speculation.

How does a lump in your throat feel?

lump in throat while eating or after eating;
sensation of a lump in the larynx throughout the day;
sore throat and feeling that something is bothering you;
a lump in the throat seems to interfere with breathing, which often leads to panic;
a burning sensation or other unpleasant feeling appears in the throat area.

More than 90% of complaints about a lump in the throat are due to so-called psychogenic causes. This symptomatology is often associated with high psycho-emotional or psychophysical overload. In the modern world, we encounter such overloads every day, often several times a day. At work, in transport, in shops, at home. But this feeling does not appear for everyone. Why does this happen and why doesn’t it happen to everyone?

This phenomenon has been well studied, and a competent doctor will always be able to correctly understand and provide assistance, independently or refer you to a specialized specialist. Conditions in which this feeling may appear can occur in both men and women of any age. However, people of the most productive, working age are the most vulnerable. In people between 25 and 50 years of age, these complaints are most common.

Symptoms of cervical osteochondrosis in men and women

Symptoms of cervical osteochondrosis of the spine do not appear overnight. They skillfully “disguise” and mislead people. A visit to the doctor is put off until later, not considering it a priority. But you should not ignore the symptoms of cervical osteochondrosis in men and women, so as not to miss precious time. These include:

Dizziness. With this disease, this symptom is permanent. It may seem that objects in front of him are blurry and have unclear outlines;
Painful sensations in the cervical-collar area. Their degree directly depends on the stage at which the disease is located. In the early stages, the pain is episodic, and in the later stages it becomes constant and unbearable. It is difficult for a person to turn his neck;
Hissing or ringing in the ears. These extraneous sounds appear when a patient with osteochondrosis suddenly changes his body position. For example, when getting out of bed after sleep. Often ringing and noise is accompanied by dizziness;
Feeling of lack of air. It is difficult for a person to take a deep breath, sometimes shortness of breath may occur;
Nausea and sometimes vomiting. These symptoms of cervical osteochondrosis appear when blood circulation in certain parts of the brain is disrupted. The condition worsens when a person tries to turn his head sharply;
Deterioration of vision and blurred vision, “spots” or “stars” in the eyes. These symptoms indicate that brain nutrition has deteriorated. They occur mainly in the later stages of the disease;
Blood pressure surges. It becomes difficult to balance with medication;
Fainting. Occurs due to vasospasm;
Soreness and dryness in the throat, it becomes difficult to swallow, and a “lump” sensation appears. These symptoms of cervical osteochondrosis in men and women are among the first to occur;
Unpleasant pain in the joints of the shoulders;
Numbness in fingertips.

In addition to the general symptoms of cervical osteochondrosis, there are also syndromes that are present in this type of disease.

Vertebral syndrome

This group includes symptoms that are caused by damage to the cartilage and bones of the spine. It includes:

deterioration of neck mobility;
discomfort when turning the head;
damage to the vertebrae or cartilage, which are visible on x-rays.

Vertebral artery syndrome

In this case, the symptoms of cervical osteochondrosis in men and women are associated with narrowing or spasm of the arteries that are located in the spine. They participate in blood circulation, nourishing the brain. Manifestations of vertebral artery syndrome include:

noise and ringing in the ears;
dizziness and headaches;
sudden decrease or increase in pressure;
nausea and vomiting;
decreased visual acuity;
drowsiness and fainting;
chronic fatigue.

Cardiac syndrome

Similar to the condition that a person experiences when the heart muscles are damaged. Its symptoms include:

painful sensations and burning sensations in the chest area;
general weakness and fatigue;
decreased performance;
increased heart rate.

Radicular syndrome

This condition is associated with infringement of the nerve endings (roots) that are located in the spine, in the cervical region. The larger the lesion, the more pronounced the symptoms will be. These include:

pain and numbness in the back of the head;
frequent hiccups, lump in the throat, numbness of the tongue;
pain in the shoulder area, which becomes stronger when moving your arms;
numbness of fingers.

Most often, several nerve endings are infringed, so symptoms of cervical osteochondrosis can also appear in pairs.

Blood pressure in cervical osteochondrosis

Cervical osteochondrosis is often combined with hypertension, although in some cases it may be the only cause of high blood pressure. It is not always possible to reduce it with the help of medications. And the patient rarely complains to the doctor, as he writes off pain in the back of the head as a natural symptom of hypertension.

How are cervical osteochondrosis and blood pressure related? The fact is that with osteochondrosis, the discs between the vertebrae become flattened. Therefore, they begin to put pressure on each other while walking, running, jumping and sharp turns of the head. When such “shock absorbers” become unusable, the vertebrae “glue” together and compress the arteries that lead to the back of the head. As a result, ischemia and pain occur. But the human body is not stupid, so it tries to correct this problem and compensates for it with increased pressure, with the help of which it tries to “push” blood through the arteries.

There is another situation when the symptoms of cervical osteochondrosis are invisible, since the disease does not manifest itself in any way. The vertebrae do not yet compress the nerve endings, but swelling and pain still occur. This is due to the inflammatory process that occurs around the discs. The body sends an impulse to the brain as an alarm signal. Increased production of adrenaline begins, which causes blood pressure to rise. In this case, osteochondrosis may be accompanied by rapid heartbeat and panic attacks.

In the initial stages of the disease, the muscles of the neck and back tense reflexively. This fact also contributes to the release of adrenaline and increased blood pressure.

Panic attacks with cervical osteochondrosis

Panic attacks in this case are a common occurrence. They can happen with different frequency, be short (a few minutes) or longer (about half an hour). After a panic attack, there are often residual symptoms. Panic attacks do not have to be a symptom of cervical osteochondrosis in women and men. But in most cases they point precisely to him.

As in the case of high blood pressure, the causes of panic attacks and fear attacks are deterioration of intervertebral nutrition, destruction of discs and their displacement. Nerves become pinched and arteries cannot supply the brain with sufficient oxygen.

Panic attacks can develop as a result of:

lack of microelements, which leads to impaired calcium metabolism;
reducing the content of hydrogen ions in the blood, which causes internal tissues of the body to suffer;
deficiency of elements important for the nervous system such as selenium and magnesium.

When does a lump in the throat appear?

The modern world constantly requires high mental and energy costs from a person. However, our nervous system, just like other organs, requires various types of rest. But the intensity of life does not always and does not allow everyone to pause and give the necessary rest. We try to do everything everywhere and in time. We often eat incorrectly or insufficiently, disrupt our biological rhythm, and do not have enough time to sleep. It is not uncommon for all this to be aggravated by the consumption of alcohol, energy drinks, other psychoactive substances, and even smoking regular tobacco.

Due to all these factors that accumulate over a period of time, at some point the nervous system becomes especially vulnerable. At such moments, not even a high psychological load or some chemical factor (for example, not even a large dose of alcohol) can “break” the normal, biological metabolic process of the brain. This may coincide with a spasm of the throat muscles, which many times could pass without a trace or go unnoticed. But, at this moment of breakdown of the nervous system, this spasm is recorded and “remembered” by it as a “pathology”. It is from this moment that a person begins to fixate his attention on the sensation of a lump in the throat, and the nervous system creates a “ghost” of the lump. And since all this is associated with a violation of the metabolic processes of the brain and is recorded in disturbances in the transmission of information, the sensation of a lump in the throat is not only recorded by consciousness, but also begins to progress, causing a lot of inconvenience.

When to see a doctor

It is important to know that the psychogenic causes of a lump in the throat are not dangerous to the physical condition. However, this does not mean that no complications will occur and there is no need to consult a doctor. This feeling itself rarely goes away. If the feeling of a lump in the throat does not have real somatic reasons and does not go away within 2-5 days, then we recommend that you consult a psychotherapist after this period.

We recommend seeing your GP on the day this feeling starts, but no later than the next day. This is due to the fact that such symptoms can accompany some truly dangerous diseases.

The main reason for this is that emergency medical attention may be required. Situations are especially dangerous if swelling, some kind of tumor, pain in the throat or chest, difficulty breathing, difficulty swallowing appears within a short time. This may be a sign of a more serious problem. The doctor will refer you to a specialized specialist; additional hardware or laboratory tests may be needed.

However, if the studies do not show anything significant or acute, then this means that the cause is psychogenic and you need to go to a psychotherapist or psychiatrist. It is necessary to exclude the possibility of somatic diseases.

Another, no less significant reason is that the sensation of a lump in the throat is only a signal from your body about the onset of a problem with the nervous system. If a person does not receive full medical care in a short time, the breakdown of the nervous system begins to progress. Complications begin to form and symptoms such as depression, anxiety, fears, obsessive thoughts and others may gradually begin to appear. To avoid complications, you need to contact a good psychotherapist or psychiatrist as soon as possible.

Lump in throat treatment

Treatment for a lump in the throat is not always straightforward or typical. The form of nervous system breakdown and the individual characteristics of each person do not imply standards. Accordingly, treatment cannot have standards and typical techniques for different people.

Therefore, therapy in our clinic is selected only individually, and standard techniques are adapted to each individual. The general therapeutic regimen can be defined as complex therapy.

How to treat a feeling of a lump in the throat

Neurometabolic therapy;
Psychotherapy;
Diet, depending on severity;
Individual daily routine;
Additional techniques are possible (individually).

Our individual therapy always ends in complete victory over the problem. We help you get rid of the lump in your throat forever. However, if a person does not follow our doctor’s recommendations and violates the regimen or has not completed the entire therapeutic course, the treatment will be less effective and the sensation may return.

Symptoms

If a lump in the throat appears once, as a reaction of the body to fatigue or stress, it is not at all dangerous. If you experience frequently recurring or persistent sensations, you should consult a doctor. A psychosomatic condition can be combined with other manifestations:

sore throat;
hoarseness, aphonia;
feeling of incomplete inspiration;
dry mucous membranes, insufficient saliva production;
insomnia, anxiety;
lack of appetite, disturbance of normal swallowing;
diarrhea or constipation;
causeless cough;
discomfort in the neck area;
blood pressure surges and tachycardia;
burning sensation, bubbling or foreign body sensation.

When a person calms down, the symptoms described above and the feeling of discomfort disappear. If left untreated, in severe cases, laryngeal spasms, a feeling of suffocation, and loss of sensation in the neck may occur. According to psychosomatics, signs of pathology may differ depending on the disease accompanying the psychosomatic reaction and the causes:

laryngitis - lack of expression of one’s opinion, feelings;
sore throat - fear, restraint;
cough - unfounded self-criticism, low self-esteem;
adenoiditis - lack of mutual understanding, lack of support;
inflammation of the tonsils - shyness, excessive caution, failure to achieve goals;
pharyngitis - suppression of creative potential;
tonsillitis - cowardice, stiffness, inability to defend interests;
sore throat - lack of goals.

Possible risks

Due to the fact that these sensations are formed as a result of a breakdown of higher nervous activity, this leads to more profound changes. The feeling of a lump in the throat is only the first symptom of the formation of the disease. It is at the onset of the disease that it is easiest to stop and completely cure. Remember that no disease, neither mental nor somatic, stands still. Any disease will continue to develop until it is stopped. Only a complete and correct therapeutic program can stop progress and cure a person. Self-help or self-medication, or incorrect treatment, are dangerous and cause complications. Complications related to the psychogenic causes of the formation of the sensation of a lump in the throat include the following mental states.

Complications of feeling a lump in the throat

Depression;
Anxiety disorders;
Panic attacks;
Intrusive thoughts;
Neuroses;
Phobias;
Substance addiction;
Psychosomatic disorders;
Sexual dysfunctions;
Aggression and personality disorders;
Other mental states.

There is no need to endure or be afraid to see a psychotherapist or psychiatrist. We provide treatment on an anonymous basis. You can always contact us anonymously and your data will not be passed on to third parties or government medical institutions. We guarantee your safety.

However, do not forget that complaints about a lump in the throat in 10% of cases are associated with possible physical changes. Such as neck injuries or somatic diseases.

Forms of the disease

Doctors identify several forms of a lump in the throat with psychosomatics:

Hyperesthesia - discomfort during swallowing, decreased sensitivity of the throat mucosa. Without treatment, it can lead to suffocation from water or food.
Paresthesia - itching, pain, sensation of a foreign body in the throat, cephalgia. Occurs in patients with a labile psyche, nervous disorders, and in women during menopause.
Anesthesia - numbness, decreased sensitivity, tension in the larynx, difficulty breathing and swallowing.
Hyperalgesia is pain in the throat that does not stop and intensifies while eating.
Hyperesthesia - due to spasm, it is difficult to speak, breathe, eat, itching, burning in the throat. Develops immediately after stress.

Physical causes of a lump in the throat

Impact to the neck, injury;
Entry of a foreign body;
Diseases of the trachea or esophagus;
Inflammatory processes in the larynx and oral cavity;
Stomach diseases;
Cardiovascular diseases;
Infections;
Thyroid disease;
Other somatic disorders.

Where to begin

In this regard, we recommend that you first try to independently differentiate possible changes in your body. Think about whether you have chronic diseases or possible injuries. Go to a specialized specialist. If no acute life-threatening conditions are found, be sure to visit a psychotherapist or psychiatrist.

This is due to the fact that very few doctors are able to determine the psychogenic cause of the feeling of a lump in the throat and will look for a somatic cause of the disorder. Incorrect therapy will create conditions for the further development of nervous system disorders and complications will begin to form. In this case, treating a lump in the throat will be significantly more difficult.

The faster you find the true cause of the lump in the throat, the faster, better and cheaper it will be to get rid of the problem. And most importantly, it will help improve the quality of your life.

Call and make an appointment with our specialists!

Treatment and prevention of symptoms of cervical osteochondrosis

Treatment of symptoms of cervical osteochondrosis of the spine should be carried out comprehensively. In each case it is necessary to find an individual approach. Medicines, physical therapy, massages and some folk remedies can help cope with the disease.

If osteochondrosis is in an acute stage, then its treatment will be aimed at improving blood circulation and eliminating spasms and pinching. The doctor can prescribe medications to the patient that will improve blood flow, as well as relieve inflammation and reduce pain.

Medicines for the treatment of cervical osteochondrosis

Clinical studies have shown that during exacerbation of cervical osteochondrosis, analgesics and non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs work well. In addition to them, the doctor prescribes chondroprotectors, antispasmodics and drugs that stimulate blood circulation in the tissues.

For complex therapy in the treatment of cervical osteochondrosis, the following are used:

Analgesics. Eliminate pain. Some of them can have an anti-inflammatory effect. Most often, analgesics are prescribed for lumbar osteochondrosis, which has a wide localization of pain;
Antispasmodics. They have an analgesic and antispasmodic effect. Eliminate muscle spasms, block the sensitivity of nerve endings;
Anti-inflammatory drugs. Relieve pain, reduce inflammation;
Vasodilators. Necessary for improving blood circulation. Reduces the recovery time of the body after osteochondrosis;
Chondroprotectors. Necessary for tissue restoration in damaged cartilage. One of the most effective drugs today is Artadol. It contains chondroitin sulfate, which actively fights the degradation of articular cartilage. The drug stimulates the production of proteoglycans. Improves metabolic processes in cartilage and bone tissue.

Regardless of the stage of the disease and the degree of pain, doctors strongly recommend refraining from self-medication. Only after examination by a specialist, analyzes and tests can the doctor prescribe adequate and effective treatment for cervical osteochondrosis.

Massage for cervical osteochondrosis

Massage is necessary to relieve pain and improve muscle tone. Different techniques are used, which depend on the stage of the disease. In the treatment of cervical osteochondrosis, the following are effective:

stroking;
squeezing;
rubbing;
kneading.

If pain is observed only on one side of the neck, then the massage begins with a healthy part of the body, gradually moving to the sick one. It can be performed at home or in a specialized institution. But you should be extremely careful, since incorrect movements and influences can only aggravate the situation.

Therapeutic exercises for symptoms of cervical osteochondrosis

Therapeutic gymnastics is used in complex therapy in the treatment of cervical osteochondrosis and gives excellent results. Unlike medications, it has no contraindications or side effects. Exercise therapy aims to improve blood flow to damaged parts of the body. It is important that the patient does not feel pain when performing certain exercises.

Therapeutic gymnastics is designed to strengthen the muscles in the neck area, and also serves as an excellent prevention of osteochondrosis.