welcome Deborah

[Guest guest]

Deborah, this is going to be quick (as you get to know me, you'll learn that my posts are SELDOM brief!).

A) Welcome to the group, from one Deborah to another.

Even more helpful than reading the digests via email will be to go back and read a few MONTHS of posts. Try going to the beginning of 2005 and reading a few months of messages (or all of them this year!). You'll see ALL KINDS of helpful info, links to research articles, peoples' experiences w/ docs, etc.

C) To answer your original question, I had a dilation that was not very successful in late 1996, then another much more successful one in May 1998 and none since. Since the last dilation, I've gotten married and then had a beautiful boy, who is now 5.5 years old. Do I swallow 100% normally? Nope. Do I eat anything I want to as long as I have water to push it down? Yep, in my case. Do I know how much longer it will last? Nope. Do people who have surgery swallow 100% normally? Nope. Do people who have surgery eat anything they want as long as they have water to push it down? Yep, in most cases I've seen here, although there are some exceptions. Do people who have surgery ever need another procedure? Sometimes yes, sometimes no. Some people who have surgery later have a dilation, some have a repeat myotomy, and some have their esophagus removed entirely. Others have gone 20+ years w/o any further treatment!

In a nutshell, the best way to get a good outcome is to see a HIGHLY EXPERIENCED specialist -- not just any old GI doc, but someone who has treated hundreds and hundreds of achalasia patients. Whether it's for a dilation or surgery, you need someone who knows what he's dealing with. There's really no way of knowing whether a dilation or surgery would work or whether you'd need a repeat procedure, etc. My LES could close off completely tomorrow, or it could remain like it is for the rest of my life <*knock wood*>.

And yes, this is a SHORT message from me.... wait until you lay your eyes on my dissertations! LOLDebbi in Michigan

[Guest guest]

I forgot to give the link for going back to January's messages:achalasia/messages/21168

Or you can go to the home page at :achalasia/

and scroll down to the little Message History section at the bottom and choose any month you like.

welcome Deborah

Deborah, this is going to be quick (as you get to know me, you'll learn that my posts are SELDOM brief!).

A) Welcome to the group, from one Deborah to another.

Even more helpful than reading the digests via email will be to go back and read a few MONTHS of posts. Try going to the beginning of 2005 and reading a few months of messages (or all of them this year!). You'll see ALL KINDS of helpful info, links to research articles, peoples' experiences w/ docs, etc.

C) To answer your original question, I had a dilation that was not very successful in late 1996, then another much more successful one in May 1998 and none since. Since the last dilation, I've gotten married and then had a beautiful boy, who is now 5.5 years old. Do I swallow 100% normally? Nope. Do I eat anything I want to as long as I have water to push it down? Yep, in my case. Do I know how much longer it will last? Nope. Do people who have surgery swallow 100% normally? Nope. Do people who have surgery eat anything they want as long as they have water to push it down? Yep, in most cases I've seen here, although there are some exceptions. Do people who have surgery ever need another procedure? Sometimes yes, sometimes no. Some people who have surgery later have a dilation, some have a repeat myotomy, and some have their esophagus removed entirely. Others have gone 20+ years w/o any further treatment!

In a nutshell, the best way to get a good outcome is to see a HIGHLY EXPERIENCED specialist -- not just any old GI doc, but someone who has treated hundreds and hundreds of achalasia patients. Whether it's for a dilation or surgery, you need someone who knows what he's dealing with. There's really no way of knowing whether a dilation or surgery would work or whether you'd need a repeat procedure, etc. My LES could close off completely tomorrow, or it could remain like it is for the rest of my life <*knock wood*>.

And yes, this is a SHORT message from me.... wait until you lay your eyes on my dissertations! LOLDebbi in Michigan