Guest guest Posted August 5, 2005 Report Share Posted August 5, 2005 Who knew there'd be a e-group for Achalasia?! Well, I'll start off by introducing myself... I am a 23 yr old black female from NYC who was diagnosed with Achalasia at age 10...the symptoms started when I was about 8 though. I had to make sure to have practically a gallon of water with me at the table, or I wouldn't dare attempt to eat anything. At it's worst, I even had problems drinking! Having food just sitting in my chest caused so much pain and pressure, I would end up having to force myself to throw up after most of my meals. Obviously after this, my family became concerned ). I went to my pediatrician who took an x-ray and said I was fine, and since he was in a university hospital, he decided they would study me a bit. So I proceeded to be roundtable interviewed about my mental state, stresses, peer pressure etc....I guess they believed that my symptoms were either psychosomatic or that I was a closet bulimic...LOL. At this point, going to the doctor was probably the worst thing that happened to me. I continued to have problems eating, and my family grew to be very angry as they thought I was pretending to be sick on purpose, or that it was all in my head. I think I even started to question my sanity, especially since the docs couldn't find anything wrong physiologically. That summer, I went to Panama to stay with family. There, my aunt took notice of my symptoms, mostly after I had a few fainting spells from being very weak. She took me to her ENT, who first noticed a bad case of Tonsillitis. After the tonsillectomy, I was still having the problems, so the ENT then referred me to a GI. I had the barium study test and was diagnosed right before heading back home. Back in NYC, the doctors confirmed the diagnosis with the other tests and scheduled me for a dilation. Since then, I've had one other dilation in 1997. Thankfully, I haven't had major relapses since then, and I'm hoping to continue on good track ). I occasionally have pain, but I can eat fine. Since dilation has worked well for me so far, I hope not to have to face surgery in the future. Anyway. Good luck to anyone starting their journey with this strange disorder. I know it can be rough, but trust that eventually things WILL get better! ) Illyana Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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