The Tests Say You’re Fine — But You Still Can’t Swallow. Here’s Why
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Why do medical tests show no problem yet I still can’t swallow?
Hey guys, it's Edwin here and today I'm going to be answering this question where someone shared that. They've had all the tests. They've had the barium sword test, they've had endoscopy, they've done all the scans. And nothing is there like everything is really, really Fine. And now they're wondering, but why is it that? They are afraid of choking. But why is that they are still afraid of swallowing? So The answer is very, very simple. When you've done all the tests. And nothing is there. It simply means that that thing is somewhere else. It's in your mind. Like the fee actually. is not in a physical part of your body, like your throat is not broken. Your galit is not broken. Your tongue is not broken. Nothing is broken.
How does the mind create a swallowing fear after normal test results?
But now Where the broken is. It's in your. Mind. Or rather it's in how you perceive swallowing. you may perceive swallowing as something which is dangerous or something which is harmful to you. Let's say There are a number of causes to this. Let's say it would be you were eating some oil back, let's say a a few years ago and then your anxiety kicked in. And it was not really because of the eating, maybe just the eating triggered your anxiety. So. What happened is you ended up seeing that eating or that swallowing us something which is Very, very harmful to you. So your body's uh fight and flight response kicked in and really saw the need to protect you from swallowing or protect you from eating. So anytime you think about food, anytime you think about swallowing, it's kicking in.
And when it's kicking in What happens? It sends impulses to you.
What physiological reactions does anxiety trigger during swallowing?
Throat muscles. Like hey. Something is about to come, so let's tighten. That's what anxiety does. It sends impulses so that your muscles tighten and and when your muscles tighten. Actually, you feel A bit like like there is a lamp on your on your throat. Simply because your mind is communicating with the matter that hey, this person is not supposed to swallow. Swallowing is dangerous to this person. So let's just protect them. That's why you do all the scans, nothing is there. Simply because it's in your subconscious part of your mind. And that's something which a physical test cannot. cannot solve. And that's something ev even which a Sajari cannot I don't sort of Hope that makes sense. So this doesn't mean that you ignore all those tests.
No. That is not okay.
Which past experiences can turn swallowing into a psychological threat?
Because Some people may be afraid of swallowing because of our physical aspect because of bacteria and all those things. But now when you've really exhausted this It simply means that this fear is a psychological fear. And to overcome this is not really through like uh it's not really for you to give up and say like now there's no specialist in this world who can uh help me. No, it's in you now. investigating the source of this psychological fear. And as I mentioned, it could be a traumatic incident in the past, it could be Let's say some people could be like they were in an abusive relationship and then their partner kept talking ill at them when they were eating. So you see, the mind will pick up anything
і пасів And then keep it. So The mind may protect you, may may pick up something and then perceive that as the cause of this, even when it's totally unrelated. Yeah. And years and years the same same mind will still be using that response like, Hey, if this person eats Let's tighten the muscles because this person will choke or because this person will uh be in danger or because this this will trigger this person's anxiety.
Why can’t physical examinations fix a fear‑based swallowing issue?
So that's the way it goes. So psychological fears are dealt with psychological solutions. Physical problems, dealt with physical problems. So when you don't have t when your tests are not showing anything, it simply means that your fear is psychological and the best thing to do is to Work on that subconscious part of your mind. It is now the work uh the work I do as a therapist, like helping you Bring those aspects in the those psychological fears or those fears locked in the subconscious part of your mind. Bringing them to light. Because the moment you bring them to light,
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Chapters
7 chapters
1
Why do medical tests show no problem yet I still can’t swallow?
0:00–0:51
2
How does the mind create a swallowing fear after normal test results?
0:51–1:56
3
What physiological reactions does anxiety trigger during swallowing?
1:56–2:44
4
Which past experiences can turn swallowing into a psychological threat?
2:44–4:11
5
Why can’t physical examinations fix a fear‑based swallowing issue?
4:11–5:19
6
How can I work on the subconscious mind to overcome swallowing anxiety?
5:19–5:53
7
What does recovery look like once the psychological fear of choking is resolved?
5:53–6:01