Why does this keep happening?


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This is weird and I wanted to know if anyone else has experienced it.

 

Whenever I experience an emotion - any emotion, I start to cough bacause I can't get any air - almost as though it were an asthma attack.

 

The more I cough, the harder I cough and gasp for air, until I start to dry heave, or worse yet, throw up. Once the heaving or throwing up starts, I can breath again. This is embarrassing at best and down right frightening at worst.

 

Can someone give me any insight why this is happening? I'm getting a little frustrated with simply "trying to remain calm."

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My first thought is go to the doctor or ER to keep from worrying yourself so much, that's what I do!

 

Now on the other hand if it's something that happens often then maybe a home remedy will work. No, I have never experienced this myself nor any member of my family that I know about.

 

This morning I am sneezing like crazy, nose running too. I figure it's sinus so I've taken Allegra and some benadryl kapgels. My coughing comes and goes. I figure it's the snow and the cold weather both of which is new to central Texas. It will warm up by Saturday and on Sunday about 60 degrees. It should be gone by then!

 

I hope you get better real soon but some weird things happen all the time! :rolleyes:

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This is weird and I wanted to know if anyone else has experienced it.

 

Whenever I experience an emotion - any emotion, I start to cough bacause I can't get any air - almost as though it were an asthma attack.

 

The more I cough, the harder I cough and gasp for air, until I start to dry heave, or worse yet, throw up. Once the heaving or throwing up starts, I can breath again. This is embarrassing at best and down right frightening at worst.

 

Can someone give me any insight why this is happening? I'm getting a little frustrated with simply "trying to remain calm."

 

 

It is a cough reflex, you kind of expect it to happen so it does. Mind over matter mate, just don't let it happen.

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Gavin is right.

 

Still call up your doctor or go to the ER.

 

It sounds to me as a form of Panic attacks. I got them alot in the begining.

 

Try also taking slow deeo breathes in threw your nose and out through your mouth. Try to get your mind relaxed and .

 

I hiccup all the time. Drives me nuts

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Kelli I do alot of coughing,too, but not quite to the point U describe

 

after stroke I couldn't swallow on affected rt side - so had ng tube untill I progressed to smushed food.

like everything else we lost I still have to tell myself to swallow. esp when talking either on phone or in person

if I forget my throat fets full of saliva & I kind of choke on it cough s bit - sometimes I will aspirate a little - suck some of the fluid into my lungs - then I cough a little more like you describe violent & strong until it feels like it is out of my lungs.

 

y6ou uise ewmotional as a trigger - could it be that yo uare so wrapped up in the emotion - you forget to swallow

 

Just a shot in the dark - next time try to be aware & see if you could have choked on & sucked a throatful of saliva

BTW it is my rt side that it still psralyzed -- not just weak - after 8 yrs

 

Also - if I don't pay attention when eating - eat too fast & talk - I don't always get all the food swallowed properly - & may have some pocketing around gums- so crumbs & bits can get me later

My daughter a nurse - suggested

I swish my mouth out frequently esp after meals & if you suck a bit of food into your lungs the coughing can ve violent, too

I agree sinus dreip could be trigguring this, too

 

 

 

RU still very weak to paralyzed on affected side?

 

 

Susan

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There is a cough journal.

 

Now, don't giggle, well go ahead

 

BUT

 

I am not joking. Moreover, the cough journal

 

discusses post-stroke coughing.

 

Click on this:

 

http://www.coughjournal.com/content/1/1/4

 

Granted the article is dense with impossible words

 

but the vital information for you is that there is

 

such a thing as post-stroke damage to the coughing reflex.

 

Hope this helps.

 

Rachel, a caregiver

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In the early days after my stroke, the left side of my face felt almost as if I had been shot up with novocaine. I mention that because I would get terrible anxiety attacks sometimes. The novocaine would numb part of my face, and although I was still breathing, I could no longer FEEL myself breathing. It felt likr I hadn'y, like I had stopped, like I couldn't breathe, and hence my panic.

 

I realize that's not exactly what you're describing. But I think it could be related -- and that would indicate that what you're experiencing, however unusual, is not unheard of or weird. It *is* annoying and frustrating and scary, and I hope you're able to get some relief soon.

 

David

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  • 2 weeks later...

UPDATE:

According to the doctor, I cough for a number of reasons.

 

1. It's a reaction to anxiety - performance anxiety: I am afraid of "failure," or not being able to do something the way I did pre-stroke. She suggested I take 1 benadryl, as needed, every 6 hours. I've used it, in the past, for mild panic attacks, like when traveling by airplane, and it seems to work pretty well. I don't get drowsy from it.

 

2. I cough in place of crying and laughing right now. Don't really know how to correct that one, but hopefully, with time, I'll remember how to laugh and cry.

 

3. I have never had a gag reflex, (no, really, it's a genetic thing that I've passed on to 2 of my 3 kids) and am not always swallowing effectively right now. With time, things will get better.

 

It seems like it is severe at the moment because my emotional reactions are swinging to extreems. I'm having difficulty modulating them. This, too, should get better with time and.....my least favorite word right now.....acceptance.....of my stroke and myself since then.

 

She suggested counseling and a support group. I told her I have the support group covered and told her about here. She said she will let other stroke survivors know about this group.

 

As for counseling, I'm going to look at what my insurance covers and find a counselor. The one thing I HAVE managed to accept since my stroke is that, right now, I'm scared out of my mind and willing to try/do just about anything to make the fear go away.

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Lydi,

Glad to hear you got some answers from your doctor.

 

Acceptance is a long journey that you will eventually reach. It's not something that happens over night, it's a process. The good news is you learn and grow a great deal along the way. You friends here will play a very big part in helping you along that journey.

 

Fear is very common for new survivors. The one thing that really offsets it best is time. I remember being terrified of this whole new world and all the uncertainty of it. Would it happen to me again? How would I handle taking care of things I needed to like my kids, house, etc.? Was I just lucky this time and going to die the next?

 

As time went on and I began to regain my strength and feel more like myself, the feeling of waiting for the other shoe to drop began to lessen. Talking with others here helped me see that they had felt the same, gotten through, and were still around to remind me I would be too.

 

There's a lot of post traumatic stress that comes with having your life turned upside down in an instant by stroke. We're here as examples that recovery goes on beyond the fear. We're always around to share how we felt, what we did to get through, listen when you need to talk, and give plenty of ((((((hugs)))))))).

 

(((((((((hugs))))))))

 

Maria :friends:

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Guest furiawill

Kelli I do alot of coughing,too, but not quite to the point U describe

 

after stroke I couldn't swallow on affected rt side - so had ng tube untill I progressed to smushed food.

like everything else we lost I still have to tell myself to swallow. esp when talking either on phone or in person

if I forget my throat fets full of saliva & I kind of choke on it cough s bit - sometimes I will aspirate a little - suck some of the fluid into my lungs - then I cough a little more like you describe violent & strong until it feels like it is out of my lungs.

 

y6ou uise ewmotional as a trigger - could it be that yo uare so wrapped up in the emotion - you forget to swallow

 

Just a shot in the dark - next time try to be aware & see if you could have choked on & sucked a throatful of saliva

BTW it is my rt side that it still psralyzed -- not just weak - after 8 yrs

 

Also - if I don't pay attention when eating - eat too fast & talk - I don't always get all the food swallowed properly - & may have some pocketing around gums- so crumbs & bits can get me later

My daughter a nurse - suggested

I swish my mouth out frequently esp after meals & if you suck a bit of food into your lungs the coughing can ve violent, too

I agree sinus dreip could be trigguring this, too

 

 

 

RU still very weak to paralyzed on affected side?

 

 

Susan

 

PERHAPS A THICKENING AGENT IS REQUIRED, I WAS ON ONE BECAUSE OF SWALLOWING PROBS. CHECK WITH YOUR DR OR A SPEECH THERAPIST. I HOPE THIS HELPS.

 

WILL SENDS...

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Guest furiawill

PERHAPS A THICKENING AGENT IS REQUIRED, I WAS ON ONE BECAUSE OF SWALLOWING PROBS. CHECK WITH YOUR DR OR A SPEECH THERAPIST. I HOPE THIS HELPS.

 

WILL SENDS...

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This is weird and I wanted to know if anyone else has experienced it.

 

Whenever I experience an emotion - any emotion, I start to cough bacause I can't get any air - almost as though it were an asthma attack.

 

The more I cough, the harder I cough and gasp for air, until I start to dry heave, or worse yet, throw up. Once the heaving or throwing up starts, I can breath again. This is embarrassing at best and down right frightening at worst.

 

Can someone give me any insight why this is happening? I'm getting a little frustrated with simply "trying to remain calm."

 

My mom who had a stroke 5 years ago suffers from that too. Her stroke impaired her swallowing. Have a swallowing test and ask your doctor what you should do when it does happens.

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  • 1 month later...
Guest kimcrowe

I had and still have, after 7 plus years, exactly what you describe! I never experienced anything even remotely similar to it before, so I have to assume that it's stroke related. Please ask you doctor before trying ANY "home remedies", but I will share mine with you. When I experience what you are describing then I take a small piece of a caffeine pill and one Benedryl. This is a common first aid for asthma attacks. After about ten minutes you will be breathing much better. I doubt that this is a permanent fix, but it has worked well for me in emergencies. My best to you!hug.gif

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Thanks for the advice, Kim. I'll talk to Dr. Mike about it at my next visit, at the end of the month.

 

It has gotten better over time. I am able to sort of half cough and half laugh now, kind of sounds a little like a bark and sometimes sets Monster to barking. For those who don't know, Monster is my service-dog-in-training, constant companion, and newest best friend. I could write a whole entry about him, but that's better put in my blog.

 

Crying is something that still bothers me, and I still do more frequently than I used to. I half cry/half cough now too, which means I end up choking and sputtering even worse because of the whole not having a gag reflex thing.

 

I did stop coughing as often or as hard when the doctro took me off of the enalepril. It seems that one of the "less frequent" side effects of that medication, and all of the medications in its family, is a dry, nagging cough.

 

Thanks, everyone, for the advice and well wishes!

 

 

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  • 4 months later...

As a more detailed explanation this is a natural function of the Limbic System and for us is complicated by stroke. If you already have compromised gag reflex then the effect is hrightened for you.

 

In simpler terms this is part of our "fight or flight" reaction and is usually managed for normal people but those of us with breathing,swallowing pr gag reffex problems experience what you describe as the autonomic sytem causes us to "throw up" or otherwise evacuate waste/toxins from our bodies.

 

Some useful ways to reduce or bring the natural effect to an end is to create thr natiural response that tells the body thr threat is over. exercise, grounding techniques or even if thr problem is severe enough anti-anxiety medication can be prescribed.

 

Even though this is a natural event in all humans gaging and not being able to breath is no fun and horse poop is natural too but you wont catch mr looking for any. If you need medical help with it don't let them brush you off with declarations of it being natural.

 

Red

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I go to a psychologist and one method he taught me to reduce anxiety is called "cognitive reframing." I don't know if he made the word up or was taught it. Basically, in a nut shell, it's replacing a negative thought or emotion with a positive thought or emotion. I don't know if it will work for you (because you've stated you experience the issue with any emotion). Still you may want to try it. I use it for anxiety. When I feel anxious or have similar feelings to any situation I will replace whatever I'm thinking about with another thought. Another way to look at it is let's say you have a song stuck in your head: put another song in there and the first song will go away. In my case I may be thinking about having a seizure, I'll start to get worked up then I'll "reframe" my thought to something else (lying on a beach, what the sun on my face feels like, how to spell the word dictionary) Just anything to get the first thoughts and feelings out of there.

 

The ultimate goal is to reduce the heart rate which will reduce the anxiety (or so I've been told). I've noticed it does work for anxiety. Sometimes it's hard to do and I may need to lie down while "reframing".

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