severe anxiety with a weird manifestation: inability to eat / drink

I have 300 Anxiety Disorder NOS.

The anxiety is kind of unusual, in that it manifests itself, mainly, in having nausea-like feelings/sensations in my throat. Also, in general, most of my feelings that are in the body (as opposed to in the mind - not sure I am making it clear) kind of live in that area - pain, hurt, tension, suppressed tears - they all "feel" down my throat.

So I can be socially fine, occupationally fine, etc. but not able to eat and even drink.

I have been doing better using ginger candy to suppress nausea - it helps me eat.

I also lose/misplace things when anxious. And have a hard time concentrating to find them.

I do not even know if I am high functioning, or not. Socially/occupationally, I am, but - eating/drinking is kind of basic maintenance, and I have such deep trouble with it.

When it happens to me, I first lose the ability to consume most foods except for a few very basic comfort foods (chicken noodle soup, milk - those kind of basic staples; nothing esoteric or hard to chew). If it gets even worse, I cannot eat/drink those either.

But at the same time I produce fine work, interact with people no problem, etc.

Situations of uncertainty spike this anxiety.

Anybody with a similar presentation?

Thanks!

PS

Marijuana does not work for this kind of nausea. What does work is
ONDANSETRON DISINTEGRATING TABLET - ORAL (Zofran ODT) side effects, medical uses, and drug interactions.

but it is expensive without insurance, so I try not to use it too often.

Awww I feel for you. I haven't had that but I have at times been unable to eat simply because I couldn't swallow the food due to anxiety.
Can you give a brief explanation of 300 Anxiety Disorder NOS?

George - the swallowing difficulty is one of the things with me. Or, even the thought of having to swallow...

I need to look into this DX. I imagine that it is the most garden variety, basic anxiety diagnosis without any "specialty".

hamster-bamster. I get severe nausea from anxiety and eventually vomit. Like you anxiety is a very physical phenomenon for me, wreaking havoc on my body and yes, on my digestive system. Also like you I am socially and professionally very high functioning and mask my problems in public like a master thespian.

The good news is that I haven't had this vomiting problem for about two years now. I am able to keep my anxiety managed most of the time. I use a combination of medication (Zoloft and Lorazapam for "emergencies") and therapy. This combination hasn't cured me but I do ok and most importantly, I'm not a twisted ball of tension puking in front of my kids.

The symptoms you describe at actually extremely usual for anxiety, especially symptoms involving the throat. Anxiety often involves a great deal of physical symptoms even when you cannot recognize any of the mental ones.

I have had prolonged periods of time where I cannot eat without getting sick or vomiting, and that's even when I can even get food into my mouth without gagging. After a couple of days without food, I end up taming the terrible empty feeling in my stomach with ice cream. Luckily it has been several months since the last prolonged episode of this, but I will still have anxiety days where I lose my appetite.

I struggle with this too. For me I take ranitidine, eat small quantities of food at a time, avoid excessive amounts of salt, and avoid greasy foods. When times are at their worst I live off a diet of vanilla instant breakfast drinks (it's better on the trip up than chocolate) and tea. Oddly enough if I feel the nasty feeling in the back of my throat sometimes a coke will help it go away. It's the carbonation that helps, so try it out of a can.

I hope things get better for you.

Anxiety NOC 300 is Anxiety Disorder Not Otherwise Specified i.e not Panic Anxiety or Social Anxiety, etc. per the DSM (psychiatry manual). Like you said ... garden variety anxiety.

Hamster - I have a friend who experiences anxiety in the way you describe. It sounds like your anxiety manifests itself in the upper GI system (throat). Some people have heart palpitations, some diarrhea, and some dizziness .... some, it seems, are like you.

When anxiety occurs and adrenaline is released by the body, the mouth becomes dry because saliva production is reduced. This makes swallowing more difficult. Saliva begins the digestive process not only by lubrication but it also helps break down food. But I wonder if you also might have some esophageal reflux? Have you ever had an endoscopy where they look at the throat with a light? Chronic reflux can cause narrowing of the throat, making swallowing more difficult. Just one thought ...

Anyway, thanks for sharing your experience. It looks like you are not alone.

OMG! You actually vomit. I do not - I can have this eerie feeling of being "on the brink of" vomiting and I can have it for hours, but I do not vomit. Puking in front of your kids is no fun at all! I am glad you are doing better now.

Thank you, Odee, so it is not that unusual.

I am afraid that there is a vicious circle element involved - not eating quickly leads to dehydration and slowly leads to undernourishment, which probably only work towards exacerbating anxiety, and with more anxiety there is more trouble eating, and so it goes .

Yes, exactly - the locus of all that trouble is the upper GI system. I have no problems with the rest of the GI system - no stomach aches or upset stomach, no diarrhea/constipation, no nothing. Basically, once I am able to actually swallow my food, the rest is taken care of. But the swallowing part IS tricky!

I will also try carbonated drinks.

PS the reflux would have given me heartburn, no? I only had heartburn for a month or so when pregnant with my middle child 16 years ago (apparently, the belly pushed on my stomach from below, and the stomach then pushed stuff up into the esophagus).

Is it possible to have the reflux without heartburn?