Living with M.S.

"Living with M.S. is sort of like training for a long race. The harder you try, and the longer you keep at it, the stronger you become.
Eventually, looking back, you may be amazed at the power you possessed, even when you had no idea it was within your reach." (Linda Ann Nickerson)

Saturday

Gulping - Facing MS symptoms from A to Z




Ugh. This multiple sclerosis symptom can get a little gruesome. Gulping fits the bill there. We may choke, cough, or sputter. Sometimes we’re challenged even to swallow water. That makes pill-taking tricky, not to mention basic eating and drinking. 



Doctors call it dysphagia, or swallowing difficulty. Some struggle with extra hot or cold food or drink. Others wrestle with extra textures or food density.

Certainly, choking and unintentional spitting can be problems. But the real danger may arise when food or liquid is accidentally inhaled instead of ingested. In the worst cases, this can lead to pneumonia, which can be a big concern for long-term MS warriors.

It sort of goes along with the whole gag reflex thing, which MSers can also face fairly often. And plenty of people with swallowing difficulties also have speech issues. In fact, MS specialists may refer patients with dysphagia to speech/language pathologists for treatment and therapy. In milder cases, careful and attentive and slower eating may meet the need.



Images:
Word cloud generated by Kicking MS to the Curb - All rights reserved
Series title graphic adapted from public domain artwork.



Feel free to follow on GooglePlus and Twitter. Please visit my Amazon author page as well.
You are invited to join the Kicking MS to the Curb page on Facebook and the Making the Most of MS board on Pinterest.

No comments:

Post a Comment