What could be wrong if a person has to wake up from sleep to swallow?

Hello,

Welcome to icliniq.com.

You have to be more elaborate with your symptoms. I suggest you to answer a few questions mentioned below: 1. What do you feel when you swallow during sleep? 2. Does it cause you to choke? One cause could be aerophagia or swallowing of air. Severe anxiety can cause aerophagia and subsequent bloating or belching. Since there are no symptoms during the day, having an organic cause is less likely. Another cause could be nocturnal reflux. I hope this has helped you. Thank you.

Hello,

Welcome back to icliniq.com.

There is an entity called globus pharyngeus which can present with several symptoms, the most common being a lump in the throat sensation or a feeling of constriction in the throat. Anxiety is a well-recognized cause of globus and that may be the cause in your case. Since you have no difficulty in swallowing or pain in swallowing it is more likely to be globus. Another aspect to be noted is the persistence of symptoms. A symptom that is present sometimes and not at other times is also less likely to be organic and more likely to be functional. Only if symptoms persist or worsen, a nasopharyngoscopy is mandatory to rule out the organic lesion. Further, if you have any reflux, that may also be the cause. So the first step would be to deal with anxiety as this could accentuate your symptoms. It would be prudent to get a nasopharyngoscopy done if possible, however, an organic cause is least likely. I hope this has helped you. Thank you.