Has anyone experienced the effects of lyme in the cranial nerve that affects the voluntary swallow?
With thanks nick
Posted by CA quest (Member # 6827) on :
Nick,
One of the members of our support group had difficulty swallowing due to involvement on one side of her tongue or whatever. That did go away with treatment. It seems reasonable that almost any nerve(s) could be affected by Lyme.
Quest
Posted by nan (Member # 63) on :
Hello Nick,
Ah, yes! Before being diagnosed with lyme, I had a lot of trouble swallowing. When I ate anything I could not get it to go down and would choke frequently.
I learned the trick of putting both arms straight up over your head to help the food get down. Bb loves those cranial nerves.
Very happy when some abx made it go away!
Posted by Trillian (Member # 6857) on :
I've had trouble with swallowing- talking, too. Sometimes because my tongue/roof of mouth is numb, sometimes cause my brain is numb. Looking forward to the day it goes away.
Posted by Beverly (Member # 1271) on :
Hi Nick,
Yes, I have had this symptom on and off..it's a real bummer.
It has gotten better for me..hope it gets better for you too.
Posted by nickname-uk (Member # 5928) on :
Thanks everyone for replying. It sure is the most terrifying thing I have ever experienced. When I go to swallow, for the majority of the time, there is a complete absence of the movement, and I have to manually trigger the swallow reflex.
I have been referred back to my lyme doc, so I hope that he will have some answers.
I'll let you know what happens.
best wishes nick
Posted by ontariojane (Member # 6526) on :
Nick I often have trouble swallowing, particularly after I take supplements. In my cases it passes after about a half an hour. It is something new I have noticed since being on rocephin so I'm assuming the Lyme in my throat and tongue muscle area is getting whacked. I sure hope that's what's going on. I will read with interest what your LLMD has to say about it. I do a lot of deep breathing when this happens... Ontariojane
Posted by Biting Back (Member # 6018) on :
Hi nick. Scary, huh? I had difficulty swallowing, eating and talking. Even aspirated food/pills several times. Bit my tongue too many times, too. Drooled from the left side of my mouth and had/have bell's palsy affecting mainly the left eye. Not a pretty sight, but it does improve with treatment. Chin up!
Posted by trevor (Member # 4353) on :
I'd look at the herpes family. Did a doc tell you one of the cranial nerves is involved? In any case, herpes is ubiquitous, opportunistic and will cause cranial neuropathies in many cases, as much as, or more than, lyme.
When I had Bell's palsy and my face was half dead rubber, my doc at the time immediately suspected herpes. I was put on ganciclovir and it resolved in two months. Very quickly by comparison.
Ganciclovir is dangerous at high doses, mutagenic, can cause a drop in neutrophil counts, etc., but it's extraordinarily effective against the whole herpes family.
