posted
I haven't been on the board for quite a while. I went off abx in 2009 and was doing okay...not great but living life the best I could. I am still dealing with the daily fatigue and nerve pain in my calf and foot. About 6 weeks ago my voice suddenly became hoarse. I hadn't been sick (haven't had a cold in about 4 years). Finally after 2 weeks I went to the doctor who did an ultrasound thinking it could be my thyroid. It wasn't...so he sent me to an ENT who looked at my vocal cords and found my right one to be totally paralyzed. I was then sent for a CT scan which was totally clear. The doctor has no clue why this has happened and now I am still very hoarse. So my question is..could the Lyme have done this after all this time (2004 became sick)? I have read alot of causes online and viral cause is the most common. I am wondering if the Lyme had attacked the nerves in my leg which is still a symptom for me could it have attacked my vocal cord? The doctor says there is no way of knowing when it might resolve and I might end up having to go to voice therapy. I work in retail and it is difficult trying to communicate to the customers. Anyone have any ideas? Thanks....
Posts: 343 | From North Carolina | Registered: Oct 2008
| IP: Logged |
RDaywillcome
Frequent Contributor (1K+ posts)
Member # 21454
poppy
Frequent Contributor (1K+ posts)
Member # 5355
posted
I can't say for sure yours is caused by lyme disease, but lyme is a neurological disease and vocal cords need functioning nerves to operate correctly.
My voice is very unreliable, and mine is definitely caused by lyme.
Posts: 2888 | From USA | Registered: Mar 2004
| IP: Logged |
posted
I am seeing my Lyme doctor next week and will talk it over with him...I am pretty sure there will be no definative answer on what caused this in me. I have had so many strange symptoms over the years....
Thanks for the info on vocal cord paralysis. Since mine wasn't caused by trauma or tumor etc...I will probably never really know. I do also have trouble breathing if I am walking fast and I do have difficulty swallowing liquids at times.
Posts: 343 | From North Carolina | Registered: Oct 2008
| IP: Logged |
17hens
Frequent Contributor (1K+ posts)
Member # 23747
posted
All throat stuff (choking, snoring, swallowing problems, clicking sounds when swallowing, etc) were all babesia for me.
-------------------- "My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever." Psalms 73:26
bit 4/09, diagnosed 1/10 Posts: 3043 | From PA | Registered: Dec 2009
| IP: Logged |
W/out getting into too many details, here, my vocal cord issues were some of the first that plagued me when my Lyme/tbd reignited in 2008 (my first real problems began in late '03).
The long and short of it is this: After a visit to a renowned clinic in MA where I saw an ENT and underwent a full voice assessment, I was diagnosed with a number of throat issues. These included: laryngopharyngeal reflux (for which I still have to take PPI drugs for), and several vocal cord issues (i.e. vocal hyperfunction, edema of the vocal cords, stiffness of the vocal cords, varices- broken blood vessels- of the vocal cords, hoarsenss, breathiness, etc., etc., etc. I was made to endure voice therapy and it was nothing short of brutal. This therapy happened to occur long before I received a correct Lyme/tbd diagnosis...so of course, the therapy only aggravated the pain. I would tell the staff this (that the therapy only made the situation worse), and yet they were at a loss for an explanation. Their only solution was to have me continue with the therapy. After months of this form of treatment, however, I had to discontinue it.
Out of all of my intense symptoms from Lyme/tbd (and I assure you that there are many- for instance, the diseases affected my heart and I am now on a beta blocker regimen), the vocal cord pain is only SECOND to the intense migraine pain that I've experienced. And we're talking migraines that would set in for weeks at a time. Migraines so potent, that they don't always respond to migraine Rx medicines.
At its worst, the vocal cord pain felt as if someone was kicking me directly in the throat...while wearing a steel-toe boot! Simply searing, totally unbearable and unthinkable pain. Issues with swallowing and breathing were prevalent as well.
So- to answer your question...yes, Lyme and other tbd can affect one's vocal cords. I have come across two different internet articles that cite this particular symptom in some patients. Supposedly, the singer R. Travis had a suspected case of Lyme disease, and it was the disease that severely impacted his singing voice/vocal cords (during his time of illness).
If you have any more questions about this kim812, please privately send me a message. I see that you are in NH...and I'd hate for you to have to go through what I did here in MA.
Best to you!
Posts: 315 | From Negative (-) to positive (+) | Registered: Nov 2011
| IP: Logged |
RDaywillcome
Frequent Contributor (1K+ posts)
Member # 21454
posted
I had a bout of hoarseness for four months straight and saw an E.N.t., and she sent me for testing and they told me that my vocal cords weren't vibrating.
I'm thinking not vibrating and paralysis might be the same. It eventually went away. I don't know for sure if it was due to Lyme disease but I wouldn't be surprised if it was.
A few years before that, I did have trouble swallowing and that got better with treatment.
Posts: 1738 | From over the rainbow | Registered: Jul 2009
| IP: Logged |
posted
paralysis of the vocal cords is the same as not vibrating. I thankfully only have one side that is not working. If it were both sides I would be having much more difficulty with breathing and swallowing. I had the CT scan done because they wanted to make sure there wasn't some sort of tumor pressing on the vagas(I think) nerve which is the nerve that runs from the brain down to the top of the lungs. It will be interesting to hear what my lyme doc has to say about all this....
Posts: 343 | From North Carolina | Registered: Oct 2008
| IP: Logged |
posted
Yes- to add on to my last post and the last in sequence... I might add that one of the formal dx of my vocal cords was "stiffness- left side greater than right." These things that we talk about are in fact all variations of the same.
And the vegas nerve connection is huge. My arrythmias in my heart are actually due to my under-reactive vegas nerve. The cardiologist was able to detect this through my 30-day heart monitoring activity. The under-reactivity of my vegas nerve throws off my heart's rhythm. My heart has a hard time "slowing down" from any physical process/activity if you will. It's a real mess.
I've heard that the vegas nerve can also have implications down into one's gut...and one individual I know, swears that the rocking sensation (or heart beat feeling in her gut) is the result of this interrupted vegas nerve. Lyme and other tbd's apparently love the cranial nerves...
Posts: 315 | From Negative (-) to positive (+) | Registered: Nov 2011
| IP: Logged |
posted
wow...such interesting information. The official diagnosis I received was- unilateral complete paralysis right vocal cord.
I guess I am glad they did the CT scan on my head and neck with contrast. I received the report from my doctor and it says on the bottom right vocal cord paralysis of unknown etiology.
Posts: 343 | From North Carolina | Registered: Oct 2008
| IP: Logged |
posted
For a long time during treatment my voice would change. I would have a pretty nasty herx every afternoon or evening and my voice went from normal to a little higher... kind of hard to describe. I went from sounding like me to sounding like someone else.
-------------------- Ticks suck. Posts: 140 | From Alabama | Registered: Aug 2009
| IP: Logged |
posted
You might consult an acupuncturist to see if they think they can help.
The acupuncturist I go to is treating someone now for vocal cord paralysis. Seems to be getting a little better.
Posts: 51 | From Boston, Ma. | Registered: May 2009
| IP: Logged |
The Lyme Disease Network is a non-profit organization funded by individual donations. If you would like to support the Network and the LymeNet system of Web services, please send your donations to:
The
Lyme Disease Network of New Jersey 907 Pebble Creek Court,
Pennington,
NJ08534USA http://www.lymenet.org/
UBBFriend: Email this page to someone!
Printer-friendly view of this topic