why does air get stuck in my throat?

It's blowing in there and getting stuck in the front of my throat so I have to burp it out of there. Plus there is a ton of air getting in my stomach. I like the 10 pressure much more than 8 or 9. I feel I sleep a lot better because it blows my throat open so nicely. But I wake up three or four times a night with a huge belching of air out of my stomach.

nobody wrote:It's blowing in there and getting stuck in the front of my throat so I have to burp it out of there. Plus there is a ton of air getting in my stomach. I like the 10 pressure much more than 8 or 9. I feel I sleep a lot better because it blows my throat open so nicely. But I wake up three or four times a night with a huge belching of air out of my stomach.

Aerophagia. If you haven't seen or read the gazillions of posts/threads about it, you can go to the Search line and put in that word.

Den

Yeah I know I've seen them but didn't see anyone mention it seeming to be stuck in the throat. It seems a bit weird.

nobody wrote:Yeah I know I've seen them but didn't see anyone mention it seeming to be stuck in the throat. It seems a bit weird.

That part is something I haven't read before, but if you think about it, it does sound possible/logical......air gets partway there and doesn't get all the way into the stomach at that moment......stopped somewhere in the esophagus/trachea area.


Den

Happens to me all the time, but not related to my CPAP, since I've had the problem for years. Always when I'm laying down, I think it happens when my throat relaxes enough to swallow air instead of breathing it. Have to sit up and "work it" for awhile to get rid of the air...and now that I think about it, it has not been as bad for me since I've been on CPAP...huh.

Sorry, the following sentence, correctly quoted by LoQ in the next post is wrong - which is why I am making the font small. As LoQ pointed out, I had it backwards.You esophagus (tube leading to your stomach, reddish in the picture) is physically in front of the trachea (tube leading to your lungs, grayish in the picture). What you are feeling is a result of the aerophagia - air swallowing.

Correct description:
The trachea (grayish in the picture) is physically in front of the esophagus (reddish in the picture).

Could it be getting stuck by the thyroid cartilage then? It seems to be stuck in that part of my throat.

ozij wrote:You esophagus (tube leading to your stomach, reddish in the picture) is physically in front of the trachea (tube leading to your lungs, grayihs in the picture).

You've got it backwards. The trachea, also known informally as the windpipe, is in front of the esophagus.

nobody wrote:Could it be getting stuck by the thyroid cartilage then? It seems to be stuck in that part of my throat.

Do you have difficulty swallowing food? Some people tend to get a stricture in their esophagus.

LoQ is right, I have got it backwards.

O.

what is a stricture? yes i do have difficulty swallowing and it feels like there's some lump in my throat all the time. I've just got used to it.

nobody wrote:what is a stricture? yes i do have difficulty swallowing and it feels like there's some lump in my throat all the time. I've just got used to it.

A stricture is a narrowing. You should check with a doctor to see if your esophagus needs to be stretched. That would help you to swallow more easily, and may relieve the air problem, as well.

Furthermore, difficulty in swallowing should never be ignored, even if you think it is because of an esophageal stricture. You need to see a doctor about this potentially serious problem. You need to get a diagnosis on this one, not help from a forum of non-professionals.

Have you been checked for thyroid issues? This was one of the symptoms for me of Hashiomoto's Thyroiditis, an autoimmune issue with the thyroid that causes inflammation and swelling. My doctor treated by using thyroid hormone to the point of suppression of the thyroid production. In a very short time, the swelling and trouble swallowing was gone.

LoQ wrote:

nobody wrote:what is a stricture? yes i do have difficulty swallowing and it feels like there's some lump in my throat all the time. I've just got used to it.

A stricture is a narrowing. You should check with a doctor to see if your esophagus needs to be stretched. That would help you to swallow more easily, and may relieve the air problem, as well.

Furthermore, difficulty in swallowing should never be ignored, even if you think it is because of an esophageal stricture. You need to see a doctor about this potentially serious problem. You need to get a diagnosis on this one, not help from a forum of non-professionals.

Added emphasis mine.

O.

I am certainly not any kind of a doctor, so take this info for what it is worth.

I started with that throat tightness and went to see about it. Turned out that I had what is called silent GERD, and it had made the inside of my throat stiff and sore. I swore I never had GERD and that could not be it. However, the ENT doctor put a scope in my nose to look down my throat (totally painless - just sounds bad) and sure enough, GERD it was. In addition, I had nodules in my thyroid. All this checking up with doctors led me to the diagnosis of OSA.

By the way, silent GERD can be present yet have no symptoms like the regular GERD. That is why I did not believe I had it. I wanted to mention it in case you are asked if you have GERD. Mine was caused by sinus drainage that irritated my throat. CPAP keeps my sinuses nice and dry, so no more drainage to cause problems. Another great benefit!