From: daly@areaplg2.corp.mot.com (Sean Daly)
Subject: Hiatal Hernia?
Reply-To: daly@areaplg2.corp.mot.com (Sean Daly)
Organization: Motorola, CCR&D, CORP, Schaumburg, IL
Distribution: usa
Date: Tue, 18 Aug 1992 19:25:02 GMT



Three years ago, I started suffering from what
I called "really bad heartburn" . Just recently
on the net I heard references to hyperacidity and
chest pain, angina, etc. I had had no previous
experience with gastro-intestinal disorders, so I
had no idea I had a problem. It got worse during
times of stress, however.(Specifically, final exams)
I would wake up in the night with acid in my throat.
I think this is referred to as "acid reflux". I was
afraid I had an ulcer, so I went to University Health
Care Center. There, I was given an Upper G.I. and the
doctors found nothing. They complained, however, that
the barium was not being digested or otherwise travelling
to the area  they wanted to X-ray. I told them about the
reflux, and burning in the chest. They decided I was under
stress, and that I should see a counselor. I saw the
counselor, and she told me that I was "eating myself up
on the inside." I believed her because I was stressed out
about finals, but the situation continued after finals,
when I was under very little stress since it was summer
vacation. The doctors had prescribed a non-refillable
bottle of Zantac to get me through finals. When those
ran out, and my condition persisted, I took Tums. About
a year later, when it was obvious something was still wrong,
I researched my symptoms, and decided I might have a hiatal
hernia, accounting for the acid reflux. At the same time, I
was also getting chest pains, which could also be attributed
to a hiatal hernia. I followed the recommendations of the text
I had been reading, and the symptoms disappeared. However,
certain chest pains persisted, making me nervous(i.e. heart
attack?) When final exams approached again, I foolishly returned
to my old habits of all-nighters with caffeine and no food.
After one such night, I had a strange thing happen in class the
next day. My heart started racing all of a sudden and then just
as suddenly returned to normal. I panicked and started sweating,
almost passing out. I left class and went to the Clinic. They
thought I might have a myocardia tachacardia, but they couldn't
be sure unless they caught it on film, so to speak. They X-rayed
my lungs, and the doctor asked me if I was a heavy smoker, which
made me wonder, since I've never smoked in my life. When I asked
him why he asked, he said he was just curious, or something equally
ambiguous. I took his advice, and totally eliminated caffeine and
all-nighters. That summer, I came down with pneumonia, however,
and 2/3 of my lungs was filled with water. Just prior to this
pneumonia, I'd started having trouble swallowing food. I'd swallow
it, but it wouldn't go down. I'd get a pain in my chest(in the
esophagus?) where I assume the food got stuck. It was very painful,
but usually curable with a tall glass of water. The pneumonia took
a lot out of me, though, and this swallowing problem got worse.
Now, I've had rare occasions where the food didn't go down at all,
and became so painful that involuntary hiccoughing has brought the
food back up, sometimes nearly choking me. Drinking water sometimes
forces it down, but I actually risk drowning myself in these
situations. Last summer, I thought I had pneumonia again. When I
suggested this to the doctor, she decided it was pneumonia with
mycoplasma(particles in my lungs). Both cases were "walking"
pneumonia and didn't last long, but I still have chest pains in
my upper chest(sometimes sharp, curable by burping)(sometimes
occuring only with a deep breath, feels like a broken rib, goes
away with time). All of these pains are bearable, and I have
learned to chew my food ad nauseum to avoid problems there(since
hiatal hernia is incurable), but I have recently experienced a 
new problem: after 1 or 2 beers, or after drinking a lot of any
fluid, I can feel the (epiglottis?) touching my tongue in the
back of my mouth, which prompts me to swallow several times,
uselessly(this also disappears with time). I have decided that
all of this is way too much to be going wrong at 21 years old,
bu I haven't got a clue as to what the cause(s) might be. Is
it my lungs? my heart? my digestive system? What kind of doctor
should I see? I'm in college, so I don't have the kind of money
it would take to see all three types of doctors. I also doubt
the results of their tests, since the Upper G.I. failed to find
what I'm convinced is a hiatal hernia. If anybody has any idea
what all these symptoms might indicate, please post or e-mail.
If you e-mail, I can give you more gory details. As I said, this
is livable, but it seems to be getting worse, so eventually I do
plan to see a doctor.
				Thanks in advance.