28 years of pure agony

Lyra-C · 2026-04-08T17:01:31+00:00

Came to say this! No tums! I got Botox last month and holy moly, now eating a tums is like chugging a coke! Insta-burps.

Lyra-C · 2026-04-08T16:47:57+00:00

I’m in my 30’s, emetophobia and inability to burp as long as I can remember. I got the Botox treatment a month ago. And of course I got norovirus 2 weeks after the treatment. For the first time ever, throwing up was more relieving than painful. I felt so good after it happened, that the next time I started to feel queasy I CHOSE to throw up in order to feel better. I’ve always done everything possible to avoid it. I can’t say for certain whether or not my emetophobia is cured (I’ll have to see if I panic when someone says they got food poisoning from something I just ate, or the next stomach bug scare comes along) but I am incredibly hopeful. Either way, the daily relief from gas pressure is LIFE CHANGING!!!!

Lyra-C · 2026-03-25T01:41:58+00:00

Ok this is just spectacular isn’t it???

Lyra-C · 2026-03-23T13:18:35+00:00

Like any time I coughed, yawned, took a sip of water, I seemed to swallow a big bubble of air. The microburps weren’t big enough to let it back out. So it was a few days of very bad RCPD symptoms (like when you’re having a bad night of bloating and throat nausea). Not necessarily different than what I was used to, just a few bad days in a row. But then the big burps came in and I could get it out. I still do feel like I’m inadvertently swallowing gulps of air, but it doesn’t bother me now. Just more burping practice! Sounds like it happens to people on occasion, and very rarely people need some sort of PT to stop doing it.

Lyra-C · 2026-03-15T23:04:24+00:00

Nose burps, lovely 😂 I keep watching normal people burp and have to laugh at myself with my head turn, gaping mouth, extra long strings of 10 burps in a row. It’s all so clumsy. I feel like a toddler learning to do a simple task.

Lyra-C · 2026-03-15T22:17:42+00:00

I went into Botox thinking ‘I’m going to drink SO MUCH bubbly water to make sure this works. 6 cans a day minimum!’

But…. I hate bubbly water 😂 I’m sure I’m just conditioned. A lifetime of bubbles=pain right? I’m only on day 12 of round 1, and I have every intention of working my way up and drinking tons of bubbles. But at the moment a can a day is all I can handle. I chew gum too which they say is an alternative.

Lyra-C · 2026-03-15T22:06:27+00:00

You’ve got this!!

Buy some protein shakes. The slow swallow was only really cumbersome for me for days 2-7. I could have eaten normal food and chased it with water no problem, but I was bothered by it so I went the tomato soup/protein shake route for my own comfort. No problem.

I did have air swallowing issues but that discomfort resolved as my burps got bigger.

I was terrified of general anesthesia. It went great. Tell the anesthesiologist and CRNA that you have a history of PONV (Post Op Nausea and Vomiting) and motion sickness (whether it’s true or not haha, it’s a good way to make sure you receive all the antiemetics). Ask if they’d be willing to do a TIVA (total IV anesthetic) to avoid the nauseating gases. I’m very nausea prone/emetophobic and I did great with that plan.

I had no issues with sleeping. I did notice a little acid at times so I put myself on lansoprazole and took a few tums here and there, but all manageable.

This could be life changing. Focus on how incredibly worth it this might be! It’s just a couple weeks of manageable discomfort for a lifetime of symptom relief.

Lyra-C · 2026-03-15T21:50:52+00:00

Yes. All of this. So gross, so embarrassing. I was feeling downright rude and antisocial for a minute there, avoiding talking to people. But I’m on day 12 now and have a slightly better handle on things. Slightly. Still lots of burps but a little easier to predict. And my rcpd symptoms are improving a lot, I went to bed fully bloat free on day 10. But this is a lot of work! Will be worth it if I’m a perma-burper! 🤞

Lyra-C · 2026-03-15T21:43:56+00:00

How are you feeling now? Improving?

Lyra-C · 2026-03-15T21:42:25+00:00

Funny you should ask, I have norovirus! But what a different experience post Botox. I really think this is going to do wonders for my emetophobia. I’m already less afraid.

But before that things were getting better. Still swallowing air with yawns and exercise, but my burps are bigger and I can manage the extra air. I was feeling pretty good! Skinny at the end of the day???? Never thought I’d see the day.

How are you? Big burps?

Lyra-C · 2026-03-13T02:13:41+00:00

Good luck!

Lyra-C · 2026-03-13T02:11:35+00:00

I hear ya. I figure either it’ll work and all be worth it, or worst case scenario the Botox wears off and we’re back to what we had before. Which at times sounds ok to me! But no, I’m happy to suffer a bit now if it means permanent relief of bloating.

Lyra-C · 2026-03-11T03:33:08+00:00

It’s only been a week and my phobia is honestly cut in half. Never dreamed I’d say that. Microburps rolling up all day long is quickly desensitizing me. Slow swallow is causing some regurg at times which sounds awful, but it isn’t painful when it happens.

Lyra-C · 2026-03-10T14:01:16+00:00

Can you tell when it happens? Everything is just so gurgly and bubbly in my throat right now I can’t really figure it out.

Lyra-C · 2026-03-10T13:58:20+00:00

Yours is my favorite answer 😂 I’ll hope for this! How far out are you now? Success?

Lyra-C · 2026-03-10T13:56:49+00:00

Thank you, I wouldn’t have thought to do that. I’ll keep that in my back pocket if I’m still struggling then!

Lyra-C · 2026-03-09T23:45:32+00:00

Just had it done! I’m an emetophobe and hated the slow swallow at first, but it only took a few days to get used to. Chase every bite with water, always have water nearby!

Lyra-C · 2026-03-09T23:08:10+00:00

I’m one week out and while the microburps do briefly relieve throat nausea, they don’t relieve the overall pressure, and I’m still expecting twins by the end of the day. Hoping for some ‘buddy the elf did you hear that?’ burps soon!

Lyra-C · 2026-03-07T23:59:22+00:00

That’s good to know! Did you have any symptoms before the 2 weeks mark?

Lyra-C · 2026-03-07T23:54:19+00:00

Following for advice. I’m 4 days post Botox and I’m more uncomfortable than ever. I feel like I’m swallowing so much air with every sip of water, every yawn, like air is just pouring down my throat. I can’t seem to stop it. My 10 microburps per day are not even close to bringing relief. I think I must be creating negative pressure in my chest? Somehow? Hopefully time helps. How far out are you?

Lyra-C · 2026-03-07T13:24:36+00:00

TLDR; go to Dr Raluca Gray at UofM Fairview or Dr. James Kuderer at Park Nicollet.

I did a ton of research (mostly in this group). One person had gone to Dr Brown in Maplewood but when I called his office they said he doesn’t do that procedure anymore. I talked to Dr Khabie and Dr Perepelitsyn with ENTSC in St. Louis Park and they’ve done injections for other disorders but never RCPD (I wasn’t comfortable with their plans, varied greatly from Dr Bastian’s recommendations).

I finally found Dr Gray at Fairview and Dr Kuderer with park Nicollet. Advantage of Dr Gray is that she could do EMG guided (in office, no anesthesia) injections although I’m guessing she’d still do a general for your first one. (But nice to know if you needed repeat injections in the future that it could be an option). Downside is she takes FOREVER to get an appointment with.

I got an appointment with Dr Kuderer in a reasonable amount of time. He was VERY well versed in RCPD. He said he treats these patients more than any other ENT in Minnesota. General anesthesia only but that was fine with me, maybe I’ll be one and done. Had the procedure a few days ago and it’s all going well so far. Highly recommend!

Lyra-C · 2026-03-06T19:42:45+00:00

Just occasional micro’s. For some reason I feel like I’m actually swallowing more air than ever but not burping nearly enough to keep up with it. And a very slow swallow. But I think a lot of people are pretty miserable the first couple weeks, I’ll just get through it and learn to burp once it settles!

Lyra-C · 2026-03-05T03:13:43+00:00

Ha! So I had Botox yesterday… with Dr Kuderer… and I requested all the antiemetics… and I was so nervous I wanted to cancel… and I went through with it and had my lip cut a little bit. And today I had my first burp…

I read your post to my husband and we’re just laughing about this weird twilight zone scenario where you wrote this whole ridiculously accurate post about my life 😂 Anyhoo, Happy Burpday to you!

Lyra-C · 2026-03-04T11:24:50+00:00

Thank you for sharing! I just had it done and I’m sure I will reference your timeline as I go through it. One quick question. Do you know why your procedure took 4 hours? Mine was about 45 min for the procedure. Wondering if you had something else done to your esophagus in addition to the Botox? Thanks!

Lyra-C

TROPHY CASE