The 2-Step Anxiety Cure to Choking Sensations / Lump in Your Throat

One of the most common symptoms of anxiety is the sensation that you’re choking or you have this big lump in your throat. This can be very alarming because it can feel like you're actually choking or that you’re having trouble swallowing. I’m going to explain why this sensation is harmless, and then give you a two-step process that will allow you to get rid of it, so you never have to worry about it again.

The feeling of choking or not being able to swallow is, of course, not a good feeling. It can feel as though there’s actually something stuck in your throat, and you might find that you are constantly touching your throat to see if there is some sort of bulge or lump there. There are three big issues that this sensation creates: 

1. You can become constantly worried about this sensation and be afraid that you might actually suffocate or choke.  
   
   
2. You start to believe that there is something physically wrong with you, like you might have a tumor, cancer, or some type of abnormality in your throat.
   
   
3. You might start to avoid eating at times when your throat feels tight because you’re afraid you won’t be able to swallow and you’ll choke on your food.  

The reason you are experiencing this sensation is because, when you’re suffering from anxiety, or you are in an anxious state, various muscles in your body, including those in the throat, can involuntarily contract or tense up. This creates the feeling as if there’s a lump or tightness in the throat. But here’s the important part: this sensation does NOT actually affect your ability to breathe or swallow. It simply doesn’t, and that has been proven over-and-over by doctors with various tests.  

But this sensation is so unusual that by the time someone comes to me to talk about it, they’ve typically already had their doctor examine their throat. If you haven’t done this yet, I highly recommend that you do. Doctors are great at doing these types of exams. They can feel around your neck and take a look down your throat. And almost invariably, they tell you right then and there that nothing wrong with you. There’s no tumor, no abnormality, nothing. This is an important step because it gives you reassurance that you are perfectly fine and allows you to accept that this sensation is nothing more than a physical manifestation of anxiety. 

For me, personally, when I suffered from anxiety, I’d have periods each day where my throat felt tight and it felt harder to breathe and swallow. And when this happened, I would avoid eating, or I’d only eat small things that were easy to chew and swallow.  

But I didn’t need to do that, because I was not in any actual danger of choking and neither are you. Instead, by being afraid and worrying about it, I was actually making it worse. That’s because all these worries I was having about the tightness in my throat were making me more anxious, and that was causing my throat muscles to tense up even more and for longer periods. This was the exact opposite of what I wanted - I wanted this sensation to go away, but here I was making it even more pronounced. You are doing the same thing. By anxiously worrying about the lump in your throat, you are making the sensation even worse. 

Here’s the good news, though. There is a way to get rid of your fear of this sensation so that it will go away and you won’t have to deal with it anymore. What you are going to do is implement Step 4 of the Fearless Approach, which is called Encourage Anxiety, and you are going to attempt to make the choking or lump in your throat even worse. Yes, you’re going to try to increase the intensity of the sensation. 

To do that, I want you to repeat: “Great! Make that lump in my throat even bigger!” Alternatively, you can even get upset with it and say, “The heck with this - go ahead and make me choke! Give me all you got!” I want you to say the response out loud, if possible, and also hop up and down a bit while you're saying it. 

After you repeat the response a few times, and this is important, you must focus on an engaging task or activity. Talk to a friend on the phone, go run an errand - do whatever, but don’t sit there and keep thinking about the tightness in your throat. Now, your brain will occasionally drift back to worrying about that lump in your throat, and that’s ok. When that happens, just remind yourself that the sensation you're feeling is harmless and redirect your focus back to the activity you're doing.  

Alright, I know this whole thing sounds very counterintuitive. But what you're going to find is that by encouraging the lump in your throat to get worse, it gets you out of a fearful state and back into a position of control. Because when you tell your brain that you want more, that sends a clear signal to your brain that there’s no real danger, and that there’s no reason to be afraid of these sensations. So, it may not make the choking sensation suddenly stop, but it is going to make it gradually go away as you lose your fear of it.  

Also, for those of you who avoid eating when you have that lump in your throat, here’s what I want you to do. First, do what we just talked about and Encourage the lump in your throat to get worse. Then, I want you to grab something to eat such as a piece of fruit or a snack and take small bites. With some repetition, you will quickly prove to your brain that you can swallow normally and there is nothing to be afraid of.  

To learn more about the Fearless Approach and how to overcome ALL the symptoms of anxiety, make sure you download the free 5-Step Cure to Anxiety and Panic Attacks in the link below. It is the proven step-by-step guide to overcoming anxiety and I’m giving it away absolutely free. 

https://www.fearlessanxiety.com/5-Step-Cure-to-Anxiety-and-Panic-Attacks