A swollen uvula
The first sign that I may have inherited my dad's random and infrequent but very strong allergic reactions: my gigantic uvula.
I remember when I was a kid that my dad's lip would swell up on occasion to four or five times its original size, for no discernible reason.
In my case, after a rather tasty but for me exotic meal at Tomodachi's Sushi Bistro, I began to get that "my throat hurts a little and a cold might be coming on" sensation. Thinking it was nothing, I took a sucret and happily went off to sleep. But at 5:30 this morning, the pain of swallowing must have woken me from my slumber. That and feeling like my airway must be something like 95% obscured. I took a peek in the bathroom mirror to discover that my uvula has really come into its own and is vying with my tongue for the largest thing in Darron's mouth award (no vulgar comments, please). I mean, if my uvula was in the Tour de France, Greg LeMond would accuse it of using steroids. If my uvula was a baseball player, it would be mentioned along with Barry Bonds. My once normal and rather inconspicuous uvula has become a hulking monster. A bohemoth, if you will.
Perusing the web for explanations, I found there are a lot of people doing searches for "swollen uvula." The most common testimonials attribute it to the excessive consumption of alcohol (of which I am innocent), dehydration (I'm no more dehydrated than normal), bacterial or viral infections, and allergies. Given what I ate last night, I'm inclined to support the latter.
So I'm sitting here trying not to swallow or talk. Each swallow is a major event, requiring the convulsion of my entire body as I grimace in pain, so I understandably try to avoid that. I keep hoping, like most Americans do with their health problems, that it will just go away.
UPDATE 11/2/08: This continues to be my most commented blog! If you came here searching for "swollen uvula," you are certainly not alone. If you want to know the rest of the story, check out the diagnosis and the treatment.
posted by prez @ 7:04 AM
29 Comments
29 Comments:
Howeee cow....did a search on "swollen uvula" and came across your blog. Woke up this morning with the exact same thing. Looked in the mirror 5 min ago and saw exaclty what you described. Not having health insurance, I was also going for the "hope it goes away" method of treatment. That is untill I can no longer take a breath...then I may consider seeking a professional.....
hey I did the same thing ....and found ur blog... now i know what mine is from... drinking too much... it happens when i drink to much thanks for helping me clear that up!
Me too folks. I have no idea why that thing is so big, but like the others, I have no health insurance. I hope this thing shrivels back up fast because I've been choking on it.
Yeah, here's to swollen uvulas...odd, isn't it...to find people searching for the cause of swollen uvula to come to this site...good luck with 2012.
Matti B. from Indiana
I woke up the same way as you so eloquently wrote! It is strange how a person wakes up and there is this large wormlike thing hanging and moving around in your mouth! I wonder what it would be like if it happened while I was awake? I know mine is due to allergies because I my skin is itching too and I don't have fleas lol!
im not alone! doctor sez i have acute pharyngitis or laryngitis or sumthing, but because im allergic to penicillin and many antibiotics, he gave me cefalexin. now my uvula is fukin massive n swallowing is awful! wot do i do? email me akonconstruction@hotmail.co.uk
I got my tonsils cut out and tubes in my ear drums because of ear infections 2 days ago and my uvula is huge all the sudden. i don't think im allergic to anything and i don't drink. i dont know what's going on.
I can't believe that I actually found this blog sight where there are so many sufferers of swollen uvulas. It all started out with a sore throat about two months ago. Tomorrow, I'll be going to the doctor for the 3rd time! My step culture was negative and I don't drink so I have NO idea why all of a sudden my uvula has turned against me. I woke up frantic and was completely convinced that I was choking to death. It was horrible! Hopefully, round three of antibiotics will prove more effective.The antibiotics seem to work for awhile but as soon as they are out of my system my slug-like uvula returns. I don't get it!
Wow,was just surfing the net for swollen Uvula thinking that it's be hard to find something and BAM,here i'am, well yesterday and choked on my food and it was just about to go down my throat and it was piping hot,hence me choking,burnt the roof of my mouth,thought nothing of it,just went to bed,now all day today i've had the sensation that some dead skin was hanging down,so had a look in the mirror and there it was draped over my tongue,all be it,its not massive,but theres a blister on the end,so im guessing that its the effects of the hot food!?!??,its freaked me RIGHT out,ive surfed a few more sites,one told me to drink plenty of water and breathe through my mouth,ther other said to take ibuprofen,which ive also done!,just WELL freaky!
thank god im not dying! Had an all day drinking session and woke up following morning with this feeling something was sticking to the side of my throat. Ah swollen uluva from exessive drinking ! Off to gargle with warm salt water.
For everyone viewing this blog!
There is no need to immediately rush to the doctor due to a swollen uvula. Uvula's commonly swell due to the mucuous membrane around the uvula. Your mouth has a million bacteria in it, the most common being streptococcus. In any instance for example you eat a potato chip and on the way down, it barely knicks your uvula causing a microscopic cut, the streptoccus can invade the uvula at that location causing disease. Your body fights off the infetion by secreting anti bodies and mucous to keep the infection in that spot. All you need to do is gargle with salt water and/or Hydrogen Peroxide mixed with water in a 1:1 ratio. This will cleanse the area and fight off the bacteria. Do this periodically and drink plenty of cold water. It should go back to normal later that day. Only go to the doctor if it starts to block your air passage. I see plenty of these cases at the clinic I intern at, and this is all any doctor will ever say to you. - Dr. Chandler
Well here`s to another swollen uvula .I`m in the UK and it`s 4am and i can`t sleep for love nor money .feel like i`m swallowing razor blades .keep choking on it ,it`s driving me insane .Hope it goes away soon .I`m not one for doctors so i hope it just disapears .At least i don`t feel like i`m the only one now .top blog !!
I'm happy I found this blog...had no idea why I woke up at 6 this morning feeling like something was stuck in the back of my mouth. Guess I shouldn't have drinken so much last night. I hope this goes away soon its really annoying.
ya i have had one for the past 3 days i woke up and felt like i was gaging i have been drinking gatorade sucking on halls and gargling sltwater still not gone if it not gone with in a week i might go to my doc
I was looking up swollen uvula for my husband he gets this when he gets really stress out has anyone else have this when they are stress?
For me it was because excessive drinking and smoking. The doctor gave me an antibiotic and some allerigies pills.
I quit smoking 8 months ago and had all of a sudden half pack yesterday night, along with a respectable load of strong liquor.
So stupid !
My husband has suffered from a swollen uvula for a long... time. When ever he is run down his glands swell up including his uvula and it gag's him. It is not because of drinking...he only has the odd beer once in awhile and he drinks a lot of water so it's not dehydration... He is sick a lot of the time with sinus infections, sore throat, swollen glands and respiratory infections. He has asthma which also irritates the condition. My friend told me she was sick all the time, and then she got her tonsils out and that helped a lot. When we go to the doctor I will see what she says maybe he will get them out... maybe that annoying uvula as well.
my second day with a swolen uvula. I have no allergies, don't drink I am as hydrated as usual, kind of worries me. I hope this goes away I have no insurance.
This was a great find. Thanks.
I am now also one of those cats with a secound tounge. I don't think I have ever really added a comment to a blog but I guess it helps if you can't sleep. Everytime I swallow or just plainly breath I feel that "THING" reminding me its still there. I not only drank to much I had the spicy meat too. "braaivleis" as we know it down here in SA.
Right now I am having some "Rehydrate" and I'm thinking about gargling some salt water.
Good luck to everyone still to roam this page. I have another couple of hours to go before my irritation is gone.
Best Think To Remember: STAY CALM
Swollen uvulas can be pretty bad, but only if you let them become that way. Typically, you should use an air humidifier in a room in which you sleep, followed by a round of Tylenol and Ibuprofen for the pain/swelling. Now I don't reccomend NOT swallowing as you elevate your chances of becoming dehydrated. Allergies or not, the body is a mysterious thing. Try eating food items heavily dense with water such as popsicles and soups. If the darn thing persists, then seek medical attention. 9 times out of 10, your insurance provider will cover an emergency such as a choking hazard ;) good luck!
wow this is crazy.. i didnt realize this happens so much...
so my story is about the same... i woke up around 8am today and i felt like i had a rock in my throat! I went to the bathroom and looked down my throat and the thing was HUGE! laying on my tounge.weird how everyone seems to wake up in the middle of the night and realizes it. ive been gaging all day!!
its been like this all day, i had to call off work and everything.
im thinking about the salt water, i hope it goes away i dont have any insurance.
Another swollen dingaling here. I too woke up at 5 a.m. gagging on what I thought to be the largest snot ever to be stuck in my throat. It was hanging by a thread. I couldn't understand why it wouldn't come out....alas, it's my uvula. Now what? I've been suffering from a cold. No drinking or smoking for me.
well basically i looked at all different websites they list everything possible for things wrong with your throat that the doctor might list. Alot of websites believe its from dehydration just like the people going and drinking to much. It also could be the beginning of a cold, so drink lots of water and orange juice, take regular medicine, and let me know how it goes cause this is the first time its ever happen to me and i was scarred not knowing it happens to plenty of other people.
I'm in the same boat with a swollen Uvula. Went to bed with a sore throat and woke up this morning just about choking on it.
In my case it happens when I start getting run down and then smoke alot. I'm a stoner (don't smoke cigarettes) and it seems that it happens when i smoke alot of weed. I get cotton mouth, don't drink as much fluids as I should either. It irritates my throat really bad and then things just compound upon each other and I wake up with a swollen Uvula.
Gargling salt water helps. So does drinking tea. My advice is: gargle warm salt water before bed and get a good 9+ hours of sleep if you can. At the 9 hour mark your body really kicks up its regenerative properties and your throat will feel worlds better in the morning.
I'm glad to have come across this blog. I've had a sore throat for almost two weeks because my sinuses were draining there rather than out my nose. Now today I woke up to painful swallowing and a swollen uvula and soft palate.
Ibuprophen, water, and antibiotics better take care of this!
This happens to me often. For me it is always due to severe snoring. Sometimes its so bad that my uvula gets swallowed and then pops back into place time and again until the swelling subsides. This is somewhat unnerving. Since heavy drinking (of alcohol), stress, a congested nasal airway, or becoming overtired all often increases my snoring, I tend to have the condition more often when they are present. I find that immediately using several popsicles to apply wet coldness directly on the uvula works well. Eating lots of ice cream will also work. Doing this typically reduces swelling immediately (about an hour of contact) by about 50 percent. Then by drinking lots cold liquids (frozen drinks like a slush are best)the rest of the day it further reduces to nearly normal size. If I can then get through the next night or two without severe snoring, it gets back to normal in a day or two. I am not qualified to provide medical advice but for me unless it is making it difficult to breathe this is not an immediate concern unless it happens often or refuses to improve quickly. However, if it just wont improve quickly or if it happens often I would get to a doctor to deal with the cause-- sleep apnia can have serious health risks.
If I thought the swelling was related to something like an alergic reaction or an infection I would seek medical evaluation immediately because anything that could interfere with breathing could obviously cause death quickly. The bottom line is that If you "tied one on" the night before or you were unusually tired it is likely that you snored all night and stressed and dehydrated your uvula which then responded by becoming inflamed and swollen. For that, I recommend cold compresses with popcicles to sooth and reduce swelling.
My father had an operation more than 30 years ago to remove his uvula. it kept swelling and chocking him. All that is left is a little bit.
My brother also gets bouts of swollen uvula when he drinks a lot.
I don't think they ever attributed alcohol to my father's condition but it's likely it was the same.
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