Medical Term Called Achalasia

[MawMaw]

Is anyone familiar with a medical term called "Achalasia"? I have recently been diagnosed with the condition.

For a good while now I have had some trouble with swallowing food. It does not happen every time I eat, but every now and then it will feel as though the food I try to swallow will stop and not go any further, causing some pain and causing me to have to "regurgitate". Usually after doing that, I'm okay for a while until it happens again.

My family doctor sent me to have a "barrium swallow" test done and the diagnosis was Achalasia.

Here is the medical definition.......

What is achalasia?

Achalasia is a rare disease of the muscle of the esophagus (swallowing tube). The term achalasia means "failure to relax" and refers to the inability of the lower esophageal sphincter (a ring of muscle between the lower esophagus and the stomach) to open and let food pass into the stomach. As a result, patients with achalasia have difficulty swallowing food.

The remedy he said most often used is some sort of dilation with a balloon. Didn't sound like something I want to try at this time since I'm not being bothered with it all the time. So the doctor suggested I take Prilosec once a day for now.

Anyway, I was just curious to know if any of you have experienced anything like this or know of someone who has. It evidently can be pretty serious to the point of a person not being able to swallow anything.

I'll appreciate any input you may have.