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HEALTH HELL
I vomit 60 times a day and must eat standing up or risk choking to death after being fobbed off with acid reflux pills
Elise says the pain it causes "literally feels like having a heart attack"
A WOMAN must stand up while eating and drinking anything or risk choking to death.
Elise Baynard was diagnosed with achalasia – a rare swallowing condition that affects the oesophagus.
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It has made it “nearly impossible” for the 25-year-old to eat or drink normally, and Elise finds herself regurgitating food or being sick up to 60 times a day.
It began in January 2020, when she suddenly struggled to swallow and felt a tight pressure in her chest.
Her GP suggested it was acid reflux and prescribed her with medication – but the issues with her throat continued to get worse.
She found herself struggling to swallow foods like bread and pasta, and then even liquids started “coming back up”.
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Elise was referred to a gastroenterologist – a specialist in the digestive system – in 2021 for further testing.
She felt “fobbed off” for years as her condition deteriorated, until she was finally referred to a doctor in London who diagnosed her in November 2024.
Elise, who used to weight 9st, still has a very limited diet - mainly consuming cereal soaked in milk and crisps - and as a result, she has dropped to 6st 10lb in weight.
She is hoping a specialist surgery called peroral endoscopic myotomy (POEM) - which widens the lower oesophagus - will help her eat normally again, but she faces a “long wait” for a referral.
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Elise, a health care worker, from Dover, Kent, said: “The condition struck me completely out of the blue - I never had any problems with swallowing before.
“I have good and bad days, but I never know which it will be.
I'm allergic to almost everything and can only eat FIVE foods - but shopping only takes three minutes
“I can’t sit down when I eat, I have to stand up, so the food actually goes down.
“One side effect is an oesophageal spasm – pain in my jaw, neck and back - which literally feels like having a heart attack.
“Some days I’m left sobbing on the floor in pain.
“It’s not a death sentence, but it’s no way to live.”
Elise had just moved into her new flat in Dover in January 2020 when her health issues began.
At first, she felt a tight pressure in her chest and struggled to swallow food or to burp.
Her GP suggested it was acid reflux, but medication wasn’t helping so she was eventually sent for an endoscopy – a camera down her throat.
When the results came back normal in January 2021, Elise was referred to a specialist but felt "let down" by a lack of communication.
I'm desperate. It’s always on my mind and I’m developing a fear of eating
Elise Baynard
“I never met the specialist in person, it was all over the phone,” she said.
“All the while, my condition kept getting worse.
“There were fewer foods I could eat - I was vomiting food daily.
“I still can't eat things like bread or pasta because it gets stuck, and I end up regurgitating it.
“One day, I was sick about 63 times. Then it was liquids I couldn’t swallow.
“I’d wake up in the night for water and it would come straight back up.
“I was rapidly losing weight and developing a fear of eating.”
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After going and back and forth with the doctor, Elise was referred to a different specialist in London in November 2024.
The doctor “immediately” recognised her symptoms as achalasia.
They performed a manometry test to confirm the diagnosis - which involved examining the muscle movement in the throat.
In people with the condition, the oesophagus muscles do not contract properly and do not help food go down towards the stomach.
Elise said: “There is no activity in my throat – it’s basically broken.
“They don't know why it developed. It could have been genetic or stress, or a dormant virus - there's no way of really knowing.
“It was good to finally have a diagnosis.”
What is achalasia?
ACHALASIA is a disorder of the food pipe, also known as the oesophagus.
Normally, the muscles of the oesophagus contract to squeeze food along towards the stomach.
A ring of muscle at the end of the food pipe then relaxes to let food into the stomach.
But in people with achalasia, the muscles in the oesophagus do not contract correctly and the ring of muscle can fail to open properly, or not open at all.
Food and drink therefore cannot pass into the stomach and becomes stuck. It is often brought back up.
This can make it incredibly difficult to eat or drink. Swallowing then gets more painful over several years, to the point that it is sometimes impossible.
Not everyone with the condition experiences other symptoms. But those who do often notice:
- Bringing back up undigested food
- Choking and coughing fits
- Heartburn
- Chest pain
- Repeated chest infections
- Drooling of vomit or saliva
- Gradual but significant weight loss
The exact cause of achalasia is unknown, and there is no cure. But treatment, such as medicines, stretching, Botox and surgery, can help relieve the symptoms and make swallowing easier.
Source: NHS
Elsie has done lots of research and believes her best chance at eating "normally" again is undergoing a POEM procedure.
It involves cutting away muscle along the lining of the lower oesophagus - widening the space for food to pass into the stomach.
Without it, Elise fears she won't be able to live a "normal" life.
Life-changing impact
She said: “I have to wait for my specialist to refer me for the procedure.
“But it took years to get a diagnosis - I don't know how long this will take.
“I'm desperate. It’s always on my mind and I’m developing a fear of eating.
“It affects every part of my life. I can’t go out for food and drinks with friends in case I’m sick, or I have to make sure I’m always near a bathroom.
“There is very little I can eat, and I stick to very soft snack foods, like milky cereal or crisps.
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“I really want to shine a light on this condition because it's hard to diagnose.
"Also, hopefully it'll push the doctors to act more quickly.”
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