All Choked Up

I had a bad night last night. About an hour after we had gone to bed, I was having this dream that I was underwater, couldn't breathe, was choking, and drowning.

Then it got worse. I realized that I wasn't dreaming, I was choking. I couldn't breathe and felt as if there was fluid in my throat, awful burning fluid.

This has happened three times in the past two weeks. The first time, I figured that I swallowed a bug or something. The second time, I wondered if perhaps I was just breathing differently as Little Man took over more lung space. Last night, I finally figured it out: I am choking on my own stomach acid. Sorry, it's a bit TMI, but there you have it.

It takes about fifteen minutes for me to clear the acid from my vocal chords and lungs and get to breathing normally, but it's a scary fifteen minutes. I have to remind myself that I can breathe and just try to relax.

I chugged some Maa.lox and managed to get back to sleep - only to have it happen again barely twenty minutes later. It's such a scary feeling to wake up choking and feeling as if I can't breathe. So, then I was kind of afraid to fall asleep again, because I wonder what happens if I don't wake up? Of coures, logically I know that won't happen, but I still was worried about it and then couldn't get back to sleep. I went downstairs and watched t.v. for awhile, had more Maa.lox, some milk, and a popsicle, because my throat was so irritated from the acid and the coughing.

I was awake for about three hours, then fell asleep on the couch, and it happened again. This time, I woke myself up before it got as bad, and then I went back upstairs and finally fell asleep with a mountain of pillows propping me up. I think it was about 4:30 AM. Then, my silly little dog woke us up at 6:15 AM. He never does that. Ever. He had to go to the bathroom, so I went back downstairs, fed, watered, and let the dogs out, then it was back upstairs to try and get more sleep.

I don't want to add up the sleep that I got last night, because it wouldn't be enough. I am glad that today is not a work day for me, but we have people coming over for a BBQ tonight and the house is not guest-ready. Nor have I done the grocery shopping. Luckily, I did not plan a complicated menu, but I still doubt that I will have time for a nap.

I know this is a whiny post, and for that I apologize. The true purpose of this post is to find out if anybody else out there has had this, and if so, what did you do about it? I am going to call the on-call doctor and find out if they have any other suggestions, but as I am already taking antacids and propping myself up, I doubt there is anything else that can be done, so I am all for your advice and home remedies.