Sorry for the gross description, it's how it is.
Biggest problem, this has randomly surprised me at the WORST times when I have no immediate way to treat it: on a walk around town with my SO early in the day, or at work in meetings.
Suddenly I'll feel the irritating sensation of mucus in the back of my throat and have to keep swallowing. It's hard to describe the feeling, but I HAVE to try to dislodge it, I cannot focus on anything else when it happens. Since it's usually on the early side of my day, I assume this is postnasal drip related. All I can do is keep swallowing and trying to sort of hawk / clear my throat quietly while not being too gross about it in public.
I feel like a giant Gollum-cat with a disgusting hairball! 😭
On a "good" day, several minutes of swallowing and Gollum-ing result in a coin-sized chunk of mucus exiting. Often with a dark spot like dried blood or something.
If I'm lucky, I have tissues to catch it. Less lucky, I swallow the damn thing. Cursed entirely: it comes flying out. I try to avoid the last one by clearing a certain way and keeping my mouth closed.
The times in office meetings were the worst because I couldn't do anything about it. Only sit there swallowing and drinking. Even if I were to excuse myself, it can take ages trying to cough the thing up over a toilet bowl, and getting nothing but a ton of spit for 10-20 mins until it finally decides to come out. IF it does at all.
BEST case scenario is if I can quickly get some hot tea or broth. That seems to thin the mucus.
NOT cold, NOT room-temperature! Those make it worse! In fact, anything lukewarm or colder can actually trigger this for me.
Likewise if I make the stupid mistake of having any dairy at night. Worst of all: pizza — combo of dairy + acid.
What helps me:
- Guaifenesin + hot drink (broth, tea) clears it.
- Ricola, but only for soothing until I can get the above.
- Allergy med like Claritin might help also? Hard to know because the Guaifenesin + hot drink + subsequent phlegm-puck jettison solves the problem first.
- I find Fluticasone helpful in other ways, but have to be careful with nasal sprays because they seem to exacerbate post-nasal drip.
- When I remember to, I prep for pizza etc. by taking a Lactaid and Guaifenesin in advance.
I do have year-round allergies. Tested years ago. But typically have no symptoms, except when this happens, or in some very obvious situations with a lot of obvious pollen or dust; easily responds to a Claritin.
I assume it's also LPR/GERD and post-nasal drip related because it usually happens early in the day, or dairy/acid-triggered as described.
I don't smoke or drink.
Writing this after being an idiot and eating a cheese stick at night... naturally followed by a Gollum episode. (Why did I think I could magically eat a cheese stick and escape unscathed? After years of this I should know better, but here we are.) Completely cleared by Guaifenesin, broth and a Claritin an hour later.