Waking up every night choking on mucus + coughing fits
I’m honestly at my limit and need help figuring this out.
For the past few months, I’ve been waking up every night with a ton of mucus pooling in my throat. It triggers coughing fits that can last a long time, and it’s completely wrecking my sleep. I was doing better during one of these months but then it got way worse.
At this point it’s also causing major anxiety. I can hear the mucus when I breathe (almost like wheezing), and it makes it really hard to fall asleep or go back to sleep. I feel on edge every night just waiting for it to happen.
It’s gotten so bad I can’t even work out regularly anymore because the coughing fits will start, and I’m honestly worried it’s starting to affect my voice and throat. I’m also stressed because I know it’s probably impacting my partner’s sleep too.
Things I’ve already tried:
- Sleeping elevated (6-10+ inches)
- Pepcid AC
- Gaviscon
- Mucinex
- Saline sinus rinses
- Flonase
- Azelastine nasal spray
- Claritin
- Zyrtec and Xyzal (even doubled up antihistamines at one point)
- Omeprazole (did nothing)
- Not eating before bed
- Slippery elm
- Muellin tea
- Trying diet changes
None of this has fixed the nighttime mucus buildup.
Other context:
- I’ve already seen an ENT; he suggested Pepcid + Gaviscon
- I’m scheduled for a GI endoscope soon
- During the day I’m mostly okay but I can feel it in the back of my throat
- Weirdly, I had a facial where I was lying flat (even slightly inverted) and had NO coughing issues for that whole hour until I sat up
- Nights are consistently the worst
- I recently stopped Strattera (not sure if relevant)
At this point I’m wondering:
- Silent reflux (LPR)?
- Post-nasal drip from allergies?
- Stress/nervous system making it worse?
Has anyone dealt with this especially mucus pooling at night only + coughing fits? What actually helped you? I want to take a tube and suck out the mucus nightly because I’m OVER IT.
I’m exhausted and honestly just want to sleep normally again!!