You might be interested in this video. All these muscles and we have to coordinate them. No wonder we have problems! But there are exercises to help. Look them up on Google - but I dare not show you them as they all ‘Only do this on medical advice’.
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It’s easy to see how choking can occur, so little space and so much multitasking involved. What was once an automatic involuntary action now needs careful thought 
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Yes there’s a lot more to it than I realised … not sure that it helps me understand why I feel the need to cough when I put food in my mouth. Doesnt happen very often and I surmise that it is something to do with the temperature of the food.
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I don’t know if this explains things but I’ve been told that the natural position is for my food pipe to be closed and my windpipe to be open so I can breathe all the time. When I swallow food it closes the air hole (and opens my food pipe just for a split second). If I open my mouth at the same time either to talk or put food in, my air hole will open again and food will go down the air hole, I’ve been told to never put food in my mouth or talk until my mouth is empty. The fact that other people do these things is because they haven’t got our problem. Swallowing is very quick and the various muscles have to co-ordinate exactly.
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makes sense… thank you xx
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Frighteningly I had my first episode of not being able to swallow. I realize that stretching and exercises will delay the onset of CA’s worst symptoms (possibly fatal symptoms) but my fatalism doesn’t promote them. I think a healthy mind set is primary is facing the challenges of CA. Thank you for sharing these.
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