Preparing for an appointment

See your health care provider if you're having problems swallowing. Depending on the suspected cause, your health care provider might refer you to an ear, nose and throat specialist, a doctor who specializes in treating digestive disorders (gastroenterologist), or a doctor who specializes in diseases of the nervous system (neurologist).

Here's some information to help you prepare for your appointment.

What you can do

When you make the appointment, ask if there's anything you need to do in advance, such as restrict your diet.

Make a list of:

• Your symptoms, including any that seem unrelated to the reason for which you scheduled the appointment, and when they began
• Key personal information, including major stresses or recent life changes
• All medications, vitamins and supplements you take, including doses
• Questions to ask your health care provider

For dysphagia, questions to ask your health care provider include:

• What's the likeliest cause of my symptoms?
• What are other possible causes?
• What tests do I need?
• Is this condition temporary or long lasting?
• I have other health conditions. How can I best manage them together?
• Do I need to restrict my diet?
• Are there brochures or other printed material I can have? What websites do you recommend?

What to expect from your doctor

Your health care provider is likely to ask you a number of questions, including:

• Have your symptoms been continuous or occasional?
• Does anything seem to improve your symptoms?
• What, if anything, appears to worsen your symptoms? For example, are certain foods harder to swallow than others?
• Do you have difficulty swallowing solids, liquids or both?
• Do you cough or gag when you try to swallow?
• Did you first have trouble swallowing solids and then develop difficulty swallowing liquids?
• Do you bring food back up (regurgitate) after swallowing it?
• Do you ever vomit or bring up blood or black material?
• Have you lost weight?

What you can do in the meantime

Until your appointment, it might help to chew your food more slowly and thoroughly than usual. If you have heartburn or GERD, try eating smaller meals and not eating right before bedtime. Antacids that you can get without a prescription also might help temporarily.