Do you want to know why you are constantly clearing throat of mucus and how to stop it?
Then keep on watching because in this series of videos, I am going to talk about causes
of constant throat clearing and how to stop excessive throat clearing, even if you think
it’s impossible.
Hi and welcome.
If we haven’t met yet, I am Katarina, I am a speech and language pathologist and here
on this channel, I share tips on how to use your voice in a healthy and efficient way.
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This series of videos was inspired by a question from one of my followers, who wants to remain
anonymous.
The question was: Why am I always clearing my throat?
I’ve tried everything but I can’t stop clearing my throat.
I don’t know what to do.
Please help.
Well, we all clear our throats from time to time.
When we feel that there is too much mucus or something stuck in our throats, we unconsciously
clear the extra phlegm.
It’s a normal reaction and most of the time, we don’t even realize when we do it.
We clear the throat once or twice and we move on.
And a constant throat clearing habit starts in the same way.
Maybe somewhere in the past, you were sick and you cleared the extra mucus from your
throat.
Or maybe you cleared your throat because of allergies or some other throat irritation.
By the way, the most common causes of increased presence of mucus are infections, such as
common cold or flu, allergies, acid reflux, some medications, respiratory problems, including
asthma, and other causes.
All of these are common constant throat clearing causes.
However, if these medical conditions are resolved, the throat clearing should go away too.
Right?
No!
Somewhere along the way, a habit of annoying throat clearing develops and is strengthen
every time you clear your throat.
And with it, a vicious circle of constant coughing and throat clearing starts and it’s
hard to stop it.
What’s the vicious circle?
When your vocal folds are irritated, pink, red or swollen, the tissue around the vocal
folds starts to produce more mucus as a protective mechanism.
Naturally, you clear the phlegm.
If you do this a few times, you experience relief and life goes on.
But the more you clear your throat, the more mucus is produced to protect the larynx.
To make matters worse the produced mucus tends to stick to the irritated vocal folds.
So, when you clear your throat, it seems beneficial because that thick sticky mucus loosens.
Sometimes, you can even cough it up.
You experience relief for a few minutes, only to have the same feeling of stuck mucus again
very soon after.
And that’s how the vicious circle starts: you have a feeling that there is mucus or
something stuck in your throat.
You clear it with a throat clear that further irritates the vocal folds, which in turn produces
more mucus in the throat.
That leads to repeated throat clearing while producing more mucus as a side effect.
So, you actually end up with very irritated vocal folds and loads of mucus that leads
to clearing throat all the time.
And that’s how an innocent throat clearing behaviour turns into a bad habit that is so
difficult to get rid of.
But don’t despair.
There are a few things you can do.
First, it is very important to realize that the presence of extra mucus in your throat
is a symptom, not the cause of your constant throat clearing.
In other words, the extra phlegm is a result of your throat clearing behaviours, not the
other way around.
Therefore, in order to get rid of extra mucus from your throat you need to end the vicious
cycle of constant throat clearing.
Second, throat clearing is not a simple condition to deal with because there may be several
factors contributing to this condition.
As I said before, there may be an underlying medical issue that is fully responsible for
throat clearing behaviours or that worsens your condition.
And medical underlying issues can only be treated medically.
Therefore, I urge you to see a doctor.
Maybe, you have seen a doctor and you are frustrated by slow or no progress in resolving
your throat clearing behaviours.
And here is why.
There are two types of throat clearing: one that responds well to medical treatment and
one that does not.
The type of throat clearing that does not respond to medical treatment is the one that
evolves into the vicious circle or bad habit of throat clearing.
So, the very first step in the process of finding the best treatment option for your
constant throat clearing is to schedule a visit with your doctor to determine if there
are any underlying medical issues that cause or contribute to your throat clearing problem.
In my next video, I will be talking about further steps you can take to stop the vicious
circle of clearing throat mucus and how to interrupt the bad habit.
And I don’t need to tell that it is really hard to interrupt the pattern.
And don’t forget to check out my other videos in the series about constant throat clearing
right here.
I hope to see you soon.