My parents were worried enough about my dysphagia and throat blockage that they scheduled a visit with my PCP, Dr Shin. The doctor brushed off my comments with disdain, saying that there’s nothing physically wrong and that it was all in my mind, but was nice enough to refer me to Valley Radiology Imaging for a upper gastrointestinal (“UGI”) exam.
The UGI took place at 9:30am on Monday. During the exam, the nurse first had me drink a cup of fizzy water to fill my stomach with gas. Then, the radiologist had me sip thick barium fluid while lying in different positions on the X-ray table. The barium “chalked” up the esophagus, stomach, and upper intestines; its flow allowed the radiologist to X-ray these organs more clearly.
The thick barium tasted surprisingly similar to Orgain protein powder. It also had similar effects as drinking too much Orgain at once. For an hour afterwards, I felt super uncomfortable coldness in my chest and extremities. Weird as it sounds, I took that to be a good thing because it meant the doctor was able to recreate and observe realistic symptoms.
PS: the barium might not be 100% responsible for all that coldness; there were some remaining dry cakes in my throat from Rajma Masala the night before
