I remember curling up on the sofa with my mum, watching Sleepless In Seattle for the first time. It was a frosty December afternoon, and Christmas-tinged sentimentality was in the air. We arrived at the bit where Meg Ryan is in the car, silently listening to widower Tom Hanks on the radio. It was deliciously melancholic.
As two, perfectly-placed tears started to cascade down Meg’s face, my mum wiped her own damp cheeks with a pulled-over sleeve of her cardigan. I was 6 years old – too embarrassed to cry at the TV with my parents in the room – but I felt a strange sensation at the back of my throat, which would stalk me into emotional situations for the rest of my life.
My breath was toffee-thick as I tried to swallow away the surface-level tears. It was as if my throat had swollen up, like all the tall tales of children choking on gobstoppers had come to life.
This feeling would greet me again at funerals, weddings, in the dingey toilets at school and huddled within a quiet corner at work.
I often wondered where the feeling of having a ‘lump in your throat’ came from. It turns out, the answer lies within your muscles.
Take A Deep Breath
Have you noticed ‘the lump’ becomes more prevalent when you’re specifically trying not to cry? Whether you’ve just received terrible news in a board meeting, trying not to lose it in a crowded cinema or you’re in the middle of an audacious argument – the more you hold back the tears, the bigger the lump becomes.
According to the NCBI, it’s essentially down to the way we control our cries. When we’re trying our hardest not to break down into an ‘ugly’ sob, a combination of deep breaths and swallowing can cause the throat muscles to contract.
When our ‘fight or flight’ is triggered – either by a stressful situation, emotional experience or anxiety attack – the nervous system instructs our brain that we need to get more Oxygen into our bodies. In order to do so, we begin to take deep breaths, causing the glottis (the opening between the vocal chords) to expand.
Holding Back The Tears
But, how do we usually prevent ourselves from vociferously sobbing in awkward situations? Whether we’re stressed, tense, furious or simply upset – we often hold back our tears by swallowing vehemently and telling ourselves to ‘stop being silly’.
Unfortunately, during the process of swallowing, the glottis needs to close and the vocal chords need to contract. With two opposing actions going on in the body at once, the muscles in your throat become confused – and begin opening and closing the gap between the vocal chords at the same time.
Where does ‘the lump’ come from?
Ordinarily, swallowing isn’t a significant problem for the majority of us. This is due to the vocal chords – and the cricopharyngeus, the muscles behind the vocal chords – relaxing. While the muscles are relaxed; food, drink and everything in between should be able to freely travel between your mouth and your oesophagus. While the muscles in your throat are contracted, and your body is telling you to increase your oxygen intake, swallowing may become slightly more difficult. This is ultimately what causes the gobstopper, golf ball or ‘lump’ in your throat.
The technical term for this, as reported in the NCBI, is global pharyngeus.
Most of us will experience global pharyngeus intermittently within our lives. It can either be triggered – or exacerbated by – periods of high tensity and emotion. Global pharyngeus can, however, present itself as a chronic problem in some patients. This long-term difficulty can be brought about by chronic stress, acid reflux and thyroid problems.
As well as debunking your childhood myths about swallowing a lump whenever you feel like crying, knowing where ‘the lump’ comes from also offers up a solution on how to get rid of it.
Next time you feel like indulging in a big sob when you’d really rather not, try focusing solely on your breathing. Concentrating on those deep breaths can be a great exercise in calming down, not to mention making it easier on your conscientious vocal chords.
