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As Marnie Goodfriend said
May 22, 2025 is the EOE day of the first world.
Three years ago, my son was diagnosed with a disease that changed a lot of stress and lifestyle in our family. A year and a half later I had a little burning and tight in my chest from time to time – but how many mothers concentrated on my son to take care of my son and ignored my symptoms. The feeling was different from heartburn and seemed to me to be like a burning muscle inflammation. But it didn’t bother me all the time, so I didn’t check it out.
In summer I suddenly had problems swallowing and breathing at the same time. I thought the panic that I experienced because I couldn’t swallow caused my breathing problems or that I might have developed a new allergy. I remember that my son’s doctor encouraged me to take care of myself, but I didn’t really know what he meant. I minimized the stress under which I was, and didn’t talk to anyone about it or took care of my body. Instead, I tried to do everything right as a mother and overlooked red flags that something was wrong.
Finally I went to an allergist who found that I was allergic to mold, so I thought I had to be really sensitive and my other symptoms were related to the allergy. But the symptoms kept appearing, so I finally saw my family doctor, who was completely dismissive. I told him I have episodes of suffocation and gays and breathing. I asked if my mold could be the cause of this. “Mold can’t do that,” he told me, but he gave no other explanation. My stomach told me that something was very wrong, but when he said it, I thought it was all in my head, maybe it was panic or fear. I was completely emptied.
My symptoms continued in autumn and out of Thanksgiving I noticed a change in my sip. I didn’t just have problems with food. Now I had problems swallowing in general, and it felt like I was stuck in my throat. The burning sensation in my chest and the breast problems that went with it took place much more frequently. Flat lies, lifting things and doing physical work seemed to make it worse.
In January I saw a stomach intestine doctor (GI) who spent a lot of time with me and recommended that you get endoscopy immediately. I was quite lucky that she listened to me and I didn’t have to go through a few other steps before I took the test. At that moment, I was diagnosed with classic eosinophilic esophagitis (EOE), a chronic illness that caused inflammation in the esophagus, and it was found that my acid reflux was quite serious.
I was angry and worried. I tried not to go on the internet rabbit hole, but what I read confirmed that EOE is a chronic illness that must always be managed. I was upset. I didn’t need another thing to deal in my life. I also learned that there are several reasons why you can develop EOE. I am someone who believes that there is a basic cause of what happens in your body. If you can identify it, you can do a lot of healing alone, but after you have passed the entire process with my son, I was exhausted with the idea of doing this again for myself.
Ironically, I had a unique understanding of EOE because my close friend Jeric’s son was diagnosed at the age of 8. His mother Heather and I have been friends since I got married and our children grew up together, so I was with her while navigating his symptoms and diagnosis. All the invasive tests go through is difficult for a little boy and I saw how they asked for. But how Jeric is going through the same challenges that I am now facing. If a little boy can get through it, I can certainly do it too.
Today I am in the early phases to understand what causes my condition. Necessary body functions such as swallowing are difficult. My GI founded me with corticosteroids and another acid -reducing medicine. I also decided that it was time to see someone who could also look at my body as a whole, and found a general practitioner who specialized in functional medicine. I don’t want to have steroids because they cause side effects such as arthritis symptoms. When I miss a dose, my neck swells, the burning that I often take and I get fever. It feels like an experiment and I don’t like it.
Our body is healing. But at the moment something stands in the way of this process. At the moment I follow what my GI has suggested and try to make my body healthier so that it can fight EOE better. I know that I have to cope with the rest of my life, but I am determined to get to a place where it does not cause such severe symptoms.
I train more, meditate twice a day and do breathing work. I pay close attention to my diet, only eat unprocessed whole food and eliminate some foods that are known to cause inflammation and allergies. I have already identified some foods that make my symptoms worse. In a way, this was a good wake -up call for me. It is difficult to eat outside the house or go to restaurants and find something that does not trigger my EOE. Who knew that tomatoes were in almost everything?
What I have learned through this trip is that if your body tells you something, listen to it and find someone who takes the time and believes them. I think that women in particular are often released by healthcare service providers who tell us that our medical problems are all in our heads. It is so important to find people who are committed to them who are really committed to examining what is going on with our bodies and what we can do about it.
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This educational resource was created with the support of Sanofi and Regeneron.
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