In modern times, we can explain the wisdom of Donguibogam through the scientific language of the autonomic nervous system. When exposed to extreme anxiety or stress, our body's fight-or-flight response is activated, leading to excessive hyperarousal of the sympathetic nerve within the autonomic nervous system. Just like an emergency alarm going off, the entire body enters a state of alert.
At this time, our body undergoes changes essential for survival, one of which involves the respiratory system and digestive system. The muscles around the throat, particularly the pharynx and laryngeal muscles, become excessively tense. Imagine how your shoulders stiffen or your jaw clenches when under stress; the throat muscles likewise freeze without you realizing it. This muscle tension becomes the primary cause of feeling a foreign body sensation in throat or finding it hard to breathe.
Furthermore, anxiety and stress affect the brain-throat axis, similar to the brain-gut axis. An imbalance in neurotransmitters secreted by the brain, such as serotonin or norepinephrine, can alter esophageal motility, making it difficult for food to pass down, reducing saliva secretion so the throat dries up, or conversely, causing excessive mucus secretion that heightens the foreign body sensation. In fact, some studies report that approximately 25 to 40 percent of anxiety disorder patients experience dysphagia symptoms like plum-pit qi, showing how common it truly is.
Looking deeper, chronic stress promotes the secretion of the stress hormone cortisol from the adrenal cortex. While cortisol helps regulate inflammatory responses, prolonged excessive secretion weakens the immune system and heightens nervous system sensitivity, making it react more intensely even to minor stimuli. Thus, subtle throat sensations or tightness that normally go unnoticed are felt more vividly, trapping you in a vicious cycle where anxiety is further amplified. It creates an illusion where a tiny pebble feels like a massive boulder.
Ultimately, what Donguibogam described as qi stagnating to produce phlegm can be understood modern-medically as a complex symptom where stress and anxiety disrupt the autonomic nervous system, triggering muscle tension, changes in esophageal motility, and neurotransmitter imbalances. Rather than viewing it simply as a throat issue, it is important to accept it as an important distress call sent by our mind. Please remember that all these symptoms are the inner cries of a heart that kept pretending everything was fine. It is alright, and we can resolve this together.
