Hysterical Hiccups - The story of a man who suffered uncontrollable hiccups for 3 years

Back in 2006, Christopher Sands, a 23-year-old British musician, was browsing the internet for a solution to his hiccups that had persisted for a few days. When he discovered that prolonged hiccups could be a sign of a brain tumor, he booked an appointment with his doctor. His GP (General Practitioner) told him it was likely linked to his chronic heartburn, which had been burning his throat, and making him vomit ever since he was a child.

The doctor prescribed him some medicine and sent Christopher on his way. Despite this, it didn’t end up working and he came back to do all sorts of tests, including blood tests and scans, but Christopher did learn that he had a hiatus hernia which meant that his stomach had bulged up through his diaphragm, making it much easier for stomach acid to enter his throat but it wasn’t the answer. However, strangely enough, after two weeks, the hiccups vanished.

But in February of 2007, they returned, yet he wasn’t worried. In his words, “I’ve had them before, so it’ll probably stop after a few weeks.” But they didn’t. Because of this, he couldn’t sleep, eat or practice music, something he’d dedicated his life to. Even his doctor had practically given up.

He decided to write in the local newspaper, the Lincolnshire Echo, in hopes someone would help him. Over the next few weeks, film crews from Brazil to Australia would arrive at his doorstep and interview him. Soon it became worldwide news. Suggestions started pouring in and he tried as many as he could, but to no avail. In the next few months, the hiccups got so bad he started passing out due to the lack of oxygen. 

Christopher went back to his GP and asked if remedying his hiatus hernia would help. So he had stomach surgery but his hiccups continued to persist, during his recovery, each hic sent a shooting pain through his body, he described it as ‘the worst pain he had ever felt’. Soon enough, he was phoned by Nippon Television Network, who had sent a team to interview him in the UK. His story gained some attention from the Japanese public and shortly after, Seuyu Kageyama, an acupuncturist, offered to help treat Christopher. 

He pressed needles all over Christopher’s body, even his face. Although they were unsuccessful, Seuyu suggested that Christopher might’ve had a tumor. A while later, a doctor had convinced him to take an MRI scan, and he found something that looked like a tumor. Christopher took another MRI scan and it was true, he had a 1.2 cm tumor at the back of his brain. He was devastated and the days following his return trip to the UK were tense.

Eventually, they found a doctor that was confident he could perform a surgery to remove the tumor, it did come with severe risks but Christopher was desperate for an escape. So on September 7th 2009, he arrived at the hospital where he said his final goodbyes to his family. Two days later, and he awoke with a pounding headache. But noticed that his hiccups were gone. His family poured into the room to share the joy and for the first time in 3 years, his hiccups had stopped.