Kentucky Man Endures Yearlong Bout Of Hiccups

Almost everyone has had hiccups at some point in their lives.

But a man living in Louisville said that as of the end of November, it will be a full year that he's suffered with hiccups - and the situation is getting worse, WLKY-TV in Louisville reported.

"It just came on and it wouldn't stop," Milton Betts said.

Except for a break only a few days a month, his hiccups have remained.

"I've lost about 35, 40 pounds," he said. "I'm off of work right now because when I go to work, I lose my breath. I had a couple episodes at work. They sent me home because I couldn't breathe."

Said his wife, Patricia Betts: "It sounds like he's almost dying. You can't imagine the sounds he's making. So, to have someone you love and to hear them suffer the way I hear him suffer ... It seems nobody can help."

Patricia has scoured the Internet for answers, while Milton has tried numerous folk remedies.

"And all them home remedies don't seem to work," he said.

Doctors said people get hiccups when the vagus nerve, which runs from the brain to the abdomen, gets irritated.

Milton has tried dozens of medications, but they haven't helped. He even went to the Mayo Clinic for nerve block surgery.

"I thought I was good driving back from Cleveland back to Louisville, but by the time we got to Cincinnati, the hiccups came back," he said. "I believe in God, and I trust God, but I tell my wife sometimes if I got to be like this the rest of my life, I'd just rather go on 'cause it's very frustrating."

Milton said he's willing to try other options, including taking part in experimental research.

"I want to get this story out because I felt like that somebody would take a chance and try to help me. Maybe there's something that they haven't done," he said.

Interesting way to lose weight if nothing else.

Walter

WLKY-TV, FOX News