Constant Trouble Breathing

[LackOfaBetterName]

Hi. I'm an 18 year old female in my senior year of high school. At the end of last year, I began to have trouble breathing in school. I felt as if my lungs could not get enough air, to a point where I was gasping for breath and had to go home several times. Even when I am not gasping, it feels like a constant, tiresome struggle to try to fill my lungs to a capacity that feels comfortable. I have found that lying down often helps (but not always), but it often starts up again when I get up. I have been tested for asthma and allergies, but I apparently don't have either. Despite this, I have tried asthma medication, which, as I suppose could be expected, did nothing for me.

I am pretty in shape and I try to run every day. Despite my condition, I can usually still run, although my inability to fill my lungs is very annoying and I think often inhibits me from running for as long and as far as I might would able to without the condition. It usually doesn't stop me from sleeping (although some severe cases have), but it often starts up again as soon as I wake up.

I will admit, that I am an anxious person. My father has a similar condition (but it is also connected to his heart palpitations, which I don't have), which started around the same age as it did with me. He tells me that it is all due to anxiety and that I just need to calm down and try not to focus on my breathing and gasp so much, because that will only make it worse. And although my shallow breathing does consistently start up in places and situations that make me anxious, such as school, it also starts up in situations where I feel perfectly fine, even happy...Like when I am laughing with my friends or watching a movie. Because of this, I find it hard to accept that my condition is purely due to anxiety. I have been told that it must be do to a "latent anxiety" that I must not be aware of. I find this "diagnosis" to be completely ridiculous and frustrating beyond belief. I'm not aware of my own state of mind?

Even as I type this, I am having trouble filling my lungs.
It doesn't visibly cripple me, but sometimes I really feel like I am being pecked to death by a duck...
If anyone has any suggestions or information to share, I would be eternally grateful. I'm getting less patient with this condition by the day.

[Dr Rajput]

Hi, welcome to forum, your symptoms are generalized and needs a more detailed evaluation. The symptom you are having is known as dyspnea. The possibilities are Bronchospasm (bronchial asthma), pulmonary embolism, Pneumothorax and chronic bronchitis (This seen commonly in chronic smokers) and even cardiac causes like Congestive heart failure and Cardiac tamponade can cause breathing problem but seems unlikely. Anxiety can worsen the condition for which you need to consult psychiatrist.  Yoga and meditation can also help to eliminate stress and create a more peaceful atmosphere and provides a relaxed state of mind. It includes even breathing exercises.

You need to undergo pulmonary function tests like spirometry and ECG to rule out the cause. You also need to undergo tests for HIV, ESR and certain serological tests to rule out autoimmune disorder including CD4 counts and complete blood counts.

It is difficult to come to a certain diagnosis with available history. Further evaluation is needed. I suggest you to consult physician. Take care and regards.

[ashlara]

Anxiety can be a definite cause of your breathing problem, seen it many times. For some people it's not something you can control. Do you tend to be a worrier? Is there significant stress in your life right now?
The other suggestion I might have is has anyone looked @ your vocal cords to see if they're moving correctly? OR do you have any issues with heartburn, or reflux?
Having runs of 'dropped heartbeats' or PVC's can cause these symptoms too, in which case your doctor order a holter or event monitor for a specified amount of time. It would capture any abnormal beats on a EKG tracing.

[TheLightSeeker]

Hi and welcome to the forum.
I suspect an underlying G.I./digestive connection that is experienced as a "delayed" anxiety symptom.
Even the very fact that you are an anxious person, as you stated, may be rooted there.
You could try doing Dr. Coca's Pulse test (free download). Takes a week to complete, and it is worth it because it is an excellent diagnostic tool. It will give you (with great accuracy)
any latent or hidden sensitivity/allergy/reaction to anything you ingest.

The relationship between extra beats (heart arrhythnia) and exercise and shortness of breath  is a complicated one, but it may have to be explored. I'll sleep on this on and get back to you.
For the time being, just as precaution, start taking baths with 1-2 cups of epson salts added in the water, every other day.  It is a great delivery method for Mg.
Magnesium deficiency is one of the most overlooked ones. This will be useful for your dad as  in most arrhythmia cases there's a Mg deficiency. (200 million people around the world
suffer from arrhythmias mainly b'cause of Mg and other deficiencies - Mg is the main one)
It takes 58 molecules of Mg to deal with one molecule of sugar in the body!
That's why there's so many people with undetected and undiagnosed Mg deficiencies.
.

I'll post again to you as it rather late now.

Blessings
Nikodicreta

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