Chest Pains- feedback appreciated

[Brandon K]

Hey, I was just wondering if anyone else gets really bad chest pains or pains in the upper body from anxiety and what those pains feel like.  I get really sharp pains that shoot through my chest from one side to theo ther sometimes and I also get sharp pain that is concentrated in one area, usually the left side near the top fo my abdomen.  I also get pains in my abdomen that are sharp as well as crunching pain under both breast bones and in my sides.  Just curious if anyone else feels these because I'm unsure if they are anxiety related or if there is something really wrong with my heart.  I've had them for a long time now so I figure if I was going to have a heart attack I would've already.  Feedback would be greatly appreciated.

[Brandon K]

I also get that gurgling feeling when you're hungry and your stomach moans not only in my stomach, but in my chest too.  Is that normal?

[Mom2Bryson]

I was wondering have you been diagnosed with GERD?  I have GERD and I also experience chest pains and gurgling.  Sometimes I get gas around my heart and it feels like a squeezing pressure but as soon as I burp it goes away.  You may want to check into having a 24 hour Ph done if you haven't already to check and see if your stomach is producing too much acid.  It really sounds to me like stomach issues though.  Have you had any tests on your heart?

[Brandon K]

I have had tons of tests done on my heart and they all said I was fine but I still worry terribly though.

[Mom2Bryson]

Well I am not going to be a hypocritical person and say believe all of the tests and the doctors because I don't always believe them either.  At times I still think there is something wrong with my heart and I do have high blood pressure that was diagnosed last year ( I am 24 years old).  I have had many tests to rule out secondary causes of hypertension and they finally just labeled it as genetic but I somehow can't help but think something is causing this.  I do feel better now after my stress test.  If you haven't had any tests for GERD, which is acid reflux disease, then I would suggest that because it can imitate a heart attack. Alot of doctors now will put you on a double dose of medicine like protonix for 2 weeks and if the pain subsides or dissapears then you can pretty much gather it is gastric related.  Also stress and anxiety alone can cause these issues.  Are you on any anxiety medicine now?

[RCA7591]

True cardiac chest pain generally presents with pain in the center of the chest, and may radiate to the jaw and left arm. It is typically described as a "heaviness", "dullness", and some would describe it as an "elephant sitting on the chest" in extreme cases of ischemia.

Stabbing and shooting pains (in most cases) are almost always non-cardiac in origin, and are non-specific. They tend to occur on the left side, as opposed to the center of the chest. Such causes would be GERD, musculoskeletal pain, etc.

Chest pain should always be followed up on never-the-less. Provided the cardiac testing performed is normal, it is a safe assumption to say that such pains are of a non-cardiac origin.

A trial dose of Protonix or Tagamet is useful to potentially prove GERD.

-Ryan