hospital trip and anxiety

Hello everyone. Im a 21 year old latino male. I recently quit smoking about 2 weeks ago. I smoked for about 2 years, and i had 4 to 5 cigarettes a day. Well just last week i took a trip to the hospital, because i started getting chest tightness and shortness of breath, While i was in the car. So i went to the hospital, they checked my pressure, they did an EKG, and they took an X ray of my chest! The doctor came in my room, and told me i was healthy and both my lungs and heart were good. He told me i had a anxiety problem and i had a panic attack. But when i went home i still have the tightness of my chest and waking up at night with pains. Im living in fear that i could have an attack, and not wake up. I feel like i will never get better i dont even want to hang out with friends. Please give some insight, if i have something bad with my health. Thank you!

[Ms_C]

I had a severe anxiety attack one night and it lasted for several days. I still have a lot of symptoms a year later. Pains in my chest, my back, jaw head all on the left side. I'm constantly worrying about my heart. I've had several EKG's, a stress test, echo test, x-rays, I was on a holter monitor for about 2 months or more and my doctor and cardiologist say its anxiety. Even if I don't have bad anxiety I still have the symptoms that come with it everyday!!

[birdie0907]

Sounds like you have anxiety every day but it is in the back of your mind so you don't notice it. Too bad the symptoms couldn't go unnoticed as easily. I think that half my anxiety comes from symptoms.

[birdie0907]

It sounds like you have nothing to worry about, other than the worrying. It is not easy to focus the mind away from something that keeps popping up, like your health fear. The tightness is caused by fear.
If you exercise hard that can help calm you down. If you find a gym too boring, maybe there is a sport you can take up?

[Ms_C]

I think I do have anxiety everyday, it's just not as bad as it used to be. I was in bed for over a month, I think I was depressed also. I was reading about the exercise, I used to run 3 miles a day before my anxiety and now I can't even clean my house because it hurts so much, my arm, back, shoulder and chest and with the pain comes anxiety. Do you have any advise on how I could start up on my exercising without over doing it? I need to take off the 20lbs I put on!!

[Rich99]

"""Im living in fear that i could have an attack, and not wake up.""""
Guy, you have just diagnosed the problem yourself.    It was confirmed by your doctors and tests.    "Fear" causes the symptoms others here have told you.    But do us a favor.    You have stopped smoking,  make that decision a  permanent one!!  
""Please give some insight, if i have something bad with my health""  Here's some insight.    Go see your friends,  have a great time and stay away from drugs if any of them are using.   If they are,  find new friends.

[anxietyguy3]

Thanks everyone for the responses. Its good to here that im not the only one with this problem, but its a bummer living with this type of anxiety, because even if you take that trip to the hospital, you cant put your mind at ease! It seemed like I would go crazy because of this. But thank you for the help. God bless

[birdie0907]

I don't know about that arm, shoulder and back pain. I thought anx only affected the chest area. You may have muscle stiffness in all those areas from something other than anxiety.
The worst thing you can do to wear out your body is inactivity, so you need to see your doc and get some meds to calm you and take away the pain if it is caused by anxiety. I say this because you have been dealing with it a long time alone with no progress.
I am back on Celexa which solved my anxiety 4 years ago. I am hoping for another quick relief from the anguish, so I can go off Celexa in a few months, like I did last time. I didn't have any recurring problems until a few months ago, and can't solve them through meditation and my normal bag of tricks.

[Ms_C]

I was told it was from tension and stress, it's like my bones even hurt. I've had an MRI done and xrays, I go for massages twice a month. I love to run, but I just feel like crap when I do any kind of activity, I know I need to exercise again I just don't know what to do.

[mois602]

is it like a wierd feeling in ur hart

i have the same as u ur not alone

[birdie0907]

Since your doc gave you the medical tests, did she also prescribe meds or gave you some kind of advice on how to clear up the anxiety? I can understand why you have trouble exercising if you feel like crap because I was pretty down recently.
I think my Celexa kicked in today (day 7) because the tightness and aches in my chest have stopped. 2 more hours until the day is over, so I have a good shot at making it.

[Ms_C]

I have ativan and I take soma as needed. I was put on celexa but I couldn't handle it it made me feel worse!! I talk to a transformational life coach but i'm thinking about seeing a therapist!!

[birdie0907]

Celexa isn't for everyone, but there are lots of other choices. 15% of people get no relief from meds at all, however even me, a lucky one, had to endure a painful Wellbutrin trial first which didn't work.
How long were you on Celexa and what was your dose? I can't handle Ativan as I quickly start taking more and more. My doc says Ativan just treats the symptoms whereas Celexa goes after the problem. Of course I would rather have something less harsh than Celexa, like Ativan and a therapist, but I personally am past those working.
I don't understand all the pain you are in though, since you say you take Ativan as needed. Do you take it a few times every day?

[Ms_C]

I don't like taking meds at all...I only took it twice and it was a low dose and I cut it in half, I was so sick!! I haven't taken Ativan for awhile now, I just try to deal with the anxiety and all the symptoms I have. It just makes me so sleepy.

[birdie0907]

I don't like meds either, but Depression and Anxiety are not alternatives, so I chose the lesser evil. This is the first non-chest tightness day in months for me.
I hope a professional can help you find a solution, because you have described a lot of physical pain.

[birdie0907]

I don't have much side effect from Celexa. A lot of side effects go away after a while, but if you were sick after 2 days I dunno about that drug being for you.

My anxiety was so bad 4 years ago that I spent 50 seconds of every minute at work worrying. I was the world's worst employee.

[Ms_C]

I'm afraid of the side effects of the different meds, I know I should be on something but I'm just unsure!! Thank you so much, little chats like these help...I wish we would just get better!!

[birdie0907]

My meditation book said depression and anxiety keeps getting worse with time because it is like you are pulled underwater but deeper each time so harder to surface. Only a few remarkable individuals can come out of this kind of thing using meditation, so even that book recommends meds.
As my doc said when I wanted to quit after the failed Wellbutrin trials, "You need a med so you can remember what it is like to be happy again." She was right.

[birdie0907]

I should have added that the meditation book said to take meds to recover then meditation will work to keep you in peace.
There must be a lot of suffering people out there.

[Ms_C]

You really have me thinking...I think I need to make an appt tomorrow!! I want to be myself again!! I need to do something.

[birdie0907]

".I only took it twice and it was a low dose and I cut it in half, I was so sick!"

You mean sick to your stomach or just more uptight in the head? Pharmacist said that Celexa makes some people get more uptight when their dose is too low, which had me concerned about how I would even be able to self-diagnose if I was getting more uptight when I first went on it.
I had already suffered 8 weeks with WB failing every single day around 5 PM when the world would just turn grey and scare the heck out of me. And that is after the whole day was mainly panicky anyway.

[Ms_C]

I was sick to my stomach and real dizzy, it kind of caused my anxiety to get worse. I need to do something, I refuse to live like this for another year!! I have to much going on in my life to be dealing with anxiety!!

[birdie0907]

You should ask the pharmacist if the half dose you took could have given you those symptoms. Just an idea.

[mjohnston]

I have the same problem, I dwell over my symptoms and wait for the next one! I want to be normal again and happy! Hope you feel better!

[Ms_C]

Yes, for sure...I still have a full bottle!! Something has to work!!

[Ms_C]

Thank you and the same goes for you!!

[birdie0907]

Check with your pharmacist for advice.

[Ms_C]

Will do...Thank you so much!!