Possible chest/sternum injury??

[JayC]

I just turned 30 not too long ago and have recently quit smoking.  I've been a smoker for a little over 10 years, though not a heavy one (avg. 1 pack very 3 days).  Aside from smoking, my other resolution is to get back in shape. The last time I was inside a health club was about 3-4 years ago. I bought a membership to a local gym for my wife and myself and have been very consistent.  

My workouts were showing some progress, up until recently.  I started feeling some tenderness around my upper sternum, which turned into sharp pains and breathing deeply became impossible. The pain started occuring after a chest workout the night before.  Though I got through the workout without any pain or signs of injury, it was when I sat wrong for a long time in my sofa that did me in.  When I stood up, I felt the tenderness immediately.  The discomfort persisted for a couple of days, turning into sharp pains.  Pushing my shoulders inwards (butterfly movement) seems to produce the most pain.  Pushing things downwards, like closing a trunk of a car also creates pain.  

Do chest pains heal fast or do they linger forever?  What steps should I take to avoid aggrevating the situation and promote faster healing?

[jlingo]

Yes it happened to me also in year 1998, while doing a benchpress. It's very painful around sternum area. I'm not even sure which part that was actually injured. and it often popped in the morning. Also often popped after sitting long hours in the office. You could literally hear the chest popped. It's very annoying. Since it's already a year 2008 and I still couldn't do much benchpress as I used to be. I could only do half the weights for benchpress. Any advice on how to solve this problem completely? I have once stopped working out completely for a whole full month. But the pain and popping came back.