Hi, it's my first time posting.
For the past three weeks, I've been worried sick over my heart health. I'm a 25-year-old guy, 5'10", 225 pounds. I suffer from anxiety, especially when it comes to health matters. Having heart failure is my biggest fear, so of course I'm anxious over it, but I've never had this level of discomfort for more than a day or two.
A couple of weeks ago, I was getting brief but sharp stabbing pains in my chest. Over the last couple of days, the pain has become dull. It happens all over my chest. In the morning, the pain will feel like it's near my right armpit. Later that evening, it'll feel like it's in the left-center of my chest. My arms and shoulders are sore as well. It's been leading to a lot of anxiety for me. My family and friends are kind to me and hear me out about my concerns, but they dismiss it as just anxiety.
My reasoning is that it's possible for legitimate chest pain to cause anxiety. I just don't know for sure whether the pain is legitimate. I have a blood test scheduled for next week, as well as my first appointment with my therapist. I'm glad to have appointments lined up, but - as overdramatic as this sounds - I fear something might happen before then.
I will be honest and admit that the reason I came here was for a little bit of reassurance. I know that I can't be diagnosed over the internet. Within the next couple of weeks I hope I will get an actual diagnosis. But I was just wondering what the odds are that something is wrong with my heart?
I last had an ECG in June of 2010, on the day I had my first panic attack and entered the world of anxiety. At that time, everything came out normal. This year, I've also had two complete blood tests, for unrelated infections. I was curious about blood tests - can they detect disorders of the heart? I also don't know how long electrocardiograms are 'valid' for. My blood pressure was last checked last week, and it was normal.
Thank you so much for your valuable time.