Seriously Losing It

[OverIt236]

I posted this a couple days ago . . .

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Ok Where do I start . . . .

I have been having chest pain for about four months now. I have been to the ER once and doctors since that. I have had A CT Scan, EKG, Stress test, and Chest Xray all done on me and came back totally fine. I dont know what to do anymore cause im still having the pain and im really worried cause its always on the left upper side and will radiate into the left side of my neck as well. Im only 19 I should probably throw out there with no history of heart problems in our family. I dont wanna let it sit in case its something serious and i dont know what i should do next. The pain comes and goes through out the day. Think Id be wasting my time with an echo? When i went to the cardioligist he said he didnt think it was necesesary to do one so i didnt.

Appreciate the help.

Thanks.
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People answered me back with very good responses . Hears the deal I was just skateboarding and all of a sudden my chest tightened up only on left side and the pain went up my neck left side only. I felt a couple weird pains right over where the heart would be. I was getting ready for an attack if youd ask me. I had to leave the park. I still have the stiff neck and chest as I write this. I dont know what to do anymore ive been to so many docs and I get sent home with nothing. I seriously cant live like this anymore. My moms says its just anxiety but i know its not. She thinks im crazy cause all these test are fine but why would it be anxiety when im happy and it all of a sudden comes, plus its been EVERYDAY on and off for 4 months. I going to schedule an echo this week cause I dont think ekg and stress test can tell if theres problems with the heart itself inside or what not.
I know im losing it im just worried and over it.
What should i do? Sorry for the long writing.

[pbanders]

I know you probably don't want to hear this, but it's a lot more likely that you're having anxiety/panic attacks than you have heart disease, especially with all the testing you've had so far that's been negative. There are many, many young guys in their late teens through 20's who post here who have been through exactly the same thing you have.

Go ahead and have your echo, it sure can't hurt. But if it shows negative, consider talking to your cardiologist about what you can do if he thinks you're having panic attacks. Plenty of people here have gotten good therapy for them. Best of luck and I hope you find your answers.

[fwilson3]

Keep at it.

Anxiety is this century's "evil spirits" or "sin", both popular causes of maladies in the past.

You know what your body felt like before, and what it feels like now.  Trust in that.  

That being said, the chances of a 19 year old without risk factors (which your doc should have screened for) having significant heart diseases is rare.  There are MANY causes of chest pain and it may take some time to tease it out.

Grab the echo, talk to your GP if it is negative and explain the extent of the effect of the pain on your life and ask what his plan is for finding the cause.  Remember that worry does not help.  Vigilence does.

Good luck.

[OverIt236]

Thank you both for you responses.  The reason why the anxiety apart is har to believe is because it comes and goes so much as well as when im happy. I was laughing while skateboarding then it just came quick after i was skating non stop for an hr. I dont usally hear people having chest pain for months EVERYDAY from anxiety only for a couple days after an attack.  I really try not to worry ill get my mind of it then it just comes and its scary to be honest.

Ill get my echo and ill say just what you said. Couldnt of been said better. Ill try to hang in there thanks again.

[e.r.boy]

I had the same symptoms when I was your age. It happened initially when I bent over akwardly and felt a sudden pain in my chest . It lingered for months. A pulled muscle in your ribs around the heart area can mimic chest pain like a heart issue. A small tear in these intercostal muscles can last for months. I'm sure you're fine. The way I knew it was not a heart issue is when I went for a 100 mile bike ride. I figured if my ticker was bad I surely would have dropped dead then.

[anacyde]

Anxiety doesn't necessarily mean you need to be unhappy, perceivably stressed out or upset when it happens.  People can feel anxious and have very unpleasant symptoms of anxiety even when they are quite happy and/or out enjoying themselves.  The nature of anxiety is not that it correlates with stress or depression, but that it's erratic.  If it made sense, anxiety disorder would not be a "disorder".  I suspect this is probably the case, as it is for many of us here.

That said, other issues can cause the symptoms you're describing.  Most of the time these are minor and nothing that's going to affect your life significantly.  If you're truly experiencing this much discomfort, figuring out why is important.

[DragonTU84]

I'd hate to break it to you, but it certainly does sound like either anxiety/panic attacks or muscular/musculoskeletal pain brought on by strenuous excercise and you could have pulled or torn a muscle.

However, especially if it has been recurrent, and off-and-on during the past few months or so, and one moment you are fine and then all of a sudden BOOM, you feel the clenching chest pain and it makes you panicked because of what you feel, and you get lightheaded, perhaps some PVCs, as well as an increased heart rate, then it is more likely to be caused by anxiety and panic attacks causing your muscles in the chest region to tense up, causing severe muscular and musculoskeletal pain.

I am not saying that the pain you are feeling ISN'T real. It certainly IS real, and I have had so many attacks like that that it left me PROPPED UP in the bed for about a week since when I layed flat or stood it would increase the chest pain that I felt. I had this CONSTANT pain on my left side in one particular spot that was there for at least a week or more, yet as I was still getting attacks it only prolonged the muscular pain in that one spot. I know, it sux, but the pain and the symptoms are very real.

One thing I want to advise to you is don't just think that it is all in your head, because anxiety and panic problems ARE real, as some doctors may tell you, "it's just your brain, you are fine."

Just try to relax, and if you are getting heart palps/PVCs along with this then try to add more salt to your diet.

Also, REDUCE and try your best to ELIMINATE the consumption of CAFFEINE!! That alone I have found in numerous tries only AGGRAVATES the problems!!

And YES, you may feel FINE one moment, happy-go-lucky and enjoying yourself, and then all of a sudden BOOM the pain and heart palps hit, and it causes you to feel like you are going insane because you FEAR that you are having a heart attack or something has to be PHYSICALLY WRONG WITH YOU, when there really is NOT.

However, I still recommend going in for an echo. as well as get a complete Thyroid test (since thyroid problems can cause panic/anxiety problems like that too) to put your mind at ease. It ALWAYS helps to put your mind at ease, because in the long run it will help LESSEN your attacks since you won't be so STRESSED by them or convinced something is physically wrong, for all the necessary tests will have been done to show you otherwise. :)

I wish you luck, and if you have any questions/comments, then feel free to e-mail me at: ***@****

Trust me, I was just like you: happy and go-lucky and care-free, then these problems hit and it felt like it took my life away. I don't want that to happen to you. So feel free to e-mail me any time if you wish to discuss your problems, pain, thoughts, or want to hear more about my story...

~Crystal~

[OverIt236]

Thank you all for your responses really it means a lot to me :P

Crystal you put your answer in perfect wording I can totally see where your coming from and it makes me feel a lot better just reading that. I will email you forsure as well I have a couple questions. I do believe it can be anxiety forsure cause I get worked up ALL the time so I will work on it, just crazy how real it feels like you said. Test dont lie tho so Ill just believe them :)

Thanks once again to all you that posted on this post.