chest pain for 3 years

[webmista]

hi. iv'e had chest pains for 3 years now. im 24 years old and i play competitive soccer so i am in good shape. i've had anxiety (sweaty palms and feet)since childhood, and gerd since 17 years old, but i keep a diet so it doesn't give me any problems.

anyway i had mild chest pains for 3 years all located where the heart is, in the middle and left side of my chest and back.(i have all kinds of pains, burning(not heartburn), dull aches, rib aches,pains that feel like a little electric shock and pains that go from front to back of my chest).i did an echo the first year, multiple ekgs and two stress tests in this 3 year period, all with different cardios all came out good. ended up in the er once told it was panic attack. i took burspirone for anxiety but that did not help at all.

about 4 months ago i went to a different cardio who said i had wpw. he did an echo that came out good. this is when i noticed i had palps too. gave me atenolol but it gave me more palps.

last month i went to an ep, he is a proffessor at nyu and considered one of the best in nyc. he did an ekg and said that my heart is fine & i don't have wpw.
i had other episodes of chest pains and palps so i called him twice. i asked if i should wear an holter or do further tests he told me my heart was strong and that although he understood that the pain and palps are real it wouldnt kill me i should learn to live with them.

i still have pains and palps i can't sleep on my left side,i've stoped playing for fear of dropping dead. should i go to another ep and get a holter done, please help me.

[Cleveland Clinic]

mista,

If you keep looking, eventually you will find multiple opinions from different physicians.

First, with recurring pains over three years, the likelyhood that the pains originate from your heart is exceedingly small.

Second, I would have the EP in NYC review the data that led your other EP to believe you had WPW.

I would generally look for a single physician you trust and quit shopping around. I would also look into ways of deling with this stress. Your coping mechanisms of avoiding exercise is not healthy.

good luck

[I'mallheart]

just live bro..been in your shoes..nice to have this so we can all talk about it..but this worry is getting the best of you..life is short..be thankful your healthy..enjoy soccer..run live love be happy

peace onto you

[NurseKagome]

Hi,

I'm 23 and I do get chest pain often. I figure, if I have had it this long...and tests all come back ok. Just start to let go of it. I know that anxiety can be like a little baby you took good care of and fed alot over the years and at times can be hard to let go of. I know this, it can become more of a habit (like smoking)not good for you but your addicted and it's hard to stop after so long. haha. It like "if I stop looking and worring will I miss something?" right? No. the only thing you will miss is being miserable, and who misses a tooth ache right?

What are we all looking for? A bad diagnosis? I don't know either...I mean we all seem to keep going back time after time to see a day when "YES I WAS RIGHT!"...****! This is not gonna happen and I don't want it to so I am accepting my diagnosis and moving on with life. I wasn't diagnosed with cancer...or anything else life threatening...a cancer pt or heart disease or bowel disease or stroke pt. probably all wish they could be us and think we are nuts to worry over this.

Of course, it's hard, I know this all too well, but I hope my little speal will appeal to you in some way and help you! You are ok, you are healthy, young and vibrant! Live life to the fullest! Off to mow the lawn haha. Talk to you all later!

Peace out,
Nurse Kagome

[webmista]

i do trust the ep but these pains or skipped beats really scare me still. the ep did review the tests that were made by the cardio who found the wpw. he was almost laughing or so it seemed. he actually asked me who told you you have wpw? he also told me that he was 99% sure it was not my heart and only with a cath he could be 100% sure. but he said he wouldn't suggest i follow that procedure.

thanks everyone for you support i appreciate it.

[Barbarella]

I understand what you're saying and that you're trying to help webmista with your post.  And I know that there are people out there who have cancer and serious heart disease and other serious diseases who wish they could have webmista's worries about his health instead.  Unfortunately people who worry a lot like webmista don't get the help they need even if they seek help.  The shrinks and Psychologists give patients 15 minutes of their time max if that much.  They are quick to prescribe meds which in my opinion is a bandaid and only masks the problem while the patient is washed out on these drugs.  The shrinks and therapists don't have the time and most of them don't understand how to deal with and help patients who can't stop worrying about their health.  These people suffer tremendously, and can't stop worrying.  Re asssurance from medical doctors over and over will not do it, they need help to get to the bottom of their fears.  These people at times feel humiliated because they know how many people out there have REAL serious diseases.  Unless these people get help they cannot deal with a diagnosis.

Sometimes doctors unintentionally put fears in these patients.  It happened to me.  Due to a very bad childhood experience (I was hospitalized for one year) I was always afraid if the doctor/doctors will find a serious illness in me again.  This caused my blood pressure to shoot through the roof whenever I had a doctor's appointment, but I did not know that because back then they did not do routine BP checks like they do now a days.  My face was always flushed and my heart was racing.  When they started to take BP I was in my early 20's and the doctor said to me while taking my BP "oh my god we need to do something about your BP you can have a stroke any minute".  THAT was the final straw for me.  Even though I was put on BP meds I developed a phobia to this day of having my BP taken at a doctor's office.  My phobia got so bad that even with BP meds my BP still went through the roof at doctors appointments.  After a trip to the ER I was referred to a Cardiologist who told me to take my BP at home and bring my readings to my appointments (BP totally normal and on the low side at home).  Over the years I saw Therapists, Psychologists and one Psychiatrist.  I was on meds which did not help me overcome my phobia, I was in group therapy, individual therapy, deep breathing exercises and the list goes on.  We spent tons of money on these Therapists, money which our Insurance company did not cover.  None of them understood my problem.  One Therapist asked me "if I was afraid that the BP cuff would not deflate".  I felt totally humiliated and never went back there.  My phobia is called "severe white coat hypertension" and I know you can read about it on the Internet, but trust me doctors and therapists STILL don't understand what people like me are going through, and there are tons of people out there with this condition.  My Cardioligist explained to me that when under severe anxiety/phobia the BP meds you're taking on a daily basis at that moment they will not help you, they help you to keep your BP under control on a daily basis.  He even said "I'm sorry I can't help you with your phobia, and I can't refer you to anyone who understands this problem".  At least he was honest.  Not even tranquelizers before an appointment will keep my BP at a normal level.  Its like my body is fighting it, and when everything was over I used to collapse and sleep for two days, because THEN the tranquelizers finally worked.  Its a nightmare.  Even though its not cancer or any other serious disease people like me we have our own hell we are going through, and people have to walk in our shoes to really understand the hell we are in.  The "what if" is always in the back of our minds. And if you are told "oh my god you can have a stroke any minute" instead of "we need to get you some BP meds because your BP is elevated" that doesn't help when the fear is put in you that you could stroke out "any minute".

[momto3girls]

Hi there,

I can relate (:  I hate the chest pains I get and just went yesterday to my cardiologist.  She says she's 99% sure it's not my heart but is sending me for a CT heart and artery scan.  I do have some family history (grand-father died age 48 of 3 heart attacks) but I'm only 33 so who the heck knows!  

I've had what you describe too...pains in the center, to the left, rib cage pain, squeezing etc.  Have you ever looked into costochondritis?  It's an inflammation of the cartilage that connects your ribs.  I have it and it's quite painful, especially if I press on it.  My cardiologist says that if you can push on it and reproduce the pain, it's not heart then and it's probably muscular.  

You are young but, like Al mentioned, rare cases do account for some.  I wouldn't go back to a cardiologist who told me that my chest pain is nothing, since I'm so young.  Sometimes you have to push for your own health and be a little aggressive, not demanding, but firm.  

Having said all that, if your EP gave you a thorough evaluation then I'd be inclined to relax more.  Easier said then done I know.  (My cardio doctor just yesterday said she wants me to see an EP to figure out my rhythm problem since she doesn't know).  That's very interesting about WPW.  I wonder why the other doctor said you had it.  That must have been a relief to hear from your EP that in fact you don't have WPW. (:

About exercising, I completely understand.  I was on a hiatus myself for over a month because the chest pain scared me to death.  Just this week I forced myself to go 3 days and guess what?  I didn't drop dead and actually had some of the best workouts I've had in a long time.  Go figure (:

Best of luck to you.  You're in good company here!  Take care and don't let it control your life.

[Jrake]

Hey Webmista,
                I just wanted to let you know that you are not the only one out there with the heart/health concerns you are experiencing. I too experience unexplainable soreness, and pain especially around my armpit and left chest area. Just a little background though..... I have had anxiety all my life, so I know how it can suck. When I was about 12 or thirteen I started getting tachycardias which are really quite scary at first. When I went to the doctor he said it wasn't dangerous and that I could learn to make it go away by stopping whatever I was doing, trying to focus on good thoughts, and holding my breath. I did eventually learn how to control them, and because I was told that they were not dangerous, I learned not to panic. It's pretty amazing what the mind is capable of. Anyway.... at that age I would get tachycardias about 3 or 4 times a year, but over time they became less and less frequent, until I almost never had them, ( maybe one every two years). When I was in my earlier twenties I would say I didn't take care of my health, and I hung out with some people who's health habits were much worse than my own. I smoked cigarettes, and weed for a good eight years on and off, and never had any major problems, other than feeling like **** all the time, and having depression etc. But then one day I did some cocaine, which I had tried a couple times before, with no major problems. This time was different. I panicked as I was coming down, and I couldn't calm my nerves. I kept telling myself it would be ok.... but it didn't help. Finally the next morning I walked myself to the emergency room, and had to wait for an hour and a half for someone to talk to me even though I was about ready to **** myself. After spending the entire day hooked up to nothing more than a saline IV I was about ready to leave, and they took an ekg before I left. Then the doctor was like..." you know you could've died?" I completely broke down. I've never felt so ashamed and horrible in my life. She told me I had wpw and that I needed to see a cardiologist. At this point my life made a complete 180 turnaround. When I saw the doctor he said I could fix it by getting a catheter ablation, so I decided to do it. A couple months later I was on the road to recovery. Wpw... in case you didn't know is one of the types of symptoms that can cause a tachycardia. There are many other types of tachycardia that are caused by tissue in the heart that is capable of conducting electricity, and under the right circumstances an electrical circuit forms which creates the different beating pattern. Even if you do have wpw, you should know that it is probably one of the best type of problem your heart can have, because it is curable. The funny thing is that originally my cardiologist thought I had wpw, but later he changed his mind thinking that perhaps I had ventricular tachycardia instead. I guess I'll never really know. Well, ... a couple months passed and I ended up having another small tachycardia.... unlike previous episodes though it stoped within a couple of minutes, whereas previous episodes had lasted up to 30 minutes or more. I ended up having to go back and get a second catheter ablation, because the doctor said it's possible he may have missed a few spots. It sucked to have to do it again, but I did it and since then I have not had any more tachycardia. That was over a year ago. When earlier, I had my experience in the ER, I decided to change my habits, and I started being very active, before and after surgery. I regularly practiced intense yoga, and have continued that over the last year, and I also really love cycling, and since my surgery I have ridden over 1200 miles in the last year. I went back to school as well and I have a 3.94 gpa currently. I guess all these things are great, but I am still dealing with anxiety, and I get periods of random pain like you have described. I never had this before my surgery. When I really think about it, I can tell that the pain is not from my heart itself, but more from the bones, muscles and  whatever else is around it. I have tried and tried to figure out why I could be having these pains, but nothing has been found so far. I thought maybe I had cancer, or hepatitis, and did some bloodwork, but everything was clean. The only one thing that I have found that I can associate any of this stuff with is stress. The link between the amount of stress I generally have from school, my girlfriend, and everything seems to be directly proportionate to experiencing pain. Even still this conclusion does not satisfy me. I feel your pain. Ok I'm no doctor.... but I think you probably should stop worrying, because for one thing if you've never had a tachycardia (if you had one you would know that you've had one... it's not just a few flutters) then chances are.... you probably don't have wpw. Having a flutter here and there according to my doctor is very common, and not necessarily caused by any major problematic condition. I think that like me you have a bit of stress, and not knowing why you feel the way you do is what causes your anxiety. That's how it is for me anyway. Sorry if my story is a bit long winded, but I'm glad to see that I'm not alone, being someone who is pretty healthy, and active, and doesn't understand why they have to experience the pain that we do. I hope that if other people know something else they will share it, and maybe we can figure out more. That's why I came on here anyway.... I still want answers...

[ta69]

hi i read your post, and i had to smile because i had the same symptoms and my doctor told me the same thing. if you press on where the pain is and you fell the pain it's not your heart because your heart is protected by the rib cage and the rib cage is too strong to let the heart feel when you are pushing on it.he also told me about the costochondritis, which is what i have and according to my gp is something common women have but are often misdiagnosed. Fortunately I have no family history of heart problems at all. Best of luck to you.

[kukusha]

i also suffer from such problem since 2002 i.e 4 years now and you know i dont exactly know what to do. but i think the major thing here has to do with stress so try to avoid or reduce stress as much as possible in your life