strange symptoms of pounding heart and pressure in head

[made to win]

Greetings.  For almost a year I've had some unusual symptoms involving a constant pressure feeling in my head, along with the feeling of muscle weakness or stiffness in my forehead.  Due to this, I've been pursuing neurological explanations with a headache specialist and another neurologist I saw.  

However, the thing that makes me wonder is it something else is because there are times when my heart will beat intensely for about 10-50 beats and during this time I feel a sharp pulsating pain near the upper part of my chest where the shoulder bones meet your neck (this is a throbbing pain along with my heartbeat) and I also feel the SAME PRESSURE in my head pulsate much more intensly along with my heartbeat.  Usually, the headache is dull and boring, but when the pulsations happen I also hear the "bruit" sound in my ears alot.   The thing that triggers this is often standing up too fast, or blowing up a balloon.   I have also experienced nausea that comes and goes, and feelings of shortness of breath while at rest, which improves upon exercise.  Horizontal vertigo has also been a problem.  

I have had an ABG, chest xray, Echo, EKG, MRI and MRA of the brain and cervical-vessels, and Pulmonary function testing.  Everything negative.  

Should I have some additional testing done in your opinion..such as an MRA study or CT scan of my chest?  Do you have ANY ideas about what this might be because it's ruining me and my families life?

I am a 28 year old male, non smoker.  THANK YOU SO MUCH

[CCF-M.D.-MJM]

Hello,

sorry you are having these problems.  it is a pecular constellation of symptoms.  Shortness of breath at rest that improves with exercise is usually associated with anxiety -- I don't know what else it could be to honest.

I am not sure what other tests to advice.  I do not know what a CT or MRA would offer.

I have heard people concerned of pressure in the head when they stand too quickly, but I have never ordered any tests to investigate it.

I do not know of any cardiovascular condition that would cause these symptoms.  I hope this helps.

[made to win]

PS- I'm sorry but I also forgot to mention that things like sneezing or coughing hard gives me a few seconds of relief.  Also is it normal to be completely out of breath on your first cough?

[LukeL]

The problem most of us have here is that a negative test result doesn't make us feel better it makes us feel worse because we haven't gotten an answer yet. You may want to ask for a holter monitor or an event monitor to give you a near difinitve answer if your symptoms are caused from problems with your heart.

You may also want to have an EEG to rule out more neurological problems.  

But with a negative echo and EKG and no family history the risk of atypical heart realted problems is very rare.

I AM NOT A DOCTOR AND ONLY GIVING MY OPINION, just take this as my two cents.

[woodruff]

madetowin, once you have had a bunch of tests, and several docs have told you that you're healthy, I'd like to suggest--having been down the old panic route myself, along with pvcs up the wazoo (can I say that on this board?)--that you have a session with a good psychiatrist.  You may have to talk with several to find one who's a good fit with your temperament, but when you do, a real doc with medical training will be looking at you and at your history, and will be able to make a decent judgment about how much of your problem is due to anxiety.

Believe me, an astonishing number of physical symptoms can show up due to stuff that's happening between the ears, and finding the right anti-anxiety drug will help your body feel much better, especially in terms of cardiac symptoms.  Again, finding the right drug may take a number of trials, but keep trying.  It will pay off.

[fearfactor]

Hi - I have severe anxiety which definitely contributes to my PACs and PVCs.  I have to go off Xanax because I'm pregnant.  What anxiety med(s) do you use?  I'm looking for an alternative to benzodiazepines that is effective and safe.
Thanks!

[woodruff]

"I have severe anxiety which definitely contributes to my PACs and PVCs. I have to go off Xanax because I'm pregnant. What anxiety med(s) do you use? I'm looking for an alternative to benzodiazepines that is effective and safe."

Like you, I have used Xanax for bad spells during the day, and Klonopin at night, but when I'm in a panicky "phase" (they usually last a few months each time I get them), they are not adequate and I have to go to more long-term therapy, which, in my case, is SSRIs.  My doc has tried me on Celexa (worked the first time, but not two years later), Lexapro (didn't work), Paxil (didn't work), and Zoloft (has worked like a charm three times now).

However, I've never had anxiety during pregnancy, so I can't advise you about safe medications at that time.  My shrink could, though; his specialty is pharmacological treatment of conditions not requiring talk therapy.

So, (1) do you have a good psychiatrist?, and (2) Have you ever tried cognitive therapy or hypnosis for your anxiety?  These, I have found, do not work well for full-on panic--but for anxiety, I have found hypnosis to be marvelous.  It is such fun!  Really.  And no drugs are involved.

[sun28]

Hi. I hope you find an answer. Find a different doctor. Its your body!
I am 28 years old, and about 6 months ago i began having weird sensations in my head, like hearing my heart beat, pressure, and like i was gonna faint. . It only lasted a few seconds or more, but enough to scare me-i have 2 young kids. I have always had dizziness, and got hot quickly, like i was gonna get sick for years and heart palpatations. I was also having sharp pains in my chest and when inhaled it got worst, but only last less than a minute. I see a physcians assistant, an he is awesome! I came to him with all of this, and he did an ekg, echo, heart holter, bloodwork and a cat scan of the brain because of migrains i also suffer from. In the end i was diagnois with MVP, not a big concern, but then he sent me to a Cardiologist cuz of almost fainting and had to wear a heart event recorder for a month, then tilt table test, which is next. The Cardio says i have some type of syncope cardio?(fainting), when i get up or standing an almost pass out, and he wants to make sure its not the type where i will pass out an die basically--you here about alot of this on the news with twenty somethings have this. Anyway i will let ya know the offical results. Take care

[ladymoonkist]

Hi there...

I dont know where to begin. So I will start at the beginning. The end of August this year, I was sitting in my chair at my desk, and this sudden extreme pain hit me in the back of my head. I ended up going to the walk-in clinic that night only to be told that I had a pulled muscle. The doc sent me home with Skelaxin, which ended me up in the hospital for 3 days. My symptons include pressure in the back of my head, some tingling in my nose, lips, and forehead...also I have numbness in my left arm, pain in my neck/shoulders/upper back area...pain in the middle of my chest with dull throbbing heartbeats...I also experienced severe nausea with vomiting and diarrhea...some lightheadness and vertigo come and go...I also had severe pressure in my right ear, which now, after so many weeks is gone, but my hearing isnt as well in that ear...I also have gritting noises in my neck area.

Now, I was tested in the hospital...they did EKG's several times, I wore a halter heart monitor for 3 days, and they did a test where they put this radioactive stuff in my veins and took pictures of my heart, dont know what they call it. They also took blood from the veins and arteries ...and I was told my enzymes were fine, no sign of clots. So they sent me home and told me to go to my family doctor.

I went to my doctor the next day, and he put me on meds for an outer ear infection, meds for sinus problems, and meds for infection. I ended up BACK at the ER again, for 12 hours, only to be sent home, and told to go back to my doctor. I went that day. He then prescribed meds for me for high blood pressure, since my blood pressure was up high. Now when I was in the hospital, it was low. He also put me on Darvocet and Lunesta, as the Ambien he had prescribed the week earlier did not work. He also put me on Mobic. The Mobic caused a bad reaction and I was back at the docs the next day. He then decided I needed an MRI of my neck/c-spine. I went and had that done, then was sent to a neuorosurgeon to be told I had some slight degeneration going on from c-4 to c-7, but nothing major, or unlike anyone else, and that with some ROM(range of motion), stretching, and strengthening exercises, I would be fine. Also told me to use Oscal-D, Ostio-BiFlex and liquid B-12 under the tongue. I have been using that...still no relief.

The only med I am on now is Lunesta, and without it, I wouldnt get the 4 hours of sleep I get now.

I now suffer from severe bouts of depression...never had any of that in my life before. I think the pain and not knowing exactly what is going on with my body, is causing me panic attacks.

Does anyone have any advice? Or is anyone else suffering the same thing? Please let me know ...ALL comments are welcome. I just want to know that I am not slowly losing my mind.

Thanks!

[LCK]

My comment is to the person who wrote about having MVP.  I went through the same thing several years ago that scared me to death.  I was living in Colorado up in the mountains high high elevation, and started fainting, one time in my lseep.  Finally went to the hospital and they put me on a heart monitor to find that during one of my episodes, my heart had stopeed for 18 second, basically I was dead.  After $15,000.00 worth of tests, the cardiologist could not find anything, they put me on a "speed" type of medication and it happened maybe once more in 12 years.  I feel it starts with nausea, but having a daughter now I am so scared that thiw will happen again, good luck to you.  They also told me it could be "Vaso-vagal syndrome."

[wazzel]

Two weeks ago while using my computer, I suddenly experienced extreme pressure quickly building in my head! It seemed as though it was going to explode, much the same as placing too much air in a tire. The pressure increase (from start to finish) lasted only about 4-5 seconds and then suddenly returned to normal as quickly as it came. All I can remember thinking was that I was about to die and fully believed that my head was going to explode! I have no symptoms that can be connected to this that I'm aware of. I am wondering what this episode is indicitive of. I am 63 and in reasonably good health, or at least I thought I was! HELP!!!