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years of shortness of breath, pressure on left side of chest under ribcage
For about 4 or 5 years now, i have had a feeling of fullness, and pressure on the left side of my chest, under my ribs. When it first started a few years ago it wasn't that bad, but it has progressively gotten worse over time. It is always there and never goes away. Recently, i just started having this pain in my back directly behind where my side always bothers me. It has been hurting now for about 4 weeks, and hasn't gone away. Also, i always feel like i can't breathe. It almost feels like i am drowning, or like i am not getting enough air. Sometimes it feels like someone is sitting on my chest, or squeezing me. I don't know what to do. I have been to numerous doctors. I have had a EKG, an abdominal ultrasound, an abdominal CT SCAN, a pulmonary function test, and a barium enema. None of these test revealed anything about what could be wrong with me. For the last few weeks, My throat has been feeling like it is hard to swallow, and my nose is always stuffy. I have been told that it's probably anxiety, and i have taken medication for it, but it didn't make my symptoms go away. I am scared that it could be something life threatening, like hodgkin's lymphoma, or a lung disease, but wouldn't the CT scan see that? Or maybe an enlarged spleen? I feel like this every second of everyday, and i am beginning to feel hopeless. I have a 2 year old son that i feel like i can't play with as much as i would like to because of this, and i am scared that it will only get worse. Can anyone please help me? Some other symptoms i experience sometimes are having to urinate a lot, and feeling like my bladder isn't being emptied out all the way, and sometimes my pupils are different sizes. I don't know if these symptoms have anything to do with my initial problem though. PLEASE HELP!
another thought, have you seen a neuro? the squeezing sensation around the ribcage and the bladder issues sound compatible with ms. do elevate the head of your bed. gerd can be part of it, it doesn;t always respond to proton pump inhibitors.
i have some similiar symptoms, some of the things that i have beed dx with, and that might be part of your problem, are:
gastroparesis, dx after an emptying study. you can google this. it can cause upper left quadraNT FULLNESS,and can be very uncomfortable.
thyroid disease. see an endocrinologist if you haven;t already. you can have autoimmune thryoid and your numbers can look normal. proabaly someone may ahve notice a swollen thryroid, though, but just a thought.
have you had a swallowing evaluation? manometry can detect esphageal dsyfunction. google that too.
i don't know much about blood cancers but a cbc would have shown an abnormality by now, so rest easy there. keep at it. try not to let the anxiety of not knowing get too bad, though certainly it is unavoidable. i wish you good luck and answers. you're not alone.
gastroparesis, dx after an emptying study. you can google this. it can cause upper left quadraNT FULLNESS,and can be very uncomfortable.
thyroid disease. see an endocrinologist if you haven;t already. you can have autoimmune thryoid and your numbers can look normal. proabaly someone may ahve notice a swollen thryroid, though, but just a thought.
have you had a swallowing evaluation? manometry can detect esphageal dsyfunction. google that too.
i don't know much about blood cancers but a cbc would have shown an abnormality by now, so rest easy there. keep at it. try not to let the anxiety of not knowing get too bad, though certainly it is unavoidable. i wish you good luck and answers. you're not alone.
Well i actually have a pretty healthy diet. I very rarely eat anything fried. I never drink alot of caffeine.....occasionally i drink sweet tea. I never drink anything carbonated because i get alot of UTI's. One thing that i forgot to mention was that i often try to avoid wearing a bra because every time i have one on, it feels like it is squeezing me, making it even harder for me to breathe. So i take it off, and it feels a little better, but i still can't breathe. My bra is on the loosest hook, so I know it isn't too tight, and i can't just go around and not wear a bra because i have a rather large chest for my size. It feels like there is a big rubber band wrapped around my ribs or something, and it goes into my throat....and then my throat feels like it is closing up. If it really was GERD, would the symptoms be constant? Because my symptoms don't go away......EVER. Another thing that i forgot to mention, is that along with all the problems on the left side of my chest......my left arm gets tired really fast whenever i am using it. Like just blow-drying my hair makes my left arm give out...and i can't even hold my son on my left side. I seriously can't remember what it feels like to be able to just feel normal, and be able to do normal activities. Thank you for taking time out to respond back to me. I have been dealing with this for such a long time, and i just want to start being able to live my life again.
MEDICAL PROFESSIONAL
Taking omeprazole only will not help. With it you need to take the diet and food restrictions I mentioned earlier. Yes, anemia will show up in normal CBC and blood work. For diabetes and hypothyroidism you need further testing unless you had an extensive blood work that included them. Cancers, lymphomas, leukemia will also show in routine CBC.
Hope this helps. Please let me know if there is any thing else and do keep me posted. Take care!
Hope this helps. Please let me know if there is any thing else and do keep me posted. Take care!
yes, i have been told many time that this sounds like GERD. But i have tried every omeprazole drug there is, and it doesn't help. I have had plenty of blood work done.......wouldn't anemia, diabetes, and hypothyroidism show up on my blood work? Or would they have to be looking for it? I am scared that it could be my heart, or lungs even though i have had lots of tests that say other wise. Does this sound like it could be hodgkin's lymphoma? One thing i forgot to say is that when i push out my stomach as hard as i can, it feels like air or liquid is bubbling on the left side, the side that bothers me. It really weird, and sometimes really loud. My husband can hear it when he sits beside me and i push my stomach out.
MEDICAL PROFESSIONAL
Hi
Thanks for writing to the forum!
There are a few things that you must look into. Anemia, diabetes, hypothyroidism should all be looked into. There is a strong possibility that you also have acid reflux or GERD. Omeprazole is a good drug to combat this. Along with it you can try over the counter antacids. Avoid heavy meals. Avoid too much of caffeine, tea, fried food and drinks both alcoholic and non alcoholic fuzzy ones. Avoid heavy exercises within 4 hours of a heavy meal. Raise the head end of the bed by pillows to 30 degrees. Go to bed at least 2 hours after food. If these tips help then you can be sure about GERD.
Hope this helps. Please let me know if there is any thing else and do keep me posted. Take care!
Thanks for writing to the forum!
There are a few things that you must look into. Anemia, diabetes, hypothyroidism should all be looked into. There is a strong possibility that you also have acid reflux or GERD. Omeprazole is a good drug to combat this. Along with it you can try over the counter antacids. Avoid heavy meals. Avoid too much of caffeine, tea, fried food and drinks both alcoholic and non alcoholic fuzzy ones. Avoid heavy exercises within 4 hours of a heavy meal. Raise the head end of the bed by pillows to 30 degrees. Go to bed at least 2 hours after food. If these tips help then you can be sure about GERD.
Hope this helps. Please let me know if there is any thing else and do keep me posted. Take care!
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