Aa
Heart problem or anxiety?
Please read through, i apologize if it's long.
I used to have panic disorder a few years back, so i do have a history of anxiety.
I also currently have a back problem (altho, it may be a neck problem) where I have pain in my back that radiates into my shoulder and arm. Sometimes i feel numbness in the arm and fingers.
I also sometimes feel like it's hard to breathe, like I have a ball in my throat and a heaviness in my chest and i'm very conscious of my breathing.
Combined all together it's hard to separate my back/neck problems from anxiety from potential heart problem.
I don't really feel chest pain, but sometimes I know i overanalyze and assume i feel chest pain (anxiety?).
It's gotten to the point where sometimes I get so concerned and think about it I have to go home from work or wtv other activity im at.
I recently had a blood test done, but the only thing that came back was that I was low on Iron. Would the blood test have come back with something more serious IF something was wrong?
I'm sick of constantly being worried that my heart will give out!
I also kinda assume potential anxiety because a lot of the times when i feel ****** like this I come home and lie down in bed with my heat pad or ice on my back/neck and I tend to feel better. I dont know if I feel better cause my heart is resting, or because i have the heat on my back or if its anxiety and im home and relaxed.
I'm not sure what i should do, but i dont wanna be overly worried and I dont wanna worry my mother.
PS. Im a 23 year old female, i'm overweight but not crazy obese. I do play hockey but I don't work out.
I used to have panic disorder a few years back, so i do have a history of anxiety.
I also currently have a back problem (altho, it may be a neck problem) where I have pain in my back that radiates into my shoulder and arm. Sometimes i feel numbness in the arm and fingers.
I also sometimes feel like it's hard to breathe, like I have a ball in my throat and a heaviness in my chest and i'm very conscious of my breathing.
Combined all together it's hard to separate my back/neck problems from anxiety from potential heart problem.
I don't really feel chest pain, but sometimes I know i overanalyze and assume i feel chest pain (anxiety?).
It's gotten to the point where sometimes I get so concerned and think about it I have to go home from work or wtv other activity im at.
I recently had a blood test done, but the only thing that came back was that I was low on Iron. Would the blood test have come back with something more serious IF something was wrong?
I'm sick of constantly being worried that my heart will give out!
I also kinda assume potential anxiety because a lot of the times when i feel ****** like this I come home and lie down in bed with my heat pad or ice on my back/neck and I tend to feel better. I dont know if I feel better cause my heart is resting, or because i have the heat on my back or if its anxiety and im home and relaxed.
I'm not sure what i should do, but i dont wanna be overly worried and I dont wanna worry my mother.
PS. Im a 23 year old female, i'm overweight but not crazy obese. I do play hockey but I don't work out.
Clearly (to me, who's lived with all manner of anxiety symptoms over decades) anxiety's still a major component for you. I've posted a variety of anxiety coping tips on this site (someday I'll gather them together and copy/paste them in an occasional post). Breathing & throat issues are classic.
Numbness strongly suggests nerve impingement and the value of learning loosening up routines (a physio could help you, or you could simply experiment in a conservative fashion). Sometimes neck tension's a result of poor eyewear choices (an optometrist visit might be considered if you've not seen one for a couple of years).
If you had a supervised treadmill while hooked up to an ECG, that ought to reassure you that all's well in that department. Another measure of your likelihood of sudden cardiac death is your heart recovery rate (the difference between your maximum exertion rate, and your heart rate at the one and two minute point afterwards while resting) -- those figures ought to be obtainable as part of the treadmill stress test.
Good to hear you're not crazy obese, but do you know your BMI?
Numbness strongly suggests nerve impingement and the value of learning loosening up routines (a physio could help you, or you could simply experiment in a conservative fashion). Sometimes neck tension's a result of poor eyewear choices (an optometrist visit might be considered if you've not seen one for a couple of years).
If you had a supervised treadmill while hooked up to an ECG, that ought to reassure you that all's well in that department. Another measure of your likelihood of sudden cardiac death is your heart recovery rate (the difference between your maximum exertion rate, and your heart rate at the one and two minute point afterwards while resting) -- those figures ought to be obtainable as part of the treadmill stress test.
Good to hear you're not crazy obese, but do you know your BMI?
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