Heart Pain?

[alejothethird2015]

i'm a 33 year old male. I've been smoking since I was 18 and binge drinking (almost every other day) beer for the past 4-5 years. Not proud to say it but it's the truth. about a week ago I noticed a dull pain in my chest left of center. the pain would happen when I would take a deep breath or move my left arm in certain positions. I'd been trying to not drink as much when I noticed this, but the pain seems to go away when I am drunk. yesterday I had a cold sweat and felt dizzy and I got really worried about it. oddly though the pain never increases, it is just the same mildy dull pain. I spent all weekend in bed and am feeling a little more normal today. is it possible I could have drank/smoked my way to heart disease. I also have exercised all that much the past 5 years. Please help. Thank you.

[marycarmel]

Hi.  There are many things that cause chest pain, and not all chest pain is cardiac.  But ANY chest pain needs to be taken seriously and should be checked by a doctor.  With having dizziness and sweats, I think you should go to the ER immediately.  If you won't do that, at least call your doctor first thing in the morning.

And you definitely could have brought on heart disease by smoking and binge drinking.  I'm a smoker myself, so I understand how hard it is to quit. I can tell by your post you're not eager to go to the doctor but you really must.  Don't be embarrassed about telling them about your smoking and drinking history..  They've seen and heard everything and they'll focus on getting to the cause of the pain.

[ed34]

Its not cardiac if the pain is caused by taking a deep breath or moving your arm in a certain position. However, it seems like you want to have heart disease because you are ensuring your lifestyle is on the right path for it.