Strange Undiagnosed Symptoms? Quite Worried?

[YorkiesWorld]

Since 2010 I have been diagnosed with anxiety and now depression. Quite recently (meaning the last month or so) I've been having extreme sweating all over my body, to the point where even sitting and doing nothing at all can cause me to sweat on my back, neck, arms and forehead.

I've also been getting more frequent palpitations along with short bursts of dizziness and panicky feelings. Sometimes I also get numbness or tingling in my left hand and fingers, and I've had chest pains in the left hand side. I also feel extremely fatigued and lethargic at times - mainly when I have the symptoms.

Strangely, when this happens it feels slightly like indigestion, and can be relieved by burping... And other times it feels like an uncomfortable pain in my left chest, just under my left nipple.

I've had full blood tests testing for literally everything, chest X-rays, urine tests, 24 hour ECGs, normal ECGs, heart ultrasounds and the whole lot.

Some of the ECGs have identified a few ectopic heartbeats, but my doctor told me this shouldn't be anything to worry about.

I'm 20 years of age, Male and standing around 5.5 feet tall, weighing around 11 - 12 stones.

Any help would be great guys as I'm quite worried about all of this. Could it be anxiety or does it sound like something more?

[marlinspike]

Hi YW. It sounds like you have had a lot of cardiac testing which should put your mind at rest about your heart, especially at your age. Anxiety can cause sweating, tingling etc, but as Achilles mentioned, when we are anxious we tend to be aware of every little physical sensation. Small aches and pains that we would usually not even notice suddenly seem strange and worrying. Are you taking any medication for anxiety or depression? These can have side effects on occasion. There are some great books that helped me a lot with my anxiety - Dr Claire Weeks 'Self Help for Your Nerves' is fantastic. Dr Richard Carlson 'Stop Thinking Start Living' is great too, as is 'The Worry Cure' by Robert Leahy. Also, try the meditation stuff on You Tube or the free Tara Brach site. I wasted years with anxiety and panic about my heart health, waiting for a catastrophe that never happened, and I would hate for you to do the same. Keep in touch with your gp, but don't be passive about your recovery - there are lots of things you can do to help yourself. Best wishes.

[Bromley]

OK, I am more of a root cause person. When there are questions I want a specific reason with data behind it.  The thing is, it "could be" anxiety, but it "could also be" something else, including something else unrelated to your heart. These things are all treated in different ways, so in order to know the correct treatment plan, you (or your doctor) have to determine which it is.

It doesn't make any difference how you get to the answer, but it is a lot easier with at least one doctor helping you. And it is also helpful if you have a doctor that is doing the systems work for you (i.e. a person responsible for integrating the results of all the specialists). If it were me, I think I would start with an internist known for her thoroughness, and explain your story.

[achillea]

You ask if your symptoms are related to anxiety.  Since you have had extensive testing of your heart and other body systems and have gotten the 'all-clear' there, and since you are very young--and since you have been diagnosed with anxiety and depression--it is very likely that your symptoms are indeed related to your emotional state.

Sweatiness, dizziness, panic, fatigue and lethargy--they all fit with depression and anxiety.  The exception might be the tingling in the left arm, which could be a pinched cervical nerve (in your neck).  Of course, left -sided symptoms are part of heart trouble, but a funny thing about the anxious mind is that once aware of this fact, we CAN convince ourselves that the ticker is the problem, instead of what is between our ears.

It would be a good idea to return to the doctor who is treating you for anxiety and depression to,report your symptoms.  It sounds as though you might need a little help in dealing with cardiac anxiety.  You can also post questions at medhelp's anxiety forum here:

http://www.medhelp.org/forums/Anxiety/show/71

[Artaud]

Are your EKGs recent, made while experiencing these symptoms, or done months ago for another issue?

Has the doctor offered suggestions on what may be causing these symptoms?

The medical term for sweating is diaphoresis and there are a variety of causes. Please see the following link:

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diaphoresis

For those American readers, such as myself, this individual's weight is 154 to 168 pounds.

In the absence of structural disorders of the heart and its circulation, there are other factors that can cause people to experience chest pains related to the heart. There are other members on this forum that would be much more capable of elaborating on those causes.

But chest pains can be related to a variety of things including anxiety and gastro-intestinal upsets. One that may partially explain the sweating would be Irritable Bowel Syndrome, which is hyper or excesdive motility of the Gastrointestinal Tract.

Chest pains and sweating can also be related to anxiety. If you've been tested recently for your heart, and the doctor feels that everything is OK, it may well be anxiety related.

http://www.npadnews.com/anxiety-symptoms.asp  

I would keep in touch with your doctor and follow through on testing as suggested, but with recent testing being negative, you have good reason to be reassured about the health of your heart.