Yawning and Shortness of Breath

[Richaz]

I occassionally get bouts of excessive yawning and shortness of breath.  I have found that adding salt to my diet cures this condition.  This started three months ago.  I was wondering what condition would cause the yawning with shortness of breath and then for it to be cured with increased salt in my diet.  Fortunately my blood pressure is low to normal so even with the added salt my blood pressure is still ok.  I have been to several doctors and none of them have an answer except to say that salt deprivation during exercise can cause symptoms, but that is not the case with me.  I have been told it could be a cardiac, endocrine or neurological problem.  I have been to all those doctors with no help.  Some others here with good blood pressure and the same problem may want to try the salt.  Start with a 1/4 table spoonful.  1/2 usually does it for me.  Ask your doctor first.

[Beck33]

Wow, so glad I found this thread i've had this sinse about 2002? I remember it started when I went to bed some nights like an anxiety attack, I thought I was dying which is scary when ur only 15, im now 24 and I almost have it every day. Mostly through out the day and most nights. Now someone mentioned dairy... I just had icecream and my lack of breath and yawning has come on sooo strong. Im a dairy addict.... Icecream most nights before bed, tea or coffe in morning, milky breaky. Im not over weight, ive never smoked, I don't get headaches and ive been on the pill sinse 07. Im going to go on a dairy free cull and ill get back to this post and see if anything changes. We were never meant to eat this much dairy as  humans. Im soo sick of being embarressed about my yawning, getting a sore throat from it, feeling like I wont wake up in the morning and being kept awake cos of it. I also just noticed ARE WE ALL GIRLS?
Ps I just took a pinch of salt and my yawning calmed down a bit....weird

[MSjrsygirl]

A related discussion, Help for constant yawning/ deep breaths/ not panic attack? was started.

[Whitbywitchuk]

A related discussion, Yawning Shortness of breath was started.

[ladibarnes]

I am a 22 year old college student and I have been experiencing the same symptoms for as long as I can remember. When I was a child they thought I had asthtma, then realized that wasn't it at all. Everyone says its anxiety, but it doesnt always onset when I am stressed out or anxious. I think that we realize it more while we are lying down to go to sleep because we have more time to focus on it. For weeks at a time I just can't get a deep breath and try to yawn all the time. Yoga doesn't help much becuse I can't stop trying to yawn the whole time. I also get panicked sometimes and I'm sure then I get anxiety. I also went to a therapist for my "anxiety" but she didn't think I needed much therapy.

I haven't tried eating more salt, but it's interesting that salt might be connected, because I already eat a much larger amount of salt than anyone I know. I salt everything, even cookies. Seems weird that the two are related. Also, I noticed that someone posted that they couldn't burp. I didn't used to be able to burp either, and I did that weird gurgly thing, too. I hated it! But a few years ago all of the sudden I could burp and I've been a happy burper every since. I don't know if they're related but it seems odd that it affected both of us. Just so you know, there's hope that someday you will be able to burp, too!

If no one minds, I am interested in knowing a few specific things about your lives, in order to maybe better pin-down what could be causing our problems. If you don't mind answering just a few questions...

How much caffeine intake do you have?
What products (coffee, tea, chocolate etc) do you get caffeine from?
Do you have chronic headaches?
Do any of you take ibuprofen daily?
Are any of you aware of any food allergies that you may have?
Would you describe yourself as type A personalities?
Do any of you have noticeably bad circulation?
Does exercise seem to helpful or detrimental?
Do any of you get headaches from perfumes?

Thank you so much, sorry if some of those questions seem kinda random. I hope we can get down to the bottom of this all.

[LadyAftermath]

Finally there are people who feel my pain!

I have had this shortness of breath problem since the summer of 2004.  I have no idea why it started.  I am a 24 year old female, with not really any significant health problems.  I don't smoke.  The SOB thing just started happening one day and I don't know why, and it hasn't gone away.  

I've gone to doctors, they have ALL told me it's anxiety, and I think that's just their way of saying they don't know what else it is.  It might be anxiety, but I don't really think I have too much anxiety.  And usually I have the breathing problem when I'm relaxing or watching TV or something.  Plus, I have tried anxiety pills and they just make me relaxed, but don't help the breathing.

I have heard it could be acid reflux.  However, I never have any symptoms of acid reflux.  I don't ever get heartburn.  The problem worsens when I am lying down though, and it definitely worsens when I am eating.  I also don't ever eat spicy foods, and even foods like tomatoes (which cause acid reflux), I eat only every now and then.

The problem just feels like I'm not getting enough air, and I constantly have to yawn or breathe really deeply to feel normal.  Sometimes it is hard to get that deep breath, and it can be really annoying.  Plus, it is ongoing.  It will last for hours sometimes.  Nothing seems to help.

I really don't know what it is, and it's driving me insane.  No doctor seems to know.  I don't have any symptoms of anything else.  I don't have any pain whatsoever, just problems breathing.  Exercise doesn't seem to make it worse, usually just sitting/lying down or eating.  Sometimes nothing at all.  

I also never ever burp.  I don't know if that's related to it somehow, but I get like a weird gurgling in my chest all the time after I eat.  Maybe that's part of it, I have no idea.

If someone has these same symptoms, and has found out what it is or what can help it, PLEASE let me know.  It is ruining my life.

[Beth01]

I, too, experience occasional bouts of yawning associated with shortness of breath.  It's something that no doctor I've spoken to (general practitioner or allergist) seems to understand at all.  And you feel sometimes that you're dizzy and going to have a heart attack, and some of you, as I, may even have gone to the emergency room.  These emergency trips never yield a thing.  My stats are always perfect.  I have low blood pressure, by the way, and wonder whether it has something to do with that.

I have also hyperventilated in the past, and very much associate hyperventilating with this problem.  Whenever I have excessive yawning, etc., I do breathe into a paper bag for a while (sometimes, three times or more with a small break in between).  But I'm having this breathing problem today, and I don't know that the paper bag thing is working for me.

I've never heard of the salt thing.  Sounds very strange, but I'll try it anyway.  I will say that this problem can very easily feed on itself and make you panic, and then you can exacerbate the problem entirely.  When I've had these problems, I've never felt as if something overly worrying caused me to panic, but I can say that I do get panicked sometimes when I can't stop this yawning/shortness of breath thing.  It really scares me.