shortness of breath with chest pain

[jujusmommy]

I am a mostly healthy 29 year old woman, no medical problems (except for headaches), not overweight.

Several times a day for the last month I have had the sensation that something is sitting on my chest, my breathing becomes very shallow and it suddenly hurts to take a deep breath. It lasts for several minutes, then I feel normal again.

The obvious cause would be stress/anxiety, but I haven't been under any added stress lately, and the timing of the "attacks" are completely random, I can't identify a trigger.

Should I bother to waste my time going to a doctor just to hear "It's probably anxiety", or should I just assume that it is? I've never had any lung or heart problems, and I haven't been sick recently. The only medicine I take is tramadol for headaches.

If I came to your office, would you order a bunch of tests, or would you put me on an anti-depressant?

Thanks

[jules402]

I have been suffering from a number of symptoms and I am really concerned about it. It started in December 2005 with numbness in feet. This spread to numbness and tingling in hands and persistent headaches in March. I had MRI and MRA scans done where I was told that I had an aneurysm. Further tests were carried out and I was told that it was not an aneurysm but actually chronic pansinusitis. I was on medication for 3 months and I felt much better but then I started to get paresthesia in my arms abou 3 times a night - it would waken me up. My headache returned and now I have swollen lymph nodes in my neck together with breathlessness and chest pain. I am having chest X-rays next month and I have been put onto vitamin B12 tablets but am really worried.

[National Jewish]

You have raised the question