Shortness of breath :(

[xJust_Sarahx]

Hi
So i just came back from the doctors.. yet again i went because of my breathing. The doctor said my chest sounds fine and my heart beat but i will get an appointment for a chest xray!
He said if that comes back fine then hes going to put it down to stress!

How can that be? How is it possible tha stress can cause you to feel breathless and short of breath? Everyday is a constant struggle to breathe, i get short of breath talking, i cant walk up the stairs - i have to do it slowly step by step and taking a rest. I cant even hoover cos i physically cant. I cant even walk in across the street.. i cant do anything!!
im not overweight and i dont smoke. How can it be down to stress? How can stress make you feel liek your dying everyday for all that day?
Does anyone experience this? Every day i feel that bad that i need to call 999. Its hard stopping myself. I cant bend down to get clothes out washer to put in dryer without feeling winded!

Its not all in my head i swear its not. I know i have 4 kids and stress is bount to happen.. especially all under the age of 5 and im just 24 but still.. i shouldnt be feeling this is?

I hate myself and life, i want to be how i used to be, i used to be carefree and run up and down the stairs.. go shoppin etc, but now im completely housebound, i go out the house once a week if that, im so fed up. I probablys would be better of dead but im scared of dying and leaving my kids. I really have noone to talk to, my partner doesnt get it and i feel so alone, its a strain on my relationship with family and partner. And what for? to be told anxiety can actually affect your breathing!!

[miss sparkle]

Ah bless you.
I have got no advice really, as its probably the only thing i don't have a problem with atm!
Just wanted to say i feel for you and can sense how fed up you are :-(
I hope you get some answers soon so you can start regaining some normality.
How long have you felt like this? sounds daft, but are you tired and run down at all! I have only got 2 kids and feel constantly shattered! lol.
Not making excuses or anything, but if you are really tired it can affect all sorts x

[Mindful]

What about when you're sleeping Sarah? When you drop off to sleep, is breathing difficult through out the night whilst you're sleeping? x

[xJust_Sarahx]

i find it hard getting to sleep because of my breathing if i lie flat, but if i have my head propped up then it takes a while but i do drop off, sometimes i wake up really breathless and sweating and heart pounding. i just dont know what it could be.

[Mindful]

But when you are actually sleeping you're breathing is ok? x

The only reason i am asking is because our breathing is controlled by the respiratory center in our brains which automatically makes us breath, its not something we have to control in order to breath.

Trouble is when an anxious mind becomes aware of their breathing and concentrates on it, this interferes with the natural rhythm of our breathing and can leave us feeling out of breath and so on.

Obviously get checked by your doctors but once they give you the all clear you really have to start to understand and believe that this is something causes by ''stress''.. When i say stress i mean an anxious mind that has focused in on your breathing 24-7, in essence it is 'you' making your breathing uneasy, by constantly thinking about it. Its a vicious circle, you fear feeling you cant breath properly, therefore you think about it more, which results in more feelings of not breathing properly- more thinking about it. You keep the feeling there because you fear it and dwell in on it when breathing is best left to its own devices.

You can break the cycle if you trust your own bodies ability to be able to breath for itself, yes for a while you will still feel unable to breath normally, it takes a while to accept and drop the fear and just let it be there. But, as time goes by, if you just get on with your day, bad breathing or not, like it doesnt matter either way anymore. It will go away. Your body knows how to breath on its own, you just need to let it be. x

[potato11]

Have you had blood tests taken for b12 and ferritin levels, deficiencies in both can make you feel pretty breathless

[toria]

Hi I was going to ask you like the reply above if you have had a blood test for iron and ferritin levels as my ferritin is low and i get very breathless sometimes i am on iron tabs for it but at certain times of month i get the breatless feeling back i have it back at the min, and it is a worry it gets worse when i do panic so i do think some of it is anxiety, i also have young kids so the lack of sleep and stress dosen't help, hope that helps toriaxx

[anx mum]

Hi
So i just came back from the doctors.. yet again i went because of my breathing. The doctor said my chest sounds fine and my heart beat but i will get an appointment for a chest xray!
He said if that comes back fine then hes going to put it down to stress!

How can that be? How is it possible tha stress can cause you to feel breathless and short of breath? Everyday is a constant struggle to breathe, i get short of breath talking, i cant walk up the stairs - i have to do it slowly step by step and taking a rest. I cant even hoover cos i physically cant. I cant even walk in across the street.. i cant do anything!!
im not overweight and i dont smoke. How can it be down to stress? How can stress make you feel liek your dying everyday for all that day?
Does anyone experience this? Every day i feel that bad that i need to call 999. Its hard stopping myself. I cant bend down to get clothes out washer to put in dryer without feeling winded!

Its not all in my head i swear its not. I know i have 4 kids and stress is bount to happen.. especially all under the age of 5 and im just 24 but still.. i shouldnt be feeling this is?

I hate myself and life, i want to be how i used to be, i used to be carefree and run up and down the stairs.. go shoppin etc, but now im completely housebound, i go out the house once a week if that, im so fed up. I probablys would be better of dead but im scared of dying and leaving my kids. I really have noone to talk to, my partner doesnt get it and i feel so alone, its a strain on my relationship with family and partner. And what for? to be told anxiety can actually affect your breathing!!

Hi sarah last year i was exactly like you. But with me as well as the breathing i had chest pains aswell i was so scared to be alone i have 3 kids and my hubby used to work i used to beg him to stay i thought i was gonna die it felt like i had no air used to be housebound too its a really hprrible feeling and i wouldnt wish it on anyone i used to call 999 cos it was so bad believe me u r breathing if you werent like my hubby told me so many times you would be on the floor just feels like you cant have u tried blowing into a paper bag try and slow down breathing im on beta blockers they slow heart down they do help i promise you this sounds exactly like i was:bighug1:

[mrmj]

Hi Sarah. About 5 months ago I had a case of bronchitis. Obviously it was very hard to breath with a lung infection! It cleared up after a month but I was still left feeling breathless. To cut a long story short it turns out the illness had knocked my breathing pattern out of sync.

The one thing I would say is to mention to your dr that you have to have a few pillows to be able to sleep as that could indicate something. Nothing serious at all and it is just down to tension.

One of the main signs it is a breathing disorder is if you keep trying to take deep breaths but just can't catch your breath. I had this all the time. On the contrary to you not having enough oxygen you are probably hyperventilating and getting way too much -although it doesn't feel like it now!
Your breathing is probably all wrong as you are thinking about it, breathing through your chest not your diaphragm. This creates all kinds of tension on your chest too which can make things uncomfortable.

Here is something I suggest you get. I was lucky enough to see this breathing physio. I thought my breathing would never be right, but as I type this it is absolutely fine and it is all down to this woman. The first half of the book talks about the symptoms and how to know if it is a breathing pattern disorder and the second half is all about techniques to get your breathing back in sync!!! It is really well written and not boring to read at all which loads of medical books can be! I can't reccomend this book enough! Good luck and honestly that could be the best fiver you ever spend.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Hyperventilation-Syndrome-Breathing-Disorders-Overcome/dp/0857830295/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1337381849&sr=8-1

[Hawthorn]

Hey :)

It's good that you are getting checked out - i was worried sick about these exact same symptoms, and all my tests came back clear.

I still have problems now with it, but it has eased quite a bit. I found a few helpful vids on youtube about readjusting your breathing. I actually found those helpful mentally too. I wonder how long I had been breathing really incorrectly for for it to get so bad, but It took me a good couple of months of practise to be able to breathe with my diaphragm at all which shows how out of practise those particular muscles were.

Anxiety can knock you for six in all sorts of ways. I was convinced I had some horrid lung disease and I couldn't believe it could be down to anxiety but it really really can. I still have a loooong way to go with readjusting my breathing. It's still habitual for me to breathe with my shoulders/upper chest, and sometimes even in the back of my throat......don't ask me how, I have no idea, but I catch myself doing that. I am constantly checking myself for this at the moment and readjusting to a more relaxed breathing.

Weird thing.....I could go to bed like you, find it really hard to get to sleep, my heart would be too loud, I'd feel like my pillow was on my face. Then I'd wake up in the morning, feel fine until I think 'hey, I can breathe' then boom, back it would come :mad:

Four kids under the age of five.......huuugely stressful. I have four children too, but thankfully not that young. You must be exhausted poor thing :( Is anyone helping you with the children? If not, they need to be.
I'm not sure if you have twins in there but regardless, you have had these pregnancies quite close together. Physically, that is tiring. Hormones will be going wild, not to mention the sleepless nights, the housework, the demands of small children....it's constant. You are not superwoman - be kind to yourself.
Also, is there any chance of post natal depression in there? It may be worth mentioning your low mood to your gp.

Do you have a park near to you? Warmer days are here...if things get too much, pack the kids into prams and get some fresh air. Failing that, take them into your garden. Years of depression have taught me that even though you really reallly don't want to go out/get a shower/get dressed, you really will feel better for doing it. kids are less noisy in the open too (always a bonus) :winks: and the fresh air won't do them any harm either

Other than this the only advice I can give is to get organised so that you can organise some downtime for yourself. Schedule days, meal plan....then you have less to worry about and things dont' feel quite so overwhelming. It's the only way to survive a large family - especially when they are so young. Make sure you go to bed at a reasonable time (says me sitting here at ten to one in the morning), make time to eat well and healthily and if you can possibly grab a nap at some point during the day, do that too.

Good luck - I hope things start to improve for you soon. Now I'm gonna take my own advice and go to sleep :)

[TheFlyingCelt]

Hi
So i just came back from the doctors.. yet again i went because of my breathing. The doctor said my chest sounds fine and my heart beat but i will get an appointment for a chest xray!
He said if that comes back fine then hes going to put it down to stress!


Hi Sarah.
Your "doctor" said your heart is beating huh? I really wish to know this "genius" of medicine... and know if he got his degree in a McDonald's chicken McNuggets box as a bonus! But this is typical of the majority of British so called doctors, sadly.
Anyway, your symptoms are usually associated either with bloating of the abdomen which pushes up the diaphragm consequently reducing the "room for air" in your lungs, OR heart insufficiency. In order to exclude this second possibility, request (and insist!) for an ecocardiogram which will give you a certain answer.
As for being a stress related symptom, well..that's what often so called doctors come up with when they either have no clue of what is wrong with you or they have no will to do their job.

Best of Luck

[Stephmck82]

Hi Sarah.
Your "doctor" said your heart is beating huh? I really wish to know this "genius" of medicine... and know if he got his degree in a McDonald's chicken McNuggets box as a bonus! But this is typical of the majority of British so called doctors, sadly.
Anyway, your symptoms are usually associated either with bloating of the abdomen which pushes up the diaphragm consequently reducing the "room for air" in your lungs, OR heart insufficiency. In order to exclude this second possibility, request (and insist!) for an ecocardiogram which will give you a certain answer.
As for being a stress related symptom, well..that's what often so called doctors come up with when they either have no clue of what is wrong with you or they have no will to do their job.

Best of Luck
Does this mean I could have a dodgy heart or be in heart failure?

[Chantel]

I’m just going to throw this out there...

When I was younger (late teens) I woke up one morning feeling very short of breath and it never went away. For years! Like, four utterly long, miserable years. I was completely convinced I had a serious lung issue and it caused a ridiculous amount of anxiety every single day. I had it while doing nothing, while exercising, while going to sleep, all the time. I finally went to see a pulmonologist who did extensive breathing tests and imagine my shock when she told me my breathing was 11% above normal. It wasn’t until that moment that I realized this was an entirely psychological/anxiety issue. Which really surprised me because it felt very real.

I would have a breathing test done and thorough bloodwork done (if you haven’t already). As mentioned, low iron can cause breathlessness too. If everything comes back normal than this can definitely be a symptom of anxiety. I hope you find some answers!

[glassgirlw]

Does this mean I could have a dodgy heart or be in heart failure?

This was this persons first and only post over three years ago. We have no idea what their medical credentials are if any. This is the problem with a random person on the net giving medical advice. If it is a new or worsening symptom it would be good to get checked out by your doctor. But the “breathless” thing can definitely be an anxiety symptom as well.