heart issues

[kim!!]

hi can anyone help! Im having tightness in my chest all the time in always ringing ambulance but everytime they come out my heart is fine! I feel like im going crazy i also get pains everywhere possible, is anybody else like this?:unsure:

[Sam123]

Have you ever had an ECG done Kim? I was given a portable heart monitor in school as i was convinced i had a problem. When the doctor told me 'Your heart is fine and healthy' i just looked at them in disbelief, 'Well what's going on then' i would think, i'm not imagining all these symptoms.

No i wasn't they were real, but the cause wasn't.

[kim!!]

iv had about 6 haha, they was all fine but i just think these pains cant just be from anxiety im convinced its something else

[meche]

Anxiety can cause pain anywhere & everywhere. I was once like you & thought every ache & pain was some illness or disease. Once my mind was made up nothing could change it. Took a long time to retrain my thought process but I live to tell the tale!! Anxiety is cruel & will have you believe anything. Sounds harsh but you have to try & ignore it & occupy your mind with something else. Big hugs. xx

[kim!!]

hi how long did it take you get rid of it, i try to take my mind off it but i cant seem to focus on anything else x

[Daniele_T]

See a physiotherapist and they will likely be able to help you.

Although people say anxiety causes all sorts of aches and pains, which it does, alot of these aches and pains..especially in the chest..are from bad posture and bad breathing habits.

Try to take note of your posture and keep your back straight..not tense..but imagine your head being pulled upward by a string to make you as tall as possible from the waist.

When we have anxiety alot of people tend to slouch slightly to try and be in a relaxed position, this causes the head to lurch forward slightly pulling on the neck and chest nerves. Later on when in a different position the body tries to heal these muscles and thats when the pain begins.

Muscle only grows at rest..muscle growth hurts!

Additionally breathing through the chest rather than the diaghram pulls the intercostal muscles a great deal and again causes chest pain.


My dad died of a heart attack on my birthday and I became obsessed about my heart and chest pains..the anxiety then made everything worse and it took, is still taking, a long time to get round to not thinking my heart will stop for some reason or another at any time.

Best wishes and if you look up Alexander technique and diaphragmatic breathing n stick to them i reckon you'll feel a lot better physically...which is always a good starting point.

[kim!!]

hi thankyou for your post, its the pains in my chest that scares me the most! Iv had about 6 or 7 ecgs but there always fine.
really sorry to hear about your dad :(
how long have u had anxiety for?

[Daniele_T]

On and off for maybe 25 years...just tummy upsets in my early teens and then progressed into panic attacks in my later teens.
wasn't ever something that lasted for long periods but then I got peritonitis and nearly died, then my dad, grandad, auntie and uncles all died in the same year and that was a bit of a hit.

You can try doing some basic stretches to test where you have stiffness and if there are trapped nerves.

Give this one a go, sit or stand straight and relax your shoulders.
Hold each hand at shoulder level, outward like your holding a tray..stay relaxed and push your arms out in that position. See if you feel your triceps pulling or pulling on your neck.

Another is to sit hunched forward and press your chin downward as you crunch your tummy and chest muscles.
Do it just for a few seconds..then straighten up, relax and see if there are any immediate pains.

I do honestly think that with so many clear ecg results it's extremely unlikely that you have any cardiac issues which are undiagnosed.

Palpitations scare me..flip flop beats and flutters, they didn't used to, with me it was pain but pains are not indicative of any real issue...likewise neither are ectopic beats but it's what we believe is worth worrying about that causes us the most stress.

If you can either find a way to prove that the pains are not cardiac...and they almost certainly won't be then it will help in the short term.
Really you need to have confidence in your own wisdom and not give in to the what if.

[kim!!]

Il try them in the morning in to tired to do anything now, that's awful all of them in the same year!
at least u know what started yours i haven't got a clue? The only bad thing that's happened to me recently is seeing my grandad die in october then my anxiety an depression started on boxing day just gone!
i get every pain u can think of its awful.