View Full Version : Chest pain
Last Thursday I had a chest pain in the centre of my chest. Later on it was on the left side and felt like an ache/ tight senstation. I was really worried about this and ended up going to A&E.
I had blood pressure, all the usual checks and an ECG done. All came back normal and my doctor put it down to indigestion.
howevee since the other morning I am still having this aching/ tight sensation on the left side of my chest on and off and I noticed it after walking uphill. It's terrifying me and I just can't switch off from it as I think there's something more serious going on. I've googled and all sorts of things have come up describing the sensation I'm having which just reinforces things and makes me panic even more.
Can an anyone offer any advice?
ankietyjoe
15-01-20, 19:38
It's reflux/GERD
You've been checked out, the problem here is you googling and convincing yourself it's not what you've been told it is. So my advice would be to not google any more.
LouiseAndy
15-01-20, 20:06
I know it's hard, I struggle myself with issues like chest pain/fast hear rate even though I've been checked out- I would just say remind yourself that you're still here and kicking! Maybe try some heat against the area x? If it's muscle it might help ease the feeling or gavison if it's reflux x
Thanks for the reply anxietyjoe. Some days have been better than others but really do feel like I'm going crazy at this point! I just don't get why in my own head I can't stop worrying about it. I anticipated the pain coming back last night and then felt achy again later which just panicked me completely. It's never ending at the moment
I know it's hard, I struggle myself with issues like chest pain/fast hear rate even though I've been checked out- I would just say remind yourself that you're still here and kicking! Maybe try some heat against the area x? If it's muscle it might help ease the feeling or gavison if it's reflux x
Thanks LouiseAndy. The thing is when I have it I can't physically relax. It's like I freeze and I don't end up doing the things that could potentially help, such as going for a warm shower. I just freeze and the worry gets worse basically. The reason why I don't choose to do things that could help is I'm terrified that if I do and the pain is still there it will tip me over the edge even more as it'll confirm my fears. I actually feel worse when I just sit and try and relax then I do keeping busy but there's only so long I can keep busy for.
ankietyjoe
15-01-20, 20:46
I just don't get why in my own head I can't stop worrying about it.
How so you expect to not worry about something, but at the same time habitually research worst case scenario's on google?
Last Thursday I had a chest pain in the centre of my chest. Later on it was on the left side and felt like an ache/ tight senstation. I was really worried about this and ended up going to A&E.
I had blood pressure, all the usual checks and an ECG done. All came back normal and my doctor put it down to indigestion.
howevee since the other morning I am still having this aching/ tight sensation on the left side of my chest on and off and I noticed it after walking uphill. It's terrifying me and I just can't switch off from it as I think there's something more serious going on. I've googled and all sorts of things have come up describing the sensation I'm having which just reinforces things and makes me panic even more.
Can an anyone offer any advice?
I had this issue as well for +/- 1.5 years. I went to a psychosomatic physiotherapist who explained this issue really clear to me. After her explanation it was clear to me and it disappeared slowly. You first have to understand that this pain is increasing because you're focusing too much on it. When you wouldn't focus on it, it would be there sometimes but you doesn't even notice.
I will give you a clear example: you have to answer this question in an split second: do you feel something in your right foot? I'm pretty sure you will answer No. Now focus 30 seconds on your right food. I will ask you again: do you feel something in your right food? There's a great chance you will answer Yes, because you focused on it.
Like ankietyjoe said, you have to stop Googling because this gives you just more focus on this pain.
Hope this is helpfull.
I had this issue as well for +/- 1.5 years. I went to a psychosomatic physiotherapist who explained this issue really clear to me. After her explanation it was clear to me and it disappeared slowly. You first have to understand that this pain is increasing because you're focusing too much on it. When you wouldn't focus on it, it would be there sometimes but you doesn't even notice.
I will give you a clear example: you have to answer this question in an split second: do you feel something in your right foot? I'm pretty sure you will answer No. Now focus 30 seconds on your right food. I will ask you again: do you feel something in your right food? There's a great chance you will answer Yes, because you focused on it.
Like ankietyjoe said, you have to stop Googling because this gives you just more focus on this pain.
Hope this is helpfull.
thanks rinkrt, this reply was really helpful. I suppose this doesn't just apply to the chest pain specifically but also other symptoms too. I'm hoping I can let go of it all soon as it's definitely no way to live! Did you move on from it in the end?
thanks rinkrt, this reply was really helpful. I suppose this doesn't just apply to the chest pain specifically but also other symptoms too. I'm hoping I can let go of it all soon as it's definitely no way to live! Did you move on from it in the end?
Yep, that's definitely true. I'm pretty sure you can let go, just stop with researching it and focus on other things than this. I'm completely over it. Have some other anxiety issues but this one is not one of them. A GP is very good at recognizing heart related issues, and he can't permit to make any mistakes. Even when he just listens to you heart he can hear a LOT.
Good luck and you will get over it.
Yep, that's definitely true. I'm pretty sure you can let go, just stop with researching it and focus on other things than this. I'm completely over it. Have some other anxiety issues but this one is not one of them. A GP is very good at recognizing heart related issues, and he can't permit to make any mistakes. Even when he just listens to you heart he can hear a LOT.
Good luck and you will get over it.
yeah, I am trying to cut down on the research but when you feel off its hard not to look things up as I suppose you just want to make sense of what you're feeling. Fortunately my chest pains have gone now ( touch wood) howevee I'm now back to experiencing this " spaced out" feeling. Super hard to describe but it's a really awful feeling. Almost like I'll just lose consciousness/ pass out or something. So I'm really quite distressed about that again now.
yeah, I am trying to cut down on the research but when you feel off its hard not to look things up as I suppose you just want to make sense of what you're feeling. Fortunately my chest pains have gone now ( touch wood) howevee I'm now back to experiencing this " spaced out" feeling. Super hard to describe but it's a really awful feeling. Almost like I'll just lose consciousness/ pass out or something. So I'm really quite distressed about that again now.
The "spaced out" feeling you're describing is what I have experienced as well. It's perfectly described in the book of Barry McDonagh: DARE. You won't lose cousciousness or pass out. You don't have to be distressed about it, it's just anxiety. Because you're anxious you're breathing faster, this kan make you feel you're passing out. But that's not the case.
Yeah I have read that that is what causes the feeling. I'm just at a complete loss as I'm really struggling to believe all of this is anxiety related. I haven't felt 100% in a good few weeks now. Really scared at this point that there's something really wrong going on inside my body. Don't want to go throwing suggestions out there but I'm sure you can probably guess the kind of thing I'm worried about.
ankietyjoe
17-01-20, 19:18
Anxiety has 1000's of symptoms that can and will come and go as they feel like it. Assuming that every new symptom you have is going to kill you is a sure fire way to complete the circle of anxiety.
If you want to research something, research anxiety and how it can affect the body, physically. And then address the anxiety and ONLY the anxiety.
That is true, I do fear the worst when I get a symptom of feeling. Currently just going through phases where I feel spaced out, then chest pains, then feeling like I can't breathe easily, then this just repeats. I think it'd the unknown that gets me, as if I had a sore throat I would be able to put it down to a virus, for example.
Just out of curiosity, what do oxygen levels tell you? I gather how much you're getting but is there anything else?
ankietyjoe
17-01-20, 21:58
Just out of curiosity, what do oxygen levels tell you? I gather how much you're getting but is there anything else?
There is no reason for you to know this, it's just another level of self checking.
If you researched anxiety and not each individual symptom in isolation, you'd already know that shortness of breath is a symptom. And a really common one.
Once you start researching a symptom in isolation you open yourself up to hundreds of new possibilities, whilst ignoring the obvious one. Anxiety.
Felt okay today but now I feel just generally not well again. Like that feeling you get when you are actually ill with something like a virus, where you just feel miserable and not feeling yourself ( just without the obvious illness/ virus).
When is this this going to end :(
Still having this chest pain/ discomfort. Very hard for me to accept its down to anxiety or digestive issues??
Sounds familiar (https://www.nomorepanic.co.uk/showthread.php?192905-Chest-pains) :whistles:
Positive thoughts
ankietyjoe
30-01-20, 08:14
Still having this chest pain/ discomfort. Very hard for me to accept its down to anxiety or digestive issues??
If it's hard for you to accept, try harder. Keep trying to accept it until you succeed accepting it.
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