Sudden dizziness and Short of Breath HELP!

[Ella_Jayne]

I was just tidying up a bit when all of a sudden I felt REALLY dizzy and short of breath, I'm trembling now and still a bit dizzy and S.O.B. I don't know what's going on, is it anxiety? I keep thinking it's my heart and that I'm going to drop dead. What should I do, I'm soooooo scared. I've had tons of ECG's, an ECHO and a holter, they all came back fine but I'm convinced it's my heart. :weep:

[PokerFace]

Not your heart hun! Try and push all thoughts of your heart out your head and lets try to rationalize it for you. :D

Right so you have anxiety about your heart which is ALWAYS in the back of your head. So you were tidying up a bit which involves movment which can make you dizzy sometimes. This could be cause of anxiety, cuz you havn't eaten today, cuz you'd been sat a long time and got up suddenly, anything! So the anxious part of you notices you're getting dizzy and has a mini panic leading you to get short of breath making the situation 1000 times worse. Isn't your fault at all is jus the damn subconcious!

You're not gonna drop dead, I promise. How were you feeling before this happened today? xx

[Ella_Jayne]

Thanks for replying! :)

I was feeling okay before it happened. I woke up last night pretty anxious which may have carried over, I don't know... I was kinda feeling vulernable to anxiety (if that makes any sense) today. Everyday I'm on my own but today I just didn't want to be.

The shortness of breath has gone but everytime I do anything I seem to get dizzy, it's worrying me and I wish it wouldn't. I know that I should realise that it's not my heart after being given the all clear many times, but I'm finding it hard to let it go... I don't know how to. Everytime I get ill or have a symptom I attribute it to my heart, an arrhythmia, a heart attack, a heart defect that's gone undetected. It sounds stupid when I write it down but it's the way my mind keeps going. :weep:

xxx

[PokerFace]

Don't feel stupid. I'm the same! I know I come on here and tell you you're fine because you are but I'm fine too but I can't beleive it either. I see myself in you so I try to help you/reassure you cuz I know just how scared you are. I just had 2 missed beats, pretty small ones but still there and I'm instantly like "omg heart attack". I'm still a bit shaky now so don't feel silly.

Yep, I know how you feel. I didn't want to be alone today either and cuz we're already sad/scared you really are more vunerable to anxiety. When I'm alone my symptoms seem to get magnified if you get me. I feel everything then question everything that I feel and that's pretty much all I do all day lol!.

Try to eat something if you keep getting dizzy or just drink a glass of water, see if it improves any. xx

[Ella_Jayne]

Thanks again, I don't know what i'd without you, you always make me see things for what they really are :)

I'm feeling better now, still dizzy but everything else has eased off which is good. It's terrible because when I get symptoms like ectopics or dizziness my mind goes into overdrive, my head imagines the worst over and over again which fuels my anxiety.

Am I being really irrational to think that I could still have a heart problem/arrhythmia in spite of the tests that I've had? Most times I think it's possible, is it likely though? I find it hard to think logically when I'm anxious...

Thanks again Emma :) x

[PokerFace]

It's extremely unlikely, verging on the physcially impossible. I can't judge you or say you're being silly cuz I would most likely be exactly the same even if I had the same tests as you so don't feel silly. It's just anxiety telling you there's something wrong.

That's probably the one thing that really REALLY gets to me lately. People saying you KNOW your body. Like my mum was telling me something the other day about how she nearly lost me when she was pregnant because the placenta had died and she knew instantly something was wrong, she says you just know when there's something wrong with you. I have a massive problem with my anxiety cuz every single part of me is telling me there's something very wrong with my heart but it's not true. I'm finding it extremely hard/scarey to try and stop trusting myself when it comes down to my heart anxiety which is why I get set off every single time even though I've had ECGs. How can you just stop listening to your instinct? That's one thing I'm trying hard to figure out over the past few weeks. No progress yet though! ;s Maybe you can relate to that as to why you keep getting set off despite all the tests you've had?

As you can tell I spend way too much time thinking and not nearly enough time trying to improve myself lol. That might have made no sense to you but if it did I'm glad! xx

[Ella_Jayne]

Yeah, it made perfect sense! :)

My mum says that all the time to me too, and my boyfriend as well. I'm always afraid of interpreting a real problem as anxiety now, and they always say that I will just know apparently. But everytime I feel ill 'I know...' so yeah it is really difficult. I think that's one of the toughest parts as everyone gets ill from time to time.

My whole instincts tells me there is something wrong with my heart, but the tests say there isn't... Then I think after a few months, almost like the tests that I've had have expired like 'Okay so the ECG was fine then, but maybe now a problem has developed'. I find it never ending.

Staying on my own is one of the toughest things I've had to ever do with anxiety, before I had all this I loved staying on my own, peace and quiet and doing whatever I liked. Now it's like 'Oh what if I have a heart attack, and die and nobody will find me for hours' Horrible morbid thoughts like that just drag me down. I look at other people my age that are living their lives to the full and think 'How brave...' It's so silly, anxiety has just taken that away from me. Sorry for the rant!!!

In percentage terms, how much of you really and truely believe you have a heart problem?

xxx

[Alabasterlyn]

Sorry you are feeling so bad right now and I do hope that you start to feel better soon. I often get sudden bouts of dizziness and feel short of breath, although so far I don't think I've had it at the same time.

Last week I really pushed myself to go late night shopping and I had only been walking for about 10mins when OH and myself walked up a flight of stairs and honestly when I got to the top I felt so out of breath it really spooked me. I tried to ignore it and carried on walking towards a shop but then suddenly had that feeling of disorientation and I was so sure I was going to collapse that I just had to go back to the car and come home. So much for trying to get some Christmas shopping done.

Last night I got my OH to take me further afield to an M&S store that I can get around a bit more easily as it's all on one level. I was fine one minute, then suddenly out of nowhere I felt I was going to be sick and then everything started looking weird to me and I just dumped my basket of stuff I had so carefully picked down on the floor and had to get out of the shop.

I keep trying to convince myself it's only anxiety as I can go on the treadmill at home and walk for half an hour and not feel out of breath, or dizzy, so on days I do that it kind of makes me realise it's just anxiety.

I also used to have a real problem being alone. In the days before mobile phones I would panic when my ex husband left for work because I knew that for the duration of his journey to work I wouldn't be able to contact him if I needed to, which was enough to set me off.

With my OH that I am with now I prefer to not know when he is going to be out of his office because I know I'd get stressed if he was a long way from home and I couldn't get hold of him. I hate all this anxiety crap :weep:

[PokerFace]

It varies to be honest. I always wake up in the morning feeling good, slow heart, no chest pains, nothing so then I feel 100% ok. Then as the day goes on I'll get ectopics, chest twinges etc. Every time I have a missed beat no matter how small I just can't accept it as normal. I'd say about 30% of me most of the time really truly beleives there's something wrong. When I get a missed beat it's more like 99.9% of me beleives somethings wrong until I can push it out my head, then another one comes along..and it starts all over again.

How long have you been on your own everyday? It was feeling a lot easier for me last week but I watched the Grudge 1&2 at the weekend and it scared the hell out of me really bad so I'm not feeling too peachy about being left alone this week! Least it's kinda distracting me from my heart though lol.

You won't develop a heart defect that quickly if ever! Have you had CBT? Sorry I know you've told me but my brains like a siv today? ;s xx

[Ella_Jayne]

Thanks for your reply Alabasterlyn. I know, anxiety really sucks. I hope you feel better soon too. The dizziness that your having definitly sounds like anxiety if you can go on a treadmill for that long without being short of breath you're fine! Have you had any tests done in the past? x :)


It varies to be honest. I always wake up in the morning feeling good, slow heart, no chest pains, nothing so then I feel 100% ok. Then as the day goes on I'll get ectopics, chest twinges etc. Every time I have a missed beat no matter how small I just can't accept it as normal. I'd say about 30% of me most of the time really truly beleives there's something wrong. When I get a missed beat it's more like 99.9% of me beleives somethings wrong until I can push it out my head, then another one comes along..and it starts all over again.

How long have you been on your own everyday? It was feeling a lot easier for me last week but I watched the Grudge 1&2 at the weekend and it scared the hell out of me really bad so I'm not feeling too peachy about being left alone this week! Least it's kinda distracting me from my heart though lol.

You won't develop a heart defect that quickly if ever! Have you had CBT? Sorry I know you've told me but my brains like a siv today? ;s xx

LOL!!!:D

I've been on my own every weekday for the last 3-4 weeks. I thought it would get easier and sometimes it feels easier but others it feels like it's getting worse. I just take it a day at a time but then that days over and I'm like 'crap, i've another of this starting again 2moro'. But some days when I've been on my own I've been okay, today has been a nightmare. It's happened (dizziness and SOB) about 3-4 hours ago and I still don't feel back to normal... :mad:

I've had CBT twice but it's obviously not worked, long term anyway. I have books on CBT as well and again they're no good to me.

Looks like I'm always gonna have this imaginary/real heart problem :blush:

x

[PokerFace]

Lol! I know I'm easily scared. :D

If it makes you feel any better I only just started to feel ok about being alone last week and I've been alone since September. But now I'm back to hating it cuz of those movies lool. You won't feel back to normal quite yet cuz you've probs still got adrenaline pumping round you. I don't feel very normal either cuz of the missed beats I had 2 hours ago.

CBT doesn't work for everyone, I don't know how it would be for me cuz never really tried it and can't see myself going for it in the future. You're not gonna always have this imaginary/real heart problem! I'm tryna think of what we can do to help you. We have basically exactly the same problems I wish I could cure us both really do but I keep drawing blanks lol.

You could try keeping a diary, I keep one so when I get a funny feeling I look back and I'm like ohh I felt this way that long ago, obviously wasn't life threatening. If you don't like the thought of a diary you could write to me. When I first came on no more panic I met a lovely girl and we used to write to each other every day and it was a massive help to me. She's a lot better now so doesn't really come on any more but she helped me tremendously!

Maybe the way you can get better is by lots of little things. Maybe you could try taking natural supplements that can help anxiety. I started Omega 3 on Monday cuz I heard it's good for anxiety can't really say I'm feeling a difference yet but it's something new! Maybe you could set goals to do something you wouldn't usually do like for me it was exercising. Maybe taking time out to have a hot bubble bath with lavander oil and just spending half an hour everyday untensing all your muscles and emptying your head. My mum even told me to look in the mirror every morning when I wake up and tell myself "I love you" and smile! I still do that now sometimes, very embarassing to admit but it really does put me in a good mood! Start doing things that make you feel good about yourself and happy instead of being focused on your heart and anxiety.! Sorry that last parts a little rushed but I've gotta go get ready cuz I'm going to my Grandmas for dinner in a bit! You ever need anything just PM me and I hope you feel better soon. xx

[Ella_Jayne]

Thanks Emma, you've given me loads of advice there. I used to keep a diary, starting that up again sounds like a great idea. Thank you soooo much for all of your replies, you really have helped me a lot, especially when you're going through the same thing yourself. I hope you have a great night at your Grandmas. Speak soon. Ella xxx :)

[melvin]

hi guys
i know how u feel i spent all day in A E i had a bit of dizziness and chest pain they did ecg and blood test said it was anxiety. but even going down there and taking the test is scary what would i do if they come back and say theirs a prop cant win ether way.

[crazyhayz]

Hope ur feeling ok Ella? This happens to me almost everyday at some point, its definitely anxiety. I always get bad dizziness if i move about harshly or quickly, ive accepted its just anxiety and wont harm me. Ive had it sooo many times and nothing has ever happened to me, so it must be anxiety. I personally think that when u got this dizzy spell, it instantly released adrenalin into ur system due to the instant anxiety of the dizziness! U may not have even realised that it had made u anxious..this is the where the subconcious mind comes in. Its so annoying hun i completely understand, and dizziness is very scary anyway, & immedaitley think 'omg heart problem!!' but you have had an echo hun!! These are proven to diagnose ANYTHING wrong with the heart!! Cardiologists use this as a way to find & diagnose ANYTHING wrong with the heart, and for you to have had a normal echo, this deffo means u have a completely healthy heart hunny. You've got to accept this, i know its hard though! U couldnt get a more accurate test hun! My grandad and all his daughers (my aunties) hhave all had one coz my grandad was born with an enlarged heart, and theyve all had one done, coz its the only way to be able to to tell if somethings up with your heart! So please rest assured love that ur heart is in perfect working order! :) xx The dizziness is likely to be a little drop or rise in your BP levels, or it could be high adrenalin levels which cause dizziness all the time, hence why so many anxiety sufferers get dizziness! I get awful dizziness when im having a full-blown panic attack! My vision goes so weird, like out-of-focus, like when u look through binoculars and its not in focus! Adrenalin is such a powerful thing and it affects every part of ur body hun, your prob sat there thinking 'yes i know this' lol, but i know it helps to remind people lol. xx Take care hun, and if u feel worried, go see ur gp and say what happened. He might wanna do a stand-up/sit-down Blood Pressure Test, my bp goes up when i move about, and i always get dizzy. Ive had brain ct scan, echocardiogram for heart, loads of dif blood tests, chest xrays etc etc etc lol. This is deffo anxiety.

The SOB is anxiety, i get SOB everyday, at least 10 times a day. I know its anxiety coz its always when im resting! I could run to ther shop and not get out of breath! If this SOB was REAL shortness of breath, then ud know about it hunny! U wouldnt be able to do much without getting breathless! The sudden onset of what happened is probably due to stress, subconcious thoughts, worries u currently have that uve just 'gotten used to', so u dont think they worry u anymore (when they actually do maybe)... But just dont worry babe, u r FINE!!! :) (Like u always say to me :)))) xx

Take care Ella!! xXx

[Alabasterlyn]

Thanks for your reply Alabasterlyn. I know, anxiety really sucks. I hope you feel better soon too. The dizziness that your having definitly sounds like anxiety if you can go on a treadmill for that long without being short of breath you're fine! Have you had any tests done in the past? x :)

x

I did have a couple of ECG's, one was when I had a really bad panic attack at home about 3yrs ago and felt I couldn't breathe so I went to A&E and they did an ECG and said everything was fine. I had another one done at the GP's surgery earlier this year as I was getting a lot of palpitations but the machine wasn't working properly and after about 20mins I felt so anxious with them constantly trying to get a proper reading that I just told them to leave it :blush:

Like some of the others who've replied on here I also get the ectopics too. I started getting them when I was in my early 20's and I'm now 55, so I'm guessing they are nothing to worry about. I once had a period of about a couple of weeks when I had them every single day for quite long periods of time and they were really starting to get me down, then they just went away again for ages. Nothing ever seems to make much sense with this anxiety lark :shrug:

[Ella_Jayne]

Hope ur feeling ok Ella? This happens to me almost everyday at some point, its definitely anxiety. I always get bad dizziness if i move about harshly or quickly, ive accepted its just anxiety and wont harm me. Ive had it sooo many times and nothing has ever happened to me, so it must be anxiety. I personally think that when u got this dizzy spell, it instantly released adrenalin into ur system due to the instant anxiety of the dizziness! U may not have even realised that it had made u anxious..this is the where the subconcious mind comes in. Its so annoying hun i completely understand, and dizziness is very scary anyway, & immedaitley think 'omg heart problem!!' but you have had an echo hun!! These are proven to diagnose ANYTHING wrong with the heart!! Cardiologists use this as a way to find & diagnose ANYTHING wrong with the heart, and for you to have had a normal echo, this deffo means u have a completely healthy heart hunny. You've got to accept this, i know its hard though! U couldnt get a more accurate test hun! My grandad and all his daughers (my aunties) hhave all had one coz my grandad was born with an enlarged heart, and theyve all had one done, coz its the only way to be able to to tell if somethings up with your heart! So please rest assured love that ur heart is in perfect working order! :) xx The dizziness is likely to be a little drop or rise in your BP levels, or it could be high adrenalin levels which cause dizziness all the time, hence why so many anxiety sufferers get dizziness! I get awful dizziness when im having a full-blown panic attack! My vision goes so weird, like out-of-focus, like when u look through binoculars and its not in focus! Adrenalin is such a powerful thing and it affects every part of ur body hun, your prob sat there thinking 'yes i know this' lol, but i know it helps to remind people lol. xx Take care hun, and if u feel worried, go see ur gp and say what happened. He might wanna do a stand-up/sit-down Blood Pressure Test, my bp goes up when i move about, and i always get dizzy. Ive had brain ct scan, echocardiogram for heart, loads of dif blood tests, chest xrays etc etc etc lol. This is deffo anxiety.

The SOB is anxiety, i get SOB everyday, at least 10 times a day. I know its anxiety coz its always when im resting! I could run to ther shop and not get out of breath! If this SOB was REAL shortness of breath, then ud know about it hunny! U wouldnt be able to do much without getting breathless! The sudden onset of what happened is probably due to stress, subconcious thoughts, worries u currently have that uve just 'gotten used to', so u dont think they worry u anymore (when they actually do maybe)... But just dont worry babe, u r FINE!!! :) (Like u always say to me :)))) xx

Take care Ella!! xXx

Awww thanks for taking the time to write that post, it means a lot.

You've been a BIG help!!! :)

x