16, constantly paranoid about my heart.

Hey there, this is my first post on this site.

Since early 2015 every single day of my life has been filled with worry. I get random spouts of shortness of breath even when I'm doing nothing along with the occasional sharp pain in the left side of my chest, in my arm and in my side. I was also experiencing some tightness (fullness) in the centre of my chest. 2 ECG's and 3 blood tests later the doctors tell me I'm fine, normal blood pressure, vitamins and cholesterol. Multiple doctors told me it was just anxiety but I can't seem to get over it.

I still suffer from these symptoms on the regular along with some new ones including light headedness and vertigo spells.

I weigh 125KG (275.578 pounds) and I'm almost six feet tall. I ride my bike a good 1-2 hours a week. I'm overweight but the doctors haven't said anything about it.

Before I finish this post I went to my GP yesterday and she took my blood pressure, it was 130/80, my doctor said that this was "not bad" and "nothing to worry about" after some brief googling I'm mega paranoid that my blood pressure had gone from normal to this. I rode my bike with a flat tire before I arrived which took the breath out of me and my heart was pounding, could this have raised my blood pressure before she took it?

Sorry for the long, rambling post but I really need advice. I keep thinking that heart problems are suddenly going to pop up in a week and I'm going to f***ing die. How long does it take for heart problems to develop?

(Heart problems don't run in my family though I've had distant uncles on my father's side that have had heart attacks but I'm sure that it was from drinking problems. )

Thank you very much. - James

All I can say is I feel this way too. No idea what causes of but I've been checked out and gotten the all clear. pM me if you wanna chat further :)

James,

First off, I'm old enough to be your father so I'll speak to you as if you were my son....

I've had two heart attacks, triple bypass and stents. I have angina as well. You DO NOT have heart issues. (period) Scientific medical testing affirms it. There are no "what ifs" or doubts.

That being said, I understand the fear you have as I experience it on a regular basis. Imagine getting chest pain and then taking a nitro pill, waiting to see if it alleviates the pain. Those minutes are like hours. I go to my cardiologist every six months and get whatever tests are needed. As of now I'm Ok. still, the worry comes up when I feel pain. I know the tests are accurate and I have to trust them. There's no other way around it. The fact is, I'm Ok.

You're 16. there's NO WAY you have any serious issues. Tests affirm this. There are no doubts at your age.

Now.. listen up! No smoking, refrain from drinking or drugs. Exercise, eat healthy, lose some weight and get help for your anxiety! 130/80 after a bike ride is awesome! It's barely pre-hyper-tension if that!

You're fine!!

Anxiety will do more harm to you in the long term so treat the real issue and you'll treat the symptoms associated with it.

Positive thoughts

I really appreciate the concern in your post. I'm sorry to hear about all those surgeries.

What you wrote made me feel a little better and I want to thank you from the bottom of my heart, god bless you.

I currently have an appointment with a cardiologist because my heart rate is always high and fluctuates so badly. If you really are worried, get all the right tests done. An EKG can determine if you have a heart problem and you've said you've had 3, my EKG showed I most likely have WPW, an extra electrical pathway. If it can pick up that (they say it's minor) it could pick up anything! Start taiking omega 3s, one a day if your doctor says it's fine. It will help your heart :)

That's how it all started with me. When I was 16. I started suffering from heart symptoms which lead to severe anxiety attacks. Now I'm 19 and I'm going for my third echocardiogram next week after I saw a very good doctor just a few days ago. I have marked sinus arrhythmia where my heart rate often varies by up to 60bpm every time I breath and I get regular ectopics which show up on ECG strips. Anxiety can cause many symptoms which mimic heart issues. At your age it's most likely anxiety especially if your doctor says so.

Hi there! I am also constanstly paranoid about my heart too! It's horrible. I never stop thinking about it. I am currently wearing braces and it is pulling my jaw forawrd which is affecting everything in my shoulders/chest. I get some chest pain and sometimes I get palpitations in waves (sometimes I will get them a lot an then sometimes I will get them hardly at all). I have anxiety, OCD and I am a hypocondriac - I read something online about something and I instnatly feel the symptoms. I can't remeber when I started getting paronoid about this but I'd say the same time about you! It was a tiny thing that triggered it.

I've been to the doctors twice before about it. One time about my palpitations and my heart rate was fine but I was asigned to another doctor who asigned me to a phycologist. I am trying to contact a doctor again as I have got the chest pain again and I just feel like I can't relax without even more reassurance! I'm glad someone shares the same worry as me!