Hey, TW x
Firstly we have a great community on here, its great.
Unfortunately I am going through a great deal of personal struggle at the moment and I am in need of some advice from those people that are or have been in similar situations.
As a long term anxiety sufferer I am used to feeling hyper and breathless however around February this year I started to feel more breathless than usual. At the time I wrote it off as anxiety after getting checked out at the GP’s. However it continued. By April I could no longer cope with work with the chest discomfort and breathlessness. Since then I’ve been at home between bed and chairs, despite Covid I’ve had various tests:
3 Chest Xray (to be sure)
Peak flow, really good
Spirometry all good
So many different bloods I’m not sure (10+)
4 Seperate ECGs and D dimer blood tests
All good, no problems - confusing huh?
I’ve been given inhalers, don’t help that much and has just caused addiction. I’ve tried anti histamines and painkillers, nothing works. I have a referral to the hospital, waiting list, 6 f!@#$% months,?, it’s not great, but I understand they’re under pressure.
The worst part is the impact that depression has. I’m trying to find outlets like films and drawing but I do need some advice. Any advice on how to convey my feelings to others would be great as this has had a negative impact on my relationship with my partner out of fears I may not be back at work soon.
all the best, and thank you,
Ol
sounds like you are very healthy given all the testing you’ve had. Also sounds like you have unmanaged anxiety. Is there anyway you can speak with a counselor? A therapist? That person would be able to give you some tools to help you manage all of this. You can express how you are feeling Without being judged. it feels really good to just vent everything to somebody who can help. You can do a virtual appointment if you don’t feel comfortable going in. But you do need some support right now.
Another thing is I would highly recommend you learning some proper breathing methods. Proper breathing with anxiety is the key to feeling more in control and more relaxed. There are several on YouTube. I find them to be very helpful.
Your test results are not confusing at all. That’s because you are generally healthy but anxiety is causing your breathing issues, chest discomfort and breathlessness. Adrenaline has a lot to do with it because it’s released during anxiety and causes those symptoms.so if you speak with the counselor they can give you other ideas on what you can do but it would be a first great start. Hang in there
When you say breathless can you explain it a little more? Do you breathe from your nose or your mouth? Are you mouth breathing most of the time? Do you take large inhales regularly?
If all your tests came back 100% I would seriously look into Chronic Hyperventilation Syndrome. It happens way more subtly than you would realise. I had it and it was horrendous could not work out what was wrong with me
Have you had any further testing on your heart? Heart Scan or Holter Monitor?