Is this an Pulminory Embolism

[Turtle90]

Lets start im 28, male and overweight, have been having minor pains that come and go around my chest left side, right side, centre, beneath breast, around stomach, top back and lightheadesness on and off for 4 months.

Have had 2 ECG's, Blood tests for allsorts, ultrasound on kidney, bladder, prostate. Camera down throat to check larrynx amd pharrynx, chest xray (and a 2nd yesterday as I believe I have an enlarged heart) all has come back fine so far and told by 3 seperate doctors it is "anxiety"

Started Sertraline 6/7 weeks ago and seeemed to be helping but have being advised by another person in a different forum ItIt dont sound like anxiety and to have all these other tests which my doctor says there is no need for as there is nothing to warrant further testing and instead uoped sertraline yesterday to 100mg and said it is Christmas time anxiety is worse now wait till new year and take 2mg diazepam as and when needed to help alleviate the chest pains/lightheadeness

I thought things were going the right way but now I have being told that the tests i have had are basically a waste of time

[corriena]

I would say no, the tests you had shows nothing wrong. Give the meds a chance. If you dont see any improvement after a couple of months or things get worse go back to your gp. Anxiety can give very real physical symptoms and should not be ignored. But you have to give the meds time to work. And dont believe everything you read online. Oh and it dosent sound like a pulmonary embolism as the pain dosent tend to come and go. And that would of showed up on your x ray. Try to stop worrying about it as that will just make you more anxious

[hypercat54]

Please have a look at the link below. You have had lots of tests and they don't show any problem so it's much more likely you have health anxiety. This is very common and can cause quite severe physical symptoms. x

nhs.uk/conditions/pulmonary...

[Turtle90 in reply to hypercat54]

Thankyou for your reply, yes I thought this until I was speaking to this nurse who was training PHD and sent me this

"They have not done even a 1/20th of the tests you need to rule out the serious stuff.

I take it your in the UK... how does your health system work there. Can you see another doctor?

I think you need the following immediatly,

- Pulmonary function tests, with Spriometry, Lung Volumes, DLCO and MIPS and MEPS

- A Cardiopulmonary exerxise test

- An echocardiogram with bubble study

- a V/Q Scan

- a chest ct/cta

Just to start!

Blood tests, xray and ekg SHOW NOTHING!"

And now I think I have this. (Hence posting) I have had anothet chest xray Monday so will get results later today (Weds) and if all comes back well i will be asking for a D-Dimer blood test I think it is. I have checked my legs and dont see nothing there or swollen ankles sondont think it is dvt but I am unsure anymore (probably down to the health/ general anxiety)

[Hidden]

Hello Turtle90

I’m sorry that you are going through this when as a very young man, you should be enjoying your life and planning for the future.

Anxiety is a dreadful fiend. It sits on your chest jabbing at different parts of your body and changing the nature of your physical pains until it robs you of the capacity to live life to the full. Anxiety paralyses you. I know, I have had many visits from it.

Worse, the symptoms it piles on you mean that you undergo all sorts of nasty invasive tests which simply invite in further anxiety.

All of the medical tests that you have had have proved that you do not have any serious medical condition.

So what is going on.

You mention that you are overweight. Is this preventing you from working or having a fun social life?

Perhaps it is time to take control of your own well being.

The drug which you are taking is a very strong anti depressant. It should start to work in 3 weeks and with the anxiety lessened you should be able to start working on your physical fitness.

Have a look at what you eat and work out a healthy eating plan for yourself. There are lots of interesting books, plans etc to help you.

Work on getting daily exercise. If you don’t fancy the idea of going to a gym start with sonething that you can do by yourself. You need to start gently but regularly.Walk around the block a couple of times each day then follow a plan to work up to running. There are lots on the internet. My daughter did this after she piled on the weight after having a baby and she hasn’t looked back. She now trains others and does a weekly ten mile walk with other people who are trying to build up their fitness and in consequence, their self esteem. There are also lots of online exercise plans that you can do by yourself if you do not feel able to join a class.. I have done a lot of this because the nature of my condition means that exercise makes me cough which is embarrassing in a class where people don’t understand.

By the time that you have figured all of this out and begun to implement a plan you won’t have time to think about the symptoms which you have been having and hopefully will be able to start to shake it off.

Do you have a friend who would enjoy doing all of this with you?

Of course, there are practitioners and talking therapies which can help you take control if you think that might help.

I am old enough to be your Granny. I have lived with and managed a serious lung condition all of my life and owing to life’s difficulties have had many brushes with the anxiety monster. All medical tests that I had when gripped by this also proved negative. It was only when I finally got control of my life that it started to improve and I strive now to keep myself out of the clutches of the medics as much as possible.

I do hope that you manage to find a way out of this. At 27 all of the excitement is ahead of you. Please don’t waste it sitting in doctors’ offices and being poked and xrayed.

[Turtle90 in reply to Hidden]

Thanyou very much for such a detailed and reassuring reply. You are correct all tests have come back fine and it is anxiety which I had thought was all good but after having an individual from another forum (claims to have been a 25 year old nurse training for her phd)send me this -

"They have not done even a 1/20th of the tests you need to rule out the serious stuff.

I take it your in the UK... how does your health system work there. Can you see another doctor?

I think you need the following immediatly,

- Pulmonary function tests, with Spriometry, Lung Volumes, DLCO and MIPS and MEPS

- A Cardiopulmonary exerxise test

- An echocardiogram with bubble study

- a V/Q Scan

- a chest ct/cta

Just to start!

Blood tests, xray and ekg SHOW NOTHING!"

I have doubted everything and become borderline wreck again (hence why I made this post) you are correct though I am overweight at ober 18 stone it is the most I have ever weighed, at the start of the year I weighed under 16 stone then lut on a stone or so due to energy dtinks (which I stopped in the summer) then since starting sertraline I have put on almost a stone which is devastating. I have actually being out with my partner today and walked about 3 miles in all vut the whole time I was thinking "I shouldn't be doing this, I may have a PE, Heart problem, Lung problem" it is stupid i know.

I dont want to feel this way and have admitted im overweight, even looked at doet plans and have found rhe dassh diet which I am starting. The past few weeks i have introduced fruits into my diet (banana,apple,clementine etc) aswell as taking cod liver oil, magnesium, allicin, vitamin D and started black seed oil.

I have actually being reffered for CBT and have 6 exposurw therapy sessions via phone due anytime now.

With regards to going gym i started that this year but the guy (so called friend) couldn't be bothered and I gave up and started drinking energy drinks daily (original problem wih weight) I was alsoba smoker if 14 years until about 3 months ago when i stopped over night but still my health seems to be worse jot better.

I hope it is anxiety and i can kick its bottom but I fear the worst with chest pain and pain in top left back then someone telling me its likely P.E and I can die has scared the living ***** outta me(excuse my french)

Sorry for rambling on and I hope you and your daughter are both healthy individuals

[Hidden]

Well you have actually made a great start.

You gave up smoking, the best thing that you could have done for yourself. There are people on this site who will support you in that. Many of them gave up after many years of smoking.

You are already looking at what you eat. Now you need a plan on how much you eat so that you can balance this with your chosen exercise.You don’t need energy drinks. You will get plenty of energy from the good food that you are going to be sourcing and cooking for yourself.

You have started walking with your partner. Maybe they would be happy to continue this and slowly add in running. You don’t need to go at it in an extreme way. Build up slowly but regularly.

Many on this site have serious lung conditions. I also have two heart conditions. It is very important that we exercise regularly. Your tests all came back negative and there is nothing to indicate that you shouldn’t exercise. Quite the reverse. To keep our hearts, lungs and other organs working well we need to keep that oxygen pumping around them.

If you had a pulmonary embolism it is one of the first things that the doctors would have found. They give very serious symptoms which you do not have.

And finally for now. These sites are meant for those who have knowledge and experience of their conditions to help and support those who are seeking information or are worried about theirs.

Unfortunately, occasionally they attract people like that idiot girl who frightened you to death. She is a STUDENT nurse for goodness sake. she is simply boosting her own sense of importance and superiority over you by trotting out a list of the tests which DOCTORS would have ordered if the first tests had showed cause for concern or your symptoms were different.

If you had a PE the tests which you have had would have shown it and the symptoms would have been different to what you describe. I am not medically qualified but I have a heck of a lot of life experience and your symptoms sound much more to be connected to anxiety.

Ignore her

Go back to the doctor if your pains become severe and constant. Pain from a PE does not go away and come back again.

So now you move onwards and upwards. Eating properly is going to help you lose weight and increase your physical condition.

Exercising regularly will help you lose weight, make you fitter and stronger .

Together with your medication, healthy eating, exercise and weight loss will help to control your health anxiety.

Try to keep busy and occupied in something which interests you. It all helps.

Good luck, we are all here for you.