Struggling to breathe

[bengali]

Lasts few weeks it's felt as if someone was sitting on my chest. At first it didn't hurt overly, uncomfortable but not really painful - not like a throat difficulty but a chest thing, hard to catch my breath. It has slowly developed over the last few weeks into a cough, and pain. It still feels like someone is sitting on my chest, breathless, but it's hurting a fair bit, too, especially when I breathe deeply or cough at all (which is reasonably frequently.)

Tired almost all the time, whether I get a full night's sleep or not. Voice croaly often, but no cold sympoms at all. Achy, having flares with the EM reasonably frequently. Headacjes often, sometimes light sensitive. Issues with fine motor skills sometimed. Having issues with concentration, memory, thinking overall often, especially when stressed or especially tired.

So I know there's a bit happening, but trying to find out, just now, how to breathe properly again.

Friend and hubby have been pressuring me for a little to go to the hospital, to not wait until next week for results, etc. - have been saying I simply don't look well, either, not myself at all, obviouslysomething happening, hubby thought maybe pneumonia or something. So after a fair bit of prodding and simply not being able to breathe this morning, feeling simply like crap, I submitted, rang the hospital and went in.

So - long story short. No pneumonia, chest sounds fairly clear. Temp. Normal. ECG normal (have recently had some heartburn, pain in gut/back, so they checked that, too.)

Was sent home with the 'come back during the week, don't have bloods yet so can't do anything there,no sign of chest infection.'. If it doesn't ease by the time I can get an appt, then I'll likely have to go for a drive, get an xrsy done. I don't know that he could have done much note considering, but I still can't breathe.

Is there anything I can do? Steam/warmth don't help. Coughmixture not really, just makes me sleepier. Cold, I have noticed tonight, does make it a bit worse. Activity makes it worse. Resting often eases it bit. Little worse if I'm really sleepy.

But I'm struggling to do things as a general whole of late alresdy, not being able to breathe on top of that is just knocking me flat. Does anyone else have any other ideas for coping with it?

[Rubylu]

Poor you. You did the right thing getting checked over. Did they do a peak flow breathing test? You haven't mentioned whether they ruled out asthma !

Hope you fee brighter soon.

[bengali in reply to Rubylu]

Had asthma as a kid, this is different. Asthma was more throat as well as lungs,just can't draw air in, you feel everything closing off. This feels different, is chest only. They didn't do breathing tests, no, nor do any other tests, other than o2 SATs and etc, but lungs were not wheezing like asthma does, either, and I was still struggling when he was listening

[weathervane]

Did the doctor rule out costochondritis it can cause pain in chest and pain when breathing. I hope you start to feel better soon xx

[bengali in reply to weathervane]

No, no mention of it at all, just that there was nothing raising red flags for him as something directly treatable in hospital , just to follow up with the tests and keep going from there

[AnnNY]

Can you call a doctor on Monday morning. I don't know if you are in the States, but the ER can be pretty useless these days. First they have to figure out what is causing this. If it's asthma or bronchitis, there are treatments that can help you to breathe better. If you can call you doctor ASAP and explain to there office what is happening, they may be able to get you in quickly.

Hope you feel better soon.

[bengali in reply to AnnNY]

Going to see what I can do, but due to Easter it's all screw wiff, asked Friday when I got my bloods done, was told Thursday at the earliest unless I was lucky enough to get a slip in. Hubby needs one, too, but he needs to see a specific doc, only one who can do what he needs done, so going to be bloody interesting. 😕

Thank you, though, me too. Just trying to find ways of coping with it all,that alone is a struggle as in reading other posts everyone on here everyone fully gets, then not being able to breathe, too, I have too much to do for this... Driving me nutty

[Rubylu in reply to bengali]

Ring for assistance tomorrow you must! It sounds horrid whatever it turns out to be. Maybe a pleural rub?

Anyway, it sounds like you need to be reassessed.

Take great care and I hope you get it sorted very soon.

[KRutherford]

You have my sympathies- trouble breathing is exhausting and often scary. I am still riding out a long event - 3 weeks of pleurisy which triggered a major lupus flare which triggered a major asthma exacerbation, now 6 wks in. And it all started with the "heavy chest" feeling and pain with deep breath. Costochondritis is usually more a specific area of dull/sharp pain along the ribs , usually anterior while pleurisy is more widespread. That said, some characteristics are shared, and as I experienced, you can always have more than one medical problem at a time , layered on each other, and sometimes confusing the diagnoses. CXray can be very helpful at ruling out major complications. I ended up a couple of days ago on a large taper dose of prednisone through urgent care ( have been on since before the pleurisy started) along with a nebulizer at home and, pain medication along with my current lupus drugs- hydroxychloroquine and quinacrine and several asthma drugs . At this point we had decided against a bacterial pneumonia, in spite of abnormal lung sounds. My asthma shows up as a tight chest, cough, fatigue, and definitely feeling ill well before the wheezing starts. Now it is generally all mixed in with my lupus arthritis and other lupus sxs.

Keep pushing to figure it out for treatment even though it's hard to do when you're so fatigued. Thinking of you! Katie

[bengali in reply to KRutherford]

Hubby crashing hard with depression right now, too, so I've even more to do and less energy. Trying to get him up, out of bed for any length of time, let alone eat an actual meal, is a huge thing. He wanted me yo go yo hospital, but at the moment I simply can't, even if I did have pneumonia, kids would be stuck eating two minute noodles and cereal, no washing would get done, no general basics. I need that bloody energy back, so angry at this crap, I have made myself get up and moving just before, bloody zombie nearly on the couch, so shattered, realized I was mumbling back if the kids tslked to me. They're for bed shortly, eating their desert and brushing their teeth, and I will go shortly after, but I look around and there's still do much to do.

And I just can't do it today.

I had asthma as a kid, cold , activity, and sickness induced - very much recognize the horrible wheeze, the feeling of the airways closing. I don't envy you that - and that tightness, heaviness (exactly what I mean, pain and pressure almost), plus everything else as well. I did try my son's inhaler (ventolin) he'd gotten last year to try when he'd had croup - (it made no difference for him, so remained in our medicine cupboard) - no difference.

I just don't know howI I'm supposed to do it all still, struggled to get everything done even when everything was normal, last year before all this started. Try to get doc's appt. again tomorrow, but have to see what happens. Got to go help my litty guy read his book, then brush my teeth myself, and off to bed too. A fair fee things left on my list to do today (write it down now so I don't forget it) but never took a nao today, really tried to keep moving, get as muxh as I could done. And so much still to do. Not tonight, though.

Goodnight, than you for your help and kind words

[bengali]

Just a quick update. Went back to see the doc Tuesday. Was given Prednisone to take once a day, and told to come back if it got worse at all, otherwise to make certain I make an appt. for next week to review how it's going (and he reiterated when I was going - make certain you come back next week.)

Still coughing a bit, still breathless at times, bit of pressure and still doesn't feel great taking a deep breath at all, but overall seems a little better, certianally not worse at all. Seem a little less tired overall though, shattered now but got a reasonable amount done that I needed to (list laps over into tomorrow still a fair bit, though... Always does😒

[Rubylu in reply to bengali]

I hope the prednisone has started to do the trick now, and that you've felt even more improvement. Get well soon.