Need Advice!

[DanB95]

Hello, I am 21 years old and I get a lot of sharp shooting chest pains but only when I rest at night and occasionally during the day. Should I be worried by this?

[Blakejess]

Are you stressed or worried about any anxiety can cause these symptoms but it may be worth getting yr doctor to do a ECG test / heart trace didn't take long . Could also be indigestion u really need to see yr doc

[DanB95 in reply to Blakejess]

I dont feel I have anxiety but I am pretty stressed, I have made an appointment with the Doctor, thank you for the advice.

[Blakejess in reply to DanB95]

stress can cause the same symptoms

[Hidden]

You need to see your GP who will ask you about other symptoms you might not have noticed. When it's chest pain we always think the worst don't we? If it's really painful always call an ambulance. It's what they are there for but sometimes it's an illness that is not dangerous at all. I hope this is the case for you.

This is what happened to me. I was sent to work Causality in an ambulance on one occasion because I looked and felt like I was having a heart attack. On another it was a Police car by numbness spreading from my hands to my jaw and one pupil was larger than the other. I was put on a stroke ward and the consultant thought that I had had a severe migraine brought on by stress. I worked in a very big school doing high end Child protection and doing therapy with children who had been bereaved, had health issues or any other trauma. Some times it was just about chatting to a parent who couldn't get their child to sleep or just listening to a child whose parents had split up. Anyway it was mega stressful.

I was tested and tested for about a year. Every test you can imagine. I was put on steroids and morphine which did not touch my pain. I was always at the doctors surgery usually weeping with the pain. I had 'The talk' with my husband about what we would do if I was dying. I have 2 teens.

I was misdiagnosed with Polymyalgia Rheumatica at first. Then eventually we got there. My heart was not weak, I didn't have cancer and I had not had a mini stroke as first diagnosed about a decade ago when it all began.

It's Fibromyalgia which made me very tired but unable to sleep and in agonising pain in my ribs, sides, hands and just everywhere especially at night but the pain also moved about! One time it would be in my back, the next in my legs and the next day in both and my feet too! I had really hot flashes and was exhausted all the time. And my legs twitched so much at night that it woke me and my partner up constantly.

After my diagnosis, I was put on the right drugs and the pain slowly went not completely but it is so much better now. I go to the pain clinic because it's a chronic illness and they have been so helpful and understanding. I still can't sleep when I want to, I can't clean my whole house from top to bottom like I used to but I can do a room at a time. I gave up work and I eat really well now too. No sugar, takeaways, sweeteners or food on the run. I cook from scratch for my family and if I don't have the energy my kids or Hubby will cook or grab something I made from scratch and put in the freezer. For me it was not life threatening.

It's worth getting looked at and having a few blood tests and scans rather than sit at home/work and worry yourself silly. Take someone who has noticed any changes that you might not have done. And the best of luck.

[Blakejess in reply to Hidden]

i have this too i was diagnosed when i was 19 am 41 now i get pains in my chest head aches everything that goes with it, i also have degenerative disc disease, hyper mobility Gastro-esophageal re-flux disease, arthritis, Ibs most of these symptoms are related to one another. i have already had decompression disectomy on my bck in 2013 and am now waiting spinal fusion next month.

life isnt easy but trying to remain focused mentally and a good support of friends family and Gp and consultants, keeps me going.

[DanB95 in reply to Hidden]

The pain shifts around the left side of my ribs and it is a lot worse when trying to relax at night.

Thank you for the Advice,

Dan B

[grace111]

you should see you doctor if your getting sharp shooting pains as this is not the natural way to be. love grace xoxoxo

[oldman1952]

Hi there DanB95, I have read all the other posts and there are some good replies. If you are thinking that you might be having a heart attack. The symptoms that you have are not quite right for a heart attack. The pain that a person has when they are suffering a heart attack is a severe dull ache and it feels as if you have grand piano on your chest, sort of crushing it, like a very tight thick rubber band. You might have a pain going down your left arm or the right arm. It can move around the top half of your body and the pain could go in to your jaw and back of the neck. It also feels that the pain goes deep down as far as the spine. Do you ever get sweaty when having the pains or can you feel your heart beating differently to normal? lastly is your breathing affected in any way at the time that you get the pains?

What do you do as a career?

Do you do a lot of manual work?

Do you do a lot of lifting too?

Is your job fast paced?

Do you have to work to a time table?

Do you have to make quick decisions that could cause an order to be incorrect?

What does your diet consist of?

Do you eat a few takeaways during the week?

Do you have a breakfast lunch and dinner?

Do you drink any alcohol, if so how much?

There is a very good reason for me to ask you these specific questions, so please don't just dismiss them as if I am just nosey. When you have given the answers I can then help you to look at a few things that could be contributing to your problem. Best regards Oldman1952.

[DanB95 in reply to oldman1952]

1) sometimes depends how bad the pain gets depends if I sweat.

2) my heart rate increases when I get these pains.

3) If I am laid down flat on my back at the time of the pains it can cause shortness of breath otherwise nothing else.

4) I am a music tutor.

5) not a lot of lifting.

6) not faced paced at all.

7) Yes I work to a time table.

8) no

9) Little fruit and a lot of vegetables and meats.

10) dont like getting takeaway at all.

11) no, I only have dinner at 6pm

12) not an avid alcohol drinker.

[Ph77-65twz]

Go to AE and get it checked out, especially if it's in chest area. It might be heartburn but I would get it checked out asap mate

[Amkoffee]

The fact that it happens roughly at the same time everyday makes me think that it is not heart-related at all. And by time I mean the time that you lay down not time as an o'clock. I would certainly recommend seeing a doctor but I'm not thinking heart at all I'm thinking something else is going on

[oldman1952]

Hi there DanB95, thank you for responding so quickly, I must say that it has happened again. A fairly long and detailed response regarding your symptoms and it flew away into the middle of HealthUnlocked and cyber space. Any way this time not so long a post but you will have to google what I say to get a clear understanding of it, if I ramble on. The good thing is that I am pretty sure that it is not a heart attack. Your symptoms are too far away from the symptoms of a heart attack. The pain is completely different to you having a heart attack. Instead of sharp pains that come and go the pain regarding a heart attack is a very deep aching pain that never goes away. You can however have a silent heart attack. With this you do not get pain but you do feel your heart racing and out of sync. The pain affects your jaw, neck, left arm and will go through to the spine and is so painful sometimes even heroine does not take away the pain.

You mentioned some of my questions with what I call a red tick, and for that I will tell you what could be the problem:

1. The pain causes you to sweat to get rid of excess fluids.

2. When your heart rate increases it is because the pain and sweating has increased.

3. When you lay down the problem that I am thinking about becomes much worse, and it causes you to breath much quicker.

4. It comes on like clockwork when you go to bed.

5. you eat your dinner at 6pm.

6. You most probably have something to nibble on like cheese and biscuits before you go to bed?

7. You are a careful eater and think that your diet is packed with 5 per day meats and fruits, but you might be eating more than you need as a music teacher.

8 The calories that you do not use turns to fat in the liver after to have digested what your body needs.

Putting all of these factors together leads to a few problems that might cause you to have sharp pains in your upper abdomen, chest and around your diaphragm. The large muscle that divides your thoracic cavity from your abdominal cavity. The fat that is laying in your stomach increases your hydrochloric acid in the walls of your stomach this causes soreness of the stomach and oesophagus. The swollen stomach pushes the oesophagus up and through the diaphragm causing wide spread very sharp pains in the area around the chest. It is different to indigestion which goes off after about 10-15 minutes and quicker, if you pass wind.

I will stop there DanB95 and continue tomorrow if you like but I will mention the other things that I was thinking of.

Some diseases radiate pains to other areas not to far from the actual site where they are. One is Gall stones that grow in the gall bladder which sits just to the back and right hand side of the liver. Gall stones are built up of calcium salts and can be either very big or very small. If one or two get stuck in the common bile duct that goes into the stomach is quite a serious problem and very painful too. Another problem that can be very painful and stressful is a condition called H-Pylori. It is caused by an anaerobic bacterial infection of the stomach. It needs a course of 2 types of antibiotics and you are checked regularly by your doctor. So you do need to see your GP. Best regards Oldman1952. Keep in touch!

[oldman1952]

Hi DanB95, one last thing, When you go to bed leave at least 4 hours after food before you retire to bed, also do not sleep in the prone position, you will need to sleep in a semi sitting position. That position will stop the stomach from pushing the oesophagus up into the chest cavity whish has only enough room for the organs of the thorasic cavity The other thing is that the deformed and large oesophagus might be pressing against the heart muscle wall (pericardium). Oldman1952

[oldman1952]

Hi DanB95, just to make it clear. When the stomach and oesophagus becomes sore it is the stomach that is attached to the oesophagus goes up through the diaphragm and is squeezed by the big muscles of the diaphragm that causes the pains to come and go because the stomach keeps trying to get back where it should be.