Been having bad chest pains and need answers or ideas please

[Brittanymcc]

Hello, I just joined this site because I can't seem to find any answers on google. I am 26 and have been having chest pains for the past 5 years or so. It starts with a sudden squeezing pain in the left side of my chest. It feels like someone is reaching their hand in and grabbing my heart and squeezing it. At first when it would randomly happen, it would hurt for 5 minutes or so, sometimes maybe even 30 seconds. I become almost paralyzed with the pain, if I take a deep breath or attempt to sit up or move at all the pain becomes so intense it causes me to moan and gasp. It's becoming way more frequent and lasting way longer now. And after the first onset of pain it goes away until I take deep breaths and then the pain is back with every deep breath I take. Always on the left side. I went to the doctor finally and was given a holter monitor for 48 hours and had an echocardiogram done. The doctor called and said it showed angina after looking over the results of the holter monitor and the echo came out great. I went to the ER roughly 2 weeks later bc the pain lasted over an hour. They did a chest xray and EKG and they both came out fine. The er doctor looked at my results from the holter monitor and said he didn't see any angina. It's starting to scare me bc I don't know what it is. I was stuck in the tub for 20 minutes one day and couldn't get out bc every time I would try to sit up the pain was so severe I would have to lay back down and just wait for it to go away. If any one has any ideas please let me know

[Bananas5]

Costochondritis?

z

[Brittanymcc in reply to Bananas5]

Thank you, I'm going to do some research on it

[cyberbarn]

The fact that the pain gets worse when you move or breath deeply probably means it is nothing to do with your heart and more likely to do with the muscles and joints in your rib cage. Every rib that joins onto the breastbone is a joint, and like all joints they can be strained or inflamed as Bananas says, Costochondritis is a possibility. There are also a lot of muscles in-between the ribs as well that can cause problems.

If you go to your GP fearing that it is related to the heart, they will try to find out if it is or not, and if it is not, the investigation can stop there. You need to go back and explain that now that the heart side of things has been eliminated, you want to look at other possibilities such as musculoskeletal things.

[AndrewT]

Dear Brittanymcc,

Do I have any 'Ideas', you ask, well yes actually- since you are clearly in, so much pain- stuck in the bath for twenty minutes!!! I would go back to your Doctors/Consultants and tell them, how bad it is- no really. I know that it's not 'In Your Nature', to make a Fuss.....However Brittany, there ARE 'Times', when you must and this IS one of them.

Sorry to be so Blunt but your, clearly awful, Pain needs addressing urgently. You don't say which, if any, Hospital(s) you are under, or even, which area you come from- so it's hard to offer any specific advice on possible treatments local to you.

I know that all of us wish you well Brittany and, I can assure you, that you have friends here. Please feel free, to contact us further, should you want/need to.

Sending all our best wishes.

AndrewT

[morphalot]

I would definitely go back to the GP and ask for a review of the pain. Don't make suggestions of heart/lungs etc as some doctors can become fixated, will eliminate then leave you to get on with your life. Tell the GP exactly where the pain is, what it's like, when it happens. Then leave it up to the GP to start investigating - that way they have a totally open mind. Hope you get it sorted x

[Hidden]

You got it checked and nothing bad was found, it hurts when you try to get out of the tub, movement.

Sounds like a muscle problem.

[AndrewT]

Dear paincut,

I seen to have offended you somehow, although I honestly, don't know how however I am very sorry. As regards giving different answers, to different question, guilty but I VERY strongly contest, that it's based on the sex of the person. On these pages it can be, far from, clear the sex, of the person, anyway...What sex is 'Tennis Lover', for example.

I gave you, what I thought, was an Informed answer. On the basis that it took you twenty Minutes, to get out of a bath- for example-which clearly is not a 'Normal' state of affairs, I suggested that you made your Doctors aware of it. I would have, and indeed have, given this advice irrespective of the sex of the recipient.

I notice that others have given similar advice, to what I suggested, have you rejected this also. As regards any 'friendship/friendly' overtones I mis-interpreted you. I thought that you were after my advice and, as a result, answered you in friendly terms. This is NOT a mistake that I will make again however.

AndrewT