Is it anxiety??

[Cowboymo 8]

Hi. My name is mo & I'm new here. For almost 2 months, I've been suffering from constant shortness of breath, rapid heart beats, chest pains, arms tingling, face & lip numbness. I went to the ER a few weeks ago and they did an EKG, chest X Ray, and blood work & they said everything was normal besides a fast heart beat. My heart beat is constantly 90-100. My personal physician recommended I see a psychologist & ive started to but I'm still not convinced  that it's not a health issue. I constantly worry and think I have a disease and I'm dying. Im afraid to even drive alone now or go long distances from home. I used to always be the life of the party. The outgoing jokester. I am mr social but now even when I go out, I don't enjoy it. Im 31 years old btw. Somebody help me. What's this all mean? 

[Kylie21 357]

Your answer...... it is anxiety! Trust drs. They did the tests. And the moment you say... " I constantly worry and think I have a disease and I'm dying" That is definitely something you will see on this site said by many. Going to a therapist aka psychologist  is a great start. You need to find out what is causing your anxiety. Your triggers. Fears , thoughts wont harm you. But the moment you give them attention they try to take over. This site has many great resources and you will find many who suffer just like you. But, always know that you can get that outgoing jokester back.  Try journaling if possible.. You can really learn a lot about yourself that way. And therapy is great because something is going on internally to create this anxiety and this fear.  When you can find that and not  fight it you will notice it start to subside. Stay positive it gets better

[Cowboymo 8]

My uncle had an accident and died this year & the counselor I'm talking to thinks that's the root cause but none of the methods she's given me are working. I've seen her 3 times & im not getting better. Also, is it normal part of anxiety to have constant shortness of breath & constant fast heart beat? :/

[Kylie21 357]

Losing someone Definetly is a traumatic time , and it takes more than 3 visits , sometimes things are deeply rooted and with anxiety it isn't a quick fix unfortunately . Shortness of breath is due to the fast heart and tense chest from tension . Fast heart is one of the most common anxiety issues . When anxious we release adrenaline and that will speed up the heart . The range u spoke of isn't very high just feels like it in your chest . 

[Cowboymo 8]

But is it normal/part of anxiety to have a rapid heart rate all day? I even wake up with a rapid heart rate. I keep thinking it's my heart and that freaks me out more. I literally check my pulse all throughout the day now and count BPM. It's very frustrating & annoying. I've had 3 doctors tell me it's anxiety/PTSD but in the back of my head I keep thinking its a health issue. My doctor recently put me on a medication that's like pixel basically and said give it a month to work. 

[Kylie21 357]

How do u know it's all day ? And think about checking ur pulse all the time ur thinking about it before u check speeding it up . U can speed the heart up so easily by one little thought , startle ect ... Remember the dr know more than we do . Racing heart everyone with anxiety will tell u they have I promise it's soooo common 

[Cowboymo 8]

Because everytime I check my pulse, it's fast (fast meaning 90-100) when I went to the ER, it got up to 160. I'm having chest pains as I type this. And about the doctors...they say it's anxiety but then I spoke to a cardiologist & he goes "EKG & chest X Ray don't tell us much" which really got me worried

[Antman15 17]

I used to check my bpm and oxygen level all the time. Stop doing it. You freak yourself out and increase your heart rate. I've had ekgs and chest xrays done. Trust me they can tell if your heart is healthy or if they're is anything wrong with your heart valves. It's anxiety. I still have to tell myself. If I eat too much food I'll get a racing heart and panic attacks cause I let my stomach syptoms scare me. I literally just thought I was having a heart attack. Took some deep breaths and realized I'm fine. Even when we think we're relaxed we are worried about our heart. So little off beats will scare us and then when we're calm....BOOM panic attack.

[James417 4]

I have been getting sever anxiety for a while now. I have been getting lots of anxiety during the day and when I am paying attention and feed into it my resting heart rate will stay around 105~bpms. And sometimes even when I try to ignore it they keep going for hours and I also have premature ventricular contractions which are the you feel the heart beat twice to many times and then "stop" for a beat and then a hard thump in my chest and neck as it "starts" again. I have also been getting a twitching by eyes and lips and numbness with tingling around my lips hands feet and face ect. That had been scaring me too and making this worse but its most likely form adrenaline. But yes anxiety does cause this its very good you went and had the symptoms checked out though! That's a good first step to getting over this to help prove its just anxiety. Also past several months I have been on a kick to check my pulse constantly. It makes the anxiety worse to do this it is literally like throwing fuel on a fire.

Edited November 19, 2015 by James417

[walkingwithGod 169]

Hi there. I too have health anxiety that stems from worrying about my heart and went through periods where I would be focused on my heart rate..it tends to be fast a lot too. I have had tests, blood work, ekg, chest xrays, ct scan with contrast and all come back fine. You have to trust your doctors, they know way more than we do when it comes to these things. 

Fear is the root. .its a cycle. Fear-anxiety-more fear- more anxiety. You have to learn to let go of the fear and not focus on your symptoms. I know its easier said than done, believe me!! Once u start letting go of some of that fear, your anxiety as well as physical symptoms will lessen. Anxiety cant hurt us, its the fear that only makes us think it will. 

Hang in there, it will get better. Dont try to rush it, it takes time.

Wendi

[Mark G 1177]

Just to agree with above comments, anxiety is pushing your heart rate up due to the amount of adrenalin being pumped in, your prepared to fight or flight so the body is ready for you to run.  This is normal, nothing to worry about, once you calm, so will your heart rate.  Your introspection of your heart rate will also add to the speed. The numbing is two things, too much oxygen via over breathing and nerve sensitization and misfiring.  You've been checked, you're healthy, feel safe i that knowledge.  I'd say PTSD due to your uncles incident as being the culprit for the root fear.  Your therapist will be able to help with the unlocking and processing of these root causes.

Edited November 19, 2015 by Mark G

[Cowboymo 8]

Thanks for all the feedback & comments. Part of me says you & my doctors are right & another part of me (bigger part) says something is wrong & that's very frustrating. I recently had to quit my job because of this issue. I was terrified something like a heart attack was gonna happen to me at work. Any advice how to get over this? Anyone been through something similar?

[Mark G 1177]

Oh, your Dr and us ARE right, trust me.  This is classic health anxiety,  it ignores the plausible for the inplausible and convinces you that something is wrong.  How to get over it?  Accept it for what it is! Acceptance removes the fear which is keeping you in the anxious, sensitized state.  Anxiety without fear cannot thrive, it melt back to where it should be in your mind.  I've gone through 15 years of fear over my heart, had all the obsessive, intrusive thoughts of dropping down dead, keeling over, collapsing,  you name it, i've felt it along with many many other people on this forum.  Once you begin to recognize the thought processes and how they manifest, and then start to react less with them, you start to make inroads on anxiety.  It's not an easy task, far from it, but it IS possible.  With time, patience, determination.  Please feel free to PM any of us for more information or support.  Thats the great thing about this site, we all help each other.

[Cowboymo 8]

Thanks man. Yeah, I took an appointment this morning to have a stress test & other heart tests done so that's got me very anxious. And I'm also anxious because my blood work showed my liver enzymes as high (not too high according to my doctor) and my doctor thinks it's caused by medication I've been taking or foods I eat. He told me it's nothing concerning. To simply change my diet & retest it in a few months but now I'm freaking out about my liver, heart, and lungs :/

[Mark G 1177]

Thats anxiety for you, it runs in worst case scenario's and the fear of the unknown but that is what produced it's food.. Adrenalin! Us anxiety sufferers live our lives looking in to the future in an inward thinking way.  Over analysis, constant scanning and checking in, we never live for the here and now.  All these tests will come back fine and when they do, you can try and put them to rest and concentrate on the real issue here, that little liar called anxiety.  

[Cowboymo 8]

Do u know if anxiety also causes pain in the left shoulder, arm, arm pits, etc? On again off Again pain. Chest pain? Etc?

[Cowboymo 8]

Like all day today (and currently) I've had rapid heart beats & some pain around my heart  

[Mark G 1177]

Absolutely yes,  it can very easily cause all of the symptoms described. Rapid heart rate is due to adrenalin. 

[Cowboymo 8]

Mark, but I always thought it only produced it for short periods of times? I constantly have a rapid or semi rapid heart beat 90's to 100-110

[Mark G 1177]

That is because you are worrying about it, you are in that cycle of fear, pumping adrenalin into the blood, the heart rate increase is a direct result of this.  My heart regularly beats in the 90's.  Learn to accept the fact that anxiety is doing it, take deep breaths, invest in a relaxation CD/Mp3, learn breathing techniques.  There are many things you can do to relax.  Know that your heart is fine, it's your reaction to these anxious thoughts which is tricking you into believing that it isn't.

[Cowboymo 8]

Your heart beats in the 90's because of anxiety or that's just your normal speed?

[Kylie21 357]

The more you monitor your heart rate the more you will notice it higher because you're so focused on it. 

[Cowboymo 8]

My main thing that scares/bothers me is the constant rapid heart beat & shortness of breath. Oh, and I'm always feeling bloated & like the air is pushing up towards my chest. I get acid reflux a lot too. Any ideas?

[Kylie21 357]

The thing is your heart rate isn't constant.. ONLY when you check it. because you're thinking and worrying about it so it goes up. The shortness of breath is probably not only due to the increased heart rate but the focus on it as well.  Bloated and all that is probably because of how your breathing taking in lots of air. Acid reflux is SO COMMON when anxious the stomach will increase acid. YOU ARE OK!!!!!!! i type that in caps cause I want to you to mantra it to yourself over and over. YOU ARE OK! nothing is wrong with you just the way you think.

[JOYCICLE 654]

Hi Cowboy. I have a rapid heart beat almost always. Some people's heart beats faster than others. If my heart is beatng 90 bpm, I consider myself calm!  See?  When I'm totally amped up on anxiety, it's above 150.   A few suggestions for you are learn the body and how it works, like the body PARTS. Much of what you are describing sounds digestive. When we are anxious, our stomachs can be a real mess and you mentioned you have acid reflux too.  When we are extra anxious, we're taking in way too much air during the day with our ' gasping and taking deep breaths' and the result is our body gets full of gas. Guess where gas settles very often? In the chest area, specifically the left hand side of the chest and YES you can get gas pains in the shoulder area, specifically on the left hand side. Trust me. I have had it there a thousand times.  To get a handle on that , I would suggest being very very careful about what you eat.  Limit salty, spicy, greasy, fried foods and go with a very bland and easy on the stomach diet for as long as you can. Pretend you are recovering from a stomach virus and are hungry but only want very mild things. This will cut down some of the acid and let your stomach have a break. Also when you're eating, eat slowly, chewing slowly and keep the mouth closed as much as possible so no excess air is going in there while you eat. Have you ever been around a new baby ? Even though they don't  look like it, they're taking in lots of air while they eat. Thus the burping that has to be done a few times during each meal to get the gas out of the belly. Well our bellies are the same, but we are adults so we don't burp ourselves, but we SHOULD.  

You're going to be ok Cowboy  I have been right where you are and every single sensation sets you off. There are some amazing videos about panic attacks and the body and what is actually going on physically when we panic. If you see them, it makes so much sense and then it's not as scary. It's actually totally natural !