Heart Failure?

[Wingnut 13]

Hey everyone! I'm 22 years old and recently have been feeling very VERY stressed. My girlfriend who is a paramedic took my blood pressure 3 days ago which read 160 over 83. This was taken at night. Tonight as I lay in bed with her stethoscope (bad idea!), I've listened to my heart which has caused me some fear....instead of a normal "Lub-dub Lub-dub" sound, it gallops like "Lub-dubDub Lub-dubDub". A quick faint sound right before the closing "dub". 

So here I am at 1am in the morning googling for possibilities and the term that matches that heart beat is heart failure! 

This is really scaring me as I've been really fatigued and winded for the past 2 months it seems. Also yesterday I had cold sweat, chills, and a radiating pain in my left shoulder/chest/back. 

 

Someone help me me sleep tonight. ),:

[Cb1993 9]

Are you feeling pretty anxious? I know that when I go into the dr office they will take my bp twice, once at the beginning and once at the end. There's always a huge difference because I'm so anxious at the beginning of my appointment! This could be causing your high bp. As far as heart failure, is your girlfriend at all concerned? I struggle with heart worries as well, but I'm only 24. My dr told me once that it was extremely unlikely that I would have heart issues being so young. But if in the morning you are still feeling uneasy, it never hurts to have a dr tell you themself that it's all in your head  usually helps me every time, for a little while anyways.

[Mike L 86]

Heart failure at your age is so so rare. What you are experiencing is CLASSIC anxiety. Think about it like this, in a way your girlfriend is the professional, she may have an idea of what things are supposed to sound like, so what makes you think you know what you are listening to?  Stress, aggravation, and anxiety, all make blood pressure go up, its common. It may also be your diet, if you have a diet high in fat and salt, that may be the cause. I drink 2 liters of water everyday! I would not worry about this, I know it is easier said than done, but find something you enjoy doing and do it. Do not take your blood pressure constantly, do it after you are relaxed and only do it once in a while!

[philb 92]

Agreed with Mike L, don't take your blood pressure reading too much unless directed to by a physician. I did this too much and now my therapist has basically disallowed me from checking it.