Constant Chest Pain - Heart Disorders Message Board

jpe311 · 11-05-2004, 12:13 AM

First off I'd first like to say I feel your same pain and congratulate you on your persistence to locate the source of the pain.
I am a 26 yr Civil Engineer. I have been experiencing constant chest pain for 4 months now (July 04). The pain appeared out of the blue one day and has persisted since. I do not feel depressed or anxious; however BECAUSE of the PAIN have tremendous fear/anxiety over it. My pain goes anywhere from a 1 to a 6 (1-10 scale, 10 being severe) but the pain is for the most part is constant 2-3. I honestly can’t tell if the pain is inside or outside of my chest cavity. The chest pain is mostly in my left pectoral that SEEMS to start from my sternum and radiate to my armpit. I'd say most of the pain is in my left armpit pec region. I have gone to the emergency room twice, had 4 EKG's, and an stress echocardiogram done and all of the tests came out negative for heart problems. I've gone to 4 different doctors and ALL tell me I have generalized anxiety disorder (GAD). I was on Prozac for 2.5 months with no relief, my new doctor which I believe supports me switched me to Lexapro. Every other doctor blew me off and gave me an anti-depressant prescription. The Lexapro has decreased my anxiety (panic attacks) but I still have this chest pain.

I am to my wits end with this pain. Sometimes I feel like maybe the doctors are right, and it really is in my head. And other times I worry that maybe their missing something and that there is something wrong with my heart. Tomorrow I am going to go to a chiropractor and see if this will alleviate the pain. I am told that it will take a few times going to correct the alignment in the back to stop the chest pain.

I'd would love to hear everyone’s story and if anything they have done has alleviated the pain. I think all of us would feel better with some success stories.

MillerTime72987 · 11-08-2004, 06:25 PM

Hey,

First off, relize that pain is not in your head, if you have constant pain, then it is real, not conjured up in your head. What you need to do go see another cardiac specialist, and see what they say. Do you have tachycardia? (Resting heartrate faster than 100 bpm.) Or even bradycardia? (resting heart rate slower than 40 bpm.) The symptoms you describe either (In My Opinion) tachycardia, mitral valve prolapse, or heart failure, (don't worry it's not as bad as it sounds), where your colesterol (bad Kind) is high that you have blocked arteries.

hope this helps

-josh

Tony1 · 11-09-2004, 02:39 PM

JPE, I too had constant chest pain for months. To quote my cardiologist he said, "has this been constant for days on end?". I said yes and he said, "then its not your heart." Of course the most important thing you can do is make sure that it is not serious. Stress echo's are suppose to be good but one of my docs said a thallium nuclear cardiac study was better for diagnosing coronary artery disease. Are you a high stress individual? If this is not anything serious I would bet that once you realize everything is o.k. your symptoms will subside gradually over time. Stress/Anxiety made worse worrying over this will probably make it last longer. I have been there. Mine went away and then returned three months later and then went away again. Having constant chest pain from what I have read and been told (I am not a Dr.) is atypical of heart disease. Click on my name and read through my old posts especially my first ones when I began posting because of constant chest discomfort. Good luck and I will pop in again.

jpe311 · 11-09-2004, 05:37 PM

Thanks Tony,

Other than my chest pains I'm in perfect health, every test has proven normal. I'm a high stress person and have anxious tendency but have never experienced side effects from it. I'm pretty sure its anxiety but just having these constant chest pains makes it had to believe. I read through your posts and can relate to your experience. I appreciate your comments. I'm trying to take it day by day. Thanks again.

balleteach · 11-09-2004, 06:58 PM

Hi, Regarding your chest pain. Google costochondritis and I bet this might be the problem. I have been dealing with this condition for a year off and on. When it flares up it feels like heart problems or lung problems because the pain is in the chest, ribs, and can go around the back. Sometimes it feels like you can't get a deep breath. I too went through lots of tests and everything came back normal. In fact I am scheduled for an echocardigram next week just for more reassurance.My Dr. is great and just wants me to feel relaxed about my flare up symptoms.My first flare up last year lasted about 2 months. I had a stress test, xray,and all was normal. Finally a Dr. who had had this condition told me that's what he thought I had. I went home, did the research, and bingo that was it. I have been almost normal until a few weeks ago when, because of a cold and coughing, this condition flared up again. You are not crazy and don't need meds. This is an very painful condition, but benign. We all have to try to relax and take anti-inflammatories for the pain.Also cheek these boards for info. Good Luck and pot again with updates, balleteach