Having a bunch of health related symtoms and I can't figure out why

Californiablonde

Well-Known Member
Lately my health has been failing and I can't get to the bottom of what is wrong with me. For starters, I have been having bad chest pains on and off for the past 3 weeks or so. The pain is knife like, comes and goes, and radiates to my arms and shoulders. Last week I was worried I was having a heart attack so I went to Urgent Care. They did an EKG and it came back normal. They also ran my blood to check my heart to double check it wasn't a heart attack. The blood work came back normal. My blood pressure was also high at the time but they didn't seem concerned. They told me everything was fine and sent me on my way home.

The chest pains still persist along with other symptoms. I am having frequent headaches that usually hit mid afternoon. And I am exhausted. All the time. I have been averaging 9 hours of sleep a night, but I feel soooo tired. I can't stop yawning all day and it's annoying. Lately I've added power walking to my routine to try and get some of this weight off but I can barely manage 25 minutes. They also ran a complete CBC when I was at the hospital plus a metabolic panel. Of course it all came back normal. I have no idea what it could be. I feel like everybody is blowing off my concerns and not taking me seriously. These symptoms are more than the usual anxiety I get. It's frustrating and I just want to feel like my old self again. Anybody have any ideas what could be wrong with me when the doctors all say I'm fine?
 

dstc_99

Well-Known Member
I can't account for the chest pain but the rest can all be related to high blood pressure or low blood pressure. I just had to start on a new medication for my blood pressure and the symptoms you are describing are almost exactly the same. Then again I am no doctor so......

I would go back in for a follow up and see if they can narrow it down for you.
 

BusynMember

Well-Known Member
A couple of suggestions they probably didn't check for:

1: Gastric reflux (causes horrible heartburn that felt to me like a heart problem, but I had an EKG for two days all day and no heart problem).

2. Lyme's disease. All sorts of strange symptoms. Doesn't always show up on lab tests, but worth the test anyway.

3. Autoimmune disease...they knock you out and are hard to detect...Lupus, rheumatoid arthritis, others

4. mononucleosis--This one made me too tired to keep my eyes open.

Maybe you need to see an internist you've never seen before who doesn't know you have anxiety disorder. The new doctor may take you more seriously. I know that they try to chalk up everything I have to anxiety, which can be dangerous.

You are young. It is probably nothing serious. But remember to take care of yourself and not just your kiddos.
 

Nomad

Well-Known Member
Staff member
A really good, experienced GP is probably the best way to go. I too thought of a check up for autoimmune issues. Are you under extra stress? This could make any existing problems worse. I just changed GPs and she checked me for everything under the sun. I already knew I had autoimmune issues, but she would have found them on her own as her initial blood work checks for signs of this.
 

flutterby

Fly away!
What they should have done was referred you to a cardiologist for a full cardio workup, which would include at least an echocardiogram and a stress test. They always rule out the biggest things first.
 

helpangel

Active Member
I'm not sure if made national news or just local but a week ago I saw a news clip about a woman who had been to the ER 2 days in a row and told nothing wrong she just needs to better manage her stress.

Well day 3 while friend was driving her to the ER she did a selfie video in the car and even though wasn't having symptoms when got to the ER they used that video and confirmed that she had had 3 strokes in 3 days.

It sounds like more then anxiety to me, though the way you are feeling and being responded to would cause more anxiety. It sounds similar to what one of my friends use to go thru every time he lost a couple pounds, but you are too young to have been in Vietnam and exposed to agent orange.

If have a video feature on your phone or a webcam might try recording a selfie while symptoms are happening and hopefully something can be spotted to help lead you in direction of what is happening

sending hugs and some healing energy
Nancy
 

DammitJanet

Well-Known Member
My first thought was autoimmune too. Fibro or CFS. I have had chest pain quite a few times and it is either due to the fibro or there is a chostochondrytis which is very painful.
 

flutterby

Fly away!
Reflux can feel like that, too. Regardless, good medicine requires that the biggest things be ruled out first. My sister-in-law went through a full cardio workup and it ended up being reflux. Recently, a fb friend of mine went through a full cardio workup and it ended up being thryoid. One was in GA and one was in OH. But since the heart is the most important, in this case, that needs to be ruled out first.
 

nlj

Well-Known Member
Do you think it's possible that it's age-related? Menopause caused lots of bad headaches and tiredeness with me. I also developed auto-immune thyroid disease around the same time which was genetic as both my mother and my eldest daughter have the same thing. Have they checked your hormone levels? Oestrogen and TSH (thyroid stimulating hormone)?
 

Californiablonde

Well-Known Member
I also just had my thyroid checked plus all my female hormones. Everything came back normal and my doctor says I'm not even close to menopause yet. They did refer me to a cardiologist and I finally got the referral letter in the mail on Saturday so now I can call and make an appointment. One of my friends suggested it could be fibro so I researched it on the internet. About half the symptoms sound like mine. I just friended a lady on facebook that has fibromyalgia. She agrees that I do have a lot of the same symptoms as her. I don't know what to do from here. Do I go back to my regular doctor and have her check me out? From what I've heard, there really are no tests. So how would I get diagnosed?
 

DammitJanet

Well-Known Member
They call fibro the garbage can diagnosis. They rule out pretty much everything else and that is what you are left with. I am more bothered by my arthritis but every once in awhile the fibro flares and I am down for the count. Normally if I exert myself too much then I am in bed for a few days. My topamax and lamictal seem to help the trigger points so I dont have a whole lot of pain in those most of the time. I do have one spot that rarely goes away though...the sides of my arms. From my elbows to my shoulders on the outsides hurt badly. Just a soft touch can feel like a punch. But tired? Oh my gosh, I get so tired I can hardly move. Yet I also have insomnia...lol.
 
Top