Constant shortness of breath- Anxiety??

[ssharm]

Hi, I am an 18 year old female. For the last 3 months I have had a constant shortness of breath that is very severe and it lasts all day and night. I have had a thorough physical examination and all tests came out clear. My doctor says it is anxiety and even though it is hard to beleive i have convinced myself that it is true. I was under a lot of stress with University and I have had trouble sleeping for years. I am waiting to see a psychiatrist but i am scared. I keep thinking what if medications do not work or what if I don't get better. The problem is very severe and I feel as though i can never breathe. I have been trying to ignore the problem by going out with friends, doing yoga but its always there and it feels terrible. I don't think i can just ignore it.

I am just wondering if anyone has ever been through this horrible experience, if it is truely anxiety, and if your condition has improved. I really just need any kind of hope or support at this point. Thanks a lot,

Samantha.

[mugenDA]

Omg thank you for this post!!! I feel exactly what you feel...I wake up in the morning and have shortness of breath from morning to sleep I hate it...but I am on medication now and it seems to help a little bit...

[Beth35]

I'm glad to read that I am not alone.  I have had severe shortness of breath for the last 10 years.  On the outside I look fine so no one understands.  But I never have air.  I always feel like I am breathing out and getting very little in.  I know that it's gotten so bad that I rarely deep breathe and I probably more so chest breathe.  Being short of breathe makes me exhausted and I always look and feel completely terrible.  The worst part about this.....when it is bad which is usually most of the time...I find myself not really able to talk without feeling like I have to continuously stop and take a deep breath.  I literally have to stop talking or else I think I will pass out.  I noticed when this started that I couldn't sing anymore (like say in your car or something) I don't have enough air to hold a note.  In addition...I can barely read a book to my kids.  I cannot get enough air and I constantly have to stop and breathe and then the more I do that...the worse it gets and I can't talk at all.  Luckily I am writing right now...cause I wouldn't be able to even get enough air to have a converstation right now.  The interesting part about this is....if I was to be hanging with friends and having a bunch of glasses of wine...I would be able to breathe much better.  I can even sing on the top of my lungs.  I am not an alcholoic by any stretch but I guess it has a way of taking away the anxiety.  But sometimes that doesn't even help.  I have been tested awhile back for everything and I was o.k.....maybe I should go again?  Xanax use to work better for me...but not so much anymore.  Plus...it puts me right to sleep.  My doc prescribed paxil to me but I am scared to take it.  So...my main questions are these.....has Paxil helped anyone with this condition and has anyone had a similar experience with shortness of breath and how it affected talking and made them extermely tired and breathless?  Since this has been going on for over 10 years...I feel like this is a new way that my body has learned to breathe and it won't ever change.  It's horrible.  Thanks for your help.   Beth

[samuk1975]

beth I feel the same last 20 years always shortnes of breath it is killing me I just hope it is anxiety?

[gmichael66]

Hello,
I have this problem too and was puzzled about the anxiety diagnosis...in reality, its not so much anxiety as it is a for of OCD. We have become aware of our breathing and thinking about it put it into all kinds of odd patterns. Harmless but miserable to say the least.
It took six months for me to come to the grip that this is not medical but something in my " head" The good thing is, I can make it go away, and IT WILL GO AWAY. I have been told by those that had it, those that diagnose it, those that treat it, etc......and once it goes away, it doesnt come back.

The question to me is...how ? Am I supposed to stop thinking about this when it consumes my every waking moment ???

My therapist wnats me to have w consult with a psychiatrist to prescribe the right meds, which Im weary of but I know if I want this to go away, I have to trust someone, and I trust her completely.

This is the first day in six months I did nto cry(yet) Its still there, but I just laugh at it and tell it its days, or weeks, or months are numbered because my mind is stronger and I will win.

Diversion, much diversion is the key and of course, something else to "obsess" about.

Dont panic, take your magnesium/calcium and B vitamins and just relax.
What doesnt kill us makes us stronger and believe me Ive been "this close' to the edge with this and will not let it get me down.

Geoffrey

[EroToo]

As long as I don't have the shortness of breath and the constant fear of not getting enough air, I will ALWAYS go the medication route.

Karen

[MississippiBoy]

Gosh it feels good to not be alone on this one. I'm a reporter and a freelance writer, so stress was something I had grown used to when this problem surfaced.
A few months ago, I was out covering something extremely vanilla (like an airforce appreciation banquet) when all of a sudden I couldn't breathe and felt like my heart was pumping out of my chest. Even though I'm only 27, I honestly thought I was going to have a heart attack.
I called my wife, who picked me up and took me to the doctor's office. They ran all kinds of tests, and I was convinced they were going to discover my lungs and heart had imploded due to my lifestyle (I've been a smoker since I was 17).
Everything came out okay, in fact, better than okay. All my insides were working great, and the doc told me I probably had an anxiety disorder.
"Ridiculous," I told him. "Anxiety is something people use as an excuse."
He then asked me to tell him what was going on in my life, and I replied I was working 12 hour days six days a week, about to get married, my fiance was pregnant, my mother had cancer, etc. etc. etc.
He then put me on a prescription for Paxil, and although I was at first dubious, I have not since looked back.
I stupidly forgot to get my prescription refilled last month ("I'm cured," I told myself), and now all the same problems are rearing their collective heads.
Trust science, take some drugs and don't worry about becoming a zombie. For people who need them they don't take anything other than the crushing nervousness away and help the person you really are come back from the abyss.

[cmunce]

sorry to hear you are going through this but glad to hear I am not alone.  I am going through the same situation where I am gasping for air 24/7 and i honestly can't deal with it anymore.  I have been tested for everything and come out fine.  I take .5MG of xanax and it does nothing, they switched my to klonopin 1mg and I still can't breath.  I just started Paxil about 5 days a go so I am hoping this eventually stops.  I try all the breathing techniques and nothing.  I know its anxiety as there are times when i get focused on something and realize i am not gasping for air.  I just feel like there is no hope in site and I truly can't take this much longer it has been the worst experience of my life.  i don't want to keep shoving pills down my throat in hopes of eventually breathing.  Good luck with everything