breathing difficulties with back pain and muscle tightness.

[gracedog]

I have been having a constant breathing difficulty. It is like I can not get a full breath into my lungs easily. I have osteo-arthritis and DDD with alot of pain in my upper back and neck. Caffine makes it worse. I am experiencing dizziness and brain fog also.

[National Jewish]

It is possible that you cannot get a full breath into your lungs easily because of your osteoarthritis and degenerative disc disease (DDD).  These conditions can limit or restrict the movement of your chest during each breath.  Talk with your doctor about having a chest x-ray and spirometry testing.  Spirometry is a simple breathing test that measures how your lungs are working.  You will exhale into a machine called a spirometer.  The spirometer measures how much air you can exhale in the first second and how much air you can exhale total.  For the testing to accurately measure how your lungs are working, it is important that you give your best effort when exhaling.  If your chest cannot move enough to let your lungs fill completely your spirometry will show a restrictive result.

[fanagalo]

Just an idea (I am not a doctor):  I currently have pulmonary hypertension which causes edema and breathing difficulties due to poor oxygenation of the blood.  I have been on Lasix which causes my potassium levels to drop. So, I take a potassium supplement every day.  However, I can tell when my potassium levels are down too far because I get dizzy and I get the sensation of muscle strain and aches, especially in my neck and shoulders.  When I drink one of those yogurt drinks (Frusion), I can almost immediately (20 minutes) feel a difference.  Good luck.