Pain in Diaphragm Area, Smoking Related?

[Gfro]

Hi, i'm 18 going on 19 and I smoke maybe ten to twenty cigarettes a day and have been smoking for about 3 years now. I wouldn't say i'm a particularly healthy individual but i'm by no means majorly unhealthy either.

I'm having random pains around my diaphragm area, at first I thought they were pains in my chest but after keeping an eye on the problem I twigged that it was more below the lungs and perhaps stomach area/diaphragm. I'm posting in this section because i'm still worried that it's smoking related. The pains are more like a strong ache sometimes in one side at the bottom of my ribcage, sometimes right across the bottom of it, on the odd occassion i'll get it around the mid of my ribcage on one side, typically the right but sometimes left, which makes me wonder if it's a muscle problem as i've suffered for trapped nerves in my back for a few years now which sometimes affect my chest as well as my back.

It is very worrying and i'm just hoping someone can offer some advice as to what it may be before I consult a doctor, just to ease my mind a bit.

Cheers.

[geek_nerd]

  Actually, yes, it is related to smoking. It is because smoking permanently damages the breathing sacs in your lungs called alveoli. Thus, the damaged cells lose their ability to recoil, and your lungs kind of end up inflating. The diaphram works to help expand your lungs to bring in air, but now it also has to work extra, extra hard to make sure your lungs and your body gets rid of the CO2 that your body produces. Overtime, it gets tired and worn out, because the poor diaphram is not cut out for that type of thing. So basically, when you smoke, your alveoli is damaged so they lose their elasticity, and they are inflated technicall. And so, your diaphram has to work harder to make sure you still get rid of the carbon dioxide. Your diaphram gets super tired and there you: that's where and why the pain is there.
  I unfortunately do not know of anyone who speacialize in this. I do hope you know how very, VERY bad smoking is, for yourself, for everyone around you, and for the environment. You are a part of the cause of global warming. You are a part of the cause of many sicknesses and diseases. You are a part of the cause of many deaths. You are a part of......okay, you get the idea. Good luck, and hope you can get out of smoking! =)

P.s. go see a therapist!

[kathyjo]

While I don't think it is smoke related, it is however something that you must look into.
It is important to get the right diagnosis but I hope that you will listen to your body and quit the bad habits before they really become an issue.
Hope you feel better soon.
Kathy Jo