[HypochondriacFilter] Should I see a doctor?

November 2, 2010 8:38 AM

So. Background: I'm in great shape. Eat well. Drink lightly. Work out at the gym a couple times a week and do martial arts. I'm also in my late twenties. Last few days I've had a tight feeling in the front of my chest, like a dull, centralized ache. I suppose it could be muscle pain, I did change my workout routine recently. But I've also found myself really short on breath intermittently. (It's hard to describe, kind of a fluttery, panic attack, 'can't catch your breath,' 'butterfly in my heart' feeling.) Coincidence? Could be. So the question is, should I be running off to see a doctor? I know they say to consult a doctor about ANY chest pain, but who likes to see doctors, and why would my heart be ailing anyway? I'm inclined to pass it off as nothing, but...
posted by Stagger Lee to Health & Fitness (29 answers total)

Panic attack?
posted by condour75 at 8:40 AM on November 2, 2010

I've had these before, which feels like a heart palpitation, and it turned out to be nothing but acid reflux. Cutting out coffee, losing weight, and moderating alcohol and spicy foods got rid of it (Gaviscon was great while it ramped down). I hate to join the "see a doctor" pile-on, but naturally with this kind of thing I have to add my voice to that as we can't really diagnose you in three sentences; your workup is kind of handwavy and there's not a lot to go on. But I'm just tossing that out there as an "it might be nothing" voice of reassurance.
posted by crapmatic at 8:46 AM on November 2, 2010

See a doctor.

I went to mine with what I thought was a bad cold - couldn't catch my breath, persistent cough, etc. He called an ambulance. It was atrial fibrillation.

Don't wait until Friday to see the doctor, as I did. I had to lie in the hospital until the defibrillator crew came back to work on Monday. If I'd gone in on Thursday, I would have gone home that day.
posted by Kirth Gerson at 8:47 AM on November 2, 2010 [2 favorites]

I'm usually not an alarmist - and I am also Not a Doctor - but I'd see a doc about this sooner rather than later. It could be incredibly benign - the "fluttery" feeling can sometimes be a really, really common heart mis-fire known as a PVC (happens to all of us, usually the result of lifestyle factors). HOWEVER - not to freak you out or anything - a creeping chest pain which he chalked up to a change in his workout routine turned out to be the lung cancer which eventually took Warren Zevon's life.

So! Totally common non-lethal heart flip-flop or cancer? Probably neither! But neither you nor I nor the internet can tell... only your doc can do so.
posted by julthumbscrew at 8:48 AM on November 2, 2010

I had some small pain in my upper chest while running up the stairs after one of my kids. The day before, playing full court basketball, I had some shortness of breath. I made an appointment to see my doctor about something else two weeks later. I casually mentioned it to him. He did an ekg and found nothing but insisted I go to hospital anyway. I fought this as unnecessary. I lost the fight and went. I now have two stents after they discovered a 98% blockage. Granted I am almost, but not quite twice your age, but the risk of not going is so outweighed by the reward of going and knowing that I suggest you go.
posted by AugustWest at 8:49 AM on November 2, 2010

DON'T PANIC. Likely stress related. I went through a similar thing at a similar age. But you should definitely see a doctor, because:

A. you need to get past all the stress inherent in wondering what could this be?

B: it might actually be something.
posted by philip-random at 8:51 AM on November 2, 2010

It could be anything from esophageal spasms from acid reflux, all the way up to atrial fibrillation or pre-heart attack symptoms. In other words, definitely worthy of MD follow-up.
posted by scarykarrey at 8:53 AM on November 2, 2010

I had that exact same symptom in the past and it was because I had popped a rib head out of my spine from lifting weights. This was diagnosed after 2 trips to the ER, an EKG, and some crazy bone density scan just because I insisted it was more than that.

But, see a doctor, if you have the means.
posted by pencroft at 8:55 AM on November 2, 2010

Yeah, just to join the pile-on, go to the doctor. It could be (likely is) something innocuous, but I was 24 years old and playing flag football when I developed a life-threatening heart condition that landed me in the hospital for 5 days. Merely being young is no guarantee of a healthy heart.

And as philip-random said, even if it's nothing, you need to find out so you can stop stressing about it.
posted by katemonster at 8:59 AM on November 2, 2010

There are a variety of conditions that could cause your pain, both cardiac and not, regardless of age. A conversation with your doctor will quickly clarify the problem in a way that can't be accomplished by asking untrained speculators online.
posted by paphun123 at 9:02 AM on November 2, 2010

I feel like a broken record. Not because at least a dozen people ahead of me have suggested you see a doctor, but because there seem to be a fair number of people who come here to ask if their chest pain and/or shortness of breath warrants a doctor visit.

Yes. Yes, it does. Your chest pain and/or shortness of breath warrants a doctor visit. If it's nothing, or just a pulled muscle or something similarly minor, it doesn't make you a hypochondriac.

If you're afraid of bothering the folks at the ER, go to a Patient First-type clinic, where they do have EKG & chest x-ray capability. And those places are full of doctors who are way more qualified than you or I to diagnose you.
posted by ImproviseOrDie at 9:03 AM on November 2, 2010

What's your salt intake like? Whenever I overdo it with salt, I've discovered that my muscles like to do this really creepy thing where they grind together in the front of my chest/sternum and it makes me think I'm having a heart attack because everything is pulling and fluttering. I subsequently start to breathe more shallowly and suddenly it's like the world is about to end 'cause I'm hyperventilating.

Maybe grab some gatorade/up your water intake and cut back on salt for a bit to see if that's it... Then head to your GP, just in case.
posted by patronuscharms at 9:04 AM on November 2, 2010

Response by poster: Ha, I totally expected "Go see a doctor." I know that I can't get real, proper medical advice here.
The context, anecdotes and level-headed responses are abundantly helpful and appreciated though. This was kind of a sanity check for me, and it's been really helpful that way.
posted by Stagger Lee at 9:07 AM on November 2, 2010

You need to see a doctor. Chest pain with shortness of breath needs to be checked out.

and why would my heart be ailing anyway?

Why wouldn't it be? Not to scare you or anything, but really. We are not immortal. Things happen.

It may very well be nothing but it needs to be checked out. I would say especially so if it has happened more than once.

Good luck.
posted by Fairchild at 9:22 AM on November 2, 2010

Oh! This happened to me 3 years ago!

I thought I was having a heart attack or had a hole in my lung or something horrible. Turned out to be a pulled chest muscle. It started with a bit of shortness of breath. I thought I was getting a chest cold. Then, after a few days, it turned into what I thought HAD to be a heart condition. I went to the ER. I should have gone to the doctor right when it started. It would have saved a LOT of money.

I'm well aware that I'm not a doctor but I would suggest taking some Alieve. That's what I got out of my $1400 visit to the ER. Take it easy FOR A LONG TIME. Don't lift anything heavy. You sound like you're in better shape than I am, but I have to admit that I still, three years later, find that my muscle is a bit goofy and needs to be used delicately.
posted by smirkyfodder at 9:26 AM on November 2, 2010

And, uh, yes. Go see a doctor. I obviously might be wrong in thinking you have the same thing I did.
posted by smirkyfodder at 9:27 AM on November 2, 2010

I experienced similiar symptoms that kept escalating and getting worse with each incident. At it's very worst I thought I was having a heart attack or stroke.

My regular doc spent me for various tests with a specialist, resulting in a cath lab procedure to tinker with my ticker.

It's all good. I'm fine except for a hiatal hernia that will push upward causing pressure on my lungs, heart and nervous system.
posted by tar0tgr1 at 9:31 AM on November 2, 2010

Yup. See a doctor. Something very similar happened to me, and it turned out to be a collapsed lung. It presented as central chest pain/tightness and shortness of breath, and I was initially certain it was a heart attack. Many dramas, which needn't be retold, but my main takeaway from the whole thing was that there aren't enough nerve endings in your chest for you to be sure exactly where pain is coming from, so anything noticeable does need to be checked out.
posted by Ahab at 9:36 AM on November 2, 2010

I have a feeling that you do not get physicals regularly.
I do, and I'm a guy that will stitch up his own leg. Even though it's blah it's a good idea if one does many active\sports things.

Schedule a physical and mention it during then, two birds, one stone.
posted by zephyr_words at 9:43 AM on November 2, 2010

My mom chugged down lots of Gaviscon (hiatal hernia) right up to the day she literally dropped dead from an AMI.

I'm sorry to put it that way, but go to the doctor!
posted by jgirl at 10:48 AM on November 2, 2010

I had something weirdly similar a few weeks ago. Kind of a jumpy, fluttery feeling in the upper middle chest that happened when I ran. I went to the ER; they found nothing wrong and concluded it was acid reflux. I got it just a tiny bit every now and then afterward, and figured I was fine.

However, two weeks before that, I'd started a new prescription medication for high blood pressure. The medication was a diuretic; dehydration and low potassium levels are potential side effects of diuretics, and heart palpitations can be a side effect of dehydration or low potassium. I switched to a non-diuretic, and my chest has stopped doing weird things.

Since you've changed your workout routine recently, your electrolyte levels might be out of whack, especially if you drink a lot of water. But it really could be anything, as evidenced by the variety of responses here, so get it checked out.
posted by Metroid Baby at 11:18 AM on November 2, 2010

Asthma (I've had it since I was 7) can cause similar symptoms. Or you could just have a pulled muscle. If you've injured the muscles in your chest that could prevent you from expanding your lungs all the way, causing the shortness of breath. Either way, this is definitely a "go to a doctor, do not pass go, do not collect $200" kind of problem. Because while chances are that it's not something incredibly serious, your symptoms also fit a whole host of very serious indeed problems.
posted by katyggls at 11:36 AM on November 2, 2010

One more "see a doctor". Some serious heart problems can affect young people. Get it checked out and go from there. Hopefully it is not serious, but in case it is, better to be too cautious than not enough.
posted by mermayd at 12:02 PM on November 2, 2010

I experience something similar, and talked to a doctor about it (although I never had any chest pain, just a weird losing my breath feeling along with major heart flip-flops). I was diagnosed with PVC, which, as mentioned above, is totally not a worry and can be caused by anxiety, caffeine, exhaustion, etc. Mine come and go, and I've learned to live with it for the most part. HOWEVER...sometimes these symptoms can be something really scary, and it's just not worth the risk to ignore something that could be related to your heart and lungs.
posted by I_love_the_rain at 12:25 PM on November 2, 2010

Do you take vitamins? Do you drink energy drinks or those energy shots? Large doses of niacin can make you feel pretty weird. It's harmless, and some say good for you.

On the other hand, being in great shape does not make you immune to heart defects or genetic predisposition for heart disease. If some specific change doesn't make it go away completely, then doctor it up.
posted by cmoj at 12:27 PM on November 2, 2010

This has happened to me. I could have written this.

For me, it was anxiety -- I'd had a generally high level of stress, but beginning to worry about those specific symptoms you described sent everything into a frenzy. Things got really bad.

I had to go to the doctor and get everything checked out before I could calm down. Even then, I asked a nurse to teach me how to take my pulse and check for basic problems. Now, when I get to feeling that way, I still worry, but I have techniques for calming down, and reassuring myself that it's not a panic attack AND a heart attack. And I know that if the techniques don't work, it's time to seek help.

In short, even if it's nothing -- especially if it's nothing -- get yourself checked out. It will obviously help if it's not nothing. But it will help put your mind at ease if it does turn out to be nothing serious too. And that will likely help your health too.
posted by .kobayashi. at 1:24 PM on November 2, 2010

One of my best friends is an ER doctor. One of his 'catchphrases' is "don't fuck around with chest pain" - meaning, if you have a new chest pain, go see a doctor now. Even if ends up being nothing, the money you spend will be worthwhile for the peace of mind you'll have.
posted by analogue at 1:27 PM on November 2, 2010

I had something similar that turned out to be inflamed cartilage in my chest. I was infuriated to spend a bunch of money (and the ONLY sunny afternoon of a vacation) in the ER when all I actually needed was an ice pack and some aleve, but yeah: don't screw around with chest pain.

"it will help put your mind at ease if it does turn out to be nothing serious too. And that will likely help your health too."

That's why, really. I'm THRILLED to know that my heart is apparently incredibly healthy, given that my father died of a heart attack. As you can see from all the answers above, chest pain (etc) can be everything from totally innocuous to fatal, and it's hard to tell the difference!
posted by epersonae at 2:41 PM on November 2, 2010

One follow up thought -- I don't mean to imply that anxiety is "nothing." It can be very serious. But for me, finding out it wasn't related to cardiac function -- that it had nothing to do with my heart -- was important.
posted by .kobayashi. at 10:42 AM on November 5, 2010