At wits end
Posted , 3 users are following.
I'm a 25 year old female (5 foot 4, 120ish pounds), I've head celiac disease for 7 years and since childhood I've had lowish blood iron levels.
For a few months now I have been having on and off burning sensation/tingling which affects my upper left arm (in biceps area), left breast and around the areas of my ribs close to the arm pit. About a month ago it appeared again and it was bad enough that I had to find certain positions to sleep. I had associated this with PMS as it tended to disappear with my period. This time it appeared around 10 days prior to my period and was gone a day or two with the period.
I got freaked out about how intense it was and went to see the gynecologist and she did a physical examination on my breasts twice and I even had a breast ultrasound which revealed absolutely nothing on the painful side.
With the burning sensation gone, I developed a cold and a dry cough and burning on both sides of chest, which I thought might be bronchitis or something similar. Went to see my GP, she did a physical examination and I also had a chest x-ray and a c reactive protein, the results for both were okay.
The cold/cough disappeared in a few days and everything was okay when I went to see the GP for a follow up check-up. Except that very same evening I started feeling a light pressure in the middle of my sternum, which could only be stopped by lightly touching my fingers to the spot. It got better over the next two days, but my sternum still gets painful at certain times of day with certain movements (it's mostly a dull ache but a few times a day also a stabbing pain). There were also days when the pain was shooting into my back and neck and just this Friday I got terrible back pain from walking about an hour.
Also about a week ago the burning in upper arm and left breast started again. Also when I touch my biceps it feels different than the right one as if there were a lot of small lumps/bumps under the skin that aren't there on the other side and it feels like the burning/tingling comes from those.
I'm going to see my GP about all of this tomorrow, so I was wondering what tests should I ask for? It's such a wide area of symptoms that it has me so worried that I've barely been capable to think about anything else in the last month, so I'm a bit at wits end.
0 likes, 4 replies
dave17866 kaede25406
Posted
I don't respond to all posts, but I will give an opinion. First of all, you are way too young to have major problems in so many different areas. You might have costochondritus (rib pain) which can be remedied via anti-inflamatories (robaxin, ibuprofen). If I were you, I'd watch my diet; eat iron rich foods, get moderate exercise and fresh air with sunlight. Don't scare yourself into being sick.
kaede25406 dave17866
Posted
Thanks for your response.
I have also thought that it might be costo/Tietze's syndrome as a result of the cold (Although with costo the pain can be reproduced when pressing on the sternum which doesn't work and doesn't usually spread to the back) and the rest of it might just be anxiety.
The thng with left arm might be trapped nerve or just a result of a bad body posture (the Dr. who did my breast ultrasoudn mentioned that it's the most common cause for one sided breast pain at my age) and a result of a sedentary life style. But the thing about getting more exercise right now is that it seems to onset the back/chest pain, so I'm kinda worried about too much movement. I haven't been exactly active before but I used to go swimming a few times a month and go for walks quite often before these problems started. Also I felt likely that I had been eating healthier than ever prior to this as my diet became more vegetable and less meat based.
I have been so anxious about al of this for a month and spent too much time googling that I just need to talk to my GP about it and get some tests done in order to releave my anxiety. Eating well/exercising are on the schedule once I am ensured that everything is in order.
stephb22 kaede25406
Posted
Hi, little background. When mine started I was 33, 5'3 122 lbs. One day just sitting at work intense pain in middle of chest along with left arm numbness. Since then the chest pain is almost always over my left breast, heart area. Numerous rest found nothing causing the pain. I also have the small bumps under my left bicep. I've never read about anyone else having that. I've had a ECG, EKG, Stress test, blood work, x-ray and nothing. It's very frustrating when people blow you off cause you are young and in shape. Most doctors believe mime is a muscular/inflammation problem but can't give me a real diagnosis. Keep seeing drs
Don't give up on getting an answer.
kaede25406 stephb22
Posted
I'm sorry to hear about your troubles and that you haven't been able to get a diagnosis.
I've also had an EKG and blood work done which were both okay, so I was very close to convicing myself that I just stressed myself out.
But today I woke up with the burning in my left arm once again. Interesting that you also have those bumps, I was wondering how do they feel? For me it's a burning/prickling/tingling sensation, also sometimes it feels as if something in my arm were about to burst in that region. What is strange is that it is my left arm, which I actually don't use all that much.