Help! I don't know what to do!

Anxiety can make absolutely everything worse. It's also the best trickster around, because it can mimic so many other health conditions. Anxiety will tense your muscles up, so if you already had an issues with muscle tension, anxiety will make it worse. There's also a chance that you had anxiety before you even knew it, and it laid dormant until physical problems activated it. Once you can get the anxiety under control, your muscles will begin to relax and heal much faster.

Nobody wants to hear that they have anxiety, because it comes off making us feel like our physical symptoms aren't believed. The truth is that doctors do believe the physical symptoms, so they run every test they feel is required. The tests come back clear, but the symptoms linger. Unfortunately, there's not much a gp or most hospital staff, can do about it. The biggest step towards helping yourself feel even a little better, is accepting that you have anxiety problems. They might not be there forever, but they're there now, so it has to be dealt with just like any other medical condition. It definitely sucks, so it's great that you're looking into help for it.

The simple answer is yes. Muscle strain is painful but you are adding to the problem by being tense and anxious. Tension causes muscles to bunch or spasm. Quite why you don't believe the tests is beyond me but it is a common occuring fear, with AD sufferers, that the doctors have missed something and that the tests are faulty.

Put aside your worries over your heart. All you are doing is making yourself worse. Trawl through the Forum. You will see many similarities between your own worries and symptoms

Hi there and welcome.

Yes, anxiety CAN cause all the pain.

You've had plenty of tests on your heart which were fine. That's good.

I am so glad to see that you've had the good judgement to have some CBT.

Stay with us - we'll help you.

love Tess xx

Hi

Definitely yes I have suffered from anxiety for 5 years various physical symptom apear ... chest symptoms was one of mine.. I have upper tense body all the time which makes it worse. A few years back I was getting stabbing pains now I suffer with ibs symptoms. I'm getting through it though you will just try your best not to focus in it.. you will notice that if you are busy and kept focused on something else they may appear not to be as bad x

Hi Chris.

Welcome. Nothing unusual in your story - no worries!

You can ask your doctor for a full heart work up to settle this once and for all. Not because I think you need it, but because it may be the best way to give yourself a break. As a start. They can run a colour doppler/echo and stress test. They will scan your arteries to ensure no blockages or anomalies. Then, when that is done you will know what you already ...know Heart failure does not happen just like that. Heart pain is progressive and very quickly becomes unbearable. And then you have a heart attack or die. But you are not having a heart attack and are not dead.

Check your pulse when you are relaxed. And let's call that one your resting pulse. Because i would not rely on that pulse taken at A&E or at the doctors for a health anxiety patient!

"Can anxiety really cause the pain and in my experience the anxiety is caused by the pain which then causes the spiral to increase the pain? " It can. Do you know how much more you clench your muscles as an anxious person? I have a 6-pack without ever doing a sit-up... You tax every muscle in your body and pains are inevitable. Even if the pain you have is just a simple muscle sprain from some unfortunate movement, the pain alone is enough to send you spiralling off into anxiety. Because it is your left arm. So your mind goes - u-huh! Heart attack!

Hang in there. You are young and this is fixable. I wish you to feel relaxed and at ease really soon.

All the best.

Yes both make good bedfellows

BOB