Gassy chest pains; a constant feeling of needing to burp...
Posted , 54 users are following.
Hi,
I'm not sure if this is the right forum for this, but it seemed the closest bet.
Every so often (once a month or so), I experience what I can best describe as gassy chest pains. It's a tight fullness from about the middle of my chest up to the top of my throat (I'm assuming in my esophagus). It feels as if I need to get a good burp out to relieve the discomfort, yet no burp that I can manage is ever enough.
The discomfort gradually progresses into radiating waves of significant aching pain (dull in some areas, sharp in others) in the region of my chest/throat that I described.
Any amount of swallowing aggravates the pain, which proves to be problematic as my mouth starts producing excess amounts of saliva, which I have to continually expel.
The symptoms make it virtually impossible to sleep, if the condition hits at night (which it most often does), and laying down only seems to make the sensations worse. I've found that sitting up or standing while bending forward slightly (as when leaning over a counter, for instance) seem to provide the most positional relief, although it isn't much.
If I hold a deep breath when I feel a wave of pain coming, I seem to be able to bear it a little better than if I exhale or breathe normally.
The pain and chest/throat discomfort usually last a good few hours. Once the pain does subside, I'm usually left with a knotted feeling in the pit of my stomach for the better part of a day.
Since it began occurring more than a few times, I started keeping a log of things I've eaten before the symptoms began. Some recurring foods that may have triggered episodes include fatty red meats, chocolate, and (maybe) dairy.
In researching such symptoms/triggers, I found myself reading about GERD, and at first thought that might be what I had. But the pains I experience are achey, not burning or acidy, as described as the symptoms of GERD.
I've tried taking Tums, Alka-Seltzer, Gas-X, and drinking warm water when episodes begin, but nothing seems to help, other than time.
I know that stress can cause/aggravate such symptoms as well, and in some of my instances that might have played a role, but in others, some of the worst, I felt totally at ease before the symptoms flared up.
I'll be the first to admit that I don't have the best diet in the world. While I don't eat a lot of fast food, I also don't get as many fruits and vegetables as I should be having daily (especially fruit). I don't know if that would play any role here. I do take a daily multivitamin supplement.
Also, I do have a pre-existing heart condition (ventricular leakage after balloon valvuloplasty for pulmonary stenosis that I had as a child), but I don't see how that would be related to this matter, as I doubt any heart-related issues would be associated with the urge to burp.
And I am a 30 year old male.
I know that other people's issues are much more serious, but man, these conditions are quite unpleasant when they occur. Any opinions/insights as to what I might be experiencing, and how to treat or, better yet, prevent it, would be greatly appreciated.
Thank you!
6 likes, 79 replies
Patient-Nat imagazzell
Posted
Hi imagazzell,
Our in-house GP has had a look at your query and written an article addressing the likely causes of gassy chest pains and a constant need to burp.
Take a look: https://patient.info/health/acid-reflux-and-oesophagitis/features/what-it-means-when-you-constantly-need-to-burp
norma04599 imagazzell
Posted
shaq26875 imagazzell
Posted
I suffered the same...severe chest pains and feeling of gas trapped in my chest (no burning or acidy at all and unable to burp or pass wind)..lived on Eno's Fruitsalt and Panadols ...the frequency and severity increased over period of 1 yr. Had all cardio tests ...all negative. Had endoscopy.. showed esophagitis, GERD, Barretts esphagus (only metaplasia change so nothing to worry about) Took Pariet and motilium and gaviscon advance at night for 6 months...follow up endoscopy showed negligible Barretss and was taken off all the meds.
?I still suffer now and again..and revert to taking the fruitsalt .....the symptoms are nothing like what they were live before the meds.
?See an gastroenterologist and get endoscopy
?
leahbabycake shaq26875
Posted
I have acid reflux since I was a baby and camera down.
I been to every doctor I know and said if you type in google it says acid reflux gives a burning feeling sadly mine doesn't
I get a growl what comes any time and makes me feel sick but I can't control it
And I always have wind in my chest/ throat that I can't bring up as Iv never been able to burp
Till this year 22 I am and I think I'm burping but everyone says it's just a hiccup sound
So I have the feeling 24/7
No meds wrong like gaston
Or lams or Rennes
I also suffer from ibs and bad anxiety
And meds you can think of ?
Scarzzxo shaq26875
Posted
Shaq26875, I've been feeling exactly like this man has described, it's been around 3-4 days now, I'm a female (just mentioning as he mentioned his male) could you please help me with what you did? What were you diagnosed with? Hope you are doing better!! It's such a yuckky feeling
Scarzzxo leahbabycake
Posted
Hi, I'm 22 also female, and I feel exactly like this. What do you take to help with pain? Have you been diagnosed with any condition?
x
j92655 Scarzzxo
Posted
Try a glass of water with about a teaspoon of baking soda. I usually burp a few times and feel relief within about an hour after I drink it.
I haven't gone to a doctor yet, but I am pretty sure it's the beginning of some issue with my gallbladder.
ray81870 leahbabycake
Posted
Try xanax for anxiety... Usually helps me immediately.. Don't take too much of it though.. According to my Dr it's highly addictive so I was prescribed a low dose. Suffered bad anxiety during my wedding preps
leahbabycake ray81870
Posted
carlos_87958 leahbabycake
Posted
Xanax (Alprazolam) is anxiety/panic medication. In higher doses it can be highly addictive. I've used .25mgs in the past and one thing I can tell you is any worry you had it is forgotten about in about 30 minutes. The problem that I had with it made me to passive. It was to the point where if I had something really important to do I could care less. I mean even if it meant I was going to lose my job I was like "oh whatever". I am an estimator in my profession and this kind of passiveness does not work well. So my Doc put me on another benzodiazapine, Ativan (Lorazapam) and it works well for me. I have intense anxiety that has sudden onsets and this pill pull me out of it in about 15 to 30 minutes and the best part is that I am able to continue on focusing. I suffer middle of the night anxiety attacks and .5mgs before bed lets me sleep sound through the night. It still can be addictive but not as much as Xanax. I have been using Ativan for a year and I still have no addiction to it. I do make it a point to control my use though
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lbloislane Scarzzxo
Posted
Me too! His description is EXACTLY what I've been feeling for 3 to 4 days now. Had an ECG and Blood Pressure taken as I work at a clinic - all were good. I did have significant anxiety about a particular situation when it first started. That situation has now resolved but the discomfort hasn't - it is such a yucky feeling! I was just thinking that before - that this is really not a fun feeling to have. "
What was your eventual outcome?? I'm just about to try some antacids to see if that helps.
debi0725 carlos_87958
Posted
Remember though, both of these drugs are HIGHLY ADDICTIVE. After my husband's suicide my doc put me on Ativan and I had to ask to be weaned from it a year later, and it wasn't easy. After my mom's sudden and still unexplained death, I was prescribed Xanax at a 1 mg dose I had to ask to be taken off that also. These are dangerous drugs and sometimes, YOU are the only one keeping track of how long you are on a drug. I asked to be taken off ativan when I read that it's supposed to only be prescribed short term, for weeks, not a year . Scary stuff.
carlos_87958 debi0725
Posted
So sorry for your losses. I'm curious, when you were using benzo's how much were you taking a day? I am happy and fortunate to say that I never became dependent on them. It has been close to three months since I have had to use them. I think it may be that I never used them ritually, only to calm me out of an episode when everything else failed or it became unbearable. I only used them when I was in deep anxiety or in a panic attack. I think what tends to get people in trouble with benzos is they tend to take them when they are feeling nervous or unsettled. Nervousness and feeling unsettled is a natural feeling for all of us to go through. Benzos were never intended for minor emotional challenges such as these. I have seen so may people get nervous and pop these little magic pills to shut it down. So easy to get addicted to these type of meds when we use it for minor things. And the catch is, who wants to feel bad? We all want to feel optimal. But at the same time we must go through emotional challenges so we can keep our coping mechanism optimal. If we shut down our coping mechanism down every time with some magic pill we lose our strength in being able to cope and here comes the dependency on the little magic pill. I found the most odd natural alternative to managing anxiety that so far works better than any pill I have ever taken.
shaq26875 imagazzell
Posted
I suffered the same...severe chest pains and feeling of gas trapped in my chest (no burning or acidy at all and unable to burp or pass wind)..lived on Eno's Fruitsalt and Panadols ...the frequency and severity increased over period of 1 yr. Had all cardio tests ...all negative. Had endoscopy.. showed esophagitis, GERD, Barretts esphagus (only metaplasia change so nothing to worry about) Took Pariet and motilium and gaviscon advance at night for 6 months...follow up endoscopy showed negligible Barretss and was taken off all the meds.
?I still suffer now and again..and revert to taking the fruitsalt .....the symptoms are nothing like what they were live before the meds.
?See an gastroenterologist and get endoscopy
?
imagazzell
Posted
Thank you for the replies.
I haven't had a general checkup in a while, certainly not since these symptoms started cropping up (although I do get cardio checkups every year or two). If it continues, I will probably do as you suggest and try to see a gastroenterologist about it.
I just wanted to see if my symptoms sounded like a dead-ringer for a certain condition to anyone online before pursuing professional help.
lbloislane imagazzell
Posted
The sy mptoms are a dead ringer for what I'm experiencing - in every way you describe it. I could have written your post. No idea yet what is going on. Did you find a solution?? I've had it for 3-4 days now - could have been brought on by anxiety as I had a situation that I did feel VERY anxious about - but that has now resolved. By the way I'm the most super healthy eater on the planet - it would not be possible to eat more healthily than I do, and I've done so for years, so it may not be related to diet. Though of course a healthy diet is always a great thing 'o)