Members The Real MC Posted March 2, 2009 Members Share Posted March 2, 2009 I spent friday night in the hospital with chest pain, heavy breathing, light headedness, and barely able to stand. Never had that kind of pain before, that was miserable. Scary because there is a family history of heart disease and I'm a little young at 46 for heart problems, plus I'm fairly healthy (eat good, exercise, etc). The good news is it is not the heart, all the tests came out negative and my stress test rated excellent. The MDs believe it was gas reflux that irritated the esophagus and the irritation radiated through my chest and back muscles. Scary... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Mediterranean Posted March 2, 2009 Members Share Posted March 2, 2009 I'm glad you're okay. I had a similar problem a few years ago where the left side of my chest & left arm went numb. Scary indeed [left side = heart]. Stress test revealed a very healthy heart. Ended up being diagnosed with anxiety:cry: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members pink floyd cramer Posted March 2, 2009 Members Share Posted March 2, 2009 Sorry to hear you went through that, MC. My SO went through a very similar episode late last summer and it scared the {censored} out of me (wasn't pleasant for her, either-esp. the out-of-pocket expenses for tests etc.). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members ElectricPuppy Posted March 2, 2009 Members Share Posted March 2, 2009 Scary, MC. I'm glad it wasn't more serious than it was. My wife, too, sometimes get heartburn SO bad that she thinks she's gonna die, but it's just heartburn. Ugh, I gotta exercise more. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members dan88z Posted March 2, 2009 Members Share Posted March 2, 2009 Glad to hear it was only heartburn! I had an incident a couple yrs ago where my heart was fluttering and beating erratically. I went to my doc who hooked me up to the ekg, said, yep, something isn't right, but it's not going to kill you. He sent me to a cardiologist. I went thru the stress test and ultrasound and blood work and all that, and everything looked good except for the beat that missed now and then. I went back for a followup to get the results of the stress test and I felt fine, and had felt fine for a few days. Then I put 2 and 2 together, and realized that I'd run out of instant green tea mix right when my symptoms disappeared.... doh! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members suitandtieguy Posted March 2, 2009 Members Share Posted March 2, 2009 i'm glad you're okay. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gus Lozada Posted March 2, 2009 Share Posted March 2, 2009 Glad you are ok, afterall.Take care and get some anti-acid stuff. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members flat earth Posted March 2, 2009 Members Share Posted March 2, 2009 Glad to hear it was only heartburn! I had an incident a couple yrs ago where my heart was fluttering and beating erratically. I went to my doc who hooked me up to the ekg, said, yep, something isn't right, but it's not going to kill you. He sent me to a cardiologist. I went thru the stress test and ultrasound and blood work and all that, and everything looked good except for the beat that missed now and then. I went back for a followup to get the results of the stress test and I felt fine, and had felt fine for a few days. Then I put 2 and 2 together, and realized that I'd run out of instant green tea mix right when my symptoms disappeared.... doh! You'd be surpeised how many people get those symtoms. I myself went through it for a while. I lived next door to a family from hell, and got palpatations, flutters etc etc. Ended up on a small course of beta blockers. Put down to stress. After talking to frinds i discovered 4 different people i knew (all under 30) had exactly the same symptoms. Glad Real MC is ok Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members xoeo Posted March 2, 2009 Members Share Posted March 2, 2009 I am a young 19 and I just awoke and its 2 am and I am having pretty severe pains in left side of my chest. Think its aacid reflux. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members King Julian Posted March 2, 2009 Members Share Posted March 2, 2009 ACEEEEEEEEEEEED! you guys need to lay off the 303s/x0xb0x/FRs/beatboxes and wotnot Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Bernard Posted March 2, 2009 Members Share Posted March 2, 2009 I was once in an office and a Guy went through the same thing, very real and stressful until you get diagnosis. Take Care Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members MarkShovel2 Posted March 2, 2009 Members Share Posted March 2, 2009 Major GAS!!! Good luck, Mark Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members ChristianRock Posted March 2, 2009 Members Share Posted March 2, 2009 I'm very glad you're OK!!! Take it easy for a few days... stress can augment little problems. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members The Pro Posted March 2, 2009 Members Share Posted March 2, 2009 Acid reflux is not to be taken lightly... I have nearly died from it. I was also going through what I thought were heart problems but they were little seizures being brought on acid irritation of the esophagus, which escalated into mid-sleep choking spells. I've had four major choking episodes over the past ten years and the worst one put me in the emergency room. In each of my choking cases stomach acid flowed back up my esophagus while I was asleep and caused the valve in my airway to close so air went into my stomach instead of my lungs. You get no warning... you wake up unable to breath. In the worst episode I had a large amount of stomach acid flow up my esophagus and I inhaled it... this is like drowning on battery acid. The only thing you can do when your airway shunts air to your stomach is to calm down and stop trying to breath for a second to let your airway reset, and then you will be able to breath again little by little - difficult when you are in a panic state. My lungs were burned by the stomach acid and I had to be treated at a hospital. It could have caused my lungs to go into chemical shock which can be fatal. Even small amounts of acid reflux can be damaging over time and that's what causes these pains that you may think are your heart. I take an acid reduction pill daily now along with nightly antacids, but the real solution is a lifestyle change... here's some tips I've adopted: 1. No eating at all for 3+ hours prior to going to bed. Reduce acidic drinks like juice or soda during the day - none at night. 2. Sleep on your left side - all my doctors and nurses said so. Elevate the head of your bed. I now sleep on a bed that raises the head. The goods news is that my faux heart problems have vanished completely, and I'm still here to talk about it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members The Real MC Posted March 2, 2009 Author Members Share Posted March 2, 2009 Man I had no idea that acid reflux could be dangerous, nor how common this stuff is...! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members carbon111 Posted March 2, 2009 Members Share Posted March 2, 2009 Acid Reflux Disease is {censored}ing nasty! I take a prescription pill for it every morning and all my symptoms are completely gone...it's no fun feeling like you're having a heart attack. I had a friend who had to sleep on an inclined bed, similar to The Pro (above) because the medication alone couldn't do it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members OPEN OCEAN Posted March 2, 2009 Members Share Posted March 2, 2009 the best point is that it is not heart related... thanks for sharing cause looks like we are a online family here hehe... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Fuzzlabs Posted March 2, 2009 Members Share Posted March 2, 2009 Always be sure to get checked though... My dad died at 44 of a heart attack. I have two brothers, both under 50, who have had heart attacks. Age means far less than diet, stress level, genetics, whether you smoke or not... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members nat whilk II Posted March 2, 2009 Members Share Posted March 2, 2009 Acid reflux is not to be taken lightly... I have nearly died from it. My dad had that. He would have an attack in the middle of the night, and we'd wake up, terrified, listening to him try to get his breathing back - people make this awful high, wheezy desparate choking sound when this happens. Very upsetting. I inherited it. I was miserable with acidity and reflux for many, many years until they invented Prilosec which has changed my life. But I've got a lot of esophagal damage, something called Barrett's syndrome which means that in response to the acid, my esophagus has created a lining of non-standard cells which in most cases are harmless. But these odd cells can in rare instances develop into a very nasty cancer. So now I have to get scoped periodically to watch out for that. Amazing how many people have acid stomachs and reflux. Don't just put up with it like I did for decades - nat whilk ii Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Mecedes Posted March 2, 2009 Members Share Posted March 2, 2009 To avoid this type of thing give up smoking and drinking Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members The Real MC Posted March 2, 2009 Author Members Share Posted March 2, 2009 They prescribed Prilosec but I'm only to take it as needed. ...and I have never smoked/chewed tobacco, and I drink nothing stronger than wine and in extreme moderation (2x a year) I do like spicy food though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Mediterranean Posted March 2, 2009 Members Share Posted March 2, 2009 The scariest ads on American TV are drug-related. Acid Reflux became a "disease" when pharmaceutical companies invented a "cure" for it. "Be afraid. Be VERY afraid!". People watch, believe, and buy...while the money-sucking machines keep rolling. Paranoia is the worst disease. Common sense the best cure. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members J05H Posted March 3, 2009 Members Share Posted March 3, 2009 Wow, what a crazy coincidence, guys. I just spent all weekend having one long panic attack. I hate feeling like dying. But the doc said everything's fine, and sent me home with some meds. Whew! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members The Severalist Posted March 3, 2009 Members Share Posted March 3, 2009 Alternately stabbing and pulsing, aching chest pains usually go away eventually. If they don't, take some pepto bismo, have a cigarette and try to overcome it with positive thinking. It's worked for me thus far, and look at me, I'm the picture of health physically, emotionally, spiritually and intellectually. I'm celebrated in many small south American villages at least twice a year. All the men in my family hate or have hated the doctor, although I myself just dislike them intensely while respecting what they do to a small but definite degree. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members The Pro Posted March 3, 2009 Members Share Posted March 3, 2009 Like others I thought I was having heart problems at first, and there's a sense of relief when you find out it's just acid reflux which doesn't sound nearly as bad as a potential heart attack. Until you wake up fighting for air. Positive thinking has little effect when you can't breathe. I don't call acid reflux a "disease" but my condition was not invented by a pharmacy company. I love spicy food - to my knowledge that has no relationship to acid reflux. Or the occasional wine. It's more basic than that - your stomach is an acid factory and sometimes it makes more than is necessary. Sometimes it gets into a position that allows the acid to flow uphill. Either or both of these medical conditions is reflux. It's treatable and with a few adjustments and/or medication it's controllable. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.