To want to know what it is, or for it to STOP?

[SquirrelFan]

For 10-15 years, I've been experiencing heart - related pain/discomfort/issues. At least, it feels heart - related. There's been chest pain, racing heart, irregular heartbeat, shaky feeling, etc. etc., in every combination or sometimes just one. In the past, I didn't usually see a correlation between any of the symptoms with stress or exercise, but these days it's a tad more related (mum of special needs /high needs young adults-as they get older, their needs are more complex!).
I've been to cardiologists both private and NHS, A&E, the GP, a physiotherapist in case it is musculoskeletal, had a lung xray, that thing where you wear a monitor for a few days (which found some jumping - around heartbeats). I've even had 2 rounds of NHS CBT. No one found anything actually wrong.
I am so tired of wondering if I'll feel well enough to do something, or being worried I'm having a heart attack, or being afraid to go somewhere rural as it's too far from a hospital. I'm 52, slim, exercise a couple times a week, weekly yoga, eat LOTS of vegetables and a daily multivitamin. I'm even doing dry January (which is hard because a drink really calms the symptoms down)!
Has anyone else experienced similar, and how did they feel better? I feel like I want to make the most of my life, but I'm living under a cloud.
Full disclosure, I would say that I have mild health anxiety-not diagnosed or anything, but I do worry. So please no horror stories!
Am I being unreasonable to want to feel better?

I would go back to your GP. Ask them to do a thyroid blood test for one thing.

@AnnieFarmer i should imagine they have already checked that..

Sorry post was long, forgot to include - thyroid apparently normal.

I will say, never have I felt 'un-listened to' or dismissed. All doctors took me seriously, which I realise is not always the case.

Read up about SVT (supra-ventricular-tachychardia). I have it, and your description sounds similar.

Have you ever been tested for gastro-esophogeal reflux (GERD)? The pain from that can mimic cardiac pain. I get it and it causes all sorts of weird symptoms, from chest pain to palpitations to feeling faint, but in my case I will suddenly do an almighty burp and it all goes away. My friend's a nurse who used to work on a cardiology ward and she always got irritated by patients coming in with chest pain that turned out to be trapped wind, but then she had it herself once and she was like 'Holy crap - I get it now!' Not to minimise your symptoms, but it might be worth looking into.

Look into precordial catch syndrome as well - that's flipping painful but otherwise harmless.

Its anxiety.

Go and read up on the symptoms of anxiety.

You'll probably recognise more.

Not quite the same but in relation to part of your symptoms I used to have a weird racing irregular heart beat feeling in my chest quite often. It' s like an extra heart beat, a papiltation - they are called extrasystoles.

I gave up caffeine completely - and I mean absolutely. Nothing with a hint of it in - no coca cola, no tea, no coffee not even decaffinated tea and nothing with caffeine in it - some pain killers like Nurofen plus have caffeine in.

It totally went away. Something to try anyway.

it sounds like a panic attack

I also have SVT it can make you feel awful.
I also live like you OP high alert all the time. Won't travel and like to be near a hospital all the time.
One positive thing though.... it's very rarely life threatening. It just feels very uncomfortable and can come on at anytime.
Mine lasts days at a time.
I also live alone with a special needs child.
You're not alone OP

Spent many a long night in A&E having ECG's, had many 48 hr heart monitors, echo and everything in-between as convinced I was having a heart attack each and every time I had awful pains in the region of my heart, feeling faint and an awful sense of doom.
Doctors could find nothing heart related and I was convinced I was going mad.
They then started looking at stomach and I was found to be suffering GERD.
With meds and working on reducing my anxiety I no longer have any chest pain.
Anxiety was really worsening the GERD and the whole cycle was horrific.

I wouldn't stray far from a hospital either and lived my life in fear.

Peri-menopause?? Hormone imbalance can cause similar symptoms.

I had similar and HRT sorted me out.

It sounds to me like panic attacks. They feel awful but the physical effects are a normal reaction to the adrenalin released by the panic feeling. It WILL wear off harmlessly .

www.nhs.uk/mental-health/conditions/panic-disorder/

There are effective medications; but the "instant first aid" is one you can do yourself; get a paper bag, and breath in and out holding it to your mouth.

Yoga , meditation and relaxation tapes can also help.

So alcohol calms the symptons down?

Well I'm no Dr but I'd imagine if your symptoms were "real" alcohol wouldn't stop them.

Your life sounds very stressful and it's possibly stress related.
It's unbelievable what symptoms can manifest through stress.

Oh I typed out a long reply but lost it - thank you all for being so kind (and non-scary!) and sharing your experiences. I will speak to the gp about SVT, which sounds very similar, and possibly GERD, as there are some similarities too. And to those who mentioned stress, panic, anxiety - I haven't ruled them out!

You can have underlying anxiety without feeling stressed. Basically your body is getting on with panicking while your mind concentrates on getting through the chores and planning dinner.

There's also an ability (an absolutely useless one) to be hyper aware of what your heart/body/gut is up to.

As in, most of us don't give it a passing thought and barely realise we have a pulse. Some of us can count the pulses without trying. And feel our gut motility, etc.

I had very similar symptoms. I also have a special needs child. Doctors put it down to anxiety after all checks came back clear. My mother brought up the subject of menopause. I hadn't even considered it. Google the symptoms of menopause and a lot of yours are listed. I started on her over two years ago and haven't looked back. The only time I get palpitations now are if I overdose on chocolate. I swapped to decaffeinated coffee and tea and that really helped too

I developed horrendous physical symptoms of anxiety without ever 'feeling' stressed or worried. It absolutely floored me having that little control over my body. Try to take time for yourself, process difficulties and balance stress, and cut out all caffeine.