Breathing issues

[PandaPandai]

I'm not sure if this is covid or menopausal; just wondering if anyone else experienced this.

Had covid 3 months ago and from around day 10 was wiped. Couldn't work for 5 weeks and then I really wasn't with it till the last week really.

Around 6 weeks I had a strange week of feeling like wasn't getting enough air. Then again for a week a few weeks later. I've had another bad day today.

I have mild asthma and my Peak flow is only very marginally lower than usual and inhalers do nothing. I have noticed it correlates to points in my cycle when hormones dip/ change. But could be coincidence.

I started hrt in the autumn - covid definitely affected it all somehow (I've been told it can) and I've had much worse menopause symptoms.

Could it be a weird meno symptom or could it be covid? It's not breathlessness, I just feel the need to breath in a lot of air. weirdly also can't fully yawn in a satisfying way!

I had something very similar to this in Nov 19 (which I now wonder if was covid) with a sense I just couldn't get enough air, asthma meds made v little difference, had chest x rays but all clear.

One thing gp suggested was it could be "nasal drip" and recommended saline nasal sprays. Sterimar.

I've now got covid and feel a bit like this again.

Not wheezy but just can't get enough air in. Oxygen level is down a bit 95 dipping to 92%

Have you got an oximeter and tested your oxygen levels @PandaPandai ?

Thanks for the reply, I'm sorry you have covid now and it's happening again. Hope it clears soon and your breathing returns to normal. The weird thing is that this didn't happen at all while I had the acute illness. But a friend has actually had some sort of very delayed post covid viral issue (she had to go to a and E for severe weakness and dizziness and a pain in her side) so i suppose it could be delayed.

yes I do have one and that's a good idea. Not sure why I didn't think of that. I'm ok this morning, it does come and go. It was the start of my period yesterday and it feels like it's been on and off a bit in the last few days, not as bad as yesterday.

you have described a lot of symptoms that we see in patients with hyperventilation syndrome or other breathing dysfunction....both of which can be quite common anyway in asthmatics but can also be triggered by illness...but I have also heard about it in relation to menopause and also in hypothyroidism. You might see it described as "air hunger" . Perhaps good to get fully checked out by your GP and get some bloods done?

Hi again @PandaPandai - how have you been? Did you check your levels?

I found it very interesting what @2022calendar was saying about the symptoms.

It's interesting what you say about it kicking in from around day10. I'm now on day13 and have felt the defined symptoms (sickness, runny nose, headache) are abating - but the disabling exhaustion and just feeling of malaise, not being right in myself, and a tightness in chest and sense I can't get enough oxygen from the air is significantly worse. And this is much more debilitating than the "mild cold" symptoms at the start.

Even though objectively I can climb the two flights of stairs in our house without stopping or much actual breathlessness - but at rest in bed or sitting about it feels constricted. And just a constant feeling of lack of being able to get a a proper lung full of air. But then oxygen at 97%. So I'm assuming I "shouldn't" feel like that?

I am just sitting and doing so little for days on end. But I don't feel ill in the conventional sense with defined symptoms- but actually now more disabled by it in body and mind than in the first week.

My ability to concentrate on anything longer than a Mumsnet post is currently totally shot!

I've just measured again and oxygen is 94% with 62bpm heart rate

@PandaPandai can you check how you are breathing? I have asthma and copd and saw a physio. She immediately said that I was breathing from the top of my lungs. She could tell as my shoulders were rising and falling with each breath. She taught me to breath from the bottom of my lungs, so my tummy rises and falls as I breath.

It's now second nature to me when I feel I'm not getting enough air in. I put my hands across my upper tummy to make sure the rise and fall is happening.

I still use the top of my lungs when, for example, I have a heavy cold. But now I use the top as a kind of top up to my diaphragm breaths.

@user1471453601 - that's interesting I've just practiced consciously doing that (they focus on it in yoga sometimes too) and it's now back up to 97% and 58bpm - thank you, I hadn't thought about it before.

Hi @2022calendar thanks for your reply.

I am hypothyroid and actually found I was on a hit too much thyroxine so have been reducing the last two weeks. This happened before that though so I'm not sure if it's connected. I've had hypothyroidism for two decades and never experienced it before.

My numbers were 96 when I was feeling a bit breathless and are usually higher so I'm going to keep an eye.

I read about the tummy breathing and am looking at that. I've wondered if I'm a bit low in iron so also taking some. I had some recent bloods and Haemoglobin was fine but they didn't measure ferritin.

Sorry to hear that Corsica, i would try to do the slow steady tummy breathing. I don't have any of this with actual covid. We both kept measuring to check and my stats were consistently nearer 99/98 which is why I'm finding this so strange.

I do feel my meno symptoms are pretty bad at the moment though. They're testing oestrogen and thyroid in a few weeks. Im hoping to be able to raise my hrt.

@PandaPandai Hi I'm also hypothyroid & peri!! Menopause is a challenging time for thyroid due to hormone fluctuations so someone who normally feels well balanced on their thyroid meds can come unbalanced(and many women start to develop thyroid problems in their 40's). Both oestrogen and progesterone work in opposition to effect the amount of thyroglobulin...oestrogen increases the production of thyroglobulin which in turn decreases the activity of thyroid hormones, progesterone decreases the production of Tg which then increases the activity of hormones. People with thyroid problems often have gut issues which mean they don't absorb nutrients well hence certainly getting your ferritin levels etc checked a good idea. Covid also has a very inflammatory effect on the body & it can affect so many different body systems and if you have Hashi's obviously increased inflammation is not good.
For those other people who have commented on this post... some of the unpleasant sensations in hyperventilation are because your carbon dioxide levels are dropping which triggers your oxygen drive (oxygen sats may well be normal)...hence why diaphragmatic breathing /square breathing etc are taught to try and normalise the breathing pattern and restore the oxygen:carbon dioxide balance. The challenge with covid has been those who present with "happy hypoxia" whos oxygen sats are low but aren't presenting with the normal signs and symptoms of hypoxia which might normally prompt then to seek medical help, hence why sats monitors at home for those who are vulnerable are a good idea.

Ahhh thanks for your reply 2022 (I actygot a notification on my phone which is new!)

I've been having a terrible time with peri and thyroid hormones. Probably exacerbated by having a baby in my early 40s and I have no idea if breastfeeding affected it (though symptoms actually got much worse when I cut back and stopped.) it's been hard to get the right balance.

I seemed to need much less thyroxine when post partum before periods returned. Then when they did I went hypo. I also feel covid has affected menstrual hormones hugely. This months period was non existent despite hrt. That was happening just before I started hrt. I know covid can do this, I suppose it's whether it will bounce back in a month or two or I'm further in that menopause than I thought. Then I wonder if that's why I'm swinging hyper (I did have symptoms too), because my oestrogen is too. (So might swing back Ffs!)

I think when they measured my antibodies (in the day when they did) I had high TgAb if I remember correctly, but not the other.

Re inflammation I'm actually noticing more of an issue with meat sadly.

@PandaPandai my hypo was likely triggered by a baby at 40 but other family members also went hyper/hypo in their 40's so genetic predisposition i think. Hopefully things may settle down for you, does your GP test both your free T4 and free T3? i know they often ignore T3 in the NHS but I get mine done privately as its important to medicate according to both of these levels as well as your TSH if you are not getting good control of symptoms. If you are Hashis I also recommend googling the auto-immune protocol...as you may know one auto-immune condition often leads to others and dietary change can likewise help moderate symptoms (gluten-free/dairy free at a minimum is recommended).Sorry i won't go down a wormhole when you posted on a covid forum but having had a decade trying to sort myself out hormonally whilst dealing with 2 young kids I empathise!!