Help me with my boob related dilemma. I need to seperate the panic from the ridiculous

[Pagwatch]

Over the last couple of weeKs I have had terrible pain in the left side of my chest. It feels like a cramping and it is worse on the inhale because it aches so.

At first I assumed I had pulled something doing my workout. Then as it continued and started waking me up at night I began to imagine heart related things and, in anticipation that it would still be a problem next week, I booked an appt with my lovely sensible gp .

I made the mistake of telling dh who is very panicky as my sis has terminal breast cancer but I am not inclined to think it is breast related as it hurts underneath not in my breast iyswim.

Anyway dh got me some strong local painkiller to apply and (yay) it eased the pain considerably and I have been using it for a couple of days. I am still uncomfortable but it definitely helps which makes me think I have pulled something.

Anyway. My dimwit questions are

1. should I still see gp. I think yes, just to be safe
2. can he diagnose what I have pulled/done or should I also see a physic?
3. does anyone have an educated guess as to what I have done?
4. should I use painkiller and try and exercise or should I cancel sessions. I think I should cancel but I am fighting weight gain and had just got into a routine which is really hard for me.

Anyone who wants to point and laugh is quite welcome.

Physic?

Physio

Most likely a pulled muscle, and it will ease with time. I'd keep the gp appt jic you need anti inflamms, but I bet it won't hurt by then.
Do exercise, but keep within your pain limits - ie, don't do anything that makes it worse, but try to gently stretch that area. You can still do leg stuff etc.

Thanks. That is really helpful.

I know I am being ridiculous but it is so painful. It is fine during the day but I wake up at three in the morning and start imaging all sorts.
My appt is on tues so if it is completely better I can cancel in time for them to fill the a ppt.

Yes, definitely see the gp. Can you do exercise that doesn't involve the chest without pain, or does it hurt when you breathe? If the latter it is probably best to have a break even though I know that is gutting when you are in a good routine. Hope it is nothing and you recover quickly.

Keep the appointment.

Check your bra is the right size. Seriously. Since doing this my back / shoulder pain has reduced considerably, I used to get a lot of trapped nerves around my shoulder & armpit.

Do you spend a lot of time at a desk? Have you had a workstation assessment? Could be something as simple as altering the angle of your arm.

What caused the pain to come on? Did it come on immediately after exercising or was it much later? Where is it? Does anything make it better or worse?

I'd counsel against exercising until you know what it is - particularly as it's hurting when you're breathing, even cardio will hurt it whilst it's in the acute phase of injury. It may be a torn muscle - if it is DON'T stretch it, as you'll delay the healing process, tearing apart the new fibres that are trying to knit together the tear.

If I were you I'd keep the GP appointment - he can refer you to the physio if he thinks you need to see one or can advise on what it is.

If the pain is central to your chest - towards the sternum - it could be something like costochondritis (I suffer with this occasionally, and the pain completely destroys me) which is inflammation of the cartilage where the ribs meet the breast bone. I tend to find a few days rest - which I find really hard as I need to go to the gym for sanity reasons - stops it from being a problem, but NSAIDs help when it's really painful. If it's something like this your GP can help.

Hi -sorry , just back from walking the dog.

Without the pain relief gel it hurts when I move, cough or even breath in deeply.
It came on gradually but I have been doing interval training for about six weeks and it started between sessions. There was no sudden pain or obvious injury. But I know that my right side is much much stronger than my left so working with weights was probably much harder on my left side.

I don't work or spend time at a desk and I have had back problems so I try to be careful about how I sit when writing, reading, typing. I can't think of any regular activities that could be causing a problem but I will think about it.

I will keep the appt on Tuesday and will stick to long dog walks until I get it checked out I think. I am pissed off that I am going to have to juggle the schedule but I really can't risk making it worse. Then I really would be miserable.

Thanks all for replying. I feel a bit clearer now.