If you're a GP and I came to you with these symptoms, what tests would you do?

[CupidStunt24]

• Dull and sometimes sharp pain in shoulder blades, ribs, sometimes sternum area/collarbone (not constant, but felt daily). Not sure if the pain is muscular/nerve or posture related because I don’t know if this would cause pain in the ribs too. I do also have lower back pain and pain in my sides but this has been more long term and since I’ve had my children.
• Not breathlessness as such, but more of a general feeling of lack of oxygen (if bending down for example and then straighten up, can make me feel as though I am light headed, heart seems to be beating harder and need a moment and a few breaths to feel normal (but not in "head rush" sort of way if that makes sense). This also makes me feel a bit "wound up", like a coiled spring because something feels off and my head feels like it has a pulse.
• Weight loss
• Blue tinged splotches on lower legs and feet.
• General fatigue and feeling of weakness sometimes.
• Pins and needles feeling in ring and little finger (this has only happened once since onset of rib and shoulder pain).

Would this warrant a GP appointment or would I be laughed away?

32 years old and trying really hard to convince myself I’m not dying.

I'm not a GP. But I think in this climate you absolutely have to advocate for yourself and ask for what you want!

How about you just ask, based on all the symptoms you describe, for blood tests. A full blood count and some basic things like iron, ferritin.

The GP will check your BP and weight and ask any other relevant questions.

Next level things like scans are incredibly difficult to get. I have a multitude of conditions and end up paying. If symptoms become ongoing and severe you can press for an MRI.

If you don't feel you want to see GP at this point, I've used the home testing blood kits from a few companies before. Quite good for checking all your nutrition levels, thyroid and more. Just costs a fair bit.

How much weight have you lost and have you been eating the same or less?

Have you taken your blood pressure? You should be able to do that in a supermarket pharmacy.

I am a GP. If you came to see me I'd arrange general blood tests to check for anaemia, other vitamin deficiencies, thyroid, kidney, liver function, inflammatory markers. I wouldn't feel that you were wasting my time, it's a perfectly reasonable thing to go and see your GP for. Are you vegetarian? Do you have heavy periods? Did you take vitamin D supplements over the winter?

I'm not a GP but I would have though blood work is a good start point. And also a thorough discussion with you to pin point when each of the symptoms started, talk about your diet, fitness levels etc.
It could be the case that these symptoms are just random unconnected things. Or perhaps some vitamin deficiency and they may be able to offer something which will really help.

But it's definitely worth a visit to your GP.

Thank you all so much for your replies. I really appreciate it and I don't really tell anyone in real life about this sort of thing as I don't want anyone to worry.

To answer the questions:-

I've lost about a stone in weight over the last month or so. No changes to diet or activity levels.

I haven't had my blood pressure taken, however did think some of this could be BP related, particularly the wound up feeling/head pulsing.

I don't have heavy periods, I'm on the progesterone only pill and periods are few and far between.

I didn't take a Vit D supplement over the winter. I am thinking (hoping) that it's some sort of deficiency in something. This would be better than some of the other thoughts I have in my head. I don't even have any sort of health anxiety, I very rarely go to the drs and am pretty good at thinking rationally with regards to my own health as usually before I start worrying about something, it clears up, but this has been about 6 weeks now and I'm feeling quite worried.

It also has crossed my mind that these things are all totally unrelated and it's just me putting them together to paint a picture, so it's very helpful to think this could be the case.

Now to try to get a GP appt when they open tomorrow...

After a week of calling every day, I finally got an appt with a care centre yesterday as my GP surgery had no appts. BP was fine and my chest sounded clear. After discussing my symptoms there, they sent my GP surgery an "urgent task" to carry out a blood test and they called by the end of the day with an appt for tomorrow. I'm so worried. I know no-one can tell me what's wrong with me, but are there any deficiency's that would cause these rib and shoulder pains and weight loss?