Back to gp or timewaster

[poorlychest]

I am going through a very stressful time. I have had chest pain and odd feelings in chest before and dr found skipped beats but normal ecg some months ago. Last week it got worse. I seemed to crick my shoulder too so wasn't quite sure what pain was what. But the shoulder seems to be getting better and chest pain/tightness worse. It is worse with stress. The practice nurse said well it will be stress. But I'm getting worried this stress could actually kill me or cause serious damage. Nurse didn't listen to my heart and said no point doing blood pressure as I was so stressed just referred for counselling. But I'm that stressed all the time, it was a relatively easy day stress wise. Should I go back and ask a dr to check me because of the worsening pain or am I wasting their time? Can they even do anything if it's stress related?

If I put my hand in left armpit/on side of chest I can feel flurries of quick heartbeats in weird rhythms coming and going in different places. I need to see a proper Dr don't I.

I had half an hour sleep and now the weird beats are less frequent and not coming in such big flurries. I think they're going to think I'm being dramatic if I go in. You can feel it through the skin though, weird beats now and then at side of chest. Don't know what to do.

Go back and see your doctor. Ask to have your BP checked and another ECG - it may be you need a 24 hour ECG to give a full picture of your heart rhythm.
You are not a time waster. If it is something that needs treating the GP can help. If it is due to stress it will be a relief to confirm this, and you may need some help with managing this too.

Thank you. Now I'm crying because you were nice. Total mess. I'm meant to be a stable person. I will see if dr will see me.

If it happens again, feel your pulse at your wrist. Count it for 15 seconds and times it by 4 to get your rate/minute, Then feel it for a minute. Is it regular and just fast or are there gaps? Are they regular or irregular gaps? Note it down so you have a clear issue to explain to the dr. Sorry you're feeling rubbish.

It's settled now and I don't think I can justify the appt. There's no point asking to be examined when I don't feel so bad and my heart is being normal. I need to be careful not to be seen as being dramatic/unstable due to family court process ongoing. I'll ring another morning if it's bad.

Like I said, record those details each and every time it happens, then you have evidence of what is happening.
Life sounds very stressful for you. Anxiety and stress can do all sorts to your body.

You do sound quite stressed op which can have an effect on the heart however you could always ask for a 24 hour holter monitor to check heart rhythm. I have had one previously, though the ecg in the surgery picked up irregilaritys. Have they given to propanolol for the stress? Have they done a full blood count to check you've not got any deficiencies?

I think I might get a watch that does ECG then I can check when it's bad and see what it says. My heart rate is usually on the slow side and blood pressure used to be on low side til I got stressed.

No meds and haven't had bloods in last few months.

Please don’t worry about being a time waster. What else would they be doing other than speaking to unwell patients? Why not you, why would you be a time waster and not them?

If you want to get an idea of what is going on, and can afford a watch, get a Kardia instead. It does an actual ECG with just your fingertips and saves it as a pdf that you can show a doctor. You can buy one on Amazon.

Sometimes DIY ECG machines can create more anxiety. I would still go to GP, being stressed and anxious is nothing to be ashamed of, and discussing with GP is certainly not a waste of time. They may offer you some support.
Having your heart symptoms properly assessed, including bloods etc would reassure you if they are normal, and could be treated if not.
I have had really bad health anxiety and every time I had symptoms I worried it was something significant and I needed to see a doctor. When the symptoms disappeared I put off making an appointment. I could have saved myself months of anxiety if I’d seen my GP in the first place. I hope you feel better soon OP

Thank you. I was looking to get a more comfy watch for (lack of) sleep tracking so I'll just look out for one that can do basic ecgs too, hopefully I'm not ill enough to need anything fancier than that! Will pick up with GP next time I feel rough on a morning.