Dr says it is psychological - how do I stop it????

[VampiresWalkin]

I have been really tight chested since yesterday morning, shallow breathing, inhaler wasn't working, so I went to see the GP today.

He says I have no wheeze, my peak flow thingy was fine and I have no phlegm etc. It is psychological.

So now I feel like a freak and I still am not breathing normally.

WTF is wrong with me to make my body create some random breathing thing, and how do I stop it? I feel like hell with it as it is making me dizzy.

See another GP. Like any profession, there are good GP's and ones that need to go and do something else instead.

Firstly, I am sorry you are having problems with your breathing - that must be a real worry for you.

Secondly, what a bastard GP you have. I cannot believe how he spoke to you. Okay, so he checked there was no physical ailment, but to dismiss your symptoms as simply 'psychological' and offer to advice on dealing with that is totally out of order.It sounds to me like possibly you could do with something to help with anxiety - but I am not a doctor, merely an observor.

I do not have any medical breathing problems. However, I do develop breathing problems from time to time due to stress/anxiety - which can cause dizziness, irregular breeathing patterns, lightheadedness etc etc and becomes very worrying, whcih maks the physical symptoms even worse - so a vicious circle.

Does any of that ring true with you? Is there anything you can try to regulate your breathing?

You dont sound like a freak to me, nor that there is anyting 'wrong' with you. And I am appalled that your GP has caused you to feel like this.

Have a hug and maybe go and put the kettle on?

Are you feeling stressed? I mean, before you were worrying about your breathing.

I thought I was all calm and happy. This time last week I was an hysterical mess (Psycho will back me up having half drowned in me sobbing), but since the start of the week I have been really happy and peaceful.

It could well be some random panic attack thing going on. Will go make tea

This sounds like classic anxiety. For many people, stress creates tension in the body, which makes you feel like you can't breathe in hard enough. This in itself can make you anxious and keep the cycle going.

Because you're always taking in deep breaths, you can get raised levels of oxygen in the blood which can make you feel light-headed, or even as if you are looking at everything through a fog.

You are not a freak and your symptoms are real. The fact they are psycological in origin is neither here nor there.

When I first used to get symptoms like yours I would have sworn I wasn't stressed. Later, I did go through a period of quite bad anxiety and eventually I learned that by controlling your breathing you offset many of the physical symptoms of anxiety.

I would suggest that you learn about relaxation breathing techniques - essentially you concentrate on the outward breath, trying to make it long, slow, and steady. One technique '7/11' says you should breathe out for the count of 11 and in for the count of 7 (or just as much as you need). If you're dizzy you may find it helpful to take a few breaths into a paper bag.

It really helps to learn about some of the physical symptoms of anxiety and stress - it's amazing when you realise that everything you're feeling is very common and not dangerous.

Oh, and if this carries on, go back to the GP or find another one who is more sympathetic to stress-related conditions.

Agree with dearprudence-sounds very much like hyperventilation,which occurs when we feel anxious or stressed.
info here.

Hope it calms down for you.

Just seen your second post. In my experience it's not unusual to experience stress symptoms after the stressful event has passed. It's as if you cope while things are bad because you have to, and afterwards you've still got the adrenalin in your body but it has nowhere to go.

There's every chance that this will just pass - you will relax and start to feel better. I just think it helps to understand about what's happening in your body, so it doesn't scare you and make everything worse.

Thank you Trying the breathing now.

agree withy dearpru - and for me, post stress is often worse, ie I cope in a crisis and then 'fall apart' after. In fact 3 wks ago I had a partic stressful day and then the next day when I was calm and sitting relaxing watching tv I had the most awful 6 hour panic/anxiety/illness attack for a long while.

HUGE hugs. How is the tea?

Try yoga breathing.

In through your nose, and inflating your stomach, then out through your mouth and relaxing your stomach and letting it deflate. Put your hands on your tummy to help you do this.

Breathing through your nose uses a slightly different part of your body and can help wheeziness, so I've read.

One of the things I find helps is singing loudly at the top of my voice. It's relaxing, but, gives the lungs a good exercise too.

I hope you feel better soon

Even if your symptoms are psychological, doesn't make them any less real. Your GP should have taken you seriously. I hope you are ok now. I have had panic attacks and the physical symptoms are very real.

Oh, yes VVV - singing out loud is really good. It helps to regulate your breathing and makes you breathe more out than in without you having to think about it.

I have asthma and when I am stressed it seems worse but I just assumed I was imagining it.

Isn't a better word psychobiological? Your symptoms may have a pyschological cause, but the effect is biological - it's not that you just think your chest is tight, it is, but its cause is stress. Your GP should have explained this better, and given you tips for managing it. You'd probably have felt a hell of a lot better on leaving the surgery if he'd done that.

Asthma is a psychosomatic disease - this means that your state of mind is bad it can actually make the condition worse - not feel worse, or I think it's worse, but narrower airways, more inflammatory mediatiors released, more mucus production.

Am a little surprised at the GP-cussing. Is he supposed to misdiagnose you to make you feel better?

Fuck me that's an appalling sentence. Why no editing?

There's supposed to be a if in there, and one less i in mediators.

Paper bag. Hold it over your mouth and nose and breathe normally in and out for a little while. Very good for dealing with anything hyperventilation-related, including diverting panic attacks and motion sickness before they get fully established. (Also cures hiccups.)

Bruxeur, if the patient comes out more confused and worried about her condition than when she went in, it rather suggests the GP might have done a better job. As I said, I don't think the links between psychological cause and biological effect are often well understood, and people may well end up thinking "I must be making this up, it's all in my head, etc" which isn't terribly helpful.

That said, GPs are entitled to off days along with the rest of us.

bruxeur - No, I wouldn't want to be misdiagnosed, but just a few posts on MN mentioning panic attacks (which I have had in the past, but my symptoms normally come differently iyswim) helped amazingly.

He was very dismissive and left me feeling that I was making it up and wasting his time. He may not have meant it like that, and he may have just been having an off day, but had I not had MN I would have been a big soggy spiralling mess tbh. With MN I only had a few tears as I was posting the OP.

All he had to do was to say it wasn't asthma, and give me some breathing techniques etc and I would have come away calmer and eventually settled (the singing helped a lot btw, thank you).

It is times like this that remind me why I love MN.

I have anxiety attacks every so often, but they tend to be my heart racing, head swirly and just this all encompassing feeling of dread. I have never had anything with this sort of underlying feeling before (if that makes any sense??)

I had panic attacks before and felt like I couldn't breathe and had chest pains, i found the breathing techniques helped but i thengot counselling as i was feeling quite trapped at the time and that really helped.

Good luck, i hope you feel better soon. Might be worth looking into conselling, as i have been very stressed scince then but have not had a panic attack so far (touch wood)

xx

Vampire I have had the same, and it took a long time and a few dr appointments to work out it was anxiety (over a specific issue).

Now I use breathing and neuro tecbiques (that's when I try and focus on something else) and it does go. In fact first tell yourself..this is a bloody panic attack, its not real, ...and b-r-e-a-t-h-e smile]..now picture being somewhere tranquil on your own with no cares...

good luck