Hi Ruby - A lot of us with CFS have depleted adrenals. When that happens we can get stuck in the "fight or flight" mode, which feels a lot like anxiety or being hyper or having heart palpitations. I don't know if this is what is going on with you though. Our bodies can do a lot of strange things.

I used to have chest symptoms - tight chest, difficulty breathing, severe lung fatigue. A good way to tell if you are having anxious thoughts is to do some meditation. Sometimes anxious thoughts are going on in the background. ALso, maybe be aware of how you are breathing when you feel like this.I think the body is in a constant state of stress with CFS whether you are aware of it or not so it could be to do with that. Strange feelings in the body sounds pretty normal with CFS.

I think it's been well established now that stress can cause physical symptoms without any awareness of anxiety on the part of the patient. Stress causes all kinds of strange effects in people, that could be what's going on.

It could also be bronchial irritation from the air in your work environment. I'm very sensitive to cigarette smoke, it gives me chest pain even when there's no noticeable odor of smoke. Cigarette smokers are very addicted, and they will sneak cigarettes in all kinds of places. This gets circulated around through the building by the A/C.

Try taking a deep breath when you have this "heavy chest". If it hurts to do so, it means your bronchial passages are inflamed. Sometimes the cleaners used by the janitorial crews can cause indoor air pollution. They use a lot of industrial cleaners in spray bottles that are very irritating to the lungs. Indoor air pollution is a very big problem in today's tightly sealed buildings.

Hi Ruby!

If I may, let me just add this to the good things in the comments ahead of mine! I agree with them completely. CFS does such wierd things to our bodies. Right at this moment I'm having a pain in my right side and thinking "could this be gas"? Maybe its my appendics!" Ya know? It never ends.

I've had an anxiety disorder my whole life. I have good meds that keep it under control. After CFS started, my anxiety took off like a rocket and it took me a long time to know the difference between CFS adrenal rushes and panic. You learn as you go with this illness.

My suggestion to you is this. If you're not sure about a new symptom, whether it happens just at work, or not, you should have it checked out out by a doctor. We often, with CFS, tie everything into the theory that this symptom is yet aother CFS thingy and let it go at that. Don't do that, please. If you feel a heaviness in your chest, please see a doctor. If you check out normal cardiac wise....then you can figure on anxiety, or stress related to "fight or flight"....but please don't assume that chest heaviness or discomfort is always benign. Please get a doctor's exam to know for sure. K? K!!!

I agree with Darla. Recurrent chest pain is ample justification for a cardiac check if you can afford one. Somehow I assumed you had already had your heart checked.

Cardiac problems affect women differently from the way they affect men. Women don't get what we think of as "heart attack symptoms", like severe pain radiating down the left arm. Their symptoms appear as fullness in the chest and other signs that aren't suspected to be cardiac. And most important of all, cardiac trouble is consistently diagnosed much later in the the progression of the disease in women than it is in men, so women die of heart trouble when it could have been treated and survived if diagnosed earlier.

Sounds like anxiety. I used to have shortness of breath for years and the doctor diagnosed me as asthmatic. Treatment for asthma didn't help. Started on xanax and am much better.

Anxiety is quite the monster - it acts up and you don't even realize it. I sometimes get a foreboding feeling after I've been at work a half a day - it's anxiety.

Thanks all for your comments.
I am starting to think it could be anxiety even though I have nothing to be stressed or anxious about.
I think it is directly caused by CFS and the lack of ability to live a normal life puts stress on me when I try.
My body and mind is not capable any more it seems.