So I've been having shortness of breath, even at rest occasionally, and usually with any sort of exertion. This has been going on for well over a month. Went to the er week and a half ago, very short of breath with tightness in chest. Felt very bloated all the time. I never go to the doctor, don't even have a regular one anymore. I'm 47, considerably overweight, male, off and on again fairly heavy at times smoker since my 20's.

So I thought I might be having a heart attack. Wasn't, and supposedly didn't test for congestive heart failure either, which I had considered an option. Diagnosed me with dyspnea (duh) and possible bronchitis. Gave me an antibiotic of course, a few ativan for anxiety and albuterol inhaler. Took chest x ray, said it looked "OK"...ok. But at this point I'm thinking all the signs point to copd.

So I haven't had another cigarette since that night, but am still short of breath, comes and goes, cough somewhat, a fair amount of mucus. Had to find new primary care doctor in next county as all practices around me were not accepting new patients or backlogged. I'm very anxious, not sleeping much, sometimes manage to fall asleep in the chair.

So the new doctor, a female from Jamaica by the accent, tells me I'm overweight (yes I know, actually working on it now). She says my blood pressure is high (it is, although not extremely so). And she says I seem to have a high level of anxiety. I do of course, not sleeping much, and having nearly every symptom of copd. But...she doesn't seem to think I have copd. Says my lungs don't sound bad, and the xray doesn't show swollen lungs. Says she doesn't hear wheezing, or mucus - even though I cough it up frequently.

So basically despite my history of smoking and other risk factors, she doesn't even want to consider copd - or any lung issue. She thinks the breathing is all caused by anxiety and general lack of conditioning, and I should consider seeing a psychiatrist. I said while I'm certainly anxious right now I feel there's more to it than that. I said a simple xray and brief stethescope exam is hardly conclusive evidence against a lung malady is it?

She's quick to put me on beta blockers, gerd medicine (isn't that associated with copd too) and flonase, since she said my nasal passages are a bit inflamed. But I nearly have to get in a fight with her to get her to order a spirometry test, as she says it wasn't warranted with my symptoms (really) and insurance wouldn't see it as such. I tell her I'd feel much less anxious if I had one so she finally agrees. She tells me her clinic won't prescribe me any ativan for anxiety though. Too risky I guess.

I have to wait until after the new year to have the spirometry test. Gonna be a merry christmas I guess waiting around still short of breath. And when I asked her about the albuterol inhaler, she said does it help? I said it seems to help usually although not always a huge difference. She didn't have much to say about that.

So basically, can this all be in my head? And when I used the inhaler on the way home it actually seemed to help quite a bit. Am I just imagining this? Can an inhaler actually have an effect on someone without copd or asthma? And why is the doctor so reluctant to even consider a diagnosis I have so many risk factors and symptoms of? Gonna be a long wait until the new year.