Heart Failure Support Group
Heart failure is a condition that can result from any structural or functional cardiac disorder that impairs the ability of the heart to fill with or pump a sufficient amount of blood throughout the body. It is often undiagnosed due to a lack of a universally agreed definition and difficulties in diagnosis, particularly when the condition is considered "mild."
Thank you all in advance taking time to read...
I'm a 47 pretty healthy female. I have been having shortness of breath and chest pains on and off for a while now. My shortness of breath comes a lot at night, I just can't seem to catch my breath. I also have have chest pain,( and racing heart) but nothing in my arm. There are nights that I am up all night urinating. Like every 20 to 30 minutes. My left ankle has been swollen for a few years. (I thought it was due to RA) my tummy will become extremely bloated as well.
I saw a Cardiologist last fall. He did a stress test, and a ECO. All these test were normal. He really didn't give me an explanation as to what was going on. Last Friday night, the shortness of breath and chest pain was bad. I called my Cardiologist on Monday. The nurse told me all my cardiac work up was normal last year and I shouldn't worry.. Well I do worry, my dad had a massive heart attack at 43 and died. My husband was concerned so we went to the ER....I had a EKG and it was normal. Wednesday I had a Chest CT to see if I had a blood clot. It showed no blood clot, and they said my heart was not enlarged.
The swelling of my ankle and fingers and the frequent urination bother me. (alone with the shortness of breath and chest pain) I guess my question is, should I trust all the normal test? and just learn to live with the shortness of breath and pain in my chest?
Again, thank you for taking time to read!
I'm a 47 pretty healthy female. I have been having shortness of breath and chest pains on and off for a while now. My shortness of breath comes a lot at night, I just can't seem to catch my breath. I also have have chest pain,( and racing heart) but nothing in my arm. There are nights that I am up all night urinating. Like every 20 to 30 minutes. My left ankle has been swollen for a few years. (I thought it was due to RA) my tummy will become extremely bloated as well.
I saw a Cardiologist last fall. He did a stress test, and a ECO. All these test were normal. He really didn't give me an explanation as to what was going on. Last Friday night, the shortness of breath and chest pain was bad. I called my Cardiologist on Monday. The nurse told me all my cardiac work up was normal last year and I shouldn't worry.. Well I do worry, my dad had a massive heart attack at 43 and died. My husband was concerned so we went to the ER....I had a EKG and it was normal. Wednesday I had a Chest CT to see if I had a blood clot. It showed no blood clot, and they said my heart was not enlarged.
The swelling of my ankle and fingers and the frequent urination bother me. (alone with the shortness of breath and chest pain) I guess my question is, should I trust all the normal test? and just learn to live with the shortness of breath and pain in my chest?
Again, thank you for taking time to read!
I just read your post and felt compelled to respond. I am not a professional health care worker, but have worked in an related field.
The symptoms you describe do not sound reasonable. With a family history of heart problems I would encourage you to keep looking for a solution, if not with your present physician then ask for a referral and if you don't get answers, then ask for another referral.
Chest pain is not normal...for anyone. Keep a diary of your symptoms and the next time you experience chest pain, go to the hospital immediately so they can assess your condition while the pain is occurring. Don't just learn to live with it. Too many times women are not treated for heart problems because they don't exhibit the usual symptoms.
My husband is here today because I didn't take "don't worry about it" for an answer. I wish you the best of luck in finding a solution for your health problems.
Never take these symptoms lightly being that you already know that heart disease runs in your family. For what it's worth, I never trust EKGs
I had many before my HA and was told everything looked good each time.
It wasn't till I had a major heart attack that I found out a EKG does not always tell the story. I had all the classic symptoms for months and on Jan 3rd of this year was rushed to the hospital in the middle of a HA.
My EKG did not show anything that jumped out to the doctors. It was the blood work that told the tail. After being rushed to the Cath lab and returning with some new hardware, I was told I had what they call the widow maker. 98% blockage of the LAD. But that isn't where the story ends.
Upon returning to my room the doctor who did the procedure asked if I realized that I had already had a HA in the past. Because of that not being treated along with my newest HA, I now have permanent damage to my heart. Isn't that just a slap in the face !
I guess from what I understand [ and I could be wrong ] a EKG is only good if they have a normal one to go by for each individual, of if you have an erratic heart rhythm. I did not.
Long story short.... I knew for 6months before that something was wrong. Trust your instincts if you feel something is not right.
Wishing you the best and please keep us posted.
I am 41 and I have been in heart failure for the last 10 years and your symptoms are a lot like the ones I live with everyday. With your shortness of breath(SOB) I would say go to a pulmonologist (lung doc) I was having crazy SOB and my cardiologist was not seeing a reason for my SOB and he sent me to the lung doc (after my blood clot in my lung 2 years ago) I went a few days ago and found that I have bad chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) just started oxygen yesterday and today I walked from my car (at the gas pump) to the store for the first time in almost a year with no SOB (it felt good :)
Yolanda