Hi everyone,

I'm a 39 year old male, weighing 285 lbs and standing 6'4". A few months ago I started having an issue where I felt like I couldn't take a full deep breath. In order to actually get a satisfying breath I'd have to make myself yawn, but the satisfaction would be short lived and I'd quickly feel like I couldn't take a deep breath again. I soon developed anxiety over this feeling and found myself in the ER. They did an EKG and tested me for COVID, as well as for clots and any indication my heart was having a problem. Everything was fine and the concluded it was anxiety related. They gave me a few Ativan and Hydroxyzine to take home before I could see by PCP. They didn't help with the breathing, but they made me able to sleep.

I eventually went to my PCP who started me on Zoloft and gave me referrals to some specialists. I had a pulmonary lung function tests done and my lung capacity was 113% and all other functions were as expected. The portion of the test where I used an Albuterol inhaler showed no increase in function which pretty much ruled out asthma. I had chest X-rays which showed no signs of infection or pneumonia, etc. I saw a cardiologist who conducted an "echo", stress test, and put me in some machine that took pictures of my heart function. Everything was fine. I went to Gastro who didn't do much, but concluded it likely wasn't GERD or gastro related. I have occasional acid reflux, but treat it with Pepcid. Everyone concluded it's anxiety. I dealt with it for about 2 weeks before it got better. Since then, it's been coming and going and I can't figure out why.

I have general anxiety and depression. My psychiatrist prescribes Adderal which helps with my anxiety by allowing me to refocus my anxious energy. I know many people point to anxiety for this type of thing, but I really feel like I have my anxiety under control and the only time I get anxious is when I have this feeling of not being able to catch a breath. I used to smoke cannabis and would occasionally the same kind of feeling, which caused me to give it up entirely. I'm not sure if there was a connection there, but thought it might be relevant. Additionally, I have mild sleep apnea and use a CPAP. I also have fatty liver, but I'm working on weight reduction to help with that. I don't think it has any relevance, but thought I'd mention it.

Does anyone have any idea where I should look next to find a potential cause or treatment?