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Mysterious shortness of breath: What has helped you?
I will try to make this as short as possible, but this has been going on for over 5 years, so it might be farily long.
Beginning in summer of 2012, I began having shortness of breath (SOB) with no other symptoms. I felt a constant need to yawn, and every few breaths wouldn't satisfy the SOB. I would take a deep breath, and felt like it would get "stuck" before satisfying the air hunger feeling. About every 3-5 deep breaths would satisfy it, only for it to return a minute later.
I got an endoscopy and other tests done, which revealed that I had some esophageal erosion due to acid reflux and a slight hiatal hernia and was diagnosed with GERD. I had always have bad heartburn, so I was prescribed with Prilosec, which I have been taking daily since them. I've tried stopping it a few times but the reflux always comes back a lot worse.
Lung tests and x-rays were normal. Heart tests normal. Blood test revealed a slight anemia but otherwise pretty normal.
I did some research reading forums where someone suggested taking vitamin B-12. Strangely, I took it and the SOB disappeared almost instantly. However, it only lasted a few days for it to return just as bad. I then started taking an iron supplement, which again made the SOB disappear quickly- same thing; symptom returned days later.
After further research, I came across a breathing exercise method called the Buteyko method. Essentially you do a lot of breath holding to build up CO2 and reduce breathing as the theory is that I had chronic hyperventilation causing too much CO2 to exit my body. After applying the method and reducing my breathing, the SOB disappeared after only 2 days and I felt completely normal. I continued the method a few more days then no longer felt the need to pursue the exercises. I was normal for a whole year when the SOB once again returned with some chest tightness. I applied the method again and the symptom went away, this time with a little more effort; after about 3 weeks. I included physical exercise which also helped with my breathing.
After that, I was normal for about 2 years. I mistakenly stopped or at least slowed down exercise and the SOB returned once again. I applied the method and began running for exercise but the SOB kept getting worse. It got so bad, I had multiple panic attacks and the feeling of completely empty lungs with the inability to satisfy it with deep breaths. I had to stop exercise altogether, apply the Buteyko method and do breathing exercises very carefully with very light and slow exercise. This helped, but it took many weeks for the SOB to improve. Then, it was almost normal when over a year ago as I was running, I couldn't get a deep breath to satisfy exercise-induced SOB. I have had SOB continuously since then (a year and a half).
I once again started doing breathing exercises and slowly building up physical exercise, but I can't do any prolonged cardio activity because the SOB gets to a point where deep breathing will not satisfy it. While the breathing exercises have helped, they have had very little effect compared to previous efforts. It seems that every time the symptom returned, greater effort yields few results.
I suspect there is something, some underlying cause that is causing the SOB that has alluded me this entire time.
So for the past few months to a year, the SOB is worse on some days, better on others, but never gone. There's no rhyme or reason or pattern for it. It's just there, sometimes affecting my sleep. I sometimes can't get a deep breath to satisfy it every now and then, but for the most part, a big gulp of air will satisfy it. But it returns seconds to minutes later. It's as though every breath doesn't deliver what it's supposed to, the SOB builds up, and then I have to take a big gulp of air to get rid of the feeling, pattern repeats. My breathing pattern is normal, however. I don't feel like anything physical is happening, but sometimes it feels like my airways and nostrils are slightly inflamed due to allergies, but when I don't feel inflammation the SOB is still there.
Recent lung function tests show normal- I don't have asthma, or any other problems with my lungs. Heart tests are normal though I did have about a two week bout of heart palpitations which came and went. Haven't had any for a while- it just mysteriously started happening then stopped. Blood tests are normal, though tests always show a slight elevation of biliruben which my doc thinks is Gilbert's disease.
I don't have sleep apnea (normal test), bloody oxygenation is normal, heart rate normal.
I recently saw local naturopath (since mainstream docs aren't able to help) who immediately suspected a liver problem when I described my SOB, possibly liver inflammation. He used an electrodermal testing machine to test his theory which did seem to show a problem with my liver and gallbladder. He gave me digestive enzymes and a gallbladder formula to help clear a bile duct clog, thus reducing liver inflammation. He also determined with the machine that I have an egg sensitivity so I've been avoiding eggs.
Been taking this and avoiding eggs for a couple of months, but there has been no noticeable improvement. Everything else is normal. Emotionally I'm normal- no anxiety, depression, etc. The SOB seems to be the only symptom of something, but always comes back worse, until a year and half ago when it came back and has remained since. I feel like I shouldn't have to do breath holding exercises every day just to maintain my breathing well enough to do every day things.
Does anyone have any idea of a possible underlying cause?
2021/2022 UPDATE:
Since my original post about 3-1/2 years ago, a lot has happened, so I’d like to update the post to share with others who come across this what I’ve done since then.
I have maintained a weekly Buteyko method breathing exercise regimen where I do a few of these breathing exercises 3-4 times a week in the morning. This, in combination with daily light to moderate exercise (specifically weight lifting, with 1 or 2 days a week of walking and light jogging), I feel has kept the air hunger symptoms tolerable and manageable. I have mostly good days with some not-so-good days, but doing a breathing exercise and knowing that it’ll get better again helps me get through those times.
I also have sinus inflammation which can exacerbate the symptoms, but I’ve also managed this, which in turn reduces the severity of the air hunger symptoms.
So, while I haven’t found a cure nor is the problem completely gone, I have been able to maintain normalcy in daily life and manage the symptoms through the strategies I described.
This discussion remains active, alive and well through the comments section where others who have similar symptoms have shared what has helped them as well as suggestions for possible solutions to explore.
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OMG wth, i cannot believe this..! i am literally having the exact same problem..! mine started after doing intermittent fasting, i mean i am literally having same exact symptoms, even i tried all those supplements like iron and b12, it did fixed my shortness of breath and heart palpitations/ bounding pulsations for a day or two, then it returned, i am sure i have tried everything and i am just 18 years old..! it has ruined my life seriously, my bounding pulsations are far more worse tbh, its almost impossible to live like this man, i have too done all tests, took pretty much every single ashtma med and inhaler, every single supplement, even ACV, took beta blockers, eliminated foods.
i am losing hope now tbh, i wish i had money to travel to the USA...! i am sure experts at mayo clinic would be able to help me, currently my life has turned upside down because of this, i am just 18 years old, non american citizen, i am not even able to study or focus on anything, cannot even sleep at day, life is totally different now and doctors here are not able to help, they all say i am fine and i should probably try to learn to live with it but i am optimistic that there has to be a solution for this tbh.
anyway, since my problem is literally like you, but i am also have very bad heart palps/ bounding pulsations for about 1 year now, it is not fast heart rate, it is not high BP either, its just constant bounding pulsations, hard loud beating heart that is it, its not even irregular heart beat, over the top of it i also have bad gerd, allergies, severe DNS, shortness of breath and this terrible bounding pulsation, literally this bounding pulsation is the worst symptom so far, i can even manage shortness of breath but this bounding pulsation is making my life a living hell.
please if anyone got any questions, do ask me, i am sure so far i have tried everything possible, few things are still left, i will probably be able to test for everything possible by next month, hopefully i will be able to find the root cause, i am guessing both SOB and bounding pulsations are sort of connected.
since i have exact symptoms as you mate, if you do find some solutions please do let me know, you are not alone, just like you, i have also tried PPis, inhalers, supplements, eliminated foods like gluten, dairy, nuts, eggs, bananas etc etc, nothing has worked so far, probiotics are not working either.
what is more interesting is that when i was very unhealthy, i had no symptoms, when my diet was crap, i am still pretty fine with no health problems, when i tried bettering myself, it all went downhill.
i regret doing IF and losing 12 KGs tbh, i wish i could reset it, i do not even mind taking back those lost 12KGs.
please disregard any spell or grammatical mistakes, i am still learning english.
i am gonna check this thread daily, i am with you.
I have not had those tests. Would that be an endoscopy type test or something different?
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1 ReactionHi @bodil and welcome to the forum! I have not had any back or rib problems but once of the bad bouts I had a few years ago correlated with a treadmill running session where I was pushing myself too hard. If there is an unknown underlying cause, there could be something that triggers the air hunger like exercise or something else. Have you tried staying away from rock climbing or other activities for a while to see if that helps at all and makes any difference with the air hunger?
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1 ReactionHey @patty91 nice to see you in here. I’ve thought about the possibility of something physical going on with me or others and that’s interesting that your physical stretching and exercises seem to be helping. I think there can be an obstruction to the diaphragm somehow but hard to tell without knowing exactly what it is that affects the diaphragm directly or indirectly. With your upper back pain, do you think it’s because of the pain itself that is worse when you try to take a deep breath, or is there something physically stopping you from fully expanding your breathing muscles?
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3 ReactionsHey @weisstein I’m so glad you found us all here in the forum. You are not alone! I’m so sorry to hear you going through all this especially at this time of your life. There are many here with similar issues as you so let me encourage you by saying that we’re all trying to find answers and are posting about things that have helped.
Even though you’ve tried many things, there are always way to manage the physical and mental challenges that come up through all this.
Have you tried breathing exercises for the shortness of breath?
How often do you feel the heart palpitations and ponding sensation happening- is this over some frequency or constantly?
Also, are you managing your GERD symptoms?
No worries about the English! You write well and I can understand it just fine. I want you help however I can; just know that there is always hope and we will find a way to manage it and we’ll find a way through it!
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4 Reactionsthanks for your response my friend
for gerd i have tried ACV ( apple cider vinegar) which worked better than anything out there, completely eliminated all my GERD symptoms but it did absolutely nothing for now my SOB and bounding pulse. I tried buteyko as you suggested, i guess it did had some positive effects, i will try it again and tell you about the outcomes.
my bounding pulsations are literally 24/7, sometimes they do get better on their own, but its there 99% of time, when i goto bathroom, it slightly reduces them, which is quite interesting, i am guessing both my SOB and bounding pulsations are happening due to stomach/ abdominal issues.
SOME INTERESTING OBSERVATIONS:
- do you take anti histamines? when i do not take anti histamines it helps both my SOB and bounding pulsations, i think they may be happening due to anti histamines?
- whenever i get any other allergic symptoms, it also greatly reduces both my SOB and BP, which is quite interesting, i think it may be happening due to some immune system response. i will probably get allergy shots as well as septoplasty for my severe DNS, my one nostril is entirely blocked and i use oxymetazoline daily for it.
- have you checked for thyroid? i heard thyroid hypothyroidism can also cause SOB and BP, when you are low/high on thyroid, it makes your heart pound too hard and also causes SOB, solely because the blood is moving rather slowly or too fast, resulting in SOB as well as bounding pulsations.
- do you take any supplements? low pottasium can cause bounding pulsations too, but i do not think its the reason in my case, i tried all electrolytes and still the problem persists for me.
- iron and b12 was quite interesting, it fixed my problems for couple of days, but i think that B complex supplement makes me quite lethargic, i will start taking them again, it has both b12 and iron, and will see if taking them fixes my problems or not, but i think they do make me very tired and fatigued, not quite sure tho it maybe something else.
- started avoiding allergen foods like gluten, dairy, nuts, eggs etc.
i am quite bullish on allergies and the use of anti histamines, iron and b12 level despite having normal levels of them, also on the hypo/hyper thyroidism.
"Hypothyroidism can affect the heart and circulatory system in a number of ways. Insufficient thyroid hormone slows your heart rate. Because it also makes the arteries less elastic, blood pressure rises in order to circulate blood around the body. Elevated cholesterol levels, which contribute to narrowed, hardened arteries, are another possible consequence of low thyroid levels"
low levels of thyroid harmones makes your arteries hard, since they not moving freely, you can feel whenever your heart beats because blood hits your arteries wall, but since they are too stiff and not elastic you feel that "thump".
same hypothyroidism can cause SOB, simply because when you run low on them, it reduces the blood circulation around your lungs, which results in too much blood in, but not out, which then ultimately results in SOB and dizziness when you get up.
I do take antihistamines for my allergies and I have heard that it could cause some side effects for people. I did have my thyroid checked years ago and that was normal. I just take a multi vitamin every once in a while.
The Buteyko method still helps me to this day; I do an exercise at least weekly to maintain my breathing and I also do moderate physical exercise which I believe also helps with my breathing.
Have you talked to your doctor about possible antihistamine side effects? Maybe he/she could suggest to stay off of them for a while to see if it helps with the heat issue and at least bring that under control
Did your doctor do a chest x-ray? If not, I'd really recommend you get one. If the x-ray showed you have a raised lung, you could have a paralyzed diaphragm which manifests these symptoms. if you have a raised lung, your doctor should order a SNIFF test, which is the definitive test to see if you have a paralyzed diaphragm. I hope you will keep us posted.
I have just this week been diagnosed with paralysis of right side diaphragm. Also have atelectasis of right lung. About half of lung no functioning. Found thru lung X-ray. Get one as precaution!!!!
Oh, dear. I'm sorry to hear this. It's wonderful to have a diagnosis so you can figure out what you are going to do about it; but you have quite a journey ahead of you to find a doctor who knows about this condition and how to treat it, A paralyzed diaphragm is a really rare condition, which most primary care doctors and even most pulmonologists have never come across. I don't want to beat a dead horse, but did you have a SNIFF test? From everything I have learned since my diagnosis of a paralyzed diaphragm in Nov 2020, you really have to have this test before a definite diagnosis of paralyzed diaphragm can be made. Have you been referred to a pulmonologist? I posted a video about the options available for treatment of a paralyzed diaphragm in the lung discussion group that might be helpful to watch when you're ready. I know I had to sit with my diagnosis and just process it before I was ready to figure out my options for dealing with it and move ahead. Please do get a SNIFF test if you haven't.