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Things that help False Shortness of Breath (SOB) or pseudo-dyspnea
Experiencing (false) SOB can be initially scary and frustrating. A lot of people in this group have never gotten a clear explanation of why they have Shortness of Breath/ Dyspnea. It could very well be False Shortness of Breath or pseudo-dyspnea. This does not mean that you do not have a shortness of breath, rather you have what is called a "feeling that you are short of breath" that leads to hyperventilation. So your feelings that you are going crazy are not true!
One method of controlling this is through Pursed-Lip Breathing. It works and worth the patience it needs to naturally breathe this way.
I practiced this walking, climbing stairs, walking down the stairs for a while so that it was the way my body automatically breathed - I retrained it! And I have slowed it down even more if I feel panicky or anxious, however. This information needs to be confirmed by a doctor. Taking excessive amounts of medicines to help cut down your acids can cause more harm and cause more problems.
Have you tried this or some other way to breathe that helps?
https://www.hannasaadah.com/blog/medical/false-shortness-of-breaht-pseudo-dyspnea-december-12/
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Hi Gabe,
Do you mind elaborating on what you mean by labored breathing?
It's unfortunate you suffer and at the same time reassuring that I'm not the only one battling this. I'm clutching at straws as I do not know what the cause is. I feel like I just have to live with it 🙁
Yes of course. I think of shortness of breath like when you exercise intensely and you create a shortness of breath that you try to catch when resting. It’s not extremely unpleasant, it’s just labored from exercise. Or if someone had a condition like COPD or other lung conditions that can cause breathing to be labored and more difficult. Dyspnea would be more of a sensation of a need to take a deep breath; but that deep breath may not satisfy the air hunger and so you’re left with a feeling of empty lungs. This happens at rest and when the breathing rate is normal but the sensation of needing air is still there. Hope that makes sense
@benjvandenheuvel - I too have been dealing with this for the bulk of my life. I'm very interested in your background - I'm almost forty and have been dealing with this stuff since the middle of college (so, a long time). I've been on anxiety medication pretty much ever since then with if I'm being honest very little in terms of results. I'm sure since it's nothing physical - I've had plenty of those tests and I'm very active (run, lift weights always played sports) and I'm not overweight. How did you come to try omeprazole? I wonder if this could be my issue as well. I took my first Prilosec this morning hoping that maybe I've been missing the mark in terms of what has been causing this for the better part of my life. Thanks for listening.
Travis
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1 ReactionHi @shak11 - you're not alone in this. I too have been dealing with this for the better, (or should I say worse) part of my life. Although I'm almost forty you sound very much like me. I was always an athlete growing and still lift heavy weights and have no problems running at least 5 or 6 miles at a time. I too, starting today am trying Prilosec starting today to see if this is what I've been looking for. Please let me know how it goes for you. Hang in there.
Travis
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1 ReactionHi Travis, welcome. I'm sorry to hear that you've been dealing with this for so long. You may also be interested in this related discussion (very long) that @gabrielm started a while back:
- Mysterious shortness of breath: What has helped you? https://connect.mayoclinic.org/discussion/mysterious-shortness-of-breath/
Travis, I don't know if it's too soon to tell, but is the Prilosec helping? Have you ever tried some of the breathing techniques suggested in this discussion?
@travislibby- Good morning and welcome to Mayo Clinic Connect. When you say, for the better part of your life, do you mean from infancy or childhood? You say that you have had a ton of tests, has one of them been a Spirometry?
https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/asthma/in-depth/asthma/art-20045198
Above is a checklist, just in case you missed something. I know, it is all very frustrating. It took doctors 5 years to discover that what I had been feeling were migraines, 5 years!
It might take a week or so for Prilosec to start working if GERD is the problem. Have you tried any of the breathing exercises?
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1 ReactionI give myself weekly gamma globulin infusions for a suppressed immune system and have struggled all my life with infections. A client of my jewelry shop and I were talking about our lives and I described how sick I was from infections even with medications to support my immune function. 'She told me she uses colloidal silver. as soon as an infection or anything strange occurs. This is happening for 20 years, and the CS wipes it out, and she has been very healthy.. I looked CS up in the medical literature and talked to my infectious disease specialist, who had little insight into the merits of CS, although he used it for wound care. He otherwise. condemned it despite my story. Before I bought and used the CS, I joined a facebook CS group and watched posts for 3 months and pain. I think the CS may have saved my life. I was unable to stand up straight becausse of abdominal and kidney infections, had blood in my urine for 4 years, and was running a low grade temperature that never went away until I went on the antibiotics and CS. The antibiotics alone had stopped working and I was getting sicker and sicker even with my infusions. But with the CS added, I had a good response that helped heal an infected ear, both kidneys, chronic sinusitis, and bronchial problems. The CS helped to pass many parasites, and urinary tract stuff that the docs called interstitial cystitis improved. Another doc increased the gamma globulin Rx which made coming off the antibiotics and CS several months later possible without recurrences. There are still infections because I was vaccine injured from Modena 1, but I don't feel as if I am dying. My experience with CS has been positive with no downside. I turned two friends onto CS and they were grateful. Not all CS is ionic or reliable. I buy Sovereign Silver CS.10 ppm. Maybe this is too far fetched for anyone in a Mayo group, but nebuliznig CS, gargling, or drinking it is not going to hurt anyone, even young children or animals. I wonder if CS would help you?
Colloidal silver is not considered safe by the FDA or Mayo Clinic https://www.mayoclinic.org/healthy-lifestyle/consumer-health/expert-answers/colloidal-silver/faq-20058061
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has said that colloidal silver isn’t safe or effective for treating any disease or condition.
According to Dr. Brent Bauer from Mayo Clinic says "Colloidal silver isn't considered safe or effective for any of the health claims manufacturers make. Silver has no known purpose in the body. Nor is it an essential mineral, as some sellers of silver products claim."
According to Dr. Brent Bauer from Mayo Clinic says "Colloidal silver isn't considered safe or effective for any of the health claims manufacturers make. Silver has no known purpose in the body. Nor is it an essential mineral, as some sellers of silver products claim."
You can read more in this article:
– Colloidal silver: is it safe? https://www.mayoclinic.org/healthy-lifestyle/consumer-health/expert-answers/colloidal-silver/faq-20058061
When it comes to supplements and complementary medicine, I always refer to NIH's National Center for Complementary and Integrative Medicine to better understand the proven evidence. See this information:
– Colloidal Silver https://nccih.nih.gov/health/silver
The first section of the page states: What’s the Bottom Line?
How much do we know about colloidal silver?
There are no high quality studies on the health effects of taking colloidal silver, but we do have good evidence of its dangers.
What do we know about the effectiveness of colloidal silver?
Claims made about the health benefits of taking colloidal silver aren’t backed up by studies.
What do we know about the safety of colloidal silver?
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has said that colloidal silver isn’t safe or effective for treating any disease or condition.
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2 ReactionsI have arrived to the same place as you after discussing this with Doctors for last 9 months. So many specialists and so many tests later, the conclusion is the same. Not diagnosed or treated yet.
I see that you have been trying to find answers for 9 months with testing and examinations. Being unable to take a deep satisfying breath is really scary, since the ability to do so is supposed to be automatic. Even without a diagnosis, sometimes there are things to do to make yourself feel better. Let's see if we can find something to help you. Aside from no affirmative diagnosis, what recommendations as far as lifestyle, diet, exercise, etc have you been given so far?
I have chronic SOB from long term asthma and another lung disorder. I uses "belly breathing", yoga breathing and other techniques several times a day to help with it. If I skip even one day, I find I am miserable. If you scroll to the top of this discussion, you will see that there are breathing techniques that are often helpful for shortness of breath (SOB) issues.
May I ask if you are spending your time in a recliner? My (very direct) pulmonologist would tell you "get out of there" and sit upright, with good posture or stand up so your lungs can expand properly.
Have you seen a therapist for help to learn breathing techniques, or watched a video and tried them? When I was first using the exercises, it took at least 2 weeks of 4 times a day to get relief, so it is not an instant result.
Let's see if there are others who want to offer suggestions here too.
Sue