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Mysterious shortness of breath: What has helped you?
Lung Health | Last Active: 5 days ago | Replies (3353)Comment receiving replies
Hello @gabrielm,
I've been suffering from this for almost two years now that it got me into OCD and depressive state. I suffer a lot from stomach issues with it and my diaphragm is always tight and my body automatically gasps and yawns. It always get worse when I first wake up, I wake up with a very tight chest and messed up mood but during the evening and night it gets better. I'm not sure if this is related to sleeping or allergies. Almost everything was good when I done the test. Though, I had H.Pylori when they checked my gut and I have tested negative from it last two months. I still suffer from the symptoms now still and anxiety is literally increasing for no reason. Every day I feel like the restart button is being pressed and I go through the activities Anxiety again (even though I literally just done the activities the day before). I was also diagnosed with OCD and Anxiety and I take sertraline for about a year now. When I walk a lot or head to the gym the symptoms get worse at the beginning but eventually get better and again the next day the reset happens. I really don't know if this is gluten or dairy related or if it's really related to the stomach and whether Anxiety causes the stomach disturbance or the other way around.
Sometimes it just makes me hopeless because I really don't know what to do, I'm starting to do Buteyko method and hopefully it'll help. But since you've been through this longer please tell me how did you get through it and how you're feeling now. And if anyone that recovered is reading this please don't hesitate to tag me, I would like to know how to get off this dark hole.
Replies to "Hello @gabrielm, I've been suffering from this for almost two years now that it got me..."
How are you doing @arandompenguin? I hope the breathing issue is getting better. Are you keeping up with breathing exercises and are they helping?
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@arandompenguin, I'm so sorry you are going through all this. Trust me, I know exactly how you feel! When it first started for me, I was in a similar dark place. I would like to offer a ray of hope that if you pursue methods of dealing with this situation, you WILL get through it until you find a solid answer. I know how it is about the anxiety. I too felt a lot of anxiety over this and even had a couple of panic attacks early on when I was really struggling with the symptoms. A few years ago, the problem seemed to have disappeared, came back, disappeared again, and came back once more but this time it wasn't as bad as when it first came about.
The fact that it gets better at night is a good thing. Hold on to that feeling and knowledge especially in the morning when it's worse. You have to tell yourself in your mind that you will overcome this and it will get better. Training your mind to believe this is, I think, a big factor in dealing with it for however long you have it.
When you are exercising, how intensely are you doing it? Part of the Buteyko method has you handle as much exercise as you can while only breathing through your nose. If you have to breathe through your mouth, it's too intense. This has helped me greatly. Moderate weight lifting while nasal breathing and controlling the breath is a large part of my "maintenance" routine and keeping symptoms at bay.
Do you have any GI issues- heartburn/reflux, intestinal issues, esophageal inflammation, etc.? Do you feel any restriction in your esophagus when breathing?
If you can, sign up for a class here for the Buteyko method;
https://www.learnbuteykoonline.net. This is where I learned pretty much everything I know. You will also learn 'rescue' exercises where you do breath-holding techniques while you're experiencing symptoms and then calming your breathing as much as possible. I know there's far more information, but hopefully these things will help you in the meantime. Let me know any other questions you have, happy to help. You WILL get through this!