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Mysterious shortness of breath: What has helped you?

Lung Health | Last Active: 2 days ago | Replies (3424)
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@marcuscurypko

Hi @gabrielm
Thanks for your reply. At this point I'm convinced I should pursue the GERD and LPR (laryngopharyngeal reflux, AKA silent reflux) theory with gastro and ENT doctors, as the PPI relationship is definitely a theme. The fact I was weaning off PPI at around the same time as the SOB onset may not be a coincidence. I can't blame the GP here for not chasing that thread because I can't recall if I told him that.
I was checked for asthma, twice, and confirm nothing found. The fact I can perform athletically also suggests asthma isn't a factor.
As you mention, I am and always have been very physically active. I've run many marathons and participated in endurance cycling events over a large number of years. The other thing that was going on at onset of SOB was a relative decline in fitness as I had sustained an injury in August 2022 that confined me mainly to cycling rather than running. So the composition of my daily training changed to one where I was upright running, to hunched over cycling. That was also usually directly after eating in the morning whereas with running I'd always wait an hour or more after eating. In any case, I wonder whether GERD / LPR may be exacerbated by those circumstances.

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Replies to "Hi @gabrielm Thanks for your reply. At this point I'm convinced I should pursue the GERD..."
Gabe, Volunteer Mentor | @gabrielm | Sep 18, 2023

That's all very interesting. When the air hunger first started for me back in 2012, I think there was the possibility of a fitness decline and then the start of GERD that may have spurred on the initial symptoms. After having done the Buteyko breathing method for a few weeks, the symptoms went away almost entirely, kept at bay with just physical exercise for about a year. Then the exercise decreased to almost nothing with an immediate return of symptoms. So I do think the physical fitness aspect somehow played a role in my symptoms similar to how there might be a connection with yours. The last time symptoms reoccured though, it was during a relatively intense running session that, looking back, I think I overdid the exercise given my breathing history and that somehow trigged the return of symptoms. But thankfully, I've been able to keep the air hunger at by doing moderate exercise regularly, especially walking, and an overall change in diet/lifestyle has really helped.

I haven't been able to get off of PPIs yet, because every time I try the reflux rebounds with a vengeance. Whether or not I'm on PPIs doesn't affect symptoms, but I still want to eventually ween off of them.

Do you notice any other symptoms or issues besides the breathing or GERD? Do you have sleep issues that you're aware of- sleep apnea, snoring, etc?

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