Worrying about my heart: tests normal, but I'm anxious

@hgarm Glad @becsbuddy sent you into Ive been out to P.T this will help you immensely

I had heart failure last year August, same symptoms as yours. The hospital made me undergo angiogram. No plaque was there so it was somewhat a waste of money. I have been worried since. I had ECG, Cardiac MRI and with meds, the last of which was July this year. But up to now I am still afraid my heart will stop, when 2 cardios told me my heart is strong. My bp and cholesterol and blood sugar is good October...I think I will die of anxiety rather than my condition.. so please do as advised, by people here, have a hobby and distract yourself from worry. The pain from left side might be acid reflux only or heartburn

Most medical facilities/cardiologists will, based on chest pain and other indications of a heart attack, immediately cath a patient - it is the only way to assess the condition of your heart/arteries. Given this is to potentially save your life, why would you consider it a waste of money?

Based on repeated inputs to you that you are not suffering a heart condition, perhaps some counseling is in order?

I have total anxiety after receiving my CAC score of 585 ( 429 in my LAD, almost 2 years ago), all of my heart testing says I have the heart of a 40 year old (I am 60) but this CAC score indicates my arteries are not good which obviously worries me. I am very active and try very hard to stay on a plant based diet. Anxiety mimics heart attack (type) symptoms and happens almost daily, which exasperates the anxiety. It feels like a vicious cycle and it is a daily battle to talk myself of the ledge each time it happens. There has got to be a better way to bridge this gap between the known and unknown that causes us so much fear. I take Red Yeast Rice instead of a statin and it has lowered all my numbers (still working on my LDL of 120). Interesting side note for those that think statins are the answer: I have a friend (55 year old) took Crestor for 10 years, his cholesterol numbers were great, his wife urged him to get a CAC score (he thought it was a waste of time), came back at 2750, Cath lab the next day, 86 % blockage in his LAD, had stent done, great outcome! Moral to the story is cholesterol numbers are not the "tell all" and statins give a false sense of security. His doctors did not request he get a CAC score, I am sure because his numbers looked good. and he had no symptoms other than being tired. Thank God his wife insisted and probably saved his life. I just think there are missing links and conclusive testing that can be developed or implemented to help those of us in this "wait and watch" phase after receiving a high CAC score.

Thank you, I think I have anxiety when I dwell on my sickness. Thanks again

debwellmadebeh,

Are you saying your friend was cathed because of a CAC score? Unless symptomatic or had some other issue, cardiologists do not do this. You know that stains also increase calcification of existing plaque, making the plaque far less likely to break loose?

And, your anti-statin tone is pretty clear when you write things like, "Interesting side note for those that think statins are the answer:" Statins do what they are supposed to do ... and, red yeast rice has some potential side effects ... have you read about them, not to mention not working as well as statins.

Yes, his cardiologists sent him to the Cath lab with that CAC score and no symptoms, other than being tired (apparently it is not common but his did). Thank goodness he did because it was needed. My point about our friend is that being on the statins gave a false sense of security (in essence) because his cholesterol numbers were good but obviously the cath procedure proved otherwise @ 86% blockage. I have done a tremendous amount of research on statins and in my opinion if you can do other things (diet, exercise, and supplements) that is a better option in MY situation and it has proven to be effective to this point. I am not saying Statins don’t do their job but the side effects can be debilitating so I was offering another solution for those that live in the anxious space of a high calcium score.

Yep - research is good, but do you have the technical science and medical background to understand?

I do my research and then inquire with doctors. Your comments seem a bit aggressive, this is a forum for those of us with real health issues, please don’t use this platform to carry out passive/aggressive comments. There are many people in my same boat (based on what I read here), I was simply stating my situation and another situation for others to draw info from.

Therapy might be the answer, this is a mental thing, panic attacks are brain driven, the signals are messed up.

Work on your subconscious mind, it is the controller of your conscious mind, right before you go to sleep every night feed your subconscious mind the same thought, I do not have a heart problem, eventually the subconscious will feed this to your conscious mind and it will believe it, then move onto to your next issue.

There are many good books out there about the power of the subconscious mind, Amazon has many.

Take your power back, stop fear in its tracks by reprogramming your mind. Get rid of the crutch that is holding you back, reframe your mind.

Good Luck!