Looking for ideas for how to deal with shortness of breath

Hello buddies,

 

Its been a little while since I last posted.  I thought that I was doing really well after my taper off clonazepam, then around my 1 month anniversary (6/17 actually), anxiety hit me like a ton of bricks and I've been experiencing shortness of breath issues constantly.  I thought it was asthma at first, but I went to a allergist (since I have allergy induced asthma) and they found me to be breathing normally.  (Now I'm pretty sure that its at least partially because I just scheduled surgery on my neck for next month on the 20th, plus other stress factors in my life) 

 

Knowing that I'm breathing okay doesn't do anything to ease my anxiety about feeling short of breath.  I talked to my shrink about it and he wasn't of much help.  About all I can remember of what he said was "No one ever died from a panic attack", which didn't help me at all.

 

If you have any strategies for how to deal with shortness of breath or know of any supplements that help, I'd really appreciate your input.  I've tried belly breathing, lying down while breathing, a heating pack on my chest (which works for some reason).  Supplements that I'm taking (which hopefully help with anxiety) are: l-theanine, tart cherry extract, magnesium, and omega 3-6-9.

 

Thanks,

 

Mike

Since you see a doctor for allergy induced asthma, maybe he/she would have some suggestions.  The controlled belly breathing works for me although it takes a while before I feel calmer.  Did your doctor do a O2 saturation test, where they put that clip monitor on a finger to measure how much oxygen you are getting?  When I thought I wasn't getting enough oxygen, the doctor had me wear one of those over night and the results showed me at 92% or better which he said was good.  Once I knew it was just another fake sensation, I stopped worrying about it, although it surely felt uncomfortable. 

 

Since you acknowledge that you are nervous/anxious about your upcoming surgery - and who wouldn't be? - it would probably help to just focus on reducing your general anxiety as well.  Good luck next week.

 

 

Since you already saw a doctor and all is well, the only advice I can give you is to try to be aware of your breathing when you start to feel off. When I get nervous I can easily hyperventilate becasue I start breathing in short quick breathes without realizing it.

I've been working on deep slow breathing and it makes a big difference. Sometimes I just close my eyes and concentrate on the air, visualizing it going in and and spreading to my bloodstream, etc. Sometimes the calming effect is almost immediate.

 

Hope this helps a little.

I'm curious:  how did your allergist detect that you don't have asthma and that your breathing was fine.  I have been dealing with this issue for months and deep breathing exercises helps.  Sorry.....I know it is a difficult symptom but it should get better in the near future?

 

Patty  xo

Thanks for all the suggestions.  I've been working on deep breathing exercises and I also bought an audiobook from Dr. Claire Weekes on iTunes that has helped me understand my anxiety better.  Both of those together have helped tremendously.  I didn't realize that I was making things worse for myself by overanalyzing the symtoms that I was feeling, trying to make sense of them - especially he shortness of breath. 

 

Stonyco - the allergist determined that I don't have "real" asthma by doing a "airflow" test (I can't remember the exact name).  Basically I blew into a tube that was attached to a computer, which measured how much air I could blow out.  Because I could blow out enough air that put me in the "good" range, I don't have "real" asthma.  I think they called it "type 1" or something like that.  I know that I do have exercise and allergy induced asthma, but those kinds of asthma are treated differently - with allergy shots and steroid nasal sprays (for those that can take them).  I started taking an antihistamine (claritin), so I'm going to have to wait a little while before I can start on allergy testing and shots.

 

Take care all,

 

Mike

Thanks, Mike. 

 

Patty  xo

This might sound weird, but I find that putting a hot heating pad on my chest relieves some of the breathlessness.  I think it helps relax the chest muscles and mimics that warm feeling that you feel after a glass of wine. 

I used a heating pad all the time on my chest.  Drinking hot chamomille tea seeme to ease it a bit, too.

 

Patty  xo

I also find that something warm on my chest and a hot beverage (especially green tea) helps a lot too.

Age86 started to develop the shortness of breath symptom two months after taking Xanax and still has shortness of breath 7 months after his doctor told him to stop cold turkey.  At the two month point the nurse practioner would not change the Xanax she prescribed, but she did write a prescription for an inhaler.  The inhaler never helped on any occasion.  However oxygen did help.  Age86 also had normal oxygen readings via the finger 02 sensor.  As the inhaler didn't help Age86 I don't believe it would help others either.

try this, it helped me a lot: exhale 3 or 4 times, trying to send all the air "out" of your lungs, instead of inhaling trying to fill your lungs. Sry, not good english here but hope this will help you.

What's helped me with breathing problems, is to try to get myself to calm my thoughts down.  It's anxiety related, so anything you can do to calm yourself down will help you to breathe easier.  For me, its to think about other things that are more peaceful and that can bring relaxation to my mind and the body.  Visual imaging for relaxation helps.  Going for a walk too even if I don't feel like it and being in the nature, just looking at the greenery and flowers; looking at a relaxing picture or painting. 

All the suggestions here are great.  None worked for me though because my breathing issues were caused by a black mold issue that I didn't know about until I moved.  I suspected mold for a while, but was assured by the apartment manager that there was no problem. 

 

 

Wow! How did you find out about the mold?

 

We noticed it when we were moving furniture out of our apartment.  We saw it around the baseboards, in places that were hidden by furniture.  I heard that they found a lot more after we moved out and had to decontaminate the place.

 

I had my suspicions early on that mold was the cause of my breathing issues, but I didn't push the issue of getting someone to test for it because of bad wd sx.  Instead I assumed it was all caused by anxiety/wd sx, which led to me doing a number of dumb things that were recommended by docs (various meds).  I would have been a lot better off had I just listened to my instincts. 

All the suggestions here are great.  None worked for me though because my breathing issues were caused by a black mold issue that I didn't know about until I moved.  I suspected mold for a while, but was assured by the apartment manager that there was no problem.

 

Did you get any specific treatment for the mold exposure?  I had the same thing happen only our black mold was in a garbage disposal drain that had a broken seal in a line, in the (hidden) bottoms of a broken dishwasher, and on the underneath side of the lid of a toilet tank. I had a lung infection for 7 months that nobody would treat because there was no fever or sign of bacterial infection. You'd think the green phlegm with blood in it might have cause a concern but I kept being told it must be a virus and no treatment for that.

 

I have now lost weight down to 79 pounds (maybe less but afraid to weight the last few days) and can't seem to resolve my indiagnosable gastrointestinal issues.

 

Did you have illness other than shortness of breath? Have you recovered fully other than your shortness of breath?

What has helped me with feeling like I'm choking and can't breathe is by focusing my mind on something that helps me to relax.  If I can get my thoughts in a different place, it helps.

I found the constant shortness of breath and chest pain can cover other medical difficulties. After 5 trips to the doctor where it was just labeled severe anxiety because of taper I went to an after hours clinic where the doctor listened carefully to my chest, did an immediate chest X-ray and diagnosed me quickly with a deep set bronchial infection and lung damage because it hadn't been looked after for so long. He put me on a strong inhaler and a quick course of antibiotics. I wonder how many symptoms are overlooked as just s/x when there are real medical problems occurring during the tabernacle, because of the multitude of side effects for a long time.

Learning to deep breathe from you abdomin will help with htis and many other problens with anxiety. It does take practice. I practiced at least one hour a day, while on the computer. It was a couple of weeks, but I am able to calm myself when I have a panic attack.