Can anxiety disorder cause a discomfort in the chest?

Question

Hello doctor,

I am a 36-year-old woman with family history of heart disease. For a couple of days, I have been feeling discomfort in my chest, like my heart gets squeezed and I have chest discomfort on the left top part of my chest, like six fingers down my clavicle. I also have a lot of fatigue, specially from 10 AM to 1 PM. The discomfort gets worse when I am laying on my back and I can feel my heart moving in my chest in an unusual way and the squeezing feeling coming and going. I have had anxiety disorder for almost 20 years but this does not feel like my usual anxiety. I am worried and not knowing exactly what to do.

Answer 1

Hello,

Welcome to icliniq.com.

Classical cardiac chest pain is a sensation as if an elephant is sitting on your chest. It lasts from a few seconds to minutes and could be provoked by exertion. What you are feeling is classified as atypical chest pain but you also have palpitations. Do you have a way to check your blood pressure and heart rate? Please let me know.

Answer 2

Hi,

Welcome back to icliniq.com.

It is a good idea for you to walk into an urgent care and let them check your vitals and get an EKG. Meanwhile, take an Aspirin 81 mg/d. The issue with atypical chest pain is that you cannot rule out 100 % that there is no underlying cardiac pathology until you get EKG and basic blood work.