heart in pain

[a111087]

Well,
recently I had a pain for about a day. It's in the left side of the chest, dull not sharp, and it hurts mostly when I lay on my back or stomach. When i' on my side, or walking, its almost gone.
I think it might have something to do with my life stile. I sit in from of PC for the good part of my day, exercise (but maybe once a week), i don't go to bed until ~3AM regularly, often sleep 8 hours or less. I have no weight problems, I'm actually skinny guy. :o
The day, during which the pain started was really an example of what tends to happen when i waste time. On tuesday I have a class, for which I have to get up early in a morning to get the in time with my homework done. The day before that, I wasted most of my time and ended up doing homework until 3AM. So, I had about 4 hours of sleep, then woke up and had to drive to class. After a few hours in class, I got home and went to sleep for 2 hours, woke up for about 1 hour and went to sleep for another few hours. I ended up waking up at 11PM and doing stuff after that until ~5AM. That's when I went to sleep, and pain became very obvious (it was very mild and dismissible during the day). Today I feel fine, but for how long?
Oh, and my health insurance is total crap. :eek: I have insurance, but i'm not going to use it unless its an emergency because I know they aren't going to pay much.
What do you think?

[FordGT90Concept]

Where is it in relation to the bottom of the last rib, shoulder joint, and top of the pelvis?

[a111087]

Probably the middle rib, but when the pain gets really big, it spreads all over. Just a centimeter or two to the right and down from left nipple (lol, i said nipple).

[erocker]

Since you do have health insurance, it doesn't cost much for a "check-up" or normal doctor visit. Make an appointment.

[a111087]

well, i will check my insurance book to see how much they cover when it comes to check ups. because last time I had to pay 200$ for going to doctor when i had cold.
oh, and I'm 21yo, if that makes difference.

[twilyth]

acid reflux pain can feel like it is coming from your chest area. It generally is worse when you lie down because it's easier for the stomach acid to slosh into the esophagus.

There are different causes but I think it generally results from a lack of tone in the sphincter muscle that closes the opening from the esophagus to the stomach.

I would go see a doctor though because it's a problem that only gets worse if you don't treat it.

Also, no one here is going to be able to a long distance diagnosis - even if someone does happen to be a doctor (IDK).

If you smoke or have been exposed to chemical vapors, pollutants or whatever, it could be congestion or other blockage in your lungs - but I doubt it.

I don't think you need to worry about your heart. If you ever have a heart attack, there won't be much doubt about what happened. Anyway, they happen quickly so it's not something that would happen over the better part of a day.

IDK if that was a concern, I'm just sayin' . . .

Seriously though, try to make some time to go to your on campus clinic/nurse/whatever. Never ever ever rely on information from the internet to diagnose yourself - I don't care how good the source is.

[FordGT90Concept]

Probably the middle rib, but when the pain gets really big, it spreads all over. Just a centimeter or two to the right and down from left nipple (lol, i said nipple).
Does it cause shortness of breath? Do you get a feeling of impending doom? Or does it just hurt like a bitch with no other real symptoms?

Does it happen mostly after eating something greasy/oily/fatty or a carbonated beaverage?

[a111087]

>Does it cause shortness of breath?
nope
>Do you get a feeling of impending doom?
sure :D
>Or does it just hurt like a bitch with no other real symptoms?
the pain isn't unbearable, but its still strong
>Does it happen mostly after eating something greasy/oily/fatty or a carbonated beaverage?
it happened just one time, but my parents did bring some food the say before from BBQ festival. ribs, sandwiches, fried onions, potato chips...

@twilyth
good point, but i don't exactly trust all the doctors. they lie to their patients because companies are paying them money... oh and there are bad doctors just like there are bad PC technicians

[twilyth]

>Does it cause shortness of breath?
nope
>Do you get a feeling of impending doom?
sure :D
Seriously. That's like asking if the earth is round. If I don't feel like I'm doomed I know someone spiked my drink.

good point, but i don't exactly trust all the doctors. they lie to their patients because companies are paying them money... oh and there are bad doctors just like there are bad PC technicians
That's true, but you shouldn't extrapolate to an illogical extreme. A small percentage are incompetent but you can usually avoid the worst one's by talking to friends and relatives. Odds are they have a regular PCP (primary care physician) they've been seeing for years. Or just try the yellow pages. That's how I found my current doctor and he makes the guy on House look like an amateur - no joke. Sometimes you luck out.

You can wait and see what happens, but they call things like this 'chronic' for a reason. Once you've done enough damage to cause pain, it's possible it will heal on it's own but it will be a much longer process - if it happens at all. And even once you start treating it, it can take several weeks before the symptoms are completely gone. I know that from personal experience.

Also, the foods you mentioned are prime candidates for aggravating GERD. The spicy stuff is obvious, but what people don't realize is that fat makes your stomach churn out more acid. that's because fat isn't water soluble and has to be hydrolyzed in order to be absorbed.

[a111087]

I looked up GERD and some symptoms do sound like me. (https://www.google.com/health/ref/Gastroesophageal+reflux+disease)
I also consume a lot of chocolate, caffeine, onions, garlic, citrus juices, and tomato products. Sleeping with the head of the bed elevated!!! (that's what I did the day before, because I felt like I was going to vomit!)
well, it doesn't sound too serious to me... not until i compete college and get a decent job :)

[FordGT90Concept]

>Does it cause shortness of breath?
nope
>Do you get a feeling of impending doom?
sure :D
>Or does it just hurt like a bitch with no other real symptoms?
the pain isn't unbearable, but its still strong
>Does it happen mostly after eating something greasy/oily/fatty or a carbonated beaverage?
it happened just one time, but my parents did bring some food the say before from BBQ festival. ribs, sandwiches, fried onions, potato chips...
Heartburn/acid reflux most likely. You could try popping a Pepcid Complete and see if it helps.

I really can't say much more than that because there's lots of treatments for acid reflux/heartburn. Generally you start with an antacid as the situation arises. If that doesn't work, try taking Prilosec OTC daily. If that doesn't work, you'd have to see a doctor about prescription pump inhibitors like Nexium and Protonix (both hella expensive).

If antacid doesn't help at all, see a doc immediately.


Once in a while isn't serious. Three or more episodes a week is.

Elevating a bed would only really help if you wake up with symptoms. The pain is purely mechanical (acid touching the esophagus and other tissues that aren't resistant to it) if you don't feel it, it most likely isn't there.


Seriously. That's like asking if the earth is round. If I don't feel like I'm doomed I know someone spiked my drink.
If you're suffering a heart attack, that's one of the symptoms. Take it with a rather large portion of salt though.

[a111087]

Do you get a feeling of impending doom?

I though it was a joke, but no, it was just another pain. :) besides, i had rare sharp pain in my chest since i was ~12. and even at birth, they told my parents that my heart beat was somewhat irregular, or something like that.
If I die, I want people to bury me in an empty field under a big open sky, no rip signs, crosses, or crying people please.

[twilyth]

If you're suffering a heart attack, that's one of the symptoms. Take it with a rather large portion of salt though.

Sorry dude, that was just my warped sense of humor. It's like looking at that painting The scream (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Scream) and wondering why that guy is so happy. I'm always expecting the worst to happen - but simply because that's how things seem to work. OK, I'm half kidding - but just half. :)

http://pupillageandhowtogetit.files.wordpress.com/2009/04/homer_the_scream.jpg

[FordGT90Concept]

I though it was a joke, but no, it was just another pain. :)
That's why I ignored your response to that one and excluded heart attack in my suggestions. ;)


http://pupillageandhowtogetit.files.wordpress.com/2009/04/homer_the_scream.jpg
That pic made me laugh. XD

[JC316]

Could be pluracy pain. Basically it's the lining on the lungs rubbing against the ribs. Hurts like hell, but completely non fatal and usually only happens once in a blue moon.

[dr emulator (madmax)]

120do you smoke ? do you smoke weed ?
sometimes smoking can cause heart and lung problems (especialy if you don't get any exercise) alternatively you might just have strained yourself somehow , get to a doc ,i don't know how much it costs in your region but it'll put your mind at rest;)

[a111087]

do you smoke ? do you smoke weed ?

I don't do any of that and i don't drink either. I already stopped on acid reflux

I read more of the following and it seems to make sense:
http://www.healthcastle.com/acid_reflux.shtml

[FordGT90Concept]

Most of the info on that site I'd take with a large quantity of salt (especially the emphasis of eating smaller meals). Here's a far more credible source:
http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/gerd/DS00967

[a111087]

^ I hate when people disagree even small and what seems to be simple things like that.
Well, its been a week since I had the pain. So, it seems to me, it was one time thing. :)
Thanks everyone! I was hopping to beat "Got attacked by motorbike gangs..." thread by number of views and we did it! :D