Angina/ Coronary artery disease? (sinus, pain, kidney stones, blood pressure)

[fantasy09]

I have always had sharp stabbing pain happen in my right side as far as I can remember.

The pain is sharp, but it has always left as quickly as it has come.

I got curious a few years ago, and It seems I strongly have the symptoms of Angina.

However, that didn't deter me from continuing to eat junk food.

This lockdown has also made me eat more and more junk. Just a whole lot of sweets and salty foods.

I am now 206 pounds. I am also 5'6 and female. Middle 30's.

Note: I don't drink or smoke or do drugs. Never have. Disclosing this because I know these too are avoidable risk factors of Angina. I also have been having trouble going and staying asleep for the past three months.

However, what happened this weekend has finally made me see that something is very wrong, and I need to go see a cardiologist.

After eating a lot of junk and quarter pounders this weekend I had a severe episode that made me bend over until the pain passed. It was quick, but I have only had to bend over once before with the chest pain and that was 3 years ago. This also happened on my left side. NO shoulder pain though.

Also, this pain traveled from my right side to my left. My left arm kinda stung too. All this happened within seconds Saturday. I was at rest in bed when the pain hit and I had to bend over for it to stop.

Disclosure: I just gobbled down a huge amount of junk food(burgers, candy, soda) back to back barely an hour earlier. As a matter of fact that entire week was just back-to-back junk food.

I have not eaten anything salty or sweet since late Sunday. I called the heart doctor today and I have an appointment for late August.

BP as of today is 143/87.

The lowest I have ever weighed as an adult was 140, and my chest pains disappeared.

Also when I water or dry fast that helped too. That's why I know my chest pains are related to my obesity.

I wanted to know since I had such a strong pain that had to bend over like that, and I was in bed besides, should I schedule an earlier appointment somewhere else?

Is god forbid a heart attack imminent for me?

Or should I do what I am doing and stay away from the salt and sweets until my appointment in August.

[davidt1]

If what you are doing is helping, keep doing it. If it becomes an emergency, go the ER or call 911. I hope you get better.

[wit-nit]

OP sounds like you have some clogged arteries plus mildly high blood pressure. A cardiologist should get you back on track with a few tests and recommendations. The sooner you get checked out the better. Heart attacks can come with little warning.

[guidoLaMoto]

If this were Vegas where we could bet on anything, I'd put a lot of money on the possibility that you have a traffiic jam going on in your intestines.

The sharp, fleeting nature of the pain suggests gas/pressure build up in the intesitnes/colon- particualry since moving helps and that it moves around...Gall stones are another good bet, with kidney stones a little less likely.

Heart related issues, while not impossible, are way down on the list, but given the malpractice climate, once you bring it up, your doc would be foolish not to order a stress test.

[fantasy09]

I've been going down a rabbit hole on google looking up Angina, Stroke, Coronary Artery Disease and I think I am freaking myself out.

After looking up the symptoms for stoke yesterday low and behold this afternoon I got a tingling and numbness sensation down my right arm, shoulder, and fingers. I freaked out about it of course. So I did the exercises that show you aren't suffering from a stroke. (both arms up above your head for ten seconds, smile so no facial weakness, etc) and I passed them.

I have even been so scared that since Monday I refuse to eat anything fattening, salty or sweet. Instead, I have only been drinking one Advanced Nutrition Slim-Fast, One Large Banana, and Water. I intend to do this until my August 11 cardiologist appointment.

As I type this my left arm is now tingling just like my right arm was for seconds today, and the right side of my chest under my breastbone is having little pinpricks.

I even went on Reddit and found people have the same symptoms that I listed in both my posts, and they too thought horrible thoughts, and yet when they went to the emergency room and a cardiologist all test that you can do for the heart came back negative.

Full Disclosure I have been clinically diagnosed with Anxiety.

[Parnassia]

So, you've been feeding your anxiety by reading who-knows-what (garbage as well as non-garbage) on the Web? Stop! It isn't helping, its hurting and could even be making the problem worse. Sounds as if you already have some understanding about this but refuse to help yourself by controlling that impulse. As you say yourself, some of this has always gone on for you. Obviously it isn't an immediate threat.

Write your questions down as they come up in your head, and discuss them with your doctor at your upcoming appointment...you know, the person who can actually order the tests that can diagnose or rule out the actual problem.

[tickyul]

No need to wait for a medical diagnosis to improve your health.

Eating a quality diet most of the time will do this.

[davidt1]

Originally Posted by tickyul

No need to wait for a medical diagnosis to improve your health.

Eating a quality diet most of the time will do this.

Very true. Six weeks ago I was having abdominal pains every night. It was my body telling me to fix what I was doing. I improved my diet. The pains went away after two days.

[oldgardener]

Stop eating all that crap.

Schedule a physical exam.

Stop googling your symptoms.

[fantasy09]

Even though I stopped a day ago DR. Google still did a number on me because this morning I woke up with my heart beating like crazy, as well as dizzy and my mouth was super dry, and I could barely open it. My neck hurt as well. Of course, my mind went into extra overdrive and said YEP A STROKE! I KNEW IT!

So I booked it to the emergency room.

They took a comprehensive metabolic panel, most of them came back perfect. However, the one for my kidney and Chloride was up a little though, but he said just that tiny bit means dehydration. My AST(SGPT) was low though. He didn't go into what that meant.

They also did an EKG and of course, it came back perfect too.

I asked how in the world can that be when I have had chest pain so severe I fell to the ground.

He said that other things besides heart-related issues can be doing it like stress and even my lungs.

For decades though?

Full Disclosure I have been diagnosed with Chronic Sinusitis.

I asked was it pointless to even still go to my cardiologist appointment, and he said no because they will do a deeper dive like echocardiograms and stress tests to truly rule it out or not.