I couldn’t have explained it better…I’ve had so many different types of chest pain, and it’s so hard to know whether it’s heart pain, PsA or indigestion/heartburn!
Contrary to what some might think, typical heart attack pain isn’t sharp. At least that wasn’t my experience and that’s what my doctors have told me. All I can say about it is that it’s “different”…when I had the blockage the pain I had was scary–a lot of pressure and “pain” up my throat to the roof of my mouth. My brother had the same symptoms when he had a heart attack. People typically break into a cold sweat and feel nauseous, especially if they exert themselves at all. Probably the best thing to do when you’re not sure is get up and walk several paces and see if the chest thing gets worse and makes you feel more ill–if it’s PsA or indigestion it probably won’t give you those additional symptoms. If you truly think it’s your heart, chew 4 baby aspirins (or 1 325 mg aspirin)–my daughter works in the ER and that’s the first action they take when someone comes in with chest pain.
My coronary artery problems are hereditary, but I also think all the inflammation I’ve had from PsA over the years greatly contributed to it. So, like the others told you, it wouldn’t hurt to see a cardiologist. They might at least do a stress test (treadmill). If they see something suspicious with your heart from that, they’ll probably want to do an angiogram.
Good luck with finding answers, Nicole!
Gosh, I remember those days…I can tell you I haven’t had a bit of tendinitis in my wrists and hands since I started Enbrel almost 3-1/2 years ago! Don’t miss it one bit and I’m hoping it never comes back!
Hi Nicole, just a quick note here: If you are having chest pain, unless it is the same pain you commonly get, and you are unable to get in to see your GP it might be wise to get to an ER and have it checked out, just in case… I too have experienced chest pain (lasted for months), a few years ago before I was diagnosed with PsA… my GP thought it may have been chostochondritis but as inflammatory markers came back OK he didn’t pursue it further… Now I think he was probably right with his original diagnoses (especially as a full work up didn’t show anything wrong with my heart), it always better to safe than sorry though
Just a quick update. I have seen a GP this afternoon. He doesn’t think it’s anything cardiac. But to be on the safe side, I have been booked in for an ECG . He does think it is related to my PsA and could be inflammation of my costochondral joints. Having bloods taken but knowing me it will probably show up clear.
I’m still having pain on exertion (if I do anything that includes lifting and running) and I do have tenderness from my collarbone all the way down my sternum. I will try to rest (although this isn’t my vocabulary) and hopefully I should be OK to return to work on Wednesday.
Thank you for all your support and advice today. It was greatly appreciated
Yes I had continued pain on lifting, shifting or just walking. I don’t do running:grinning: But I had it on twisting or turning too. After the initial shock of the literally breath reducing pain, as always with things PsA, I got more used to it. That’s not to say the pain and incapacity decreased, it’s simply that I sadly just got used to it. I never got it checked out cardiac wise as it mostly wasn’t what I thought cardiac pain was. But as a female (considering we suffer cardiac pain differently to men) I was probably stupid not to.
However for years before PsA I suffered sore ribs sometimes, nothing like that though, more like a persistent ‘stitch’ in my ribs. And for all of my life no one but no one can touch my collar bones. Or I’ll probably hit them. Seriously.
It did though eventually go though. Thankfully. My PsA is much more comfortable settling in my feet, tendons up my legs from my feet, and my hands and elbows. Sigh…
Interestingly it went when I finally decided to give mindfullness a proper go. All that slow deep easy non stressful breathing for 15 or 30 minutes at a go with the help of an app truly helped. Could have been a coincidence but I think not. All that letting go of ‘what if’ incessantly helped too. It’s a really good way to just go ‘whoosh’ sometimes and that can help to turn off the incessant worry one’s brain thinks is so necessary, for just long enough to decrease the utter terror such pain induces.
Be kind to yourself as regards work too. For me being at work works better when I do ‘slowly, slowly catchee monkey’ stuff instead of ‘s**t I must show up now as it’s been 2 days or x days since I went off sick’. Sometimes even just a day feeling lots better but off work helps so much when I do go back to work. It provides a cogent ability of proper stamina for when I am at work, which is what my employers expect too. And so takes pressure off them and me. ‘Rest’ sadly now must become part of your vocabularly, That and the dreaded ‘pacing’ too. And if you’re anything like me welcome to the temper trantrums about both. But I am learning better, honestly. There is hope.
Not to be pushy, Nicole, but I’d suggest asking about a stress test, too. Or a CT of your heart. The pain from your collar bone down to your sternum is interesting …a few weeks before I had my coronary blockage I had steady pain–I should say achiness–just below each collar bone. I thought it was tendonitis, because I had tendonitis there before I went on Enbrel. But why would I suddenly have tendonitis there, as Enbrel was working?! I was also very stressed out at work. After the fact, I realized–at least I’m pretty sure–that “tendonitis” was a warning signal of what was yet to come!
And, everybody, listen up! Stress can be a huge cause of heart attacks. I never believed that until what happened to me (I had also never been as stressed out as I was for about 6 months at my job just prior to my incident).
Good call Grandma, stress, particularly chronic, can have some severe physiological effects.
Anyone who has taken long term steroids knows what that can do to almost all body systems - immune, insulin, hormones, cholesterol, autonomic system dysfunction, just to name a few.
Chronic stress has lots of physiologic impacts - including chronically high cortisol production, which some people might find has some similar effects to long term steroids - which the rest of the body finds it hard to cope with.
That’s without even considering neuorology or brain re-wiring!
Thanks for the advice. I agreed stress does play a huge part on how we feel as well as how our condition behaves. I do try to keep work at work and home at home, but alas this isn’t always possible. More often work spills into homelife and it not only affects the family but I do end up having a flare up or have a rough time managing my joint pain.
I’m glad to say the chest pains have eased, but I spent last week at home completely exhausted. I didn’t have energy for anything. This is a good example of how overworking can cause an imbalance and I’m left feeling absolutely rubbish.
