Anyone else experience restricted breathing?

[solantis]

My chest has been feeling tight and my breathing constricted for over a year now and this feeling comes and goes. I've been to three GP's and a homeopath and also went for a resting and stress ECG and all has come out clear.. The most prominent thing they could say was that it is stress and tension related. I've recently done some of the more common blood tests through the lab, the blood pressure and sugar a generally OK but the issue persists.

On the left side more or less slightly above where the heart sits I get a heavy feeling at time and my breathing becomes more constricted. Taking a deep breath gives me some relief until I exhale and the sensation is back. I'll have days when the sensation is there and days when I am 100% fine and I'll be vaping on all of those days.

Since I quite smoking over a year ago its tough to quit the vape also but I've been trying to reduce it lately to help me confirm if it is the vaping or not that is causing this issue.

On days when im feeling fine i'll vape around 8 -12ml per day and on bad days 1 - 4ml per day.

When the sensation is there the only thing that gives me relief is walking / mild exercise. I'm slightly over weight but not fat.

Has anyone else had this or know of anything about it?

 

[CaliGuy]

Your symptoms sound very similar to the symptoms of Pleural thickening. The Pleura is the lining on the outside of the Lungs. It’s a desease that causes extensive scarring that thickens this lining. The condition may cause chest pain and breathing difficulty.

One of my wife’s friends was diagnosed with this, she underwent surgery where they scrapped this lining to remove the tissue that was thickening. She had it on the one Lung only and had a lot of issues with breathing until the operation sorted it out.

I would suggest you find one or two surgeons that specialize in lung condition. Get a second opinion is always worth the extra money spent to finally figure out what is wrong.

As for your case being vape related, it is something that I wouldn’t rule out completely because it’s not fully known what harm vaping does to our lungs.

 

[solantis]

Thanks @CaliGuy Will look into this but I haven't experienced any chest pain only restricted breathing.

 

[CaliGuy]

@solantis lungs as we know are a very complex organ, if it was me I would want someone to inspect it more closely with a sonar or MRI to atleast rule out any physical damage to put my mind at ease.

I hope you get to the bottom of this and fingers crossed that it is nothing too serious.

 

[SmokeyJoe]

Your symptoms sound very similar to the symptoms of Pleural thickening. The Pleura is the lining on the outside of the Lungs. It’s a desease that causes extensive scarring that thickens this lining. The condition may cause chest pain and breathing difficulty.

One of my wife’s friends was diagnosed with this, she underwent surgery where they scrapped this lining to remove the tissue that was thickening. She had it on the one Lung only and had a lot of issues with breathing until the operation sorted it out.

I would suggest you find one or two surgeons that specialize in lung condition. Get a second opinion is always worth the extra money spent to finally figure out what is wrong.

As for your case being vape related, it is something that I wouldn’t rule out completely because it’s not fully known what harm vaping does to our lungs.

Same here. Also had to go for a scraping. Amazing results. However mine was asthma and smoking 2 packs a day related and was caused by thickened mucus in the lining. But as @CaliGuy said, go to a specialist. I was in icu for 2 weeks before they called the specialist, 2 days after scraping i was released. Just to give you an idea, surgeon took out 1 litre of gunk out of my lungs. And not one doctor picked it up, only the specialist.
And no, ENT doc doesnt help shit. You need to see a surgeon specializing in lung conditions

 

[Silver]

Hi @solantis

I smoked for 17 years and switched to vaping nearly 6 years ago
Since I have been vaping, my breathing is definitely slightly improved.
I wouldnt say I had it bad from smoking but it did feel a little tight at times.
Now it feels slightly easier to take in a deep breath.

I do agree with @CaliGuy - go see a specialist. A pulmonologist should be able to figure out if there is anything medically wrong and how to correct it.

 

[solantis]

Thanks gents think I will need to look into this. Oh btw how long did @SmokeyJoe and @CaliGuy's wife's friend have the condition before it got worst?

 

[CaliGuy]

Thanks gents think I will need to look into this. Oh btw how long did @SmokeyJoe and @CaliGuy's wife's friend have the condition before it got worst?

My wifes friend struggled for just over a year and a half before it was correctly diagnosed and operated on. Her GP at the time used to prescribe cortisone to treat inflammation before the specialist diagnosed the actual problem.