Lying on right side/ringing in ears...

[Lorenz86]

Lately I've been having the fear that my heart is going to give out and I am going to have a heart attack, I have these bad thought's that I cant seem to shake off... Can't quite go to sleep until like 3am when sleep finally beats me.

I am also scared of lying on right side of my body cause I think I am squeezing my heart and preventing it from doing what it needs to do. I constantly check my heart beat to make sure it's not doing anything crazy and I am just constantly living with this horrible impending doom feeling every day!!!

I also have ringing in my ears that seem to kinda speed up and speed back down within a second. I don't know if that makes any sense but that's the best way I can explain it. All of this seems to get 10x worse at night. Any Ideas on how I can shake all these thought's and keep my mind busy?

2 nights ago I experienced a horrible feeling that I was dying and could not breath, Its seemed like I was awake but then I woke up and everything seemed ok, no racing heart or difficulty breathing. I don't know if anyone has experienced this. I am a little confused on wether it actually happened or I was dreaming. This is the 1st time that has ever happened to me.

I play basketball 2x a week for like 3 hrs straight and feel perfectly fine. I have been reading that people with heart problems shouldn't go crazy with exercise. So again I am confused on wether I have a heart problem or just anxiety/panic kicking in. I've been to the E.R once thinking I was having a heart attack but they ran test's and they said everything was fine. Haven't been back to see a DR since the E.R visit.

Thanks for reading and any comment is gratefully appreciated. God bless.

[Dcoito]

This is a classic case of anxiety! And it's your thoughts that's making your sensations, the more you think of this as heart trouble the more symptoms you will get! You need to let go of the thoughts, and worry, and just let the sensations be there without thinking about them, like being out in the cold gives you goosebumps! But the goosebumps are not harmful so you don't think about them even tho they are there! Same thing. Once you train your brain that your ok, and your not going to die! You will notice the symptoms subsiding.
Make sure to have a follow up with your doctor as well, perhaps have blood work done too if it has been along time as well as a physical. It can give you even a greater piece of mind!

[JLBnole68]

If you play basketball 2 times per week for 3 hours continuously and feel fine, then that should tell you that your heart is perfectly ok. If there was something wrong, you would definitely know it because your heart would let you know that something was wrong. If you're still worried even after the ER evaluation, talk with your doctor. I used to worry a lot about heart problems, but my doc sent me to a heart institute where cardiologists did a thorough evaluation including EKG, treadmill stress test, 24-hour Holter monitor, etc. After all the thorough testing, it was determined that my heart was perfectly normal. The thoroughness of it really put my mind at ease. That's not to say that when my heart races it doesn't bother me. It does. But being able to recognize it for exactly what it is...anxiety... has helped me tremendously. Stop checking your pulse and start occupying your mind with other things at night. Find a relaxing routine to help you wind down, like a good book, find something funny to read or watch (laughter will change your whole frame of mind), soak in a warm bath, listen to relaxing music, turn on a loud fan to occupy your thoughts and keep your subconscious mind busy, find a guided video on YouTube for muscle relaxation techniques, start keeping a journal and write down how you feel when you're feeling this way. You'd be surprised at how much just having to write what you feel will actually make your mind refocus and the symptoms subside. In other words, find anything to keep occupied that you also find relaxing. You're going to be just fine. Your heart is fine. Let it do its job and start refocusing on other things. You'll soon forget about it. Hope this helps.

[raggamuffin]

Hypersensitivity to symptoms. I too have ringing in my ears when it's completely silent. i believe a lot of people do. If you fixate on it you can't sleep because you seem to actively be making the ringing louder by fixating on it. Same with your heartbeat. I used to have the exact same problem, fearing heart attacks and hearing/feeling nothing but my heart beating at night when trying to sleep.

You need to distract yourself. Remember you're not in danger of having a heart attack doing sports for 6 hours a week. That's very good exercise.

When trying to sleep just think of what you did during the day or conjur up a narrative and just go with it. YOu'll wind up asleep before you know it. It's when you really fixate on symptoms or worrying about getting to sleep when you start tossing and turning for hours.

Hope you feel better soon, but as others have said this is classic anxiety talking.

Ed

[Lorenz86]

You guys are the best!!! Dcoito, JLBnole68, raggamuffin!!! Sometimes It's just a little reassurance that someone needs. I know you guys know that even thought DR's tell you your fine you still have that what if thought... But your guy's input was very helpful.... Thank you all=D

[Dcoito]

It's the what ifs that will rule you if you let em! Change those what ifs into something positive!

[JCX]

Yeah I get the ear ringing a lot

[em1]

Yeah I get the ear ringing a lot

Hey JCX how's things?

[JLBnole68]

You're very welcome! Hope the reassurance and suggestions help. We've all been there and understand how scary it can be. I've dealt with anxiety off and on for many years. I'm also glad to say there's been many years in between that I've been pretty much anxiety-free. My medication (I'm currently on Lexapro), has helped tremendously, but it's not a magic bullet to cure all symptoms. The more tools you have to relax, calm your mind and restore rational thinking, the faster you'll find a path to kicking anxiety for good. Even if you kick it and it comes back later on down the road, you'll at least have ways to put your mind and body back on the path to recovery. I wish you all the best.

[Deborahrbly]

Up........................... up................ top !!!!!!!!!!