Chest pain due to anxiety: symptoms, causes and treatment.

A type of discomfort that has to do with physiological activation in stressful situations.

Choking sensation, hyperventilation, paresthesia, loss of control of the body... are common symptoms of anxiety crises. But if there is a symptom that especially generates the fear of dying when we have one of these crises is the existence of chest pain.

And it is that the pain in the chest by anxiety is a really annoying symptomIt is often taken by those who suffer it for the first time as an indication of the beginning of the end. Throughout this article we will talk about this type of pain, indicating some of its causes and how to treat it.

Anxiety chest pain: basic symptoms.

When we speak of chest pain due to anxiety we refer to the perception of pain generated by the somatization of an anxious state. by the somatization of an anxious state that can occur in the context of an anxiety crisis, as a prodrome of this one or before the perception of a continued stress without having to arrive at a crisis.

This pain is usually perceived and classified as stabbing, being usual that is given in the form of pricks and that can appear in different points of the torso. The pain of this type usually disappears quickly (they can reach a quarter of an hour, but most often do not last more than a few minutes), and does not change so much if we do or not physical efforts.

In addition to the pain itself it is usual that appear together with it symptoms such as hyperventilation, numbness of the extremities, numbness of the extremities and a habitual feeling of going crazy, dying or losing control over one's own body completely.

Frequent confusion with Heart problems

Chest pain is a frequent phenomenon in the somatization of anxiety, but as we mentioned in the introduction, the fact that it is also a typical symptom of heart problems, especially angina pectoris and myocardial infarction, means that both problems are often confused.

There are many similarities but they can be distinguished by the fact that in the case of heart disease pain the pain is usually more specific to specific points of the chest and arm (although it should be borne in mind that the typical symptoms of infarction usually refer to the case of men, the localization being more generalized in the case of women), tend to persist over time and worsen with physical exertion. and, unlike anxiety, there are usually no respiratory alterations or loss of control.

In any case, it is possible that a cardiac problem can generate anxiety and it is advisable to go as soon as possible to a medical service to ensure that the problem in question is anxiety and not a real medical problem.

Causes

Considering that chest pain due to anxiety is not the result of heart disease, it is legitimate to ask why it occurs. The ultimate cause is the suffering of a high level of anxiety. However, the reason why the somatization of anxiety appears in the form of pain is due to many physiological is due to numerous physiological aspects that can appear as a consequence of the activation produced by this one.

First of all, when we are stressed, afraid or anxious we are generating a high level of adrenaline and cortisol, something that at a physiological level translates into the activation of the sympathetic autonomic nervous system (responsible for activating the body to allow reactions such as fight or flight). When the anxiety crisis arises, this activation generates a high muscular tension in order to prepare the body to respond quickly. This continued tension can generate a certain level of pain in different parts of the body. in different parts of the body, the chest being one of them.

Fear and nervousness also tend to generate an increase in pulmonary activity, leading to hyperventilation. This hyperventilation also involves a high level of movement of the thoracic musculature and the diaphragm, which, together with muscular tension, favors pain. In addition, the fact of constantly taking short and superficial inhalations causes the sensation of choking to appear, which in turn will generate more nervous activation and a greater number of inhalations.

Another frequent alteration in moments of anxiety and that participates in the pain in the chest by anxiety is the alteration of the gastric motility and the dilation of the digestive tract, which can even generate a clenching of the stomach.which can even generate a pinching in the nerves of the torso, or the accumulation of gases in the stomach that can rise to the chest and generate pain.

Treatment

To treat chest pain due to anxiety, first of all, the cause that generates it, that is to say, the anxiety itself, must be treated.

At a cognitive level, the first thing to assess is why the feeling of anxiety has arisen. analyze what external or internal factors stir and agitate us internally to such an extent that our body needs to express it through the body. to such an extent that our body needs to express it through the body.

It is also necessary to evaluate if we are in front of something before which we can or cannot act directly. If we can do something to change it, we can try to generate some kind of behavioral modification or develop a strategy to solve the problem in question. In case the anxiety is due to something uncontrollable and unmodifiable, we will have to to restructure our way of relating to the situation.. It would be a matter of relativizing the problem, reducing its importance and assessing whether it or its possible consequences are really so relevant for the subject.

Another aspect that can be of great help is the training and practice of different relaxation exercises, especially taking into account breathing, although muscle relaxation techniques are also useful. Yoga, meditation or mindfulness are also very useful practices that make it difficult for anxiety to set in and allow us to relativize anxiogenic situations.

If we are in the middle of an anxiety crisis, the first thing to consider is that anxiety is not going to kill us and that this pain is temporary and a product of our own reaction to it. We must try, as far as possible, to calm down (although it is not easy). Also We must also try to focus on our breathingWe should also try to focus on our breathing, avoiding hyperventilation as much as possible and try to take slow, deep breaths. The crisis will eventually pass.

Bibliographical references:

• Barker, P. (2003). Psychiatric and Mental Health Nursing: The Craft of Caring. London: Edward Arnold.
• Seligman, M.E.P.; Walker, E.F.; Rosenhan, D.L. Abnormal psychology (4th ed.). New York: W.W. Norton & Company.
• Sylvers, Patrick; Lilienfeld, Scott O.; Laprairie, Jamie L. (2011). "Differences between trait fear and trait anxiety: Implications for psychopathology". Clinical Psychology Review. 31 (1): 122 - 37.