Hello everyone, I hope all is well!
I would like to discuss a breathing issue I have. It is probably one of my most if not the most bothersome chronic symptom I have:
I have been dealing with this issue for about a couple years and it has been getting worse overtime. It is not bad enough where I need to go seek emergency care, but it does become bothersome and worrisome. I have seen my primary care physician (PCP) and the physician’s assistant (PA) for this issue (total of 2 visits), and the PA recommended that I try an inhaler which I did try, but it did not help and it just made it worse. I have also tried a diffuser with Eucalyptus Oil and that also made it worse. I have also tried Buteyko breathing, but I didn’t get much benefit from it. I will probably need to revisit it. Both my PCP and PA recommended that I see a psychiatrist, which I did and then he suggested that I ask POIScenter about this issue, so I will.
The sensation feels like my nasal airways or neck airways are constricting and it is difficult passing air through these airways. I would have to go outside to find relief and sometimes I won’t find any relief going outside until about 10 minutes later. I don’t want to rely on breathing through my mouth. I don’t really notice other symptoms aside from anxiety, when I get these breathing episodes. My breathing is alright when I am outside in decent weather, not so much if it is too hot or too cold. My breathing issue gets worse when I have a mask on for more than an hour, sometimes when I wake up in my sleep (gets better when I walk around to make breakfast), when it is really hot or cold, or when I am in a room where windows/doors are closed or have a lack of windows. I believe POIS can also make this issue worse. I also suspect that it comes from anxiety/social anxiety because there is sometimes anxiety involved when I get these episodes; it is almost like a (anxiety) attack.
Maybe this issue is psychophysiological. Maybe this is a separate issue from POIS. There were times where I didn’t feel anxious or should not be and I still get these breathing episodes. For example and in fact, in Winter 2018, I remember going on a family trip to a mountain that is over 6,140 feet in elevation. I was excited and not anxious. The higher we drove up the mountain, the more I was feeling out of breath, (we were going up the mountain for the snow, but I don’t believe cold temperatures affected me at this point.) When we reached our destination (about more than halfway up the mountain and the whole area covered in snow), I got out of the car and I had trouble breathing seconds later. I can’t describe the sensation I had, all I remember is that I had trouble breathing when I got out of the car. The cold temperature may have played a role at this point, but I don’t remember complaining too much about the cold. I have been to the same destination back in winter 2016, and I did not have any trouble with breathing.
I suspect that my breathing issue may be from weak POIS allergy symptoms like runny nose and post nasal drip with increased mucus production after O. If this is the case, I will try to experiment with antihistamines. I have read on a POIScenter thread that MCAS could be one cause. I have also read many other threads about POISers with breathing issues some of them with solutions, and I am going to look into them. Deep breathing exercises help the most with this problem, but they can also sometimes be uncomfortable to perform when the breathing issue is at its worst. Many jobs require face masks and it is difficult searching for a job knowing this issue can affect me when I have a face mask on for too long.
While I make another appointment with my primary care doctor for this, since I have POIS and I know this breathing issue will affect me again, I thought I’d ask, has anyone else dealt with this issue? And if so, have you been able to treat it?
Thanks for reading!
