You may be feeling some tightness in your chest but you are not quite sure about the reason why you are feeling this way. It does not mean that just because the tightness goes away, you know that this is something that you should not worry about anymore. This is not the case at all. You have to be concerned but you do not have to panic immediately. Besides, panicking may cause your chest to tighten even more.
You have to take note of the type of tightness that you usually feel. Is the tightness bearable that it bothers you but you know that you can still do other things? Perhaps you are feeling a sort of tightness that makes it extremely hard for you to function. You need to take note of these things because when you go to the doctor, the doctor would ask a lot of questions related to what you are feeling. Through your answers, doctors may know what they need to look for.
Sometimes, tightness in chest may signify a larger problem. This is the reason why you should have yourself checked by the doctor immediately. You cannot diagnose yourself. Doctors usually have to run a series of tests before they will get to know what is troubling you.
10 COMMON CAUSES OF TIGHTNESS IN CHEST
- Angina
If in case you are not familiar with Angina, this is known to be the pain that emanates from the heart. Usually, when the blood vessels become lined up with fat, blood does not flow as well as they should to the heart. This can cause the blood to get stuck and the heart to stop pumping because it does not get enough blood anymore.
You will usually know if you are suffering from Angina if you would feel some pain when you are doing tasks that are more stressful than usual. You may also feel all sorts of pain all though the different parts of your body. When you rest, the pain will go away again.
- Indigestion
You may be surprised about this but when your stomach and your other digestive organs are unable to digest the food, you can be sure that the acid will travel going up your esophagus. There are different reasons why people suffer from indigestion.
A lot of people suffer from the condition because of their poor diet. There are some people who eat fast food every day so they do not get enough nutrients that their body may need. At the same time, some develop indigestion because of stress and even some vices like smoking or drinking. Sometimes, going through a complete lifestyle change can lessen situations of indigestion and this can also reduce the moments when people would be suffering because of the tightness in their chest.
- Infection of the Gallbladder
You may think that the gallbladder is already a bit far from the chest so it can be a bit peculiar for you that you will begin to feel tightness in your chest because of your gallbladder but you have to know now that it is possible.
When your gallbladder becomes infected because of various reasons, you will begin to feel some type of pain and tightness on your chest area. If in case you would like to have yourself treated at the soonest possible time, you may need some medications but if it is already severe, surgery may be the best option.
pt>
- Pleurisy
For those who are not familiar with this condition, this is an infection that happens around the lungs. Usually, people can tell when they have this condition when they begin to feel pain when they are breathing. Even coughing can cause bouts of pain in the chest area.
If you are wondering why this is not a condition that is commonly reported, this is because it is not common but it does not mean that just because it does not often already means that it will not affect you too. Have yourself checked if you suspect that you have this condition because this might progress to more serious conditions that will affect the lungs.
- Myocardial Infarction
You may be well aware that Myocardial Infarction is heart attack. Usually, a heart attack happens when one of the arteries that supplies blood and oxygen becomes blocked. This will cause the heart to act up and the pain can be different depending on the severity of the attack.
This is a very serious condition because the moment that blocked part of the heart muscle is not restored, it may die. This can cause a serious problem for people who may have this condition. There are some treatments that are being made available in order to stop the possibility of the attack but it may be harder to cure when the person has already suffered from the heart attack.
- Costochronditis
You may not be aware that aside from the bones that protect the lungs, there are also some joints that may be located in the chest area. While they do a lot to protect the organs, there are times when they may become inflamed. Whenever any of the joints become inflamed, this can become a problem because it will cause chest pain and chest tightness.
You can usually tell if the type of pain that you are feeling is due to this condition if the type of pain and tightness is usually stabbing on some parts of your chest. You are recommended to have yourself checked immediately in order to get rid of the inflammation.
- Stress
Do you know that stress can cause tightness in your chest area? This is because you are thinking too much and you are already causing your organs to become erratic. The pain that you will feel when you are suffering from stress is located at the right side of your chest.
You have to remember that the pain may worsen the more stressed that you become and this can be problematic because it might progress to a serious condition that you will find hard to avoid. Doing some lifestyle changes can help get rid of stress. You are also required to lessen the stressful situations you are exposed to.
- Pneumonia
You have to understand that pneumonia is a serious condition because this can let the lungs be filled up with fluid so a person is unable to breathe. At times, people drown in lung fluids so they die because of the condition.
One of the symptoms of the condition is experiencing pain and tightness in the chest area. You have to remember that there are so many types of pneumonia but you can avoid the most common ones by having a vaccine.
- Hepatitis
When a person has hepatitis, this means that the liver is inflamed. People who are suffering from hepatitis usually report that they also experience pain and tightness on their chest area probably because the different organs of the body are connected with each other.
Aside from hepatitis, other types of liver inflammation can also cause some tightness on the chest area. If you suspect that your liver is the reason why you are feeling pain, have yourself checked by the doctor immediately.
Another reason why you may be feeling some tightness in your chest is because of anxiety. When you are anxious, you may have trouble breathing. When you are fearful or when you are nervous about something, you are causing some symptoms that may seem serious.
If you are feeling a tightness in your chest area because of anxiety, the most obvious solution to this is to make sure that you will relax. You may be surprised when the tightness goes away. Take deep breaths because this can help a lot.
Now that you already know the various things that may be causing the tightness in your chest area, remember that having yourself checked by your doctor is still the best way.
