Shortness of breath can be a symptom of many illnesses, so you might want to know how to tell if shortness of breath is from anxiety.
Chest infections, lung disease and other ailments that affect the respiratory system have shortness of breath listed as a symptom, but there are psychological reasons for it too.
During COVID-19, many people experienced shortness of breath. This was both a sign of infection and a sign of anxiety.
Shortness of breath can be due to any number of life-threatening or not-so-life-threatening conditions that should not be ignored. If you experience it at any point or it happens in bursts, speak to a healthcare practitioner about finding the cause and getting treatment.
Stress
We are all prone to anxiety during times of high stress or danger, which is part of our DNA. It’s linked to the fight or flight reaction our ancestors developed when more wild animals roamed the earth than cave dwellers.
In our modern, fast-paced but reasonably comfortable lives, less stressful situations such as being late for work by a few minutes can also drive us to panic, often accompanied by: sweating, tingling sensations in the hands or feet, dry mouth, tightness in the chest, twitching and trembling, irritability, tension, headaches, sleeplessness, brain fog, fear or apprehension, nausea or diarrhoea, muscle cramps or pain, pounding heartbeat, palpitations and the shortness of breath.
Conditions That May Cause Shortness Of Breath
A visit to your doctor will determine what condition is leading to shortness of breath.
These are the conditions that also cause breathing difficulties and that are usually accompanied by tightness in the chest, chest pain and rapid heart rate:
- Asthma causes narrowing and inflammation in the airways, resulting in breathing difficulties, wheezing, tightness in the chest, and an overwhelming need to cough up what feels like phlegm in the lungs.
- Pulmonary embolism results from a blood clot lodging in the artery, thereby damaging the lung. The clot breaks off and travels from the site of deep vein thrombosis. Some causes are immobility, medicines, smoking, cancer, or surgery, and it could cause death.
- Long-time smokers are prone to chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). The shortness of breath occurs when sufferers struggle to exhale air. They also have a chronic cough that won’t disappear.
- Drug abuse can result in breathing difficulties.
- Shortness of breath after exertion may also indicate Congestive heart failure, much like COPD. This condition worsens, weakening the heart, which cannot pump sufficient blood out to the rest of the body. Lying down causes breathing difficulties.
- Pneumonia is due to an infection that causes inflammation in the lungs. It comes with a fever, coughing up phlegm, chest pain, and breathing difficulties.
- Tuberculosis is an infectious disease with similar symptoms to pneumonia. It has the added symptoms of night sweats, rapid weight loss, fatigue, and lack of appetite.
- Heart attacks can strike at any time when the blood supply arteries to the heart become blocked. The onset is tightness and pain in the chest from the jaw and neck down the arms. Early symptoms are shortness of breath, fatigue, and nausea.
- Obesity or being overweight causes breathing difficulties due to exertion, exercise, indigestion, and poor gut health.
How Do You Know You’re Having An Anxiety Attack?
Many physical signs indicate that you may have anxiety. The most common are:
- Tension
- Increased heart rate
- Sweating
- Hyperventilation
- A sense of impending danger
- Having no control over how worried you become about things
- Avoidance of situations or places that trigger anxiety
- Having gastrointestinal (GI) conditions
- Expecting the worst
- Brain fog
- Being irritable or fidgety
- Lashing out in a sudden flash of anger
- Headaches and dizziness
- Frequent urination and diarrhoea.
