chest pain and difficult breathing a few days after drinking

It is great to hear that i'm not the only one who has had these symptoms. It only happens for me when i drink liquor on a two day bender. I honestly think it is just some slight imbalances due to screwed levels from dehydration compounded with anxiety because you think you have actually drank yourself to death this time. BTW, aside from these crazy episodes I have absolutely no anxiety in my life. MEDICALFor me its always worse 2 to 3 days out, but by the fourth I feel completely normal.  I think i'm just going to stick to beer and lay off the cigarettes, which i only smoke when i'm drinking.  I am 32 and work out 4 to 5 times a week and have always been in relatively good shape. 

ps. The first time this happened, i freaked and went to the emergency room, where they did an ekg, heart monitoring, blood work, etc... they told me i may have some nerve problems with a shoulder i injured, but the more i read about it I truly believe its just too mush alcohol compounded with anxiety. 

Just found this thread from google and I'm yet another that can relate.

I'm 29 yr male, healthy. I've been getting drunk once or twice a week since high school. My hangovers have gotten a lot worse with age but just a few weeks ago I started getting this chest pain.

For me the pain starts about 2 days after drinking. It is a dull, achy kind of pain on the right side of my chest.  At times I've actually felt the pain radiate into my arm and even the back of my head. The pain lingers for a few days, coming and going.  Getting drunk again seems to make the pain stop for a day or two.

Other factors: I also have mild sleep apnea and I have had mild anxiety/panic since my teens.  I don't know if the pain is entirely caused by anxiety by I'm sure my anxiety and worrying makes it worse.

I haven't been to a doctor but I suspect Anxiety and maybe GERD, though it doesn't seemed to be caused by any food in particular. Mostly just correlated with drinking. I'm going to try to abstain for a couple weeks and if it doesn't clear up I'll get to the doctor.

I am a binge drinker, weekends most of the time, I consider myself a functional alcoholic, after stopping for a few days, I have a small pain in my chest just near my left pictorial muscle, I have had EKG's and Echo's done, they are all normal. When I drink, I don't feel any pain whatsoever, so, it is from the alcohol withdrawal. It sounds like from the post I read, most of us are "bing" drinkers, the answer is simple, do what I did, stop drinking, it is going to kill you, I have been clean 12 days now, not a long time, but the so called "chest discomfort" has gone away.

 

Good luck, but you need to reflect on your life, is it worth it? In the long run, I don't think it is.

 

 

I'm not being funny, but even though you throw up and get rid of the excess alcohol, it can still affect your blood vessels/circulation and could lead to strokes and heart condition. I sometimes get pain rising from my left side up to my armpit. Went to doctor coz worried - but he said it was bad acid indigestion. The odd binge I think is okay, but be careful not to prolong excessive drinking. I am not a doctor but I am just giving my advice. x

you probably have esophagitis where the top layer of the cells in your esophagus is damaged by the alcohol and the acid from your stomach

Exact same as me, only cure is exercise. I drink and get this terrible heartburn and struggle for breath the next day, comes on in afternoon and can last for weeks. The only other cure I find is drinking more alchol after the initial 2-3 drinks the pain goes. Trouble is next day symptoms are increased. I am 39 this came on 10 years ago after big drinking session thought I was dying having to breathe for myself. Condition has left me very depressed as well especialy after episodes. I have done vegan diet and I am cured until I drink alchol again. Alcohol is the only trigger I can eat drink anything else. I don't believe any doctor recognises this or has studied properly.

Hi All, I posted on this site over 12 months ago, Was interested to know just how many of you if any, have since been diagnosed with diabetes, like myself?

You've hit the nail on the head. It IS anxiety. See how much worse your breathing problems feel if you're driving on the motorway or in an elevator full of people, or in any situation where you feel trapped - it's much worse. It's anxiety. I bet if your breathing problems get bad and you have a good drink, they will go away. Why? Because the alcohol takes away the anxiety. Do not get in to the habit of drinking to relieve the problem. Believe me I fell in to this trap and I have suffered from alcoholism as a result for the past 8 years!

Thought I'd add to this As I've been a steady drinker for maybe 2 years. In reality I drank too much. Felt the same way as others with the breathing issue so decided to quit for 6 weeks. Felt so much better not drinking and very calm. So was out Friday with the wife for a night out and stupidly decided to have a drink. Here I am on Sunday with the breathing issue all over again. Think me and the booze are going to part company. Its not till you quit and feel normal again that you realise it isn't worth it. at 40 I need to start listening to my body.

Great post. I have been dealing with anxiety for over 10 years now (Actually longer but I have been aware of what it is for the last ten) I have been to the hospital a few times with chest pains and feeling generally crappy with foggy thinking and a slight feeling of being separated from reality.

The chest pains started a few months ago for me, and only after a night of drinking.beer. The thing that I have learned about anxiety is that it can be caused by anything the saps your system of resources or stresses your body/mind and this includes lack of sleep or snoring. The alcohol was bringing on the chest pains because it drained me of water and gave my heart, liver, kidneys and workout which consumes vitamins ETC and makes me saw logs when I go to sleep. I can avoid the issue by not drinking for at least 72 hours. I can drink one day and then take the next day off but If I drink two days in a row then I feel like c**p for 2-3 days.

The most frustrating thing about anxiety for me is that the symptoms are evolutionary and seem to slowly change over the years so I never can trust what im feeling 100% but at least now that I am aware I am able to simply experience the sensations/pains without freaking out. For me this whole adventure started when I was about 24 years old and I am now 37.

I'm glad I found this page, otherwise I'd be still worried sick that I was checking out. 32 y/o male, exercise frequently, anxiety issues. So I have been dieting pretty hard lately and 2 days ago I cracked out of boredom and tension to grab a beer. Which spiralled way out of control until I blacked out. Woke up hung over as expected, but when I went to bed I discovered that I had to make a conscious effort to breathe. This sparked anxiety to say the least. Which in turn led to tingling hands, sweating, cold hands and feet. I'm on day 2 with no sleep, I've improved after taking my vitamin b complex pill, potassium (tums) and plenty of water with salt and food. Oh yeah, my tongue is coated white which tells me that my digestion is screwed. I've never felt like I was dying like this before, being short of breathe is very disconcerting. I think this is the turning point for me, my body can't handle this sh*t no more. I should add that when I don't think about my breathing, then it's tolerable so anxiety plays a role.

How do you get the fluid out of your lungs as I am expierncing this right now

Hey, I posted above (Joel) and have figured out my problem after a month of getting worse. There is water damage under my bed from a leaky pipe. I am allergic to mold so my shortness of breath slowly went away when I moved back to my parents house. The alcohol was just something that weakened my immune system enough to let the allergic reaction get worse and take hold. I wonder how many people here live in musty basements. I also abstained from alcohol just incase but the mold situation makes more sense since I'd feel better if I left my apartment for a few days then get worse when I came back.

This is totally me. :/

man i'm just not sure, but it just started for me and i don't always drink but i do i drink a lot..i'm a little heavy but healthy..anyways i hope we can get a clear definite answer on this because like i said, this is the first time it has happened to me and it's only the first day after drinking..but yeah my right side of my upper ribs and right below the chest do hurt a lot..i hope my pullups workout will still be ok tomorrow ..