Tightness near the rib cage, Shortness of Breath, Dizzy, etc

I've had really similar symptoms before. I had all sorts of tests. I swear times where I felt I couldn't breath and the chest pain like left me feeling I was dying, but all has come back ok. I would be interested to hear what your results are if you could post them back up here as I am still experiencing some symptoms. Oh and I was put on beta blockers, but weaned off them. Good Luck :-D

Yes, my blood tests came back negative for EVERYTHING. Currently they think it could be my asthma or just lungs in general. They are also checking out the heart. They say it may be acid reflux, so that could be your problem!

:( I am sorry to hear this but I have this same Problem- pain also and its so annoying i sometimes wish i can just wish for it to go away and it go away. I dont know what to do :(

Make sure you get tested by a Endocrinologist for thyroid I had regular dr test me and found nothing i went to specialist and he found it. I had suffered for years without knowing.

faraha141 wrote:

Happy1121 wrote:

So, I've been pretty sick lately, and I've had a lot of symptoms...

*Dizzy- It does happen right when I stand up, more so if I stand up too quickly. But it'll also happen pretty randomly. In the past, I've gotten dizzy, but not like THIS...it hasn't been as frequent and it never came randomly.
*Tightness in Ribs?/Shortness of breath- I have had asthma since birth, so I'm used to not being able to breathe well, but this is a new feeling. I've never felt soo tight before--I feel really tight right between my ribs. Like I have to take HUGE deep breaths just to feel like I'm getting ANY oxygen. I've been healthy up until now and I'm pretty athletic and in shape, but now just walking up a flight of stairs leaves me feeling like I need my inhaler. The shortness of breath occurs all the time, but I don't feel AS tight when I'm standing up. Laying down I struggle to breathe and I'm so uncomfortable...Also ANY amount of pressure in the rib area makes it even worse. I feel just wearing a light t-shirt or laying my hand on my ribs like I always do makes it that much worse.
*Tired- I've really never been SO tired before! I can come home from school DEAD tired, go to sleep around 5 and be struggling to get up at 6 am the next day.


I'm a healthy, active 16 year old girl.

I went to the doctors last week...I got blood tests done. They came back negative, ruling out thyroid problems, anemia, diabetes, and a few other things that doctor was wondering. I'm going for an EKG soon.

My mom does have a hole in her heart, so they want to check for that.

Any idea of what this may be that wouldn't be detected with a blood test?

:( I am sorry to hear this but I have this same Problem- pain also and its so annoying i sometimes wish i can just wish for it to go away and it go away. I dont know what to do :(

This is due to anxiety. Generic Anxiety disorder. (GAD).
Check for this with a psychiatrist.

I am currently having the same problem and the last time this happened I was stressed out from work and ended up getting a lung infection they say but this time I am thinking an ultrasound not an xray is in order. Just came on today. I have been working out a bit more due to some weight gain but it still doesnt explain why it came on so fast. I actually had to take off my bra thinking that would help but it doesn't. I feel winded like someone is standing in between my ribcage. My legs have been tighter lately and upper back and lower back discomfort. Also some heart burn. Not one thing I can pin point this one on. I am 35yrs old

I am 40 year old female with similar random symptoms.  I have dull headaches on lower left side of head, tightness in breathing (i have asthma but was told by my dr. it is not asthma and he did a pulmonary function test), slight pain off and on in ribcage.  What the heck is this?

I know this is over a year old, but my Partner is having these exact symptoms for the past 6 weeks, been in Hospital for a week, to emergency a couple of times with no answers. Did you ever get answers and did it clear up?? any advice would be great, thanks you.

Go visit a chiropractor cause it seems to me you have a problem with your longissimus muscle. It's one of the 3 erector spinae muscles, and it's placed second laterally between the spinalis and the iliocostalis muscles. Its main function is to bring the ribs down when you exhale. So an injury, tightness or trigger points in this area will prevent you from breathing correctly so you're putting a lot of stress on your diaphragm as well. I have the exact same thing and it's treated overtime with conservative treatment over the course of a few weeks/months. My chiropractor cracks my back for a total of 30 seconds and I feel like I've just inhaled 5 breaths of oxygen at once. It's a truly relieving and amazing experience.

I had the same thing - it was Pulmonary Embolism.

Have you been tested for MS?! get an mri... sound like MS hug!

I’m 64 and your symptoms sound just like mine and the doctors are baffled. I too have asthma. Mine started at 53 within the year of getting a TDaP vaccine. Can you relate any worsening of your asthma with a vaccine? What was the results of your heart test?

Look into costochondritis. I had this unexplainable shortness of Breath and tight chest feeling for months. Checked my heart and lungs but they were clear. My chiro suggested it could be costochondritis…which is inflammation that causes stiff ribs that don’t expand much when you breathe. It usually comes with stabbing pain in your chest/rib areas but not always. It is not easily diagnosed as xray/mri etc cannot detect tight ribs. It can only be diagnosed through process of elimination. Good luck!