Unexplicable shortness of breath
 

Hi, I'm a 21 years old italian guy who has been in a frontal car crash at relatively low speed in May, not hitting the hed but suffering a whiplash trauma.
At first i brushed it off (I had no idea that you can injury yourself that way), but two days after I started having miriad of neurological and cognitive symptoms, which got progressively worse over the next few days, such as trouble reading, speaking, thinking, decreased IQ, hypersensitiviy to certain sounds and touches nd occasional numbeness in my hands and feet
The doctors told me that it was not possible to have such problems without hitting the head and that it was stress/anxiety/psicosomatic (the italian medic level is atrocious), which I believed at first, returning to do physical activities (I do martial arts) further aggravating the problem.
After two months of suffering and being unable to function at even an extremely very basic level (after having stupidly trained in martial arts), roughly two months ago my symptoms disapperead in the span of a few weeks and I started to be fine.

But since yesterday I have been experiencing a shortness of breath and a sensation of pressure in my chest.
Could it be a consequence of the concussion, despite the absence of other noticeable symptoms?
I'm worried that it can be a clot near the hearts or lungs due to inactivity, since I have never left my home in the past month and half due to fear of having a relapse, it is possible? What should I do according to you?

Sorry If I made some mistakes, english is not my first language.

Danielson,

Welcome to NeuroTalk.

"I'm worried that it can be a clot near the hearts or lungs due to inactivity, since I have never left my home in the past month and half due to fear of having a relapse, it is possible? "

I would not worry about a clot. If you had such a condition, you would be in severe distress.

I think you could be experiencing one of two issues.
Anxiety can cause the symptoms you mention. or
A whiplash injury could be causing this.
Both can disrupt your breathing, even causing you to not breath until you feel short of breath. This can be nervous system caused and be a form of Central Apnea or it can be anxiety.

When I notice this, my doc ordered a complete exam including a treadmill cardiac stress test and an echo cardiogram. Both were normal.

I suggest you start getting active with walks or maybe some exercise machine workouts at low stress, low impact levels. I use a rowing machine twice a week. I row 4000 meters in 20 minutes.

The subtle neck injury from whiplash can cause inflammation that reduces blood flow to the brain. Restoring that can cause the sudden improvements as the neck settles into proper alignment. Keeping it that way while it stabilizes requires discipline to not aggravate it.

When you are not physically active, it is worthwhile to stimulate your brain in a low stress way. Manual activity doing things with your hands is good.

If this chest issue gets to be more than just shortness of breath and pressure, it would be good to have a doctor check it out, especially while you are symptomatic. Symptoms that come and go can be hard to define.

So get moving and distract your mind with other things, not your head and neck. You will likely see improvements. There is a Vitamin regimen in the Sticky threads at the top. It can help the brain tolerate stress.

My best to you.

First of all, thanks for the welcome, the disponibility and the advices.

I forgot to add that I have had a bad tooth since a lot of months now, that I have not cured because I'm worried that visiting the dentist may causa e relapse (I have a genetic anomaly that make mechanically impossible for me to open my mouth a lot, and on top of that I'm very inclined to throw up as a reflex if something comes near my mouth, so it's necessary to use a conscious sedation with nitrous oxide that I fear could be bad for my neurological state).

It is possible that this breathing problems are related to some infection caused by the bad tooth?
And it's reasonable to fear a relapse by going to the dentist, or it's only a paranoia and I should go without worries?

I think it is anxiety or paranoia. Nitrous oxide should not be a problem. If they want to use Versed intravenously, decline it. It is rough on the brain.

The gag reflex can be suppressed by spraying a topical anesthetic like cetacaine in your mouth and on your tongue.

Thanks a lot for the answers.
However, today while I was cutting my hair I accidentally slightly touched the back of my neck (the soft point where the head and the neck connect) with the point of the scissors (which are not very pointed I specifc, they are squared)
It was a very brief and soft touch without any pain or noticeable injury, but due to the sensitivity of the spot and it's role in neurological disfunctions I'm worried that it can caise some relapses of my symptoms.
It's a legitimate concern, or it only a paranoia?

Anxiety. There is a lot of protective tissue in the layers of skin and muscle that covers anything that is neurologically sensitive.

Thanks, I already supposed that but it is always a great help to have it confirmed by someone who undertstand this kind of things.

I'd say anxiety also. For something blunt to cause damage would have to be either an intentional act or some sort of accident.

Bud

Since when I stopped having neurological and cognitive symptoms almost 3 months ago I started having sleep disorders, to be specific I started to have fractured sleep.
I sleep 2-5 hours every 6-8 hours instead of having a regular sleep pattern.
What can the cause be? Could it be sleep apnea?

Also, it's risky for me to use a clipper to cut my beard, moustache or hair?

There is no risk of using clippers. The previous event was likely a stimulation issue, not a physical vibration/movement issue. The sound can be just the wrong frequency that resonated into your ear. The reaction is a anxiety / fight or flight or freeze response.

Stop sleeping during the day and your night time normal sleep will improve. Some need some food in the system shortly before going to bed to energize the brain so it can sleep. REM sleep uses a lot of energy. It is when neuronal healing/repair occurs.

If you feel tired during the day, it is usually because you are not getting quality sleep during the night. If somebody can observe your sleep during the night, they may notice breathing issues. You can buy a recording pulse-oximeter that reports to a smart phone to track oxygen levels and pulse. It can be helpful at understanding sleep issues. A FitBit will track movement and pulse.