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Air Hunger?

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Posted 4/6/2019 8:23 PM (GMT 0)
I don't know how to describe this but I am not gasping for air.

I have this constant frustrating symptom where I cannot get a satisfying breath idk how to describe it. Whenever I take a deep breath it doesn't feel as if it's cleansing. It feels crap as if I didn't get enough oxygen. It gets worse when I do sports.

I take a deep breath and when it feels good I try to take another one and that one feels like I didn't get enough oxygen. When I do sports I have to breathe a lot and when I cannot do that like I normally do it really freaks me out and frustrates me.

Also I am more out of breath than usual...

Sometimes I get this panicky feeling for a second where I feel like I'm about to pass out...

Is this Air Hunger? How would you describe air hunger? Is it one breathing symptom or does Air Hunger refer to many possible breathing symptoms

Cheers
Posted 4/6/2019 11:05 PM (GMT 0)
Ya that's exactly what air hunger is and how most people describe it. I think it's a specific symptom. It's not like shortness of breath but just a feeling like the breath you took in wasn't enough and you might need to force a yawn or take a really big breath. I've never had that passing out feeling so I can't comment on that. Maybe you're just panicking because it feels like you can't breathe?
Posted 4/6/2019 11:18 PM (GMT 0)
For me the air hunger felt like I just needed another breath. Like I missed a breath, so needed more

Panicky feeling could be from anxiety about the breathing or can absolutely be a symptom from infections that we have.
I have felt like passing out before many times, I am thankful that symptom is gone.

Hope you get some relief soon and take care.
Posted 4/6/2019 11:34 PM (GMT 0)
Kevin,

What you described is classic air hunger. You can’t get a satisfying breath. Mine started when I was 6 years old. When it happened, I would stop what I was doing and yawn trying to expand my lungs until I got a satisfying breath. My dad often had it, too. My mom used to think we were just acting up. Thankfully, it was only mild and wouldn’t last long then.

After my chronic Lyme symptoms started and I later had a respiratory infection, the air hunger came back much worse and was almost constant. I had trouble walking and eating because it was so bad. That time it lasted 4 months.
Posted 4/9/2019 4:15 PM (GMT 0)
I've been dealing with a babesia flare this week. And air hunger is one of the hallmark symptoms of it. I find that standing and movement makes mine worse. I will literally turn over in bed and start gasping for air. This happens to me for days. Standing up makes me get out of breath much less walking any where. It makes you feel crazy, but you're not. It's probably due to the babesia attacking the red blood cells, if that's what you have. I've tried inhalers before. I liked the peace of mind it gave me, but it didn't really do a ton for the feelings that I couldn't get a deep breath. Just know that it may feel like you can't breathe, but most times you can check your oxygen levels, and they will be normal. It's just a crazy phenomenon.
Posted 4/10/2019 12:35 AM (GMT 0)
Def sounds like air hunger. It really sucks, it would always trigger anxiety for me. Took me a long time to figure out those symptoms were connected, heck took me a long time to figure out I had air hunger! For a long time I thought it was anxiety that made my breathing so bad, but it was the other way around. I think it's all connected to the ANS, I read this article on the subject, and it mirrored my personal experience: https://conniestrasheim.org/blog/2017/3/6/a-deep-look-at-the-symptoms-of-six-major-lyme-related-infections
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