Sorry if this is long but would like to give some background. 
I am new here and wanted to introduce myself. I'm female 48 yrs. I have been symptomatic (cardiac) for well over a year now. My first symptoms were shortness of breath which escalated over time, chest pain, fatigue, severe headaches, swelling in the ankles, recent rapid weight gain (40 lbs in 60-70 days), memory problems and difficulty with concentration. Also had high white blood cell count this was down to 13000 when I was released. In addition to this I also had all of the classic crohn’s symptoms (began at age 23).
A typical woman, I ignored all of the warning signs and symptoms, put a band-aid on them which landed me in the hospital for over a week back in Oct. I was dx’d at that time with pneumonia, sepsis, kidney infection, pulmonary edema, chf, acute diverticulitis and crohn’s (found when they did the CT scan of the abdomen).
While in the hospital I was told I had several abnormal EKG’s. My BP which has always been on the very low side (normal 97/54) was elevated (185/98).
While in the hospital they did a right sided cath and found no abnormalities. Due to all of my health issues they were unable to do a complete cath or give me a sedative during the procedure. My heart felt like jello during the procedure which is a feeling that I have had occasionally in the past. They suggested a full cath in 6-8 weeks.
They also did a blood gas test (not a fun test as I am sure most of you know) which was within normal limits.
I have a nurse that comes out weekly and takes vitals. The BP now averages 108/96. My pulse rate is also elevated 110 on average or higher even while resting.
Although I am short of breath during activities oxygen levels remain pretty good between 93 and 97% when at rest. When doing small tasks such as taking a shower or climbing steps I feel as if I have just finished a high impact aerobics workout. Most days I will sleep for hours afterwards. There is also still a lot of wheezing and crackling in my lungs which gets progressively worse during the course of the day and over-night.
I had a MET test a few weeks ago the cardiologist said my condition has 2 components Diastolic-CHF the heart is not resting and Pulmonary. He is unable to put me on beta blockers at this time because of my COPD/Emphysema Breathing problems. They are not sure if the pulmonary issue is causing the heart issue or if it’s the other way around. I have a family history of cardiac issues both mom (CHF) and dad (CAD and heart attack at age 60 bypass 8 arteries).
Currently they need to clear up my GI issues before I can have a full cath. I need cardiac clearance to have an endo/colonoscopy but my docs say no until I am stable and breathing issues are improved. While many of my meds take time to work I have found little relief of the symptoms and things seem to be going back to the way they were before I was hospitalized.
I am scheduled to have a stress echo done on 12/23 and a PFT on 12/23 which will hopefully give us some additional insight. I am a little nervous about the stress echo as I have extreme fatigue and breathing difficulties but remain optimistic that hopefully this can give some answers.
I am trying to educate myself on D-CHF and COPD. I went from working 120-130 hours a week a few years ago to barely being able to do even simple basic tasks. I am not one to sit so this is especially difficult for me.
Female 5'3
Normal wt is 130 now 160 due to edema
DX = D-CHF (symptoms 1+ yr.), COPD (symptoms 1+ year), Emphysema, Acute Diverticulitis, Crohn’s (Symptoms 20+ yrs)
Medications: Brovana NEB, Prednisone, Protonix, Spiriva, Furosemede, Proventyl HFA, Advair Discus, Theophylline, Align Probiotic, Prilosec, Dicylomine