Posts by rapidpanther68

I was walking through the mall the other day and noticed how eerily quiet everything felt. It’s not just the usual post-pandemic lull; it feels like the "soul" of the shopping experience is being systematically replaced by efficiency.

Don't get me wrong, I love a quick transaction when I'm in a rush, but I can't help but feel a bit uneasy about how fast we're pivoting toward a world where you don't interact with a single person from the moment you walk in to the moment you leave. We’ve always prioritized speed and lower costs, but there’s a point where "optimized" starts to feel a bit sterile and hollow.

I wonder if we're accidentally engineering the social connection right out of our daily lives just to shave a few pennies off the bottom line. Once we fully transition to these hyper-efficient, automated systems, what happens to the community feel of our local high streets?

Do you think we'll eventually reach a point where "human-staffed" stores become a premium, high-end experience while the rest of us are left interacting with machines?

Emily Patel70 said:First things first, go see your endocrinologist. They can cause some serious mental chaos if things aren't balanced right.

If there was actually any legitimate reason for concern, your doctor would have ordered a CT scan by now. Don't waste your energy chasing ghosts with useless tests when you've already got enough on your plate with other appointments.

I'm speaking from experience here. Anxiety, a family history of heart issues, getting dozens of EKGs done, spiraling into full-blown hypochondria... I've been there.

Your heart is fine. You've had two different opinions. Just drop the whole imaginary aneurysm thing. And all those other made-up illnesses too.

Thanks for the input. I’ll definitely be checking in with my endocrinologist as soon as I can.
I'm also waiting on an appointment with a physical therapist for these hip and joint issues. Based on everything, it looks like early-onset osteoarthritis. That could still be a sign of some underlying connective tissue disorder, so I'm hoping we can clear that up—find out once and for all if there's actually something wrong or not.
I decided to start hitting the local YMCA pool—just light swimming a few times a week, nothing intense, just enough to loosen up my joints and maybe feel a bit more human.
And I'm really hoping psychotherapy helps me sort through the mental clutter, too. 🙂

Thanks so much for getting back to me!
In the meantime, I actually went to see this incredibly experienced cardiologist—an academic type, really top-tier, someone who deals with connective tissue disorders all the time. He sat me down, listened to everything, and did a super thorough exam. Even though it wasn't originally on the schedule, he ended up running an echocardiogram because, honestly, I was freaking out. He focused specifically on my aorta and the aortic arch, checking every little detail he could. He even palpated the exact area that’s been keeping me up at night.
His verdict? Everything looks fine. He said there’s absolutely no sign of an aneurysm. His main advice was to get my thyroid checked out and to start exercising, since he noted I'm in pretty terrible shape physically. As for that visible pulsing in my neck—he used the term 😁—he chalked it up entirely to anxiety and told me I need to deal with that ASAP.
He didn't think a CT scan or any other heavy-duty imaging was necessary. The only thing we actually caught was a slightly elevated heart rate.
I've calmed down a bit since then, but I can still see that pulsing in the mirror, especially when my anxiety starts spiking.
And I should mention, I can feel that intense pulsing in other parts of my body too. If I focus on it, I can feel it right in my fingertips. Maybe it’s all just psychological (God, I hope so), or maybe it's a thyroid issue, or something else minor rather than some life-threatening aneurysm or something equally terrifying.
I’ve also noticed that both my mom and my sister have this same thing going on with their necks; you can see a bit of that pulsing there too. Now, either we’re all dealing with something serious, or this might just be somewhat normal or linked to other factors 🙂 since they both struggle with anxiety, panic attacks, and thyroid issues.

So, I'm currently waiting on an appointment with a psychiatrist to tackle the anxiety and panic, and I'll be getting my thyroid hormones checked out as soon as possible.
I'm stuck wondering if I should seek a second opinion, go out of my way to demand a CT scan (which, let's face it, I probably can't afford right now anyway), or just try to accept what the doctor said and move forward without living in constant fear while I fight these other health battles.

Yeah, it’s pulsing in my palms too. 😁 Every time I finally lie down and try to settle my mind, it feels like my heart has physically crawled up into my throat—literally. My entire chest and neck just throb. In that hollow part of my chest, you can actually feel it and see it 😢
I’m definitely going to get this checked out by a cardiologist... and honestly, I’m itching to finally do something about this anxiety and these panic attacks. I’ve been hypersensitive my entire life, and I've never once touched anything for anxiety. I'm also the type of person who bottles everything up; I hate being a burden. I'm not one of those hypochondriacs who constantly nags everyone around them about every little ache and pain, but instead, I just spiral internally and get terrified to even call my doctor. It’s the same pattern with everything else, not just health stuff. Back during my undergrad at UCLA, the dean's office actually referred me to a counselor who basically told me she didn't know what to do with me—that she couldn't help and that I either had to deal with it myself or find someone else (to put it bluntly). I never did, even though I really should have.
My biggest fear is that some actual, underlying medical issue is getting overlooked because it's being dismissed as "just anxiety"... but then again, I keep hoping that this ominous symptom is purely psychological... still, when it hits alongside these other symptoms, I get genuinely scared...

Are you guys absolutely certain you’re feeling that pulse coming from "down there," like from deep inside the abdomen? And not just from a carotid artery up in your neck? 🙂 Apparently, that pulsing sensation near the aorta can be a real red flag. For me, it’s actually visible to the naked eye. 😢
You can literally see it thumping up and down.
Look, I know I’m probably ready for a session with a psychiatrist—I’ve already got my referral and I’m going, believe me, I’m over it—but it’s just a lot. Between a possible connective tissue disorder (still waiting on a specialist, but the symptoms are piling up), potential aneurysm signs, and the internet telling me I’m basically dead...
It’s total, unadulterated panic. 😢
I am more than ready to tackle my hypochondria and anxiety because, honestly, I'm exhausted by it all.
But specifically regarding that aortic pulse... is it possible it’s just pure anxiety? I’m pretty thin in that area and my collarbones stick out quite a bit. Still, the whole thing with connective tissue issues being linked to various aneurysms is terrifying. That visible twitching doesn't look normal to me.
I'll go see both the psychiatrist and the cardiologist... thanks for the input, anyway. I know I have a hell of a lot of work to do on myself.

Thanks for the reply
Look, I know this isn't funny. Believe me, nothing has felt funny to me for two weeks straight.
I realize nobody on the internet can actually diagnose me, but I just need to know if anyone else has dealt with this—if this could be normal, or if it’s the absolute worst-case scenario I’m terrified of.
It looks like I’ll have to pay out of pocket again, but this time I’m hunting for a top-tier cardiologist. My primary care doctor won't even give me a referral for anything; she insists I'm perfectly healthy, even after I laid out all these other symptoms. I mean, I know I probably overanalyze everything and I might just be scaring myself half to death, but these are serious things we're talking about.
My parents finally breathed a sigh of relief after my ultrasound came back clear, and now they think that’s the end of it. I don't know—to them, I probably sound like I'm losing my mind, but damn it, I am scared. 😢
For what it's worth, there's zero history of connective tissue disorders or sudden deaths from aneurysms in my family, yet both my sister and I are showing certain symptomatic patterns.
The thing is, it's impossible to just un-read everything I've searched online and pretend these other symptoms aren't happening (honestly, I'm clearing my throat every five minutes here at the office 🙄). It looks like I have no choice but to find a specialist. The potential diagnosis is genuinely terrifying...

I'm a 26-year-old woman.
It’s about this pulse I can feel in a spot where you "shouldn't" be able to feel one—the suprasternal notch, that little dip right above the collarbone. My mind immediately goes to an aortic pulse. If you look anything up online, it tells you that usually means there's an aortic aneurysm. So, I feel this pulsing there, and when I get worked up or exhausted, I can actually see it—that area just jumps up and down. I first noticed it last week during a massive panic attack while I was staring at myself in the mirror. Honestly, I don't know if it's always been like this; maybe I just never paid attention. All I know is that I've always felt my heart "harder," especially when I'm pushing myself or under stress (and let's face it, my anxiety levels are through the roof). The thing is, I was waiting on a cardiac ultrasound because there’s some suspicion that I might have Marfan syndrome or some other connective tissue disorder (which could lead to early aneurysm formation). I’m actually the one who brought those suspicions up to my primary care physician, though I think they're legitimate. I was incredibly anxious. The ultrasound came back clear, and the EKG was fine too. I thought, okay, that's it, everything is clean. Unfortunately, I didn't push my internist hard enough to actually palpate the pulse and tell me if it's normal for the aorta to throb like that. I just mentioned feeling the pulsation, and she brushed it off, saying it might be stress or maybe something with my thyroid... My blood work is perfect, including iron, and my thyroid looked fine on the ultrasound, though I haven't had the hormone levels checked yet.
Once the initial relief wore off, it hit me: an ultrasound only sees a specific part of the aorta, so it doesn't mean I'm totally out of the woods. And of course, the panic is back. I feel this constant throbbing in that spot, and when I check the mirror, I see it happening. I'm constantly on edge, feeling the pulse all the way down to my gut; I can't sleep, I can't eat. I am just convinced something is wrong.
Regarding aneurysms and other symptoms (yeah, I read all the horror stories, obviously), sometimes it feels like it's hard to swallow, depending on what I eat. It gets worse when I'm nervous, but I also deal with GERD and esophageal issues. On top of that, I've had this lingering cough for ages; I had a nasty bout of sinusitis a few months ago that turned into bronchitis, and now I have constant post-nasal drip and mucus in my throat, so maybe that's why. I also wake up hoarse in the morning until things "clear out."
My doctor felt the pulse and told me it's normal (even though she couldn't feel it herself on that spot—though I do have a very thin neck). She insists I'm healthy, says my cardiac ultrasound is clear, and told me that for something to be suspicious there, it would show up; she basically said not everything you read on the internet is true. Then she gave me a referral to a psychiatrist for panic disorder and anxiety.
So, am I actually losing my mind? Can an obvious pulse really be "normal"? Could it just be palpitations? Because ever since my anxiety spiked, I feel my heart working so intensely, especially when I lie down; it feels like my whole chest is pulsing. My resting heart rate has always been a bit high, and it ramps up significantly when I'm active. It’s also driven by the sheer amount of anxiety I carry. My resting EKG was fine, but that's only when I'm sitting still.
Does anyone else feel a pulse in that spot? Mine is so pronounced that I'm terrified I actually have an aneurysm. 😢 I don't know what to do. My doctor isn't taking me seriously at all, even after I mentioned these other symptoms. Am I truly crazy? Does anyone else experience this? What should I do? I feel lost. I thought I could breathe easy after the ultrasound, but clearly, I can't. 😢
Sorry for the long, rambling post.
Right now, I'm getting some tests done for joint issues I've been having. Eventually, when I see a specialist, they might order genetic testing to check for a connective tissue disorder, but that could take months, and I'm terrified I'll die before then.
I just want to know if this can truly be normal and linked to panic disorder and anxiety.

TLDR: I can feel and see a pulse in the hollow above my collarbone. I'm anxious. Does anyone else feel this? Can it be normal?
Please, someone just talk me down because I’m spiraling here. The anxiety is actually becoming physical—I don't even know how I'm supposed to show up for my shift at Starbucks tomorrow.