The feeling of having a constant urge to take deep breaths may mean that your body is low on oxygen levels. When you’re low on oxygen, your body automatically responds by taking deep breaths in an attempt to compensate for it. Suffering from respiratory diseases like COVID-19 or heart-related problems like low blood pressure may cause this symptom. As well as, living in a place with extreme weather conditions, hiking on a steep mountain, exercising vigorously, or having something stuck in your throat can give you the same constant urge. Not to mention anxiety and panic attacks, which give you the same feeling.
I am a 28-year-old woman, and I have experienced shortness of breath in the past few months since the year 2021 started. I eat a healthy diet and often perform exercises, so I believe I am in good health.
Being a survivor of the COVID-19 disease, which broke out in 2019, I associated my shortness of breath and the urge to take deep breaths with the post-effects of the virus.
When the feeling persisted, I visited the hospital and was diagnosed with severe anxiety.
Could you be experiencing the same constant urge to take deep breaths for no apparent reason? If you have no idea what could cause it, below are some possible reasons for this symptom.
What is this urge to take deep breaths?
A feeling of constantly wanting to take deep breaths is called “air hunger,” medically known as dyspnea. Dyspnea is the same as shortness of breath.
Having dyspnea will make you feel as though the air you breathe is insufficient. So, you try to take in more deep breaths in an attempt to compensate for the feeling like you’re losing breath.
What are the symptoms of air hunger?
Below are some signs that you’re suffering from air hunger:
- You feel like you’re not getting enough air after doing a “light” physical activity. In severe cases, you will feel suffocating.
- You breathe faster than normal or feel like you need to exert a lot of effort.
- You experience breathing difficulties after doing an activity that used to be easy for you.
Experiencing breathlessness after vigorous activity is typically normal, but you should be able to recover after a few minutes.
If it takes longer than that, it should be a cause for concern.
What causes dyspnea?
There are various causes of dyspnea. It could be due to underlying heart and lung diseases or other medical conditions. You may also experience dyspnea due to changes in your environment.
Physical causes
Below are common physical changes in your environment that may contribute to your dyspnea:
1. High-altitude areas
When you travel to high-altitude areas, you may experience cycles of dyspnea. In these areas, the oxygen level decreases, causing the lungs to receive a short oxygen supply.
In return, our bodies get low oxygen concentrations in the blood. While trying to compensate for the limited oxygen levels, an automatic body response makes you feel the need to take deep breaths.
However, once you move to lower altitude areas, your breathing should return to normal shortly.
2. Extreme heat and cold temperatures
In hot, humid weather, the air you breathe is typically much dryer which can cause restrictions in your airways, especially if you already have respiratory and cardiovascular health conditions. This makes normal breathing much more difficult for you.
Moreover, if you don’t adequately replenish your fluids on hot days, you risk dehydration, which can also contribute to dyspnea.
Extreme heat often occurs along with increased air pollution which means that the air you’re breathing has a higher concentration of lung irritants that can significantly restrict your airways.
On the other hand, cold weather can cause dyspnea. Cold, dry air can irritate your airways, resulting in difficulty breathing.
During cold days, mucus becomes stubborn, obstructing your airflow and causing dyspnea.
3. During exercises and vigorous activities
Shortness of breath commonly occurs after you exercise or perform vigorous activities. This happens because your muscles require more oxygen to supply energy as you exert them to perform well.
You will notice that you breathe faster and deeper to take more, larger amounts of air into your lungs.
If you’re healthy and exercising, then you should easily return to your normal breathing after you relax for a few minutes.
4. Something is stuck in your throat
Something stuck in your throat, even if it’s just a feeling, can cause shortness of breath.
If a large object is stuck in your throat, it can block your airways, preventing air from getting to and from your lungs.
On the contrary, if it’s a small object, you risk inhaling it into your lungs, which can cause irritation, inflammation, and fluid buildup. If it’s just a sensation, it can trigger your airways to narrow down, which makes breathing difficult.
This can also cause anxiety and panic attacks, which exacerbate shortness of breath.
Pulmonary diseases
When you are suffering from a pulmonary disease, then it could be the root cause of your dyspnea.
If you haven’t received any diagnosis, you should visit your doctor to rule out a condition and receive proper treatments.
Below are a few common pulmonary issues that cause dyspnea:
1. COVID-19 or coronavirus disease
Shortness of breath is one common symptom of COVID-19. The disease affects the lungs and pulmonary system, causing low oxygen levels, especially in a severe case.
Your urge to take deep breaths sets in as your body struggles to get more oxygen.
Below are some other common symptoms of COVID-19. Please get tested when you experience the following:
- Fever or chills
- Dry cough that worsens over time
- Muscle and body aches
- Fatigue or feeling unusually weak
- Loss of sense of taste and smell
- Sore throat
- Nausea and vomiting
- Diarrhea
There is a high likelihood that you may experience anxiety when you suffer from COVID-19. Anxiety can also cause dyspnea.
Please seek medical attention immediately when you experience the following emergency symptoms of COVID-19:
- Trouble breathing or inability to breathe properly
- Persistent pain or pressure in your chest
- Sudden confusion
- Difficulty in waking or staying awake
- Pale, gray, or bluish discoloration in your skin, lips, or nail beds
Remember that these symptoms may vary from person to person. Please call emergency help immediately and isolate yourself when you have had contact with an infected person.
2. Pulmonary embolism (PE)
When blood clotting occurs in a large vein that can originate in your leg or arm (deep vein thrombosis), it may travel through your circulatory system and block the blood flow in a portion of your lungs.
As the part of your lung continuously doesn’t receive any oxygen supply, it will soon die. Moreover, PE can build pressure in the right side of your heart, potentially leading to heart failure. Thus, making PE life-threatening.
One of the most common symptoms of PE can simply start as a feeling of shortness of breath and increased breathing rate.
Please seek medical help immediately when you experience a sudden onset of shortness of breath with no apparent reason, along with the following symptoms:
- Pressure and pain in your chest, especially as you try to breathe deeply
- Bluish discoloration to your lips and nail beds
- Sudden confusion
- Swelling in your legs and ankles
- Nausea and vomiting
These symptoms may not rule out PE but they indicate a significant drop in oxygen levels in your body and require emergency help, immediately.
3. Fluid and scarring of your lungs
When excess fluid starts to build up inside your lungs (pulmonary edema) due to pressure or inflammation, the exchange of oxygen and carbon dioxide becomes inefficient.
On the other hand, scarring and thickening of the lung tissue (pulmonary fibrosis) cause the lungs to malfunction, reducing their capacity to absorb oxygen and impacting gas exchange. Both conditions lead to breathing difficulties, including dyspnea.
Shortness of breath is an early symptom of pulmonary edema and fibrosis. See your doctor for a proper diagnosis. Early detection of these conditions is essential for immediate treatment and improved outcomes.
4. Allergy
If you have allergies, especially those that can affect your respiratory system, like allergic rhinitis or asthma, you will experience breathing difficulties, including shortness of breath.
5. Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD)
COPD describes several pulmonary diseases, which commonly include emphysema and chronic bronchitis.
If you have COPD, your lungs are incapable of sufficiently receiving oxygen and efficiently exchanging gases, which impacts your normal breathing.
One of the most common symptoms of COPD is shortness of breath that worsens over time, especially during exertion.
Heart-related conditions
Below are some heart-related conditions that may cause dyspnea:
1. Low blood pressure (hypotension)
When blood pressure drops, the reduced blood flow in the body may limit the oxygen available to the heart, lungs, and other organs.
This will cause you to have the urge to constantly take deep breaths as you try to compensate for the low oxygen levels. This symptom becomes significant in patients with severe cases.
2. Iron deficiency anemia
Anemia, caused by a lack of iron in the body, can cause dyspnea.
Iron, found in red blood cells, is essential for hemoglobin production. It binds oxygen from the lungs and delivers it throughout the body. Low iron levels mean less hemoglobin, so oxygen levels go down.
Increased breathing rate and constant urge to take deep breaths may mean you have iron deficiency anemia. Iron supplements are available over the counter.
For better iron absorption, follow an iron-rich diet and take in more Vitamin C.
However, it’s best to visit your doctor to perform blood and laboratory tests to receive a proper diagnosis and treatment approach.
3. Pericarditis and cardiomyopathy
Pericarditis describes the inflammation of the sac-like tissue protecting your heart (pericardium). It can lead to fluid buildup, and if it becomes excessive, the fluid can put pressure on your heart, preventing it from pumping blood and functioning effectively. This can become life-threatening.
On the other hand, cardiomyopathy is a blanket term for a disease that weakens or affects the heart muscle, thus impairing its function to pump blood effectively.
When your heart stops pumping blood efficiently, every part of your body receives an insufficient amount of oxygen, resulting in low oxygen levels. Thus, you will experience a constant urge to take deep breaths, as if you’re losing air.
Other health-related issues
1. Anxiety and panic attacks
A panic attack occurs when you suddenly have bouts of intense fear or anxiety that cause you to have severe physical reactions, such as losing control, feeling like having a heart attack, or dying, even if there’s no apparent danger or real threat.
Hyperventilating is a common physical reaction to a panic attack. You will experience rapid, shallow breathing as your body tries to take in more oxygen, preparing you for action.
Panic attacks usually coincide with muscle tension, including muscles involved in your breathing, thus making breathing seem difficult.
There are several techniques to help you calm down when you experience an anxiety or panic attack. Treating anxiety can be challenging as it should involve patience to yourself and long-term commitment.
You must seek professional help if you struggle to handle these conditions on your own.
2. Obesity
Having excessive extra weight on your body can cause multiple problems in your health including your breathing.
These problems may involve the following:
- Restrictions in your chest and diaphragm make it difficult to expand when breathing due to excess weight in your abdomen.
- Your respiratory system becomes overworked because being overweight means more oxygen supply is needed to sustain increased metabolic requirements.
- You’re at risk of inflammatory diseases that can affect your lungs and airways.
- You can develop heart problems, which can further exacerbate breathing difficulties.
FAQs
Will dyspnea go away?
Dyspnea or “air hunger” goes away when the underlying cause gets treated or eliminated. In some cases, like after exercising or going to high-altitude areas, it will go away after a few minutes. If it doesn’t, you should seek emergency help immediately.
References
- https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/symptoms/16942-dyspnea
- https://www.healthline.com/health/dyspnea#symptoms
- https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/symptoms-testing/symptoms.html
- https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/diseases/17400-pulmonary-embolism
- https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/diseases/8709-chronic-obstructive-pulmonary-disease-copd
- https://www.healthline.com/health/iron-deficiency-anemia#symptoms
- https://www.healthline.com/health/pericarditis
- https://www.healthline.com/health/heart-disease/cardiomyopathy
