Congestive heart failure...?

i'm wondering what this is, and i just seem to have all the symptoms for chs, but then again it could be something else...i haven't been able to sleep well for the past month and a half, i started out having a bloody mucus cough, and now it a dry cough, and the liquid/mucus is in my chest and my heart sometimes gets really slow or really really fast, and it's very painful, at night when i sleep my chest pain/heart pains get worse, and im very worried, i get extremely cold, espcially my hands and feet, they actually turn a purple color, i know you guys aren't doctors but if you could just give me advice that would be great.

I looked this up about congestive heart failure for you, I have had it many time. I am a severe heart patient.

Heart failure becomes more common with advancing age. You are also at increased risk for developing heart failure if you are overweight, have diabetes, smoke cigarettes, abuse alcohol, or use cocaine.

Symptoms Return to top

Weight gain
Swelling of feet and ankles
Swelling of the abdomen
Pronounced neck veins
Loss of appetite, indigestion
Nausea and vomiting
Shortness of breath with activity, or after lying down for a while
Difficulty sleeping
Fatigue, weakness, faintness
Sensation of feeling the heart beat (palpitations)
Irregular or rapid pulse
Decreased alertness or concentration
Cough
Decreased urine production
Need to urinate at night
Infants may sweat during feeding (or other exertion).

Some patients with heart failure have no symptoms. In these people, the symptoms may develop only with these conditions:

Infections with high fever
Anemia
Abnormal heart rhythm (arrhythmias)
Hyperthyroidism
Kidney disease

Exams and Tests Return to top

A physical examination may reveal either an irregular or a rapid heartbeat. There may be distended neck veins, enlarged liver, swelling of the limbs (peripheral edema), and signs of fluid around the lungs (pleural effusion).

Listening to the chest with a stethoscope may reveal lung crackles or abnormal heart sounds. Blood pressure may be normal, high, or low.

An enlargement of the heart or decreased heart functioning may be seen on several tests, including the following:

Echocardiogram
Heart catheterization
Chest x-ray
Chest CT scan
Cardiac MRI
Nuclear heart scans (MUGA, RNV)
ECG, which may also show arrhythmias
This disease may also alter the following test results:

CBC
Blood chemistry
Serum sodium
BUN
Creatinine
Liver function tests
Serum uric acid
Atrial natriuretic peptide (ANP) and brain natriuretic peptide (BNP)
Urinalysis
Urinary sodium
Creatinine clearance
Swan-Ganz measurements (right heart catheterization)
If excessive fluid has accumulated around the sac surrounding the heart (pericardium), you may need to have the fluid removed through a pericardiocentesis. =====

See a doctor .
This does not always help though .
Some doctors rely on their college degrees to diagnose peeps .
If having problems sleeping it could be your fat and that affects your sleep .Apnea is the word for it .

I work on a cardiology ward of a hospital. The symptoms you are talking about are worrying. Please, go to your doctor as soon as possible, or if you don't have a doctor, report to the Emergency room. It could be CHF or it could be a heart arrythmia or angina. Please take this seriously and don't put this off. Your life could depend on your quick response to this problem.

Congestive Heart Failure is caused by Cardiomegaly, which is an enlargement of the heart. You can have left or right ventricular failure or complete heart failure which affects both sides. CHF is caused by many things from living with years of high blood pressure to heart attacks or cardiac arrhythmias. Here is a list of symptoms associated with CHF. Weakness, cough, shortness of breath (SOB), SOB that increases with exertion or when you lie down. Chest heaviness (like someone is sitting on your chest), fast heart rate, high blood pressure, swelling in your legs or hands, JVD (jugular venous distention), rales (fluid in your lungs). These are the most common. Usually this is a progressive onset. You start off feeling weak and then you begin to develop the other symptoms and eventually after a week or two or three you have severe difficulty breathing and you would feel like you are dying. I hope this helped. If I had more information I could tell you more about your symptoms, check your pulse when you feel like it is going fast, if it is over 150 you may be having arrythmias that are causing your symptoms. Or if it is really slow, below 50, then that could explain it. You should go to your doctor if it worries you that much.