Hi Reddit. This is my 1st post and I just made an account because I've had enough....

Since I was about 8-9 years old, I can recall going thru periods where my chest feels tight, like I'm sitting at the bottom of a pool, all day. The ONLY thing that makes it go away is a deep, forced, sigh or yawn. Sometimes it lasts for a week, sometimes it lasts several months. There are no related triggers and it is not a panic attack. There is nothing wrong with my lungs (I've seen 2 pulmonologists). I've seen a speech pathologist; she gave me breathing that didn't help. I've been to therapy (including CBT), and while it helped me, it hasn't helped the BREATHING issue. After all these medical visits, NO ONE, not a single medical professional I've met with, knows what I'm talking about. The best I've gotten is sympathy, the worst was being dismissed and told that I'm making it up. 

I've met two people who described to me identical symptoms and I've read similar stories on the internet, which is how I know this is a symptom of anxiety. I've found blog posts from other frustrated people and there are even medical reviews on the condition if you search Google Scholar (its called 'sigh syndrome,' 'compulsive sighing,' or 'psychogenic dyspnea'). But most studies are kinda outdated, and at least two suggest "reassuring the patient that they are fine" as the "treatment."  I generally don't feel like I have anxiety, but its obvious that its connect in other so I am not ruling it out. 

It was the worst for me in college. I was very involved and very busy, so I believe it is related to stress. But again, its not acute.... It almost seems to work like a cold: if I am stressed for too long, I get 'run-down' and it sets in for a few weeks. I did track and field in college, ran 50+ miles per week, maintained a pretty normal sleep schedule and ate a pretty good diet. This is not going away with push-ups or vegetables (but if someone replies saying eating only kale forever fixes it......... I'd try it). 

After I graduated a few years ago, I took a pretty relaxed but unfulfilling job, and for those two years, the sighing stopped. I certainly went thru periods of relationship and COVID-induced stress, but the issue was gone. Except I recently returned to grad school and last week it started again. I'm not having it. I had a taste of freedom and I know I can't do this anymore. I forgot how AWFUL it is to sit thru meetings and go about life faking a normal, blank face while inside I feel like I'm literally drowning. I scheduled an appointment with a psychiatrist for the 1st time, but the appointment is 2 months away and I'm worried it will go away by then, making it impossible to judge whether meds help. 

So my questions for you all: 

1. Anyone out there with a similar experience?
2. Has anyone met a medical professional that was familiar with this issue? 
3. Has anyone successfully solved the issue, with medication or otherwise? 

TL;DR 

I often suffer from a sensation that I am not breathing even though I am, which goes away if I yawn. I know the symptoms are related to anxiety. No doctor or therapist has ever known what I was talking about or been able to help, but I KNOW other people with this issue are out there feeling this way too. I'm wondering if anyone has cured the dang thing!!!!