My Son Says He Feels like He's Being Shocked

Updated on April 15, 2014
G.I. asks from Olive Hill, KY
17 answers

Hi Ladies,
My son just turned 9 and for about 3 or 4 months he has said at random times and places that he feels like something is shocking him in his chest. Sometimes its on his left side, sometimes on his right. At first he didn't complain about it just made a statement, but it seems to be bothering him more and more and lasting longer. I'm starting to get worried and was wondering if this is more than growing pains, am I over reacting or under reacting? Where do I start? Has anyone had this with their children?

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W.M.

answers from Nashville on

never heard of it but I absolutely would take him to the doc immediately. And don't take 'it is nothing' for an answer, it IS something. Get someone to tell you what it is even if not a bad thing.

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H.F.

answers from Charlotte on

Have you taken him to a dr. yet? I never heard of this experience but if he were mine, I would rush to get medical attention.

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A.C.

answers from Wilmington on

Hi G.,

I agree with the others who suggest that you have your son examined by a pediatric cardiologist as soon as possible.

Meanwhile, try to help your son keep a diary of what time of day he feels the shocks, what he's doing at the time (and has done recently), what he's eaten in the previous day (caffeine, chocolate, sugar, low protein foods), how much fluid he's taken in, how much sleep he had the night before and how tired he is, his mood, any shortness of breath, any little twitches of other body parts, etc.

Because this is such an uncommon patient symptom ... IF the cardiology assessment is fine, take him to a pediatric neurologist.
If the cardiology work-up is negative, I recommend going to a pediatric endocrinologist.
If that work-up is negative, get your pediatrician to make other recommendations.

Don't stop until all of your questions are answered. Good Luck!!!

1 mom found this helpful
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J.W.

answers from Lexington on

I would definitely take this seriously. And here is another tip... IF the doctors cannot find what is wrong, they tend to say "it is mental." They did this with our younger child for over a decade. By the time we got her to an out-of-state endocrinologist who found, among other things, intestinal malabsorption so bad that the child had osteoporosis. She says now, that she is so grateful that us parents, although the doctors did not believe her complaints and kept telling us things were "mental," although we did not just disregard the doctors, at least we did not DISbelive her. We took the attitude that we just didn't know.

In other words, just because a doctor does not find the medical cause for something at the time, does not mean it is a psychological problem, although they are quick to jump to that conclusion... especially after the kid becomes depressed, which often happen with the long-term stress to the entire body and mind from chronic, untreated underlying issues.

Just our experience. :-(

1 mom found this helpful
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E.M.

answers from Louisville on

sounds like it could be an issue with his heart call his ped today.

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A.F.

answers from Nashville on

I would definantly take him to the doctor if you haven't already asap. My husband as actually had episodes that he calls "feeling shocked" in his chest area. I had him see his general physician who immidiatly sent him to a cardiologist. It seems he has heart palpitations (the heart stops for a beat and restarts shooting blood to the brain quickly which sometimes makes him light headed). The cardiologist ran an EKG found that his left ventrical of heart is enlarged. I'm not sure if your son would have the same thing but I definantly think he needs to be seen by a doctor. The cardiologist wasn't overly concerned and just wanted my husbnad to exercise, eat and drink well, and keep stress lower. It seems to bother him more often when he's dehydrated so make sure your son is drinking plenty of water and not very much cafeine at all.

Good luck and Best of Wishes,
Angie

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K.O.

answers from Charlotte on

I would take him to a cardiologist. There are all sorts of things that could be going on. He may be having skipped beats or going into atrial flutter or fibrillation. Good luck. Hope it is nothing serious.

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H.K.

answers from Huntington on

Did you find out what's causing his "shocks" yet?

This reminded me of my childhood because I used to get sharp pains in my chest when I was about that age. I always described it as a cramp in my lung, but it did feel like a shock. It would hurt really badly if I tried to take a deep breath. After about a minute or so it would go away. This would randomly happen on either side - not very often, maybe once every few months. I completely forgot about it until I read your post, so I guess it went away many, many years ago. I hope it isn't anything serious!

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R.A.

answers from Charlotte on

G.:

It sounds like he is experiencing nerve spasms, which are described as "fire" or by adults, cattle prongs under the skin.

Did he fall or have trauma to his head? Or was he a c-section baby? Trauma of any kind will move the atlas bone from its intended position. As the head grows, the brain stem (where the 70 trillion nerves pass from the brain to the body) will short circuit nerve endings. Sometimes the result is nerve spasms like I think your son is describing.

We and many others have found relief when an Upper Cervical doctor, (UC DC specialist) realigns the bone correctly. Non-invasive, no drugs. These doc's train as Chiropractors, BUT study for 2-5 yrs additional to learn how to correct the top bone with NO TWISTING or TURNING of the neck. There are only 1600 world-wide that we know of.

You can find a list by country/state/city on the links page of uppercervicaladvocates .com Or email me for a recommendation. Our ministry is directing people who need help.

My husband had the stabbing pain spikes in his face. That's known as trigeminal neuralgia. There are surgeries, but no drugs dull nerve pain. Our story is published as "what Time, tuesday?" .

Blessings,
R.

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J.T.

answers from Louisville on

I would suggest a visit to his doctor....It could be a muscle twitching or something a bit more serious. Either way I think you should have him examined, just to put both your minds at ease. Good luck

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S.S.

answers from Raleigh on

Hi G.,

If you haven't already you need to talk to your doctor first. It could be something serious. My oldest son has an extra electrical circuit in his heart. It didn't start causing problems until he was 13 years old, yet he was born with it. Chest pains aren't something to mess around with and could be something serious. Good luck and I hope all is well with your boy.

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M.L.

answers from Grand Forks on

G. I just googled the same question that you had asked. My son just turned 9 and he said it feels like his heart is being shocked. Im so worried, can you please give me any information of what was the problem with your son.
Thanks M.

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A.C.

answers from Charlotte on

Take your son to the doctor immediately. There could be something wrong with the electrical system in his heart. Don't mess around with it. It could be minor or it could be something more complicated. Call the doctor today. I agree with other posters, I would bypass a pediatrician unless your insurance requires a referral, and go straight to a pediatric cardiologist. I hope it's nothing at all but I'd play it safe. Good luck with this and let us know what they say.

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K.S.

answers from Raleigh on

I would take him to a cardiologist and have a workup done. This symptom would have me scared, and a GP. doesn't know enough.

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C.R.

answers from Knoxville on

I would get it checked just to rule out anything serious.

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P.G.

answers from Raleigh on

HI G.
I'm a cardiac nurse (adults). The first thing I thought of when I read your post was that these "shocks" sound like they may be palpitations. You may want to get him in to see a doctor and suggest a monitor be placed to see if when he has these "shocks" that it may be his heart. The monitor (harmless) will record any rhythms and the doctor will be able to tell if these "shocks" are coming from his heart or if it is something else.
I hope this helps and good luck

P.

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M.K.

answers from Houston on

could be costochondritis

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