I am dying slowly and desperately need help. I live in a country just coming out of a long civil war and was victimized by effects of that war. I suffered from nearly non-stop heart palpitations for 5 years up to 2005 when I was diagnosed of cardiac dialation (hypertrophic cardiomyophathy???) by an Internist. I was told that the long years of palpitations have resulted into a thickened left ventricle, a condition which puts me at a risk of developing hypertention. To control the blood pressure, I have put on, and regularly taking, atenolol 50mg on a daily basis.

Medical facilities and cardiac specialists are scarce in this country and those surrounding and so much of the diagnosis we get is generalized. I think I still do not know my specific diagnosis till today. I feel pains in the chest on a regular basis - daily for many days and then it cools off for a short while. For a week and a half now, I have been experiencing shart pains in the chest in the heart region and shortness of breath at time. There is no qualified person to handle my problem.

I have been relying on the Internet for self-diagnosis without success until now that I came to know your site. I need help by way of connecting with a cardiologist - someone having similar problems and the experience to deal with it - with whom I could discuss my plight. If you are the person that can provide advice for me, please do help me.