I often have chest pains, but my doctor claims there's nothing physically wrong with me. She says my symptoms are anxiety-related. Can anxiety really cause my chest to hurt?

Absolutely. You've probably heard of tension headaches, perhaps even experienced them. Most people understand that headaches can be caused by stress (or by stressful interactions with other people -- have you ever heard someone say "You're giving me a headache"?). The mechanism is similar for anxiety-related chest pains.

Anxiety isn't all in your head. It affects the body, too. Worry, nervous tension, mental stress, or anxiety can cause muscular contraction and vascular constriction restricting energy and blood flow and affecting nerve conduction to parts of the body. Different people have different "hot spots" depending up their physical makeup, past injuries, etc. Some people may be prone to back pain under stress, while others may develop tight and aching neck and shoulder muscles. Other people may have problems with internal systems or organs -- developing diarrhea under stress, for instance. Some people have chest pains.

People who develop chest pains when anxious may become even more anxious, even panicking, at the thought that they're having a heart attack. Unfortunately, that kind of worry can just make the situation worse (although you won't die from anxiety-related chest pains). You're fortunate in that you've apparently had an examination in which any medical problem that could cause your chest pains has been ruled out. Now that you know you're not having a heart attack, you can consider any chest pain as a signal from your body that you're anxious or stressed, and take appropriate steps to relax and/or address the source of your anxiety. Cognitive-behavioral psychotherapy, for instance, has helped many people alleviate anxiety-related physical symptoms.