Too ill to work, too "well" to claim benefits?

Fluctuating conditions pose a real difficulty and I can sympathise with your dilemma. You really do need a firm diagnosis before you can move forward. (It took me 4 years to get a diagnosis and I know how awful it is when you know you are ill, but don't have a 'label' for the symptoms). It sounds as if the GP's are floundering. You need a thorough workup to find out what is wrong. Then you can explore treatment options. A very quick search for chest pain has come up with the following: http://www.wrongdiagnosis.com/sym/chest_pain.htm?&page=4&total=44
have all these possibilities been explored?

I only got my diagnosis because I researched my symptoms, worked out a possible diagnosis, and asked my GP to refer me to the relevant specialist.

Another place where you may find some useful information is the Benefits and Work website. http://www.benefitsandwork.co.uk/

They have a forum where you could also post and see what response you get, they also have excellent DLA and ESA etc guides (although you do have to pay for them) but they also have some free guides.

One of the things that comes out of the Benefits and Work guides is that the questions that are asked on the claim form don't always reflect the information that is needed for a fair decision to be made. Your local welfare rights group and/or CAB should have a copy of the guides that you can access and you will see what I mean.

It is important that you are often unable to undertake day to day tasks because you don't feel well enough. Your illness is clearly having a significant impact on your life. You need to think about how often you are too poorly to undertake certain activities, the severity and duration of your symptoms. Keeping a diary may prove useful. It may also help you to identify and precipitating or aggravating factors.

Sounds like to me you have GAD or generalised anxiety disorder, my OH has it and the symptoms you describe are for GAD. It doesn't matter keep pushing to get diagnosed as some people think that GAD is people swinging the lead. This illness can be very debilitating and can make you a recluse. But i am only speaking from personal experience, i maybe wrong.

Sorry sh1305 but I don't agree. Until you get a diagnosis you can't explore possible treatment. It could be that there is a treatment for the OP which could totally transform his life. In a perfect world GP's would explore all possible diagnosis without scaring the patient, but in reality the patient often has to be proactive to move things forward.

In my experience having a diagnosis helped enormously in dealing with my (previous) employer, claiming benefits and with my insurer. I was eventually diagnosed as seriously affected by a neurological illness, but it was such a relief, after years of becoming increasingly ill without knowing why. I also discovered that one of the 'treatments' I was prescribed prior to my diagnosis actually made my condition worse (although the clinician dismissed my comments to this effect at the time)

In addition a diagnosis will help any future employer of the OP to make the 'reasonable adjustments' required under the DDA.

My point is that although you may not 'need' a diagnosis to claim benefits, deal effectively with employers or to ask for reasonable adjustments under the DDA, having a diagnosis makes things a great deal easier. Having a diagnosis also makes it easier to obtain medical evidence from a consultant in support of the above.

If you are living with a chronic illness, that affects life in the way that the OP describes, then anything that makes it easier to cope is to worth pursing.