I used to smoke, quit in february this year. When I smoked I had this constant dry cough. Short, irritating cough. Almost sounded like a nervous habit but just felt like something needed to come out all the time. After I quit smoking, so did the cough. Well it has returned. For about the last 4 weeks. Gets worse when I am up and about, cooking cleaning up, simple everyday activities. Sometimes feel like I can t swallow, and I get shortness of breath. Along with this, I have been having dull pains in my chest, upper, just over from the middle, on the left side. Like two inches up from sternum and one inch over to the left. Every night. I had a scope done last yr because I kept unfeeling the shortness of breath and they thought it might me a blockage but found nothing. Also my ankles and feet have been swelling every day, worse on right leg. I have back pain all the time because I have spondylosis, stenosis, degenerative spine and arthritis in C, T, and L spine. I am 45 yr old female, 280 lbs.