acid reflux and heart palpitations

HI. I am 24 years old and have in the last year been suffering from acid reflux. I now have a nine month old son. My acid  reflux didn't start getting bad till about the end of my pregnancy. Recently, I have started to have the sensation that my heart is skipping a beat. I feel it through my throat and upper chest. I saw a Family Practicioner a few days ago. He did an EKG on me and it was normal. I will be wearing a monitoring device in a few days for 24 hours. I am concerned because the doctor was listening to my chest when this feeling occurred and detected nothing. But my boyfriend was listening to my chest with a stethoscope when we heard a pause. Is this normal? Could this be a heart problem, or related to Acid Reflux. This is very uncomfortable and it really scares me. I feel like I am too young to be having so many problems. It makes me soo depressed. Should I be worried about exerting myself exercising? Any response would be great.

[tomd3187]

Heather,

I have had the same problem for years (since my last teens).  I have had heartburn since I was 14 and still have it today (although better managed).  I have also had regular strange hearbeats (feeling like skips, "hard" beating, etc).  My wife never notices her heart beating and I feel mine beating all of the time.  I have had at least 3 EKG's, stress tests, and the whole enchilada but all is normal.  I have a slight murmur that I have had since I was 5 (they call it a functional murmur).

I notice that I feel it more when I drink caffeine or when I'm stressed (duh!).  I have reduced many acid related foods from my diet and I feel waaaaaaay better.  I've given up about 90% of sugars (although I use Splenda), most high fat foods, almost all caffeine (1 cup of coffee a day), and cut back on beer (boo!).  

Give it some thought. That reflux isn't going away by itself so take it seriously now.  The best answer is with lifestyle changes rather than jumping on the latest pill....

[Heatherlove]

Thanks for your response. I had a day clear off these sensations and then I ate popcorn. Not a good choice.