Afternoon heart rate

[Capleton]

Currently I am sitting at my desk and my heart rate is 105.  I know its not too high but I am tired of it.  When I wake up my heart rate is in the seventies.  Every afternoon, my HR goes sky high for a few hours.  I can slow it down by laying flat on the floor - then it goes back down to mid seventies.  But when I go back to my desk its back over 100.  Just walking around will send it to 130, climbing stairs to 140.  I have had EKg's, Echo, Holter, Stress Test.  Apart from my heart going fast in the afternoon, the docs cant find anything.  And cant explain my afternoon HR.  Any ideas? Am I just crazy?  I dont have anxiety issues and I certainly dont have a stressful job.  I am 25 Male. Dont drink caffeine, or smoke, drink alcohol rarely.
Thanks

[Devinew777]

Did you figure out what it was or what helped it? I am a 27 year old male going through the same thing, just sitting here my heart rate is 109. I have had ekgs, stress tests, holter monitors but nothing. Gets very annoying!

[lotus8]

Your HR is not too awfully high. You could be having an anxiety attack that is feeding your fear and making your HR stay high. Do you take a beta blocker or anything for it? If so, you might take an extra amount - like a quarter or a half a pill. That's what I'm doing now myself. Also, I suggest you get a good electrolyte drink. You could be very low in potassium and magnesium and perhaps even salt. Any of those will cause what you have. Try doing some relaxation exercises. I wouldn't do any physical exercise until your HR goes back to normal. If you can contact your doctor, do so. Ask if they can give you a low dose of a beta blocker.

[hockeycrazy3033]

My heart rate is always jumping around as well! The lowest it is at is around 80-90. When I go down the stairs or up it'll go into the early 100's and then once I relax it'll slow down. I've also got a bunch of tests done and they found nothing. The thing with me though is I thought about IT all the time and started having anxiety attacks.

Capleton, I know you say you don't have anxiety..but the fact that you are worried about your hr and check it frequently shows you're anxious. :) I noticed when I'd constantly check my pulse that I'd get freaked out and that would make my heart rate go high.The past few months I've stopped and I've seen one heck of a difference. Just try and not worry about it. We're blessed with our HR compared to others who go well into the late 200's.

Anyways, just try and not worry about it so much.

Also, if you excercise it'll help you A LOT. The more you workout the slower your resting heart rate will be.

[KLB32]

Believe it or not, exercise is supposed to help tachycardia.  Personally, I would try that first before going on beta blockers to see if it helps.  You're young and have been told your heart is healthy so you might as well try it first before going on medications.

[KLB32]

Mine also goes up significantly even when I'm not exerting myself.  It can be in the 70's or 80's sitting then up to 110-120 by just walking across the room.

Definitely check out that website and do some research on MVPS.  It is not curable but it can be managed.  I find my symptoms are much worse during an illness such as a cold and also when I am recovering from an illness.  A minor cold in most people is a major ordeal for me.  I get really bad tachy episodes, palpitations, weakness and horrible fatigue.

The website I mentioned also includes information about a MVPS book.  I just bought the book off of Amazon this week and I swear, it's like it was written for me.  I found myself nodding my head throughout the entire thing.  

I am not saying you have MVPS but it's a possibility worth pursuing.

Good luck

[Capleton]

Wow! Thanks to both of you!  Tickertock, your symptoms sound identical to me.  Do you have to take medication to control this?  I was thinking about doing more exercise to see if it has an affect.  I dont like the idea of taking medication.  My docs say I have a structurally normal heart.  Is this sort of HR dangerous in the long term?

[tickertock]

I used to suffer with tachycardia from time I could remember, without beta blocker this is how my heartrate would be  upon waking about 70-80, then after eating breakfast 95-115 bpm for about 2 hours, around 10 am to 12 noon, about 85-105 bpm, after lunch, 95-115 again for about 2-3 hours, in the evenings 5pm and after around 80, then at nighttime around 60 bpm, occasionally I would wake at night or in the morning hours with a heartrate of about 90-110 but would slowly slow down. I know these numbers are not really way out of the normal but I am very heart aware & it was annoying, my heartrate was also slightly exaggerated with exercise, but would recover pretty quickly. Occasionally a PVC could trigger a rapid heartbeat in 140 -160 range but it usually would stop after a few minutes, some with PVCs occuring with the fast rate sometimes the rate would just be fast and regular with no PVCs.

On atenolol my heartrate is usually 60-64 bpm at rest and doesn't rise execessively with exercise, no tachycardia episodes and only an occasional PVC. I have been told by several doctors I have probably have mild autonomic dysfunction( mild dysautonomia), needless to say when you are very of heartbeat is causes anxiety and makes the problem worse.

[Capleton]

HR is now at 76!!  I am going for a drink with colleagues now.  I guarantee after 1 drink my HR will be over 100 again! It always happens with alcohol.  Everyone always tells me its anxiety.  Why would your heart rate jump 40 bpm in a relaxing setting!  Im tired of people telling me its anxiety.  The only time I feel anxious is when I get these fast rates. Im fine before then.  Thanks tho, I feel better talking to you!

[tickertock]

I take atenolol 50mg twice daily, along with cozaar and HCTZ to control mild hypertension (works like a charm for me) no side effects at all besides a nightmare occasionally, though I'm aware that some people suffer intolerable side effects from beta blockers, but you are sure lucky if you can take them, I consider myself very lucky in that regard.

Alcohol can still trigger a slightly increase heartrate for me even on atenolol, but while I'm drinking it doesn't increase much I only notice the increase upon waking after having few beers the evening before, I dont drink that much I'll go weeks to months without a drink, then I might drink a few beers every weekend for a weeks, I only drink beer not hard liquor, but alcohol is alcohol, and alcohol is BIG irritant to the heart, palpitation sufferer's find it hard to tolerate alcohol, but i dont think a beer or two, or drink occasionally hurts anyone, my opinion only, of course they person who are advised by their docs not to drink any alcohol at all, for those persons i strongly urge them to follow their doctor advice.

[kitcurious]

Do you exercise regularly? Poor conditioning can also contribute to it.
Also, anxiety is a part of it as well.  You are anticipating it all the time if you are measuring it all the time and that is, in and of itself, being anxious about it.

[Capleton]

Well, I get flushed very easily and am always thirsty even though I drink lots of water. My mum said I was always very thirsty when I was a baby.  Docs have done blood tests too - cant find anything.  Im starting to think that maybe its just the case that I am at the higher range of "normal".  When I compare myself to my girlfriend I get freaked out.  She does less exercise than me but resting heart rate is around 58, her heart rate during the day rarely goes above 70.  When she walks around her heart rate is in the 80's.  When I walk around my heart rate goes between 100 and 130!! Almost 50 bpm difference!!  When I did the stress test 2 years ago the technician said I was "relatively fit".  I just cant figure it out.  What does your heart rate do when you get up and move around?

[KLB32]

I have the same problem although mine is usually worse in the a.m.  My heart rate is also around 105 right now as I sit here typing.

Do you have other symptoms besides the tachycardia?  I have been told before that I have "irritable heart" which is just another term for Mitral Valve Prolapse Syndrome/Dysautonomia.  It's basically a dysfunction of the autonomic nervous system and not a heart problem.  

This website provides more detail.

http://www.mitralvalveprolapse.com/INDEX.htm.htm

Another thing to consider is caffeine use.  Caffeine can cause tachy episodes in some.