Deep slow pounds... I'm losing it!

Ok... I have just spent the last 2 hours reading/googling  everything I could find out about what I have been experiencing for the past 2 months, and now I am TOTALLY freaked out.

I started having palpitations 2 months ago out of Nowhere. never ever had them before.  sometimes they are flutters, skips and thuds. this is distressing but, after reading through this forum and getting a routine EKG (that was "great") I began to realize how common they are for all of us out here and relaxed a bit.

But its these intermittent thuds followed by a much *slower* heartbeat that has me so freaked.  these thuds come out of nowhere and then my heart drops to like 30 BPM! it is the creepiest feeling, just this slow deep booming that lasts a minute or two, then my pulse picks up & goes right back to normal.

so I read about "bradycardia" and how when your heart slows down like this... it can just STOP! not to mention all this scary stuff about sudden death and 'pacemakers' etc... I am only 30 for goodness sake!

I have an apt to see the doctor this week but I am sooooo scared right now. this constant fear and BS is ruining my life. I'm a mess, its ridiculous! please anyone out there who has experienced these whacko *slow* beats and can relate please give me some support and insight here... can stress cause these things?  

big thanx and hugs, sinead

[abl]

i'm not sure if this will be your answer, but I will share my story and see if it might help you.  Also, I will be as brief as possible...

2004 my OB/GYN thought she could feel my thyroid.  But after doing all thyroid lab work (tsh, t3's, t4's) everything came back fine, just a little low on the on t3's.  However, it was the same year, I started having heart palpitations.  Cut to 2007, I am doing pre-conception care because I am 38.  So, I go to teh Doc's for blood work, everything, comes back fine.  But I ask to have my neck examined, because of what my OB/GYN said in 2004 & 2005 ( I didn't go to an OB in 2006, because mine left my insurance group).  And even though my blood work showed I was fine, they could feel my thyroid.  A thyroid ultrasound revealed that I have a multinodular thyroid gland.  I have no symptoms for hyperthryoid or hypothyroid, and my blood work is in teh normal range, so obviously I think I might be at teh very beginning of my thyroid going bad on me.  Now, I didn't know that your thyroid helps regulate your heart rate, but I have read many women who have really low heartbeats who are hypothyroid.  And furthermore, for teh three years I have known my cardiologist he has never done one test on my thyroid.  We have done stress test, heart ultrasounds, holter monitor, and the one you use for when you are having an episode...anyhow, nothing has ever shown I have any kind of problem with my heart.  So, I asked my cardiologist, and he said, it would be rare if that is what is causing it, but anything is possible.  

So, I am hoping to treat my thyroid with orthoiodosupplementation, and maybe just maybe the heart palpitations and goiter will both go away forever!!!!

Hope this helps, but maybe you should look into thyroid problems, it's just a thought.

take care!!!- abl

[sinead]

thanks for the info on thyroid... i expect that my doctor will include testing that in my bloodwork. i hope you are doing well and thanx for your thoughtful reply :)

[abl]

Don't expect that your Doctor will do it, insist!!!  If they are already taking your blood, just have it all checked.  All your Doctor has to do is put a check next to 3 more boxes on the form, and then you will at least be able to say, AHA!!! that is the reason, or Okay, let's look somewhere else.  

Also, when I said the whole thyroid thing to my cardiologist, he said, "We didn't check your thyroid?"  And I said no, you never even mentioned it as a possibilty.  Had he, I would have solved this mystery three years ago!!!

Let me know your thyroid numbers when they come back, I am interested to know!!!

And mostly take care!!!!!!

abl

[scareddee]

I don't think there is a limit as to how many questions you can ask on this forum, only on the one for the doctor.  I think you can ask as many as you want here.  It's for support.  At least that's the way I understand it.

[sinead]

i guess i have reached my question threshold here....  this is the 3rd time i have asked a question about my hellish experience over the past 2 months.  sorry if i have been redundant or annoying. i guess that would explain the lack of responses to me, while all the others here have received plenty of advice.... sorry.

[Christy H]

What other symptoms do you have when your heart drops that low? For me I get an upset tummy, very dizzy, my legs begin to ache like growing pains. I also had a very bad memory when I used to have a great memory. In addition to the other tests others have suggested you may what to check your pottasium level checked. Having low pottasium can cause low heart rate. It is a simple  blood test.  I hope this helps. Let me now how it turns out.
Christy