Heart palpitation?

[Ricoh]

I have been having heart palpitations for a long time now. They didn't bother me much because they didn't happen often or last long. Now on the other hand. I have been having them daily and sometimes they last for a few minutes and sometimes hours. I have been to the er a few times in the last few weeks. My first ekg showed a prolonged qt. (not sure what that means) Then over the next few times my ekg shows pvc's no qt . I had blood work done, xrays, wore a holter for 48 hours. They holter showed pvc's. I am very worried to point the I was quite sure that I was going to die. They put me on a beta blocker. Took me off my meds.I am trying to stay calm about all of this. I am a very high anxiety and a nervous person. So I was told that that doesn't help me. Not sure where I should go from here. My doctor told me that I have nothing to worry about. I need to know if I am going to be okay. I asked to be sent to a heart specialist and he says there is no need. Not sure what to do now. Help please.

[Cleveland Clinic]

ricoh,

thanks for the post.

Its a difficult situation and I imagine quite worrisome for you. Many people have palpitations quite regularly. Usually we do a simple work up and as long as the cardiac evaluation is unremarkable, try to treat palpitations with reassurance and basic medications.

With you, I am a bit concerned that your ECG showed a long QT. This would be suggestive of a possible underlying electrical problem with your heart that in the setting of palpitations could lead to further problems. That said, the QT reported on the ECG is sometimes wrong. I would discuss this specific finding with your doctor and have him/her explain the finding. If you are still uncomfortable with your treatment, think of seeking a second opinion.

good luck

[oneil420]

First i wanted you to know your not alone and many of us deal with pvcs/anxiety and general heart issues. Ive been having pac/pvc going on 6 years now and you should know that there is nothing "odd" about your papls going from light to heavy and changing direction from time to time, i can go weeks without 1 then have over 300 in a day!! Needless to say im still alive to talk about it:) As far as the doc says yeah the qt waves should be looked at if all your ekgs showed this otherwise ekgs tend to find ALOT of false positives, also your doc may have said there is no need to see a cardio but just by you posting on here shows me you dont trust his findings and you have the right to see a cardio if for nothing else peace of mind, trust me no one is going to do it for you and i spent 3 years worrying because i was too afraid to push the issue and my anxiety got worse and worse, finally i demanded to see a cardio and just talking with him about my concerns and getting all the right test have helped me alot, im not 100% as i still have papls and from time to time the anxiety gets the best of me but i live a normal life after years ogf being afraid, do it for yourself because like i said no one will do it for you , push the dr until you get the answers you deserve, last peoplewithpvcs@yahoo groups is a great support forum for people with pvcs goodluck and remember your not alone, oneil

[Bromley]

Hi. I wouldn't worry about this.

Sometimes there can be areas where a physician's experience has to be relied upon to make a good judgement as to whether you are at risk for a problem.  At times like this, I believe that it is best to review the qualifications of your physicians, and to seek a second opinion.

It sounds like your physician has made a good call.  If so, a second opinion should confirm his finding.

[dwg1998]

PVCs can feel like your heart is just going to stall, similar to a car engine that is out of tune, but it won't.  The bad news is that anxiety worsens PVCs, and PVCs cause anxiety.  Beta blockers can help a little for both, but they are no cure.  

Just remember that you are not going to die from them, as scary as they may feel.  For the record, I'm misfiring about once every 10th beat or so as I type this.  It helps to calm your nerves when you can read about similar experiences by other people also.

[Ricoh]

thanks to everyone who has made a comment. I really appreciate it. It really helps knowing that I am not alone out there. Now I just have to learn how to live with pvc's. Mind over matter.

[CindyA]

I have landed in ER twice for PVC, PACS and tachycardia.  This last time they prescribed a beta blocker, atenolol, which has really cut down on the skipped beats.  Maybe you could ask your doctor if there is a medication that might help. Prior to me taking the meds I was having major anxiety problems.  Good luck.

[Ricoh]

I am on a beta blocker for two weeks now. The last two days have been really bad. I have never had so many palpitations in my life. I am really trying hard to tell myself that I am going to be okay, I can get through this. But it is not working. I know that I am getting very stressed out by it. Can't seem to get my mind off of it, no matter what I do. It is always there. I tried reading, laying in tub to relax. Talking to friends about other things. But it is still there in my mind (this can't be right, I am going to die from these). It is like a broken record in my head. Over and over. Not sure what to do.

[Carrie41]

Just like my life.  I hated the beta blockers so I got off them.  Still had a pile of skips while on them as well.

I am gonig to see a chartered phycolgist next week to discuss my obsession with her.  I can't stop thinking about my heart as well.  It is a 24/7 thing for me.  I take celexa and that still doesn't take away my anxiety.

I will post next week after my "discussions" and see what they say about someone that can't seem to get over this.  I know I will spend the rest of my life with PVC's and PAC's so I have to find some way to deal with it as well.

[ihatepvc's]

Don't give up on taking a beta blocker. I took Toprol and Atenolol which did nothing for me, but Propranolol even at a low dose (20 mg's) stops them almost entirely MOST of the time. There are others to try and different dosages... all you need to do is ask your doctor. Also, I would get the long Q interval checked out by a cardiologist. If you do indeed have it, you will need to be on beta blockers no matter what. Good luck.

[morgods]

Hi Imp a 42 year old male … I have had what I call palpitations all my life …. Very scary at first … aged 7 when they set in ….. My heart skips beats... flutters, pauses then thumps to get back on track……. Any where from 10 times to 100 times daily ….The harder they are or the more often … the more out of energy you feel …? When it flutters for a while it scares you … adrenaline sets in blood …. And all hell breaks loose...  you don’t quite die … and things settle down again.
Food that Causes it … caffeine, lack of food... too much food , Ginger , peppers , fast hard exercise , lack of sleep , shift work , believe it or not …. The moon phases and pressure on a part of your stomach.
For me …… I get palpitations when I eat food …. One hour later  I palpitate until  what feels like a valve opens  and lets food pass away from my stomach … it seems my body needs this  blood pressure  heighten to control some valve and open it ….. If I lye on my right … the valve won’t open   …. Lye on my left …. And I can feel it work.
If imp in palpitations …. And lye on my back and push the left side of tummy just under rib … I feel every thing gurgle and the pressure go away and I relax... pulpatations subside ….  And I can sleep.
In my understanding there is a great relationship between the stomach and heart palpitations ….  And nerve signals to heart beats…… that’s what I feel …. Can any one help me? It so really sucks when it carries on for a week and a half like at moment...

[finetilthree]

Did your doc switch you around cold turkey to different bbs?  I have been taking metoprolol for 8 months and I don't get much relief from PVCs, although I do feel noticably more relaxed about 20 minutes after taking it. I would like to try something different, but I'm sorta scared.

[Vicar]

Hi, I am a 53year old male (non smoking/drinking)from the UK and having been experiencing bouts of ectopic beats (pvcs?)during the night over the last 6 months.
(I have had these occasionally for years, but rarely during the night and only amounting to one or two at a time.)
I have found that they start after 3-8hours in bed and vary in intensity and frequency, but will not stop until I get out of bed. At the same time my chest feels congested and there is a feeling like having a lump in the throat from adams' apple to about half way down the sternum on the left side. Short lived mild pain in the left side over my chest is often felt, and sometimes a hot flush/sweating.
If I stand up or sit up for about 30minutes, coughing reflexly but not very productively to clear my lungs, when my lungs feel 'normal' I can then go back to bed for another few hours.

Several Ecg's have not shown anything amiss and I am about to be fitted with a 24hour monitor, but as it happens, I've been free of them for about a week!

Although I believe that stress and anxiety (no caffeine - I drink decaffinated drinks) may have a part to play, and I am keeping an open mind about the actual cause, I do believe there must be one.

A blood sample was taken yesterday wilt Magnesium levels being added to the list of electrolytes to be measured. If low magnesium if found, my reseach suggests this could be a cause. I will post a reply as things progress.

[finetilthree]

Be carefule about decaffeinated drinks, as they all have some amount of caffeine (unless they say CAFFEINE FREE).  A few decaf drinks adds up to alot of caffeine.  Let us know what you find out!
p.s. The following link is a chart of caffeine contents in foods and drinks, including decaf ones.

http://www.cspinet.org/new/cafchart.htm

[kupihea69]

Hi there,

I am a 19 year old male and i've been recently diagnosed with a heart arrhythmia, and have been perscribed with 25mg Metoprolol (which i take twice a day every 12 hours.

My test results from my Echo show that the heart itself actually works perfectly normally, however my EKG and Holter Monitor showed that it was a problem with the electrical paths in my heart. I seem to have an extra path that throws my heart off sync and it beats too fast.

Now my Metoprolol seems to work fine enough, and it doesnt cause any dizzyness and Nausea or even drowziness.  The Medication seems to slow down my heart rate.

What I am worried about however are some other symptoms i've been having lately, and wondering if they could in fact be related to my medication and or a change in my condition.

Every now and again (maybe once a day, today its happened three times) i get a very sharp painful feeling in the left side of my chest that subsides almost immediately.  It also feels like there  is a knot or a sort of weight in the middle of my chest just above the ribs and below the pectoral area.  I've had frequent headaches and sometimes a tingling cold/hot feeling that almost feels like it drips down the left side of my face.  I sometimes also get that feeling in my chest.  My muscles spasm quite frequently (every day without fail, sometimes in a pattern) and I tend to feel a pressure in my sinuses and behind my eyes. A Lymph Node on the left side of my neck has been slightly swollen for a month or so but hasn't changed in size since the initial swelling.  I also get a sort of burning sensation all over the top of my head and a tingly sensation on the top of my head.  Taking deep breathes seems to be harder than i remember it being.  Sort of like i feel like i can't take in as much air as i should be, though im not short of breath ever. In other words i'd say it feels sort of restricted.  I've brought most these issues up with my doctors and they can't seem to pinpoint anything in particular, but i really dont know what to ask them to check for.  

Thankyou,
James Kupihea