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PVC's and Murmur
Hello.
I am a 28 year old male. Last year, for the 1st time, I was diagnosed with PVC's during my physical. The MD told me I skipped 3 beats my EKG. I was sent to a cardiologist who found the same thing and gave me a stress test, which was normal. Both said that it was not a big deal at all. Just yesterday, I had another physical and the EKG showed 7 skipped beats. The doc also heard a heart murmur as well. He told me my blood proessure was fine and everything else checked out. He kept asking me if I drink a lot of coffee and I told him that I hadn't had any in more than 5 years, or alcohol, or tobacco. In fact, other than Ginger Ale, all I drink is water and milk. I have a VERY healthy diet in fact. I have never felt any symptoms of the skipped beats though, or at least I don't think I have. I do have a history of stress related illness like GERD and IBS, even though my diet and taking Prevacid 30mp once a day and made that very tolerable. I know I get stressed very easily and have gone to the psychiatrist and we tried everything but nothing worked and the side effects weren't worth it. My question is, is this something I need to worrk about (the 3, now 7 skipped beats and the murmur)? My doc wants me in from an ECHO and then the heart monitor. But to not feel symptoms and then be told about this is pretty stressful. How should I feel about this and should I be worried? I really do not want to go on another medicine which I have to take for life. The prevacid itself is enough for me in that manner.. Thank you.
I am a 28 year old male. Last year, for the 1st time, I was diagnosed with PVC's during my physical. The MD told me I skipped 3 beats my EKG. I was sent to a cardiologist who found the same thing and gave me a stress test, which was normal. Both said that it was not a big deal at all. Just yesterday, I had another physical and the EKG showed 7 skipped beats. The doc also heard a heart murmur as well. He told me my blood proessure was fine and everything else checked out. He kept asking me if I drink a lot of coffee and I told him that I hadn't had any in more than 5 years, or alcohol, or tobacco. In fact, other than Ginger Ale, all I drink is water and milk. I have a VERY healthy diet in fact. I have never felt any symptoms of the skipped beats though, or at least I don't think I have. I do have a history of stress related illness like GERD and IBS, even though my diet and taking Prevacid 30mp once a day and made that very tolerable. I know I get stressed very easily and have gone to the psychiatrist and we tried everything but nothing worked and the side effects weren't worth it. My question is, is this something I need to worrk about (the 3, now 7 skipped beats and the murmur)? My doc wants me in from an ECHO and then the heart monitor. But to not feel symptoms and then be told about this is pretty stressful. How should I feel about this and should I be worried? I really do not want to go on another medicine which I have to take for life. The prevacid itself is enough for me in that manner.. Thank you.
Steveo226,
Thanks for the post.
Premature Ventricular Contractions (PVCs) are a frequent topic of discussion on this site. The key point about PVCs is that they are almost always benign in patients who have structurally normal hearts. The easiest way to determine if you have a structurally normal heart is with an echocardiogram.
Most patients that I see in my clinic with PVCs do not require an echo. I am guessing that your doctor has ordered the echo because of the relatively high frequency of PVCs on the ECG. There is certainly no harm in pursuing this echo. If the echo is normal, which would be the most likely finding, then you can be reassured that the likelihood of something bad happening to you is very small.
The decision to take any medicines should be discussed with your doctor. It would be an infrequent patient in most cardiology clinics who would receive a medication to treat asymptomatic PVCs.
Good luck.
Thanks for the post.
Premature Ventricular Contractions (PVCs) are a frequent topic of discussion on this site. The key point about PVCs is that they are almost always benign in patients who have structurally normal hearts. The easiest way to determine if you have a structurally normal heart is with an echocardiogram.
Most patients that I see in my clinic with PVCs do not require an echo. I am guessing that your doctor has ordered the echo because of the relatively high frequency of PVCs on the ECG. There is certainly no harm in pursuing this echo. If the echo is normal, which would be the most likely finding, then you can be reassured that the likelihood of something bad happening to you is very small.
The decision to take any medicines should be discussed with your doctor. It would be an infrequent patient in most cardiology clinics who would receive a medication to treat asymptomatic PVCs.
Good luck.
I am now 24.. while I was pregnant in 2003 at about 5months I started having a very difficult time breathing, near fainting spells, hard thumping in my chest which.was later ruled out as pvcs.. all my test came back normal.. EKG and echocardiagrams all the time. about 6months ago a cardialogist heard a murmur for the first time ever which i am actually very concerned about which me having anxiety dont help :-( I just dont understand... murmur just appearing out of nowhere.. help me anyone I am desperate to know what is going on and if anyone that is experiencing this talk to me please. thank-you
did your grandma uncle and cousin pass because of heart problems?
Yes, these skips are usually safe, and sometimes Drs. don't catch them when they listen, because often you just don't have PVC's.
If you have trouble sleeping and lose weight lately, you might ask your Dr. to check your thyroid. An off-balance thyroid can give you these problems.
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Good luck - *Ianna* -
If you have trouble sleeping and lose weight lately, you might ask your Dr. to check your thyroid. An off-balance thyroid can give you these problems.
-
Good luck - *Ianna* -
Is it possible to have normal ekg's, stress tests, catscans of the chest and heart an ultrasound of the heart and holter monitors and still have pvc's?
I ask this because I have had all of these tests and they all came back negative. However, I have the feeling of the skipped beat and I check my pulse and there is a definite skip. The doctors haven't heard it because when they listened with the stethoscope, no skip.
Are these safe. I have had trouble sleeping the past few months and have lost quite a bit of wait. Would this contribute to the pvc's?
Thanks, because each time it happens, I do get a bit nervous, but try not to.
I ask this because I have had all of these tests and they all came back negative. However, I have the feeling of the skipped beat and I check my pulse and there is a definite skip. The doctors haven't heard it because when they listened with the stethoscope, no skip.
Are these safe. I have had trouble sleeping the past few months and have lost quite a bit of wait. Would this contribute to the pvc's?
Thanks, because each time it happens, I do get a bit nervous, but try not to.
Is there any evidence of correlation between cardiac and cerebral neurological disorders?
In other words, might an individual with, for instance, PVC have a greater likelihood of emotional or cognitive problems?
In other words, might an individual with, for instance, PVC have a greater likelihood of emotional or cognitive problems?
wats long qt syndrome? and yes my grandmother dropped dead at 58 and my uncle dropped dead at 52 and my cousin died at 26
Hello everybody. I am a 20 year old competitive runner. In the past year I have been fainting after practice and experiencing flutters, chest pain and dizziness so I was sent to a cardiologist. I've never been diagnosed with any heart conditions. only a heart murmur that I've always had but has gotten softer but is still there and my bp is fine. My doctor tells me that I have pfo, pvc/pac, and that I am something that begins with a "t"? I dont know what any of these terms mean but i am assuming they're nothing to worry about because I wasn't given any medications, but i was offered beta-blockers but I was told that they are'nt recommended for me. (why?) Last year I was restricted from exercise because of the fainting but the doctors couldn't find out the reason i was fainting and couldn't find a reason for me not to exercise so I was allowed to again after a couple months. I've had many many tests. tilt table, countless ekgs, echo, mri, stress test, holter monitor. as far as i know they came back relatively normal. The only thing i heard was that on my EKG's one of the lines go very low? (what does that mean).and that I have an extra beat that is healthy. I was told to drink more fluids and to stay away from caffine. If there appears to be nothing wrong with me why does my cardiologist want me to come back every few months?I am confused, can someone help me understand this better? - krista
Hi everyone. I just came across this forum while searching for some answers to pvc's - I feel like I found the right place. I didn't realize so many people had this discomfort. I recently began an agressive exercise program - Bowflex - feels great and I'm doing well on it. I have no problems and had never before, but about one week after I began this program, I started having these "skipped beats". Talked to my dr. and he said they were pvc's and not to worry. I did have a heart cath last year because the er thought I might be having a heart attack - turned out to be a stomach ulcer. I was on prevacid, but was able to discontinue that about a month ago. Could this be a side effect of the prevacid? The cath showed that my heart was strong and all arteries were big, fat and clear! That was certainly good news. But now these annoying pvc's. I have no other symptoms and feel absolutely wonderful while I exercise - 1.5 hrs 3x/week resistance and 3x/week cardio. No pvc's occur AT ALL during that time. I drink 100oz of water throughout the day and drink "smart water" just after I workout. I keep moving after my resistance workout and eat nothing 1.5hrs before and 1.5hrs after. I follow a modified low-carb diet and get plenty of vegs and fruit. I take supplements of calcium/mag 1000mg/500mg daily, CoQ10 120mg/daily, multi-vitamin and EPA & Vit C 1000mg/daily. I'm sorry to ramble on so, but I am so concerned when this happens. I do take some comfort, however, in your posts - seems many of you have suffered a great deal with this problem. Btw, these pvc's start about an hour after rising, none at night, and they are about 2-3/minute. I would be so very grateful for any comments and I thank you all in advance for taking the time to read this. Regards, Shonmarie
Dear All:
I have had a functional, mid-systolic heart murmur since birth and have experienced frequent PVC's dating all the way back to when I was in college years ago. The murmur is, from what I gather, common and is heard loudest at the apex, expeciall when lying on my left side. I see a high-powered cardiologist from Boston who is totally unconcerned with the murmur and dismisses the PVC's as well. (He gets them too.) The PVC's occur frequently and are not helped by the fact that I drink a lot of coffee in the morning. They used to bother me, but I've gotten used to them over the years. I feel a strong, almost violent thumping in my chest when they occur, followed by a long interval while my heart regroups and begins beating normally again. When I was younger, I thought I might be having a heart attack (although there was never any pain, but my doctor at the time reassured me that they were harmless. I should drink less coffee, because it definitely aggravates the extra beats, but I don't. I quit drinking alcohol seven months ago, and it seems to me that when I was drinking, I would definitely experience more frequent PVC's, especially in the morning after coffee. My body's electrical system, including the wiring of my heart, seems to be very sensitive to stimuli or excitement. My heart will race wildly when I perceive myself to be in danger, e.g., a near automobile accident while driving, eventually calming down.
From what I can tell from the literature (and I've read a lot about this) my heart murmur is caused by vibration of the leaflets in the left ventricle/aortic area, which is quite common. These murmurs are called "innocent", or "functional". I suffer no side effects, such as shortness of breath, and excercise regularly. However, when I was young and medical knowledge was not as advanced as today, my physical activity in some vigorous sports, e.g., football, was restricted. So I took up golf and continue to play and enjoy the game.
Some years ago, I thought I might have Mitral Valve Prolapse (MVP), because of the similarity of the symptoms(murmur, panic attacks, sensitivity to caffeine, etc.) but my cardiologist performed an echocardiogram and the results ruled it out. An echo is the definitive test for MVP. By the way, one of the respondents said that his/her murmur was detected by an EKG, and I've always heard that murmurs don't show up on EKG's and can only by heard by stethoscope or some other electronic monitoring device. By the way, Mitral Valve Prolapse is most common in women, not men, occuring in up to 15% of the female population, depending on whose statistics you believe.
While the extra beats can be disconcerting, I've gotten used to them. The most uncomfortable feature is the long time interval between the intial thump in my chest and the eventual resumption of a normal, regular heartbeat. Vigorous excercise seems to lessen the occurence of my PVC's.
I've had many EKG's and three echocardiograms over the years, and am not restricted in any way as to my physical activity. In fact, my current cardiologist tells me that running is a great way to reduce my tendency to high blood pressure.
I had a scare about 8 months ago when I was at a retreat and, for some reason, the resident physician gave everyone EKG's. He said the tracings from lead V1 through FV3 on my EKG were abnormal and might be indicative of damage to the right side of my heart. When I got back home, I went to my high-powered cardiologist, who performed another EKG and said I was within normal bounds. He even got copie of old EKG's of mine from the early 80's which showed exactly the same quirky pattern on leads V1-V3.
I hope the foregoing is helpful to anyone who visits this website and is concerned about his or her murmur or extra heartbeats. I have done a lot of research on the subject of heart abnormalities and can recommend one or two very good books on the subject that are understandable to the layman. I can be reached through this forum or at my personal E-mail address of ***@****.
Regards,
Bill R.
I have had a functional, mid-systolic heart murmur since birth and have experienced frequent PVC's dating all the way back to when I was in college years ago. The murmur is, from what I gather, common and is heard loudest at the apex, expeciall when lying on my left side. I see a high-powered cardiologist from Boston who is totally unconcerned with the murmur and dismisses the PVC's as well. (He gets them too.) The PVC's occur frequently and are not helped by the fact that I drink a lot of coffee in the morning. They used to bother me, but I've gotten used to them over the years. I feel a strong, almost violent thumping in my chest when they occur, followed by a long interval while my heart regroups and begins beating normally again. When I was younger, I thought I might be having a heart attack (although there was never any pain, but my doctor at the time reassured me that they were harmless. I should drink less coffee, because it definitely aggravates the extra beats, but I don't. I quit drinking alcohol seven months ago, and it seems to me that when I was drinking, I would definitely experience more frequent PVC's, especially in the morning after coffee. My body's electrical system, including the wiring of my heart, seems to be very sensitive to stimuli or excitement. My heart will race wildly when I perceive myself to be in danger, e.g., a near automobile accident while driving, eventually calming down.
From what I can tell from the literature (and I've read a lot about this) my heart murmur is caused by vibration of the leaflets in the left ventricle/aortic area, which is quite common. These murmurs are called "innocent", or "functional". I suffer no side effects, such as shortness of breath, and excercise regularly. However, when I was young and medical knowledge was not as advanced as today, my physical activity in some vigorous sports, e.g., football, was restricted. So I took up golf and continue to play and enjoy the game.
Some years ago, I thought I might have Mitral Valve Prolapse (MVP), because of the similarity of the symptoms(murmur, panic attacks, sensitivity to caffeine, etc.) but my cardiologist performed an echocardiogram and the results ruled it out. An echo is the definitive test for MVP. By the way, one of the respondents said that his/her murmur was detected by an EKG, and I've always heard that murmurs don't show up on EKG's and can only by heard by stethoscope or some other electronic monitoring device. By the way, Mitral Valve Prolapse is most common in women, not men, occuring in up to 15% of the female population, depending on whose statistics you believe.
While the extra beats can be disconcerting, I've gotten used to them. The most uncomfortable feature is the long time interval between the intial thump in my chest and the eventual resumption of a normal, regular heartbeat. Vigorous excercise seems to lessen the occurence of my PVC's.
I've had many EKG's and three echocardiograms over the years, and am not restricted in any way as to my physical activity. In fact, my current cardiologist tells me that running is a great way to reduce my tendency to high blood pressure.
I had a scare about 8 months ago when I was at a retreat and, for some reason, the resident physician gave everyone EKG's. He said the tracings from lead V1 through FV3 on my EKG were abnormal and might be indicative of damage to the right side of my heart. When I got back home, I went to my high-powered cardiologist, who performed another EKG and said I was within normal bounds. He even got copie of old EKG's of mine from the early 80's which showed exactly the same quirky pattern on leads V1-V3.
I hope the foregoing is helpful to anyone who visits this website and is concerned about his or her murmur or extra heartbeats. I have done a lot of research on the subject of heart abnormalities and can recommend one or two very good books on the subject that are understandable to the layman. I can be reached through this forum or at my personal E-mail address of ***@****.
Regards,
Bill R.
Boy do I feel a little bit better. I felt fine until my 6th month of pregnance when I landed int he hoispital with a heartrate of 235. It took a while to get it down and for the remainder of my pregnancy it stayed at 110. I went to get ablated and they wer unable to induce the tachycardia. They tried everything and nothing worked. So I was back to square one. Then I went in for a check up and there was the tachycardia. It is atrial and they are not able to ablate it. I am now considering having a second child and I am very scared to go through it again. After reading all of this I feel a little bit better. Not as nervous. It is such a difficult thing because the doctors tell you that it is ok but you are the one with this heart that is just WHACKY!!!!! I am so pleased to find this forum. I feel like I am no longer alone!!!! If anyone has had this problem through pregnancy please email me!!!
***@****
***@****
Dear Arthur,
I was a member of this site for several years but just recently started viewing the forums again. I noticed your response(s)to "many" people who have the similar problems coupled with the same worries I too had had for the longest time. I personally think you are well informed based on what I've read in the forums, as I too, after over "10 long years" of these Arrhythmias, have educated myself and learned many things about my condition(s) and the options I may or may not have regarding these episodes and anticipatory anxiety that results from them. I had my 1st episode of SVT in November of 92, subsequently I developed PVC's in 94, although the PSVT's are, for the most part, under control with Tenormin, I "occasionally" break through the med's and have a shorter run of sinus-tach borderline PSVT which eventually stops on it's own or, as instructed by my now long term friend and cardiologist in the event of break through, to take another dose of tenormin. At any rate, I always wished that I could omit the Beta-Blocker(tenormin) but every time I've tried, it seems like I become more vulnerable to the SVT, and more frequent "benign", as I've been told for over 10 years now, PVC's. So, I've opted to stay on the small dose of Tenormin (37-50mg daily) since it helps, despite it's side effects that I'm certain are a direct result of "other" problems\symptoms, however, I always have been opposed to anti-Arrhythmics for the simple reason, and a good one, that I am concerned with a pro-arrythmic effect and the possibility of developing a worse or more life threatning rhythm from these class of drugs. This is why I vacated the site for a few years since ALL the suggestions\advice was the same, take medications or have an EP study\ablation etc.. To this day, I have my reservations about EP study\ablation, as I hear just as many horror stories as I do "total" success or suppression of arrhythymias. Bottom line there are NO guarantees even by the best EP doctor. Of course, "maybe" soon, they will have perfected the procedure so that those of us who have suffered this long can get "completely" off the Meds and resume a normal life or revert back to the way I felt "before" this conduction disorder ever began over 10 years ago. I think the doctors should put more effort into this area. Excuse the pun, but it doesn't take a "Brain Surgeon" to deduce from ALL the people who post their questions in this "one" forum\website regarding arrhythmias however benign they may be to a "physician" that there is a definate problem and more cardiologist should address the concerns of the "many" of us who have to accept taking medication since it seems to be the only hope besides the "risky" no guarantee ablation procedure.(s)
Eddie S
I was a member of this site for several years but just recently started viewing the forums again. I noticed your response(s)to "many" people who have the similar problems coupled with the same worries I too had had for the longest time. I personally think you are well informed based on what I've read in the forums, as I too, after over "10 long years" of these Arrhythmias, have educated myself and learned many things about my condition(s) and the options I may or may not have regarding these episodes and anticipatory anxiety that results from them. I had my 1st episode of SVT in November of 92, subsequently I developed PVC's in 94, although the PSVT's are, for the most part, under control with Tenormin, I "occasionally" break through the med's and have a shorter run of sinus-tach borderline PSVT which eventually stops on it's own or, as instructed by my now long term friend and cardiologist in the event of break through, to take another dose of tenormin. At any rate, I always wished that I could omit the Beta-Blocker(tenormin) but every time I've tried, it seems like I become more vulnerable to the SVT, and more frequent "benign", as I've been told for over 10 years now, PVC's. So, I've opted to stay on the small dose of Tenormin (37-50mg daily) since it helps, despite it's side effects that I'm certain are a direct result of "other" problems\symptoms, however, I always have been opposed to anti-Arrhythmics for the simple reason, and a good one, that I am concerned with a pro-arrythmic effect and the possibility of developing a worse or more life threatning rhythm from these class of drugs. This is why I vacated the site for a few years since ALL the suggestions\advice was the same, take medications or have an EP study\ablation etc.. To this day, I have my reservations about EP study\ablation, as I hear just as many horror stories as I do "total" success or suppression of arrhythymias. Bottom line there are NO guarantees even by the best EP doctor. Of course, "maybe" soon, they will have perfected the procedure so that those of us who have suffered this long can get "completely" off the Meds and resume a normal life or revert back to the way I felt "before" this conduction disorder ever began over 10 years ago. I think the doctors should put more effort into this area. Excuse the pun, but it doesn't take a "Brain Surgeon" to deduce from ALL the people who post their questions in this "one" forum\website regarding arrhythmias however benign they may be to a "physician" that there is a definate problem and more cardiologist should address the concerns of the "many" of us who have to accept taking medication since it seems to be the only hope besides the "risky" no guarantee ablation procedure.(s)
Eddie S
I'm having similar issues with ectopic heartbeats.
I'm a 26 year old guy who had surgical correction for fallots Tertology aged 2. Since then I have had NO problems until about a year ago when I suddenly started getting ectopic heartbeats.
I had a 24hr monitor just before Christmas which showed I was getting about 550 of these beats in a 24hr period (about 1 every 3 mins)- the doctor did not mention the type. My doctor felt that this amount was nothing to worry about, even given my history. Since then I have battled with these heartbeats on a daily basis.
Some days I have periods where I seem to be getting 1 or 2 a minute, other days I seem to be having less.
Needless to say these are worrying me a LOT, especially when I have periods where I get more than one every 3 mins.
The strange thing is that when I exercise (e.g cycling to work), i get very few (if any) of these beats...
I really need to know what I should be doing from here - the doctors I have seen seem to be totally unworried about these beats, but with my history they are freaking me out totally.
The last ECG I had was about 2 months ago and was the same as all my previous ECGs's (i.e showing RBBB but everythin else OK). At this time the cardio doctor listen to my heart, and heard these extra beats. He said that I was getting them from BOTH sides of my heart, but did not say anymore than that, and did not seem concerned.....should I be worried about this?
My question is - if I had a problem would it show on an ECG? - I have an echocardiogram scheduled for the 31st of this month, and I am REALLY worried that this is going to show something wrong...
and advice that people can give would be most appreciated....
I'm a 26 year old guy who had surgical correction for fallots Tertology aged 2. Since then I have had NO problems until about a year ago when I suddenly started getting ectopic heartbeats.
I had a 24hr monitor just before Christmas which showed I was getting about 550 of these beats in a 24hr period (about 1 every 3 mins)- the doctor did not mention the type. My doctor felt that this amount was nothing to worry about, even given my history. Since then I have battled with these heartbeats on a daily basis.
Some days I have periods where I seem to be getting 1 or 2 a minute, other days I seem to be having less.
Needless to say these are worrying me a LOT, especially when I have periods where I get more than one every 3 mins.
The strange thing is that when I exercise (e.g cycling to work), i get very few (if any) of these beats...
I really need to know what I should be doing from here - the doctors I have seen seem to be totally unworried about these beats, but with my history they are freaking me out totally.
The last ECG I had was about 2 months ago and was the same as all my previous ECGs's (i.e showing RBBB but everythin else OK). At this time the cardio doctor listen to my heart, and heard these extra beats. He said that I was getting them from BOTH sides of my heart, but did not say anymore than that, and did not seem concerned.....should I be worried about this?
My question is - if I had a problem would it show on an ECG? - I have an echocardiogram scheduled for the 31st of this month, and I am REALLY worried that this is going to show something wrong...
and advice that people can give would be most appreciated....
If your doctor has reassured you, then you should trust that the ectopic beats are not harmful. An echocardiogram should give the doctor more information and may be what you need to put your mind at ease. Until then, try to relax and enjoy the summer : )
I do know how you feel....I have had pvc's for a long time, and was up to 15/minute (22,000+ per day). My RX is helping to curb that : )
As for the exercise, I'm told that can be quite common. Many years ago, the doctor told me my ectopic would disappear if I could just run around all day......When I am on the treadmill, they disappear. Unfortunately, I can't get much done on the treadmill : )
Good luck with your echo....In the meantime, try (I know it can be difficult) to focus on other things....There are lots of great things to do in the summer....swimming, water skiing, vacationing, reading, tennis, golf.....Enjoy and trust the experts. If you are still worried, you can always get a second opinion.
I do know how you feel....I have had pvc's for a long time, and was up to 15/minute (22,000+ per day). My RX is helping to curb that : )
As for the exercise, I'm told that can be quite common. Many years ago, the doctor told me my ectopic would disappear if I could just run around all day......When I am on the treadmill, they disappear. Unfortunately, I can't get much done on the treadmill : )
Good luck with your echo....In the meantime, try (I know it can be difficult) to focus on other things....There are lots of great things to do in the summer....swimming, water skiing, vacationing, reading, tennis, golf.....Enjoy and trust the experts. If you are still worried, you can always get a second opinion.
my suggestion to you is to read the archives and the threads in this forum. You are lucky to get them every coulple of minutes. I get them sometimes 6 to 7 per minute. I know your stressed in worry of them but really there more of a nusense them anything else. If your dr isnt worried then try to carry on. Sometimes anxiety will make these so much worse. So try to relax.
take care
take care
I was diagnosed with a heart mumur 4 yrs ago. When I went to my familt doctor, he said my heart was fine. I told him about my skipped beats and racing heart, so he referred me to a cardiologist. I did the ekg and and holter monitor. The ekg reults showed only a slight murmur. The moniter revealed nothing. Therefore the Doc said that my heart was perfectly healthy, and I had a slight heart murmur. I was comforted by that until about six months ago, It seems like my heart is skipping alot of beats and leaves me short of breath. My question is this...is this all in my head? Can my heart mumur be the cause of my skipped heart beats? Or am I just imaging it all...and trying to see something that isnt there. Last night I woke up sweating, and I just sat there for a minute. then I felt my heart skip...two beats in a ro..then my normal rhythm came back. Is this normal? Some one please help. Thank you
hello again,
O your not alone at all. When I first started with this kind of thing I thought I was going to die. i barely made it home. Then straight to the er where I thought I they were going to let me die. They really didnt seem to care much about what was happening and my heart was skipping 7 beats per minute at one point. This is a really frusterating thing to have happen especially to go out into the world while its happening. Some people are afraid to leave there house's. Me on the other hand leave and face my fear with it. That seems to make it go away sometimes. I work out with it to, that can be a bit scary but I still do it. I take magnesium for this to and calcium it really really helps. The zoloft helps me and I was afraid just like you. It doesnt make me feel any diffarent my head thats why I like it so much. No one has noticed any differance in me except that I am not so anxious all the time. I love it and Im glad i tryed it. I was desperate for the skipping to stop, and it has.
You can email me anytime at ***@****
talk to you soon. Deb
O your not alone at all. When I first started with this kind of thing I thought I was going to die. i barely made it home. Then straight to the er where I thought I they were going to let me die. They really didnt seem to care much about what was happening and my heart was skipping 7 beats per minute at one point. This is a really frusterating thing to have happen especially to go out into the world while its happening. Some people are afraid to leave there house's. Me on the other hand leave and face my fear with it. That seems to make it go away sometimes. I work out with it to, that can be a bit scary but I still do it. I take magnesium for this to and calcium it really really helps. The zoloft helps me and I was afraid just like you. It doesnt make me feel any diffarent my head thats why I like it so much. No one has noticed any differance in me except that I am not so anxious all the time. I love it and Im glad i tryed it. I was desperate for the skipping to stop, and it has.
You can email me anytime at ***@****
talk to you soon. Deb
Hello,
I just wanted to comment to you over your concern. I to wake up sweaty in the middle of the night and thought that I would die when my heart would skip beats while sweating. This for me is anxiety. I get most of my attacks in the middle of the night and ive learned thats lots of women do too.
I have pvc. Skipped beats. Probably thousands a day that I feel very clear. I hate it with a passion but the dr say its ok and not to worry. I have gotten better by adressing my anxiety and learning better how to deal with it. Try to remain calm when there firing cause nerves make this so so much worse.
take care deb
I just wanted to comment to you over your concern. I to wake up sweaty in the middle of the night and thought that I would die when my heart would skip beats while sweating. This for me is anxiety. I get most of my attacks in the middle of the night and ive learned thats lots of women do too.
I have pvc. Skipped beats. Probably thousands a day that I feel very clear. I hate it with a passion but the dr say its ok and not to worry. I have gotten better by adressing my anxiety and learning better how to deal with it. Try to remain calm when there firing cause nerves make this so so much worse.
take care deb
Thank you so much. The Doc tried to put me on anxiety meds, but I was afraid of what that would do to me. I already freak out wnough about my heart...I didn't want to introduce something elso that would make my body go crazy. I'm glad to know I am not alone.
Hello, Well It looks like I found a place where maybe I can get some sympthy, advice, and help . I am a Veteran now of 6 EP ablation Studies in about 8 years and 4 i the past 2 1/2 including a trans-ceptal in february I think I spelled that right. My last ablation was about a two weeks ago and it appears that the ablations was a nightmare as he was close to the SN and the doctor fells that maybe some of the burns have caused some damage he said they did 60 burns all in the upper Q around the SN and I probably frll in the 20% Of those who have a problem. As I now appear to have Sick Sinus Syndrome or SSD.
Here is a whats happened after the ablation my base HR was 108 this was on Tuesday morning it stayed that way until I was awoke on Thursday morning by the nurse becase my HR had suddenly dropped to 40 well I paniced (yes for me the world was comming to an end) my base rate stayed at 50 or so for another 5 days, After I went home I had 3 days of low HR in the 40 - 60 total. I got up on thursday and all of a sudded in was at 93 it has now been in the hi 80's to about 110 at rest,mostly sitting about 90 on top of that they had stopped my med which consisted of lopressor and flecinide, and Im getting alot of PAC skipps or pauses I should sayu that at the hospital the Dr. origonall wanted to put a pacemaker in I opted to wait as I was not happy with the outcome of the procedure.
So my Q is has anyone had these types of probelms and how do you cope and what do you do, I wish I didnt feel every Beat and chaeck my rate every two seconds I dont sleep well as I fell all the pac and like many am afraid that my hear will just stop.
I am presently on 25mg of Lopressor and am gonna go back on Ami 200 in a few days.
Well maybe Il like a few here frantic and lost.If anyone wiould like to contact me my email is ***@****
Thanks
John
Here is a whats happened after the ablation my base HR was 108 this was on Tuesday morning it stayed that way until I was awoke on Thursday morning by the nurse becase my HR had suddenly dropped to 40 well I paniced (yes for me the world was comming to an end) my base rate stayed at 50 or so for another 5 days, After I went home I had 3 days of low HR in the 40 - 60 total. I got up on thursday and all of a sudded in was at 93 it has now been in the hi 80's to about 110 at rest,mostly sitting about 90 on top of that they had stopped my med which consisted of lopressor and flecinide, and Im getting alot of PAC skipps or pauses I should sayu that at the hospital the Dr. origonall wanted to put a pacemaker in I opted to wait as I was not happy with the outcome of the procedure.
So my Q is has anyone had these types of probelms and how do you cope and what do you do, I wish I didnt feel every Beat and chaeck my rate every two seconds I dont sleep well as I fell all the pac and like many am afraid that my hear will just stop.
I am presently on 25mg of Lopressor and am gonna go back on Ami 200 in a few days.
Well maybe Il like a few here frantic and lost.If anyone wiould like to contact me my email is ***@****
Thanks
John
I have been reading the comments by Steveo226 and spachic1, I also suffer from premature heartbeats and can confirm the bad feeling with such uccurances as spachic1 mentioned. I have been having them since 1987 and have now become accustumed. However, these last 4 days I have had a recurrance that is leaving me very worried, just imagine 4 whole days of continuous premature beats. I have had an ecg yesterday that clearly showed the premature beats. The doc says there is nothing to worry about...but I feel distracted and can hardly concentrate on anything for long enough because I get those extra beats that instantly remind me of the situation. It is worrying and I am glad that today I landed on this site...I hope I'll get some response from people who are also having such symptoms. Certainly spachic1 is one of them...Maybe we can communicate on this further....Thank you all :)
I just want to share with you an observation re. benign PACS and PVCs. There's a lot of data showing a clear relationship between their production and an interplay between the state of your nervous system and the activity of the foci which send off abberent signals to the pacemaker system. This sounds a bit complicated, however, the bottom line is that tiny portions of cardiac tissue (foci) send out inappropriate signals which get picked up by the normal pacemaker circuitry resulting in a premature beat. The extent to which this happens is governed by a number of factors, one of which is the state of your nervous system (particularly the part surrounding the heart). So, when one is excited, makes sudden moves, has had too much sugar or caffeine, has GERD, or has a case of anxiety, the foci signals move more easily and more premature beats result. We all have these foci, the only difference between us is where they are located and how easy it is for their signals to interfere with our normal pacemaker system.
Having said all this, the state of one's awareness of premature beats contributes to their occurence. It's a Catch 22...the more you are aware, the more your nervous system gets tuned up, the more they occur. Sounds awful, however, the reverse is true, and this is where you can help yourself. If you purposefully avoid checking your pulse, mentally block out the awareness of your heart beating (particularly at night), seek out methods of relaxation or distraction, you should be able to tune down that nervous system and get the buggers down to a mininum. It took me two years to fully tune them out (I used to feel every skip..at times, 2-6 per minute all day long). I now can claim to have "cured" myself, for I cannot tell when any occur (I have cheated upon occassion and checked my pulse and found little or no skips). It's extremely difficult to do this, however, let me assure you it can be done. Your mental attitude is very important...you simply have to convince yourself that they are not life-threatening, that they occur in everyone, and that you have mistakenly taken them too seriously, and now you have to proactively deny them the right to your life.
It worked for me.
-Arthur
Having said all this, the state of one's awareness of premature beats contributes to their occurence. It's a Catch 22...the more you are aware, the more your nervous system gets tuned up, the more they occur. Sounds awful, however, the reverse is true, and this is where you can help yourself. If you purposefully avoid checking your pulse, mentally block out the awareness of your heart beating (particularly at night), seek out methods of relaxation or distraction, you should be able to tune down that nervous system and get the buggers down to a mininum. It took me two years to fully tune them out (I used to feel every skip..at times, 2-6 per minute all day long). I now can claim to have "cured" myself, for I cannot tell when any occur (I have cheated upon occassion and checked my pulse and found little or no skips). It's extremely difficult to do this, however, let me assure you it can be done. Your mental attitude is very important...you simply have to convince yourself that they are not life-threatening, that they occur in everyone, and that you have mistakenly taken them too seriously, and now you have to proactively deny them the right to your life.
It worked for me.
-Arthur
I am 34 and have MVP, heart murmurs : 2 since birth, Suffer with pvc's,pac's. I follow all the guidelines too for heart health and still these loud thumps on the minute that we feel are more then aggravating.
Do you have cardiogencic syncope ?
How does your b/p look?
heart disease in your family ?
I have had a increase with them , keeping me up at night and an option for meds.
Keep us posted
Do you have cardiogencic syncope ?
How does your b/p look?
heart disease in your family ?
I have had a increase with them , keeping me up at night and an option for meds.
Keep us posted
Caffeine is a central nervous system stimulant, and is widely accepted as "causing" PACs and PVCs. Actually, caffeine simply excites the nervous system, and thereby allows the signals from those foci to travel through your cardiac tissue more easily...ergo, skips show up more often when caffeine is present. I believe caffeine has a number of other effects, one of which may be a direct affect on the excretion of acid in the stomach which in turn may affect folks with GERD. The amount of caffeine in a 12-pack of coke is not what it used to be, however, it's probably enough to raise the "skip" incidence...I am sure this varies from individual to individual. I am sure we both know folks that actually need a cup of coffee to relax in the evening before going to sleep, and others, that the same cup would keep awake for hours.
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