Tachycardia and GI problems?

[lisa]

I am 31 year-old female, always been healthy as a horse.  Don't drink, don't smoke, 5'3", 115 pounds.  A couple months ago, everything started to go downhill.  I have trouble breathing when I'm in a sitting position.  Like I'm not getting enough air with each breath.  Then I started to get irregular heartbeats, go to doctor, he says "no big deal" and sends me on my way.  The irregular beats seem more likely to happen if I'm sitting.  One day while sightseeing though, I got 3 strange pains under my breastbone, from an area about the size of a nickel, figured I better sit down, and boom, go into a 7 minute bout of tachycardia.  Had tingly hands and buzzing ears.  There was some pain involved, while my heart was beating quickly, about every 15 seconds, I would get a "SWOOSH" pain in my chest, felt like too much blood being pumped at once.  It would make my whole upper body jerk.  Call an ambulance, of course by the time they reach me, I'm okay.  Go to cardiologist a few days later, normal EKG, normal ultrasound, nothing shows up on endurance test, he tells me I'm stressed (which I'm not) and insists I must have been hyperventilating during my attack (which I wasn't).  What could be going on with me?  I belch quite alot, which I never did before.  And what is this funny pain I get from between my breastbone?  It feels like something moving around, but it's not coming from a large area, but an extremely small area.   And what is this "SWOOSH" pain?  This is all very scary.  The sad thing is, when I saw the cardiologist, I got the impression he had me diagnosed before he even examined me.  I'm not the stressful type.  I just want this all to go away.  Please help.

[RoyDe]

A related discussion, reflux & tachycardia was started.

[Brenda]

Thanks for all the info. It's nice to know that I'm not alone!

[John]

Someone earlier suggested that concentrating on breathing through the nose is key.  I apparently have been breathing through the mouth more than I thought, particularly when exerting.  Concentrating on breathing through the nose and using the stomach has been helpful.  I have long used baking soda to neutralize acid.  Anyone aware of any downside to this?  It is the fastest way to get immediate relief.  John

[Julie]

I have been nodding my head in agreement whilst reading all your messages, what a comfort it is to read them. I suffer an enormous amount from heart irregularities and the effects of a hiatus hernia/reflux.  When I have gas I have palpitations, they go together hand in hand. Cardiologists shake their heads when you say you think there is a connection - but there is, there is!  I too get relief from burping, my family are now used to it!!!
I am on drugs to relieve the gas/indigestion - but really I take them because of my heart.  I can live quite easily with heartburn, etc. but I cannot live with the pvcs and the runs of ventricular tachacardia.  Scares me to death.
Good luck to all.  Hope one day they can find a cure for us.
Best Wishes
Julie

[mr stomach]

svt stands for supra ventricular tachycardia....bascically a short in the hearts conduction system causes bursts of extremely fast ventricular rates (ive been clocked at 240bpm). youll definately know if you ever slip into that. usually people who experience this also experience pvc's and some suggest that it is triggered by pvc's sometimes. think of vagal tone as "nerve activity" or "potential" of a nerve to react to stimuli. high tone actually slows the heart. most athletes have a high vagal tone and therefore a slow resting heart rate. and in my last post i should have said that anything that DECREASES vagal tone seems to do the trick (sorry about that) it almost sounds backwards dosent it?  your light headedness could be caused by a decrease in heart function because of the pvc's. think about it, if your heart is beating on an empty ventrical (a pvc) every 3rd or fourth beat, your pumping less blood. i know that my blockers sometimes make me dizzy or light, but thats just because of low bp and less cardiac output. next time you get light headed, take a bp and see what it is...
disclaimer time : im not a doctor nor am i affiliated with CC or medhelp. its only advice folks.

[John]

Thanks much, Mr. Stomach.  Vegus nerve involvement was suggested by my g.p.  He also talked about hyperventilation but we could never decide on a cure other than the blocker/pump inhibitors.  Does the hyperventilation sound familiar?  Could you educate me on SVT-what does that stand for and the vagal tone, exactly what is that?  Any thoughts on the lightheadness? This is more of a problem than the acid, as I am now better able to control that.Thanks again.  John

[mr stomach to jOHN AND OTHERS]

i have become somewhat of an expert on this (if anyone can say that)...it seems that for people who are predisposed to have palps due to GI problems, the cause is usually an increase in vagal tone. anything that causes an increase in vagal tone will trigger the problems....for instance, a full stomach will increase vagal tone as a natural response by the body to aid in digestion (manifested by a higher heart rate when bloated) exercise increases vagal tone....cold air or water on the face will increase it (divers response). what is strange, is that increasing vagal tone will sometimes end palpatations when they come in the form of svt. its my theory that any activity or condition that effects the vagus nerve will cause all kinds of whiizz bangs thuds and clicks...good news is its almost always benign...just a pain in the ***. i take atenolol 25mg/day and 150mg zantac/day and i have pretty much cured myself of palps and svt. give it a try
vagally yours,
mr stomach

[John]

Many of these symptoms sound similar to what I have been experiencing.  Acid reflux, difficulty breathing full, feels like my heart is racing with exertion, light headness, particularly after I get out of the car, sometime things "go to black".  It seems as though I forget to breath but it all is worse with reflux with the feeling of spasms in the middle of my chest.  I have had all of the heart exams and everything normal.  Any thoughts about what is going on?

[Julie]

I lost faith in doctor's years ago.  I know what I feel and I know what makes me feel better.  Yet I still get a dumbfounded look and a shake of the head from doctor's who think it can't be so.  I did have a doctor tell me he thought I have reflux but never joined the two (heart problems and reflux)together.  Just pop a Xanax.........you'll feel better soon.  I don't want a band-aid, I want a solution.  I have already pretty much come to terms with the fact that I will probably live with this for the rest of my life.  What scares me is that when and if the day ever comes that there is something really wrong with my heart I will ignore it, like I have come to do with it now and put off medical treatment.  It's just seems very odd that most of the time the palp's occur right after eating, but there is no relation between the two????  And walking??  forget it, especially when it's cold out, major palp's.  Strangest thing, isn't it?  Thanks for advice for treating the reflux regularly, will definately try it.

[Jim]

Looks like a lot of us are in the same boat--symptoms from heart problems and gastro(GERD) problems are so similar. I happen to have both and have trouble determining the source. When I walk for exercise, even at a moderate pace, pressure starts to build up in my chest. If I can get  good burp or belch out, the pressure subsides. Yet the gastro doctor says that this cannot be so, and the problem must be my heart. The heart doctor agrees. They both think that I am nuts, yet I keep reading about you good folks out there who have the same symptoms and get the same relief from belching. You know what the doctors tell me? Stop swallowing air and making myself burp--I tell them that I get relief this way and they say it has to be the heart causing the pressure and burping cannot relieve that--I wish these doctors out there would listen to us patients and walk in my shoes for a while

[greg to julie and wendie]

same thing here...to a T. same symptoms and everything....try to keep your reflux to a minimum and youll see gradual improvement with the palps and svt. 150mg Zantac 2/day does me wonders...even when im not having reflux problems, it does wonders for the palps. most doctors wont acknowledge the link between GI and cardio....screw em anyway.

[tom]

I am subject to arrhymias particularly after eating something cold. I went through cardiologists and GIs (monitors, endoscopy, ect) before being told that I had an irritated vagus nerve and reflux from a hiatal hernia and to take prilosec which I am now on with substantial improvement. Nixing caffeine entirely has helped as has not eating with 2 hours of bedtime. My condition took 3 months to improve on Prilosec.

[Julie]

Wendie, you just made my day.  I have been fighting SVT for 7 years with daily heart palitations.  Had all the tests, told nothing is wrong with me (anxiety was the diagnosis). (I am 38 years old, 31 when the tests were done)  I have always felt that this is not in my head, there has to be something causing this.  My mother has been telling me for years get checked for a hiatal hernia.  I have frequent heartburn and gas problems.  After large meals my heart races and I have palpitations.  Sometimes belching relieves my symptoms.  I to have palpitations when I bend over and before bm's.  I must say, that I have thought I am the only one out there with these crazy symptoms.  What a relief to know that there are others just like me.  Just the fact of knowing that this is not heart related relieves alot of stress.

[Liana]

Hi, I was reading this forum for a few days already hoping to find an answer to my similar problem. For almost one year I have had  Palpitations, fatigue, chest pain almost every day... few times a day. Was 3 times at different cardiologists , they say "Nothing to worry about... mild form of MVP" I went through a number of tests from ECG, echo, stress, x-rays to halter monitor and no results.  Now I start getting pain in lower calfs,I heard it is dangerous but I do not even want to go to doctor, What for ??? I know the answer "You are OK, you need to stop worrying ". I am from Europe where I used to have different attitude from doctors, they are not as much  money driven as they are here in USA. May be the problem is insurance HMO that I have??? I am going to change my insurance to personal choice in January if I live up to it.
I am telling my husband that I have pain, he is saying "You imagining this pain, you worry about things too much". I am not imagining it , i have it!!!!
I do not care anymore, I live every day thinking that it might be the last. WHY? because I can not get proper medical help.
I am not crazy, I am 27 years old, 165cm, 135 lb, Colledge degree, Employed and working on  Degree in Programming.

[Wayne Monaghan]

Well I am sure glad to see I'm not the only one with several of these symptoms. I am a white male age 40. Somewhat overweight but all the doctors say it's not an issue.
      First and foremost I have several PVC'c when doing stress test. I have been taking 300mg of Rythmol twice a day as well as 50 mg of Tenormin twice a day. Nothing has controlled the PVC's during excertion. I use to have several random PVC's almost everyday. Now there doesn't seem to be as many. But I still have them. I have noticed when you get a bowel movement pain I also throw a PVC or 2 almost everytime. Can't figure that one out. After a large meal I just sit down and relax because I know if I try to do much or go for my evening walk too soon I'll have PVC's with couplets the whole time I'm walking. I have also noticed having a PVC when I bend over and straighten back up. I can have one when I belch. And simply laying down in bed at night to sleep on my back I will have one or two. I also cannot sleep on my left side. I have PVC's the whole time that I try this. I told my heart speacilist but it was as though he didn't hear me. He thinks the Rythmol will solve it all. But it hasn't.
It has gotten to the point where I let my heart control my whole day. I schdule my physical events around how it is acting on that day.
       I worry alot about it..........

                            Thanks
                                   Wayne
***@****

[Joyce]

Lisa,
DO NOT accept the stress diagnosis!!  There is a test that can be done called a cardiac event monitor. You wear an EKG for up to a month and you press a button when you feel the symptoms - it records only when you press the button so it can record what is happening, when it is happening, rather than trying to get to a doctor,ER, etc when you are having symptoms. This is very useful for cases like yours where the symptoms come and go. Insist on a complete workup - find a cardiologist who will listen to you and follow through with things (your primary doctor can also order the event monitor test and any test which needs to be done - this may be the route to go if there is a long wait to get in to a cardiologist - the tests can be done while you are in line, waiting for an appointment. (It took 1 month for me to get in to the first cardiologist, 2 months for the second cardiologist).
Good luck!

Joyce

[Wendie]

I had an endoscope done and they found it right away!!!!
Even Reflux disease without hernia can cause the
symptoms !!!! Bending over is one thing that aggrivates
the symptoms........you may find if they medicate you for
reflux the symptoms will improve ...the endoscope will
also pick up Reflux disease .........Wendie

[CCF CARDIO MD - DLB]

It would be worthwhile for you to wear a Holter monitor for a period long enough to detect whether you are having an arrhythmia, and this is what I recommend. If your symptoms occur and the monitor shows a normal EKG rhythm while you are wearing it, then your symptoms are not due to your heart. Thus, a definite diagnosis can be made.

[To Wendie from Someone]

cut and paste:  I never considered hiatal hernia, I thought it was my heart. I can actually MAKE myself have an irregular heartbeat, by bending over after I eat!

So how does one find out if its a hernia Wendie?  I had a barium swallow done, but they found no hernia.  Can you have one and have it not be found in that test?

[Lisa - to Wendy]

So you got the "swoosh" pain too?  It's a very uncomfortable feeling, and it only happens when my heart is beating fast.  Like when I rush up the stairs, and of course I had it when I had my bout of tachycardia.  It makes my whole upper body twitch when I get it though, is that what yours was like?  I never considered hiatal hernia, I thought it was my heart.  I can actually MAKE myself have an irregular heartbeat, by bending over after I eat!  So of course, I try not too!  Actually, your post made me feel better that this may not be my heart after all, but that my heart acting funny is simply a side effect.  So thanks!

[Wendie]

Yes my symptoms were the same as yours including the
bending over thing !!!!!!Drove me nuts ........
I was getting paranoid about eating too...made it worse .......
Had all the heart tests and then figured out it wasa the
digestive tract causing this !!!!!!!
I am glad I could help......Wendie

[sue]

Lisa, I have just started reading things here for another problem, but the common theme is that if the doctor can't give you an answer, then it must be "stress". Find another doctor that will listen to what you have to say!
As far as palpitations go, it could be as Wendie suggested or you could have a heart arrhythmia or extra types of beats called PVC's (premature ventricular contractions) Either way it needs to be captured on an EKG. Which means if you have this again go to the ER immediately and tell the triage nurse you are having these symptoms as above (esp. the chest pain -it should get you back right away). And they will do an EKG. Hopefully it won't stop before they get you hooked up. This should help them determine if it is cardiac or not.
Don't give up, it is very frighting to have these symptoms and not know what is causing them. The unknown is the worse part.

[Wendie]

WOW ....I just had surgery for hiatal hernia and
gallbladder and the symptoms you describe are the exact ones I
had !!!!!!! It sounds like an esophageal spasm ...feels just like the heart....
I would get more palps sitting and especially after eating or right before
a bowel movement !!!! I would get the racing heart then feel gas or need
to go to the bathroom......see a gastro doc .......I also had reflux
disease from the hernia.......the nerve that serves the heart is very close
to the stomach so if the tummy is upset it can aggrivate the heart !!!!!!
I was so scared just like you ...gastro doc and surgeon said reflux or
tummy problems can cause this ,,,,,I an still recovering from surgery ..
Medication for the reflux you will find helps the symptoms so much.......
Hope this helps you ....Best wishes Wendie