*********** VERY SCARED PLEASE HELP **********

[ajwwr82]

hello everybody. ok im 13 and absolutely terrified of sudden cardiac death. it all started one day at the dentists office when i read a magazine that said something about how teens can experience sudden cardiac death. i was always very active,but after that, im pretty much scared to budge. i do have pvcs which doesnt help the matter. i dont have any family history of it,but my grandpa had two heart attacks, both non genetic. i guess what it all comes down to is im terribly scared of dying. i know i shouldnt but i do. im scared that one day ill just be walkin up the steps or something and then bang thats it im gone. so what i am asking is (1) anybody have any info on this? (2) for comforting and (3) anybody have experience with the subject?
anything will be greatly appreciated
thanks

[hansonkay]

Hi!, this is hansonkay. I'am so glad you saw a doctor and not being fixated on sudden death. No one want's to think that way, and wory day in and day out. What purpose does it serve except to scare you which you don't need or want. Just enjoy being young and have you're friends help keep you're mind off such things. I'am not saying by any means if you don"t feel good not to see a doctor,of course you should. Just please enjoy you're life.

[ajwwr82]

thank you sooo much....i feel a lot better, lol i even went and signed up for soccer again. i just have one more question and the worry will be gone.....if i had an echo,ekg,stress test,IVs, etc. 6 years ago,would those results still be true? thank you so much,i will take everybodys advice and be a kid again, i think im gonna go play football with my friends right now :-) i just hope i dont catch a cold lol

[KirstinMc]

Palpitations are short, abrupt periods in which the heart suddenly starts beating fast. If you’re in a sensitive state, this can ring alarm bells because you fear a sudden heart attack. The more you panic, the faster the heart beats. It’s therefore understandable why many people in this situation jump to conclusions and call for medical help. What you have to remember is that palpitations are perfectly natural and can often be caused by exhaustion or stimulants like caffeine. Your heart is an incredibly strong muscle, and it won’t stop or explode simply because it’s beating hard and fast. A healthy heart can beat fast all day long and not be in any danger.



Missed Heartbeats

The medical term for missed heartbeats is extrasystoles. A missed heartbeat is usually an extra beat between two normal beats. Given the pause that follows this premature beat, it just seems as if one beat was missed. And because the heart’s lower chambers fill with a greater-than-usual amount of blood during the pause, the next regular heartbeat can feel like a bit of a jolt. When you feel this sensation, you often freeze and wait in terror to see if your heart is in trouble.

Such missed beats are generally harmless. It can help to sit down when you feel this sensation, but if you wish to keep moving, do so. Exercise won’t cause the situation to get worse, and don’t convince yourself that going home to lie down is the only way to help the situation. If you retreat every time you feel an unusual sensation, that behavior can reinforce a negative idea that your home is the only safe place to be. Our hearts are not atomic clocks that always keep time; they speed up, slow down, or occasionally beat in an irregular fashion. People with anxiety are very keen observers of all bodily functions. From time to time, you may notice an irregular beat or two. This is nothing to get upset about.

Sometimes, individuals go through similar worries about their heart as they do with their breathing. People convince themselves that if they worry enough about their heart, or concentrate too much upon its actions, it may somehow get confused and forget how to beat correctly. It’s quite common for people who suffer from panic attacks to check in on their heart at regular intervals to make sure it’s still beating away.

If you simply can’t stop obsessing about your heart, here are some tips:

• Get a full medical examination. If you don’t, your mind will always bring up the “what if something really is wrong” card. When you get a clean bill of health, trust in the results and don’t second-guess them. If you really must, get a second opinion—but after that, stop doubting your good health.

• Remember that your body has incredible internal intelligence. Simply telling your heart, out of panic, that it might stop doesn’t mean that it heeds your fears. Learn to become more comfortable with your heart, and let it do its job. Listen to it when you’re relaxed and also when you’re exercising. The more comfortable you are with the diversity and range of your heartbeats, the more confidence you’ll have in it.

• Allow your heart to beat in whatever rhythm it sees fit. Don’t try to control the natural rhythms of your body by always insisting on a calm heartbeat. The more you allow your body to flow in the manner it so chooses, the faster it will return to a state of rest.

Very often, your heart only wants to palpitate a bit, thump a few beats harder. Why? That’s the heart’s own business. It’s your mind that interferes and panics, causing the adrenaline to kick off a longer cycle of rapid heartbeats. So from now on, make a verbal agreement with your heart that you’re going to stop interfering and obsessing over its health and trust in it 100 percent. Then hand over the controls. Let go to whatever way your heart wishes to behave. By allowing the sensations to happen and simply getting on with your day, you release the anxiety that you hold around your heart as well as the cautious monitoring of every heartbeat.

[darkphoenix]

Hey there

Look - take it from somebody who has a very real reason to worry about their heart day in and day out - there is absolutely no point.

When i was 13 I spent 5 weeks in hospital having open heart surgery and having major blood vessels re-arranged so that i would survive to adulthood.  If you have been told that your heart is healthy, and you generally feel well, then please just get on with your life.  Enjoy yourself.

There is always a remote possibility that we have an undiagnosed medical condition hiding away in us somewhere just waiting to do us in, but to be honest you aer more likely to get killed by a car when you are too busy worrying about your health and not paying attention when crossing the street.

You have to trust the doctors who say that there is nothing wrong with you, at face value, and return to them if you start gettting any new horrible symptoms.

Live for today, look both ways when crossing  the road and enjoy being a kid.  You only get one chance.

[KirstinMc]

Just wanted to send you both a msg regarding this matter. I too, started suffering with this dreadful fear at a very young age, (I am now 35) and please don't ruin your life by obsessing with your heart. I have for a very long time done this and it has made me miserable. The best thing you can do is ask your doc to refer you to a cardiologist just so you can have peace of mind and once you have that, trust what the doctor's say in that YOU DO NOT HAVE A HEART CONDITION. I still have the old skippy heart beat thing which is totally harmless and all it is is an extra heart beat trying to catch up with the last and is perfectly normal, I promise. Our mind is a very clever thing but also can make us think too much and feel scared. I also believe that if you are scared of having an issue in one area of the body i.e. the heart, then you can develop pain in that area, just because you are anxious. Its a massive shame at 13 yrs you are concentrating on an issue like this in your life when you should be more bothered about lesser issues. Don't let this take over your life. I have a brilliant email I was sent from a company called "Panic Away" and I'm more than happy to email it to you. It made a lot of sense to me, especially when its an issue like the heart you are bothered about.

Best wishes to everyone XX

[davew9]

In all honsty man, dont beleive everything you read. I have lived a life similar to yours when I go out of the Marines and had children. My fear of dying increased because I do not wanna leave my kids ever. I let the worries get the best of me. I started suffering from anxiety issues and was on all kinds of medicines. I still suffer to this day. The best thing to do is this. Enjoy your life, take care of your body by eating right for the most part and exercise and be happy to be alive and well. You are young and I am sure most of us here would love to be your age again, I know I would. Living with the constant worry can bring on other problems to your body, I found that out over the last few years. Just be a kid and enjoy your life.

[ajwwr82]

thank you so much for all your responses. and no nobody has ever had sudden cardiac death on my moms side,but my dads i think one or two have. when i was little (like 6 or 7) i had a heart murmur. it closed up, but not until i passed out in the docs office, thats when it closed up. from the time i was 3 till the time i got my tonsles out(3 yrs ago) i was always sick, on every holiday i would get so excited and anxious, i would have an anxiety attack and get sick. i guess what im trying to get to is that i havent been able to have such a great childhood. and now this doesnt help at all. im just soooo scared that it will happen,cuz all kinds of other things have happened to me in my childhood. even though after the heart murmur my doc said my heart was absolutely perfect, and every year at the nurse's office, they say the same. i dont know why i am scared, but it just happens. anyways sorry for rambling, thanks again everybody

[coribell]

Hi first of all anyone at any age can die from sudden cardiac death but it is very rare to happen to teens so chances are you will be ok and live a long life but its normal to be scared and with your having the pvcs makes it more scary but you cant let the fright rule your life you are to young to live like that and you shouldent stop being active unless your doc says you should.My grandfather died of heart attack to and i understand about that as i think of that sometimes to but i know i shouldent and try not to anyways most all people are scared of death thats natural.See your doc and if he/she says you will be ok then try not to worry to much and try to get back to being active as exercise will usually help your heart more than harm it but only if thats your docs advise.

[crystalhanzelka]

I am afraid of this too.  Read the reply from Brooke_38 on my post titled HELP!!.
I know it is very rare.  But the fact that it is not impossible scares me.  I think usually when this happens there is some sort of disorder like Long QT or something.  I have let this take control of my life and I am only 27.  At 13 I can tell you to please get past this and do not worry.  I know the impact it can have.  I am scared to even clean house for fear that my heart will quit.  When we know that exercise is good for our hearts.  If it is SCD atleast it is quick and you will not know...
Dont worry you are not alone.  But I do know that it is rare for this happen without something being wrong with the heart.

[Brooke_38]

Hello...

There seem to be alot of young people here who have similar fears. I am sorry that you are riddled with fear. Many of the teens that have who have experienced this have been related to sports. This is termed Commotio cordis. It is a situation in which the heart stops when the chest is hit by an object. News stories occasionally report of baseball players who are hit in the chest by a ball and collapse because their heart stops beating. The heart sits behind the breastbone, and the electrical system can be short circuited when a direct blow is sustained. In this instance it's all about timing of impact.

If you have no family history of SCD, you need not worry about this. If all you have are benign PVC's, the anxiety created by your worry will only make those worse.

Please enjoy being 13:) You are way to young to be worrying over heart related problems

[tiakoul]

Oh my... This is not my subject BUT...First of all sudden cardiac death is very rare. Your grandfather had something very different. Has anyone in your family ever died from sudden cardiac death? If not, you are probably not predisposed. Do you get dizzy or pass out when you excersice? Do you get chest pains with exertion? Go to your doc if you have symptoms. And do your parents know about your fears? You need to talk to them about it. You can't stop living your life. You need to be aware of signals or symptoms and then deal with it. If you have a history of dizziness and chest pains with exertion then tell them and go back to doc. But really, worrying about it won't help you! You are too young to be afraid. And you are too young to deal with these kinds of fears alone. You need support and to be able to talk to your family about this. I'm so sorry you are so worried.. but really, the chances of this happening to you are slim!

Be vocal about your concerns.... tell your parents and docs whatever you are worrying about. Don't try to figure it out alone. Just know you are safe. Call your doctor yourself if you have to , just for reassurance. And then go and live your life to the fullest and enjoy all that you are meant to! Dont let fear cripple you! If you are very overcome by your fears, please tell your parents... there are people who can help :)

Try to hang in there and don't worry too much. I believe the stats are pretty low, when I was in school NO ONE I knew passed from sudden cardiac death.

I hope you find some comfort and can soothe your worries tonight... be brave and be vocal ;)