Am I alone...or just crazy??

[jsuter69]

I'm going to do my best to describe what I've been feeling....besides the usual PVC's or PAC's...that my cardiac doc has diagnosed me as having....
I want to know are these PVC's or PAC's? Or worse???
First I get like this strange feeling in my chest...almost like a sort of pressure...doesn't hurt nor is the pressure unbearable....or I feel like a bubble like feeling in my throat...like I have to belch...
Than my heart starts doing "it's" thing...skipping,pausing,skipping pausing etc...it did this the other night...lasted about an hour...I was so scared...I wanted to have my friend call an ambulance...just knew I was going to die...I never felt dizzy,light headed,pain or otherwise...just scared to death...wanted to have a panic attack but didn't want to embarrass myself...because my doc always says I'm fine because he's given me the usual...holtors,event monitors,heart cards,echos,bloodwork and it's always came out fine...
But here lately my heart will feel like it's pounding upon rising(after lying for awhile) and I feel like a sort of tightness around my throat...it makes me feel kind of off balance for a sec...and yes, scared...
Has anybody out there EVER felt what I felt or should I say feel??? Or am I alone??

[jsuter69]

I know EXACTLY why you feel the way you do!! We are not just talking about a headache or an ache...anywhere?! It's our HEARTS! It's like the WHOLE reason we function...if "it" screws up...ummm...let's just say....well....you know the rest of the story..
When my heart does it's usual pausy thing...I want to freak because my very being depends on that NEXT contraction...when your heart pauses do you ever feel..dizzy, kinda like when you just get off a merry go round or like when you were a kid a an adult swings you around and when he/she stops and puts you down...you have this funky spinning sensation...like after a night of drinking...lol
That's what "it" feels like for me sometimes...happened to me 3 TIMES one night!! Freakin scary! The unknown is sooo scary!

[coolapple28]

I can relate very well.  When my heart would pause, for what seemed to be en eternity, i would lose my breath, jump out of my chair 6 feet, and clutch my chest and hope for a normal heart beat.  It really blows to have them, so try the routine that I mentioned if the BB's don't work for you.  Best of luck.  Oh yeah, try splashing cold water on your face when you get them, and put an ice pack on your chest...that seemed to help me sometimes.  Other times I would take a hot bubble bath in lavendar with 2 aspirn and it would make them go away after about 20 min...SOMETIMES!    But, like I said...mine have been gone for many months now after doing the E & P routine... Good luck and "try not to let it stress you!"  Easier said then done I know.  

Wishes dear heart a PVC free night..

[DearHeart]

Ok, so I'm gonna try this out, because i think i'm already feeling better after reading everyone's posts. I've been to the family doctor, I've had a late night visit to the emergency room, and now I've been to a heart specialist where they've done all the reutine tests. Just got the results back yesterday from the 24 hour halter test....they say I'm perfectly fine except for a slight, what they call, "extra long pause" between heartbeats....so not a skipped beat. Two quick beats....and then one normal one, so that's why it feels like it's skipping. After all the drama and fear, I thought I would feel releaved....but God why don't I? It scares the tears out of me! It just feels SOO much more than that, ya know? The horrible feeling of what feels like a stopping heart beat....no words of relief can change that. I try to calm myself down, but whenever I do that my heart just does it more! I trust doctors, i really do, but why do I feel like they just don't know? I can't get over it. They say a LOT of people have the same thing, but just don't know it. HOW CAN THEY NOT FEEL IT? Is the same thing just worse for some people? Anyway, i just took my first "beta blocker" and don't really know what to expect. does it really work? Wow....venting like this.....it feels good. Can anyone relate with me?
-Heather

[coolapple28]

Also forgot to mention that when I was having them I found something that would lessen the pvc, and in many cases even stopped them.  try taking 2 L-carnitine caps at the onset of pvcs.

PS   This is 10 years worth of my suffering and thousands of dollars in **** that didn't work so if this helps anyone feel free to send a donation my way!  

[coolapple28]

Hey Bro...just read your post and I had the exact same thing.  i just posted something on it that I think you'll like.  If you try it, be sure to write me and let me know how it works for you.  I think it is your stomach causing the pvc via vagus nerve pressure and a few other thing... read this

Hey guys, I don't normally post on sites, but I've had pvc's for about 8 years now.  They were pretty bad to the point to where I would feel like passing out and had to lie down.  Almost always they lasted for 12 hours in patterns such as lub dub, lub dub, lub......dub dub dub....lub lub........lubdub...and so forth...very bad stuff.  i found that they seemed to come when I was stressed.  I am an "A" type on the go fast thinker, etc.  After a few ER visits, cardio and blood workups, stress test, ekg, x-rays, and many other things I was pushed into xanax and sent on my way.  I too heard the words..ignore them, eat lighter, don't drink..blah blah....I guess I was supposed to live like a freak of nature and not enjoy anything.  Well.... I made a connection that when I stressed it messesd up my stomach...when not stressed I still had them though.... Hmmm???  I thought maybe a digestion problem...tried changing diet.... didn't do anything.  I noticed that my pvcs usually came in the middle of the night while sleeping, or after a heavy meal and a good burp.  In the past year I developed a new symptom that made them worse.  I started getting a feeling that I could not burp and could actually feel the air rising up and stopping at my breast plate, which would cause little pvcs to start, and later lead to a full out attack of heart stopping beats!  I went to a gastro doc and had a ton of test which he determined that I had a mild gastro perieces because my stomach emptied half its contents in 90 minutes when the norm was 70.   I thought...20 minutes and I have MGP.....Nah, not me.  After research I found that normal is 77 minutes...give or take 11 minutes, which would put normal at 88 minutes.  Now I'm only 2 minutes behind normal....and being that I didn't sleep well before the test I think I was right on.  

Now to the good part.  Sick of the BS, I  decided to try some digestive enzymes (2 with each meal) and  a probiotic in the morning.  I thought that I had a bug, virus, or just a weak output of enzymes.  I am no longer dizzy, no pvcs, no chest pain...completely 100% feeling great now for 6 months!  I'm not going to name a brand because I'm not here to advertise, simply to give you something new to try.  It worked for me, but if I stop taking them it's just a matter of a week before it starts back up, but much more mild then the past.  I'm also 4 weeks into trying a product that I developed and designed and without taking any supplements the problem has stayed away.  If you want to keep up with what I am doing feel free to email me, as I am going to start a board on my website with updates.  I would suggest anyone with  pvcs get checked out by your doctor first, but give the Enzyms and probiotics a try because they do wonders!   best of luck

If anyone wants to chat about it feel free to email me at ***@****  I'll keep your email and send you updates on my progress and expierments.   I hope this helps someone out there... I know what you are going through.  Put "add me to your mailing list" in the subject and I'll email you when I get the board up and running

[jsuter69]

Second to the last sentence...there should NOT have been an "I"...(small note)

[jsuter69]

Wow!! Thanks for your reply! I'm 38 and my cardioilogists says my heart is fine...I do trust him "somewhat"...but my heart seems to act up when I'm NOT wearing a Holtor or otherwise....
Question? Can Adrenaline play a part in any of this?
And I have noticed that "usually" when my heart goes into the tachy-brady thing it's when I'm overly excited...mad or stressed...my husband died of a drug overdose...he was laying in bed...right next to me! So of course when EMS,police officers,detectives and the coronor showed up...I was having that little episode...you said you experienced this? Did it matter when or what you were you doing? Did you "freak" out....and how do/did you handle it?
I hate it because it feels so strange....like I'm going to pass out...but I don't...I'm NOT complaining just concerned....
And this tachy/brady thing started around 3yrs ago....and of course NEVER been caught...only thing my doc has seen are PAC's AND PVC's...and he tells me he's not worried or concerned....he did say I have MILD,MILD,MILD,MILD(etc,etc..etc)pulmonary hypertension...says it was so mild he should never have told me...but I hate to admit it...but I am the overly excited type..but I think it's only because I when my heart starts skipping,pausing or fluttering...it scared me into a panic...
I just want to finish school...get my nursing degree and live a "normal" life....but you're right about the mind over matter deal...I do ignore it "most" of the time....than the other times......

[BLM_56]

1. CALM DOWN!  Neither PACs nor PVCs are likely in and of themselves to be lethal.  Getting yourself worked up into a state can CAUSE irregular rhythms.

2. Get your cardiologist to tell you again whether you are having pAc's or pVc's.  Major difference there.  If you need to write down which you have, do so.  Then go to the American Heart Association's website http://www.americanheart.org/hearthub/index.htm and look it up.

3. Stop freaking out.  If you are not under the care of a cardiologst you might want to consider contacting one.  Check with friends/family/anyone you know to find one with whom you can feel comfortable.  If you ARE under the care of a cardiologist, LISTEN TO HIM/HER!  

4. Calm down.  It sounds like you may be having episodes of atrial flutter or even fibrillation.  Please note I am not - I say again NOT - diagnosing your condition but it sounds like what I have lived with for a decade.  It isn't fun but it is not likely lethal.

I don't know your age but freaking out helps no one and nothing.  Incidents of atrial flutter and fibrillation with accompanying ventricular hunting (one minute tachycardia the next bradycardia) are unsettling and can be uncomfortable but unless you get so tachy you go into ventricular fibrillation you are unlikely to die from what you are experiencing.  I promise.  I have been down that road, done that and have a whole closet full of those T-shirts.

Most importantly of all, do not freak out.  Remember the principle of mind over matter - if you don't mind it doesn't matter.  Besides freaking out never helps.  If you really feel bad, go to your cardiologist or to the nearest emergency room and get yourself checked.  If you do not trust your cardiologst's assesment or his/her treatment, get a 2nd opinion - or even another cardiologist!  These people have our lives in their hands.  If we do not trust them - WITH OUR LIVES - we are in bad shape and that very lack of trust can exacerbate things.  There is enough stress in your life.  Lack of complete trust in your physician's judgement is a stressor you can live without.

Finally, chill out and get on with your life.  Stay cool.  If nothing else freaking out in public causes a scene and embarrasses you which is not good for your heart.

[jsuter69]

Thank you...The skipping, pausing thing was new to me...but with me I swear it ALWAYS seems like something NEW...I just want to scream...WOULD YOU PLEASE JUST GIMME A BREAK?! And of course "it" doesn't listen...like DUH..."When have I EVER been an obedient heart?" I wish it was that easy....
And I do feel them when I cough,laugh,cry....but it feels like a pause like THUMP...if you will...
And when I exercise..not all the time but sometimes...my heart does it's thing during working out or even after...I freak out...so I of course quit and start feeling somewhat depressed...wondering if it's really worth it....
And can adrenaline really affect your heart? After my husband died...my heart felt like it had trouble keeping a good rhythm...it was beating real slow,than fast, like...thump.......thump.....thump thump thump thump......thump.......thump etc...sound familar to anyone??? That SCARY heartbeat scares the **** out of me...my heart NEVER seems to do the same thing twice!!!

[Momto3]

Deconditioning can also cause a quick rise in our heart rates.  Have you been getting any exercise (walking, stairs, etc)?  Staying active (to a point) seems to help with the PCVs and the anxiety.

You are not alone and you will be OK.  Many of us know exactly what you are describing so we understand your fear.  The fact that you've had a great heart workup is excellent!!  Read through the posts, add comments,start up new discussions, or just vist and say "hello."  We're happy to help : )

Connie

[dmbfan07cb]

Does the heart rate go with your breathing?  mine changes when I breath in or out and I can sometimes feel it thump a little and when I feel that, it makes me feel like I have to cough and i get a bit of pressure at the center of the base of my neck.  Apparently it is normal though and even a sign of good health.  But it's making me go crazy.  I'm constantly feeling of my pulse wondering how it could be normal.  Maybe you have the same thing?  Worth a shot to check and see, just relax and breath in and and see if it speeds up and then breath out and see if it slows down, it wont happen all the time so it may take a few trys..  thats all I can think of.
  

[sueinns]

Palpitations can cause some pretty weird symptoms.  The "bubble like feeling in your throat" is one that I get, normally at the start of a workout.  I also get the chest sensation you describe.  The skipping, pausing, etc. can go on for a long time.  Some folks get it constantly for weeks on end.  Unfortunately, arrhythmias can trigger anxiety because they feel so scary.  Dealing with this will go a long way in coping with the condition.

It sounds like PVC's or PAC's but if there is a recent change, you should see your doctor.