Cocaine and PVC

[david810]

3 weeks ago I began having what I recently found out were pvcs.  At first they happened for about 10 minutes late at night and went away.  Gradually they became more and more frequent, and now every night I experience one every other beat for hours, and sometimes they're there all day long.  I've done all the tests with a cardiologist and they seem to be harmless.  Thinking about what could have triggered this, I remembered one night about 3 or 4 weeks ago i did a good amount of cocaine over a short period of time and was freaking out about my heart rate.  I've never been a frequent user of cocaine but in my experience I'd never been so paranoid about my heart while on it.  I'm thinking this could have caused this and I'm definitely regrettingthat night.  Is it possible that the drug could have cause pvcs to happen every day from that point on? or would they most likely have occured during the times the drug was in my system?

[scorpion_87]

I'm on the same boat! Been having Pvc's after a bad experience with cocaine, and e pills (amphetamines). It happened last august on my holidays, I thought I could be a super hero and do a lot of this **** throughout the week, of course after a few days and on my last night of going out partying I felt my heart jerk (not beating properly), I went home and tried to calm down. It got worst, I panicked and was rushed to hospital. It was all fine in the end I continued with my holidays, got back to work afterwards and a month and a half later I felt something similar, anxiety kicked in I panicked and hospital once more, same story. I was intrigued, as I was not on drugs, but it all came over. All exams done, normal, did see some pvc's, but all along since it started  I'm having trouble sleeping, moments of anxiety, and the ongoing daily heart beats. I was on beta-blocker meds for a month, was told to change lifestyle, not to have any stimulants, avoiding caffeine, etc. I just wonder if any of you felt about the same, what was the outcome after some time. Been told it's the way my body reacted, or/is reacting with all this that had happened and time and changes. I was not a big drug user, last year it was my second time I made use of cocaine and e pills, mdma. In total of my 2 yrs since I started I probably did only about 2-3 gms of cocaine, but some background info on the night/morning this first incident happened I had done some lines of cocaine, had 2 redbulls and by the end of it taken 3 e pills over the course of 3 hrs, I over saturated my amphetamine abuse :(
I'm just trying to take my life back on track, I guess it wilp take some time, what didn't kill me only made me stronger!!

[husky123]

PVCs are one side effect of cocaine use.  It may be that it predisposed you to PVCs.  PVCs can also occur for a number of other reasons too.  There are some things you could do to treat PVCs, but they are generally benign.  Consider the following lifestyle modifications to help treat your symtpomatic PVCs:
1.  Remove all triggers
2.  Consider doing meditation, yoga, Qi Gong, Reiki to help relax you
3.  Consider a tailored exercise program that will not stimulate PVCs
4.  Ask your doctor about magnesium and omega-3 fatty acid supplementation--they may help
5.  Prescription drugs from physician, such as a beta-blocker or calcium-channel blocker

[peta2010]

Hi David

I too have taken coke, and experienced the sensations you are talking about. I'm 36 years old and generally a healthy person. I too thought/think that my PVC's started after doing half a gram of cocaine, however I really can't put my finger entirely on the coke. I would not have done more than 3 grams in my lifetime, so I can't say I have a long history of using drugs. The night I did half a  gram was fine, heart rate was sitting steady at around 110bpm lying down, however the next morning when I got up, it shot up to around 140bpm. This lasted for around 2 hours!! I was in a state of panic thinking, ok it's only going to last for a few more minutes, however it just kept going, and going..
The heartbeat was regular, however, there was one time I felt a pvc, so I drove myself to the ER. I was more worried about racing heart, going for 2 hours doing some kind of damage, however even whilst taking the coke, I would constantly be paranoid about my heart rate.

For years before doing any coke, I would notice that when I went from the standing upright position, to lying down on the floor or ground I would get a flutter / pvc of some kind. I never felt them while standing that I can remember. On the ground / bed this would generally only last a few seconds or if I moved into another position the feeling would generally go away.

I believe, the thought process, combined with anxiety, and general panic / adrenalin dumps would all be factors in what you are experiencing. I did all the heart tests, stress tests, holter monitor also, as well as a echo cardiogram. All was normal. They did see the PVC's, however they are not any thing to be worried about I'm told...
To come full circle, I never used to get pvc's that were noticeable, however I do get them from time to time sitting or standing. Over the last few years I noticed that I can't drink as much as I used to when I was 25, however I am getting older, and this would generally give me a longer recovery time. I've noticed that magnesium supplement does help control the pvc's and I only get a few per day, on a bad day if I forget to take supplements or if I have alcohol the night before I may get one every few minutes.

There is no quick fix that I know of .... live your life, forget about them as much as you can, get a hobby or go for a walk / run when you get lots of them. I personally told my doctor, that I feel like I've beaten the fat off my heart and now this is the feeling I am having... he told me there is nothing wrong with me, get out of my office. That was 6 months ago.

[debbier]

If you find Cocaine a trigger then it should be avoided.  What is possible is you may have had pvc's all along, but never noticed them.  The incident may have triggered them to be worse but also made you more aware of your heart beat.  Once you become aware of your heartbeat its hard to ignore.   Have you worn a heart monitor for 24 hours?

[is_something_wrong]

What I THINK has happened, was that you, after this incident, have got worried and stressful about your heart rate, this can cause PVCs.

However, cocaine can damage your heart muscle and it's electrical pathways, and can be a cause of PVCs as well. I'm not sure how interested you are in telling your cardiologist you're using cocaine, but you should tell him.

My advice:
1. Stop using cocaine!
2. Ask your cardiologist if it's likely the abuse have caused structural heart damage. He will do relevant tests, like echocardiography (if it's not done) and possibly some blood tests, like troponine.
3. Do not use any drugs or alcohol before this is done (and no drugs afterwards either).

Good luck.

[kay2486]

hi, my partner had a bad addiction to the cocaine few years ago, so dont feel bad about it,im the one who gets pvcs after bad panic attack and my boyf doesnt get any, he sometimes gets a racing heart and can hear it too im not sure what he means though, there are awful things how do you deal with them? its not just cocaine and amphetamine that cause them its caffeine, decongestants, and stimulants, im laid up with blocked sinuses and i wont put any decongestants near me they make my pvcs come back

[no_fate]

while i was buzzed on alcohol**

the drugs are no good

[no_fate]

I have pvc's and i wouldn't be surprised that the couple of times i experimented with amphetamine,
or the couple of times when i was on alcohol and totally exhausted myself when on it...

could have caused damage to my heart tissue.
my heart trouble came on full force after doing a 1 minute sprint with my bicycle against a friend.

[jondsam]

As cocaine use can do damage to the heart tissue and muscle itself, it is highly unlikely that it would cause you to permanently have pvc's.  I used to do cocaine for years, I did an entire eight ball of some "fish scale" cocaine one time and my heart rate felt like it was going to fly straight out of my chest.  Must have been well over the 250's.  Luckily I quickly took a 1mg Xanax and it slowed it down some.  Cocaine while in the system will surely cause all kinds of skips and not normal beats.  However, Cocaine does not stay in the system long and should be cleared withing 48 to 96 hours.  I do not think that is what caused you problem because you must be a frequent user of the drug for many years to with stand any permanent damage.  

[friend1390]

Thanks for your brave post, and I'm sorry you've been shut down by one member and ignored by all the others regarding this very important question. I wish I could give you more information; unfortunately, the frank discussion of drug use with regard to its medical/health ramifications are generally unwelcome in the land of the free and the home of the brave as a result of its draconian drug laws. My advice to you would be to find a blog that is based in a more civilized country, such as Holland, and see if anyone there is willing to give you insight into your question.

[friend1390]

Thanks for your brave post, and I'm sorry you've been shut down by one member and ignored by all the others regarding this very important question. I wish I could give you more information; unfortunately, the frank discussion of drug use with regard to its medical/health ramifications are generally unwelcome in the land of the free and the home of the brave as a result of its draconian drug laws. My advice to you would be to find a blog that is based in a more civilized country, such as Holland, and see if anyone there is willing to give you insight into your question.

[Jerry_NJ]

Well, happily, I think you'll not find any other cocaine users in the Community.  I am among that group.  So, while I can't offer any experience based information, it seems clear to me that a more healthy life style should help.