Fast heartrate in the mornings

[indygirl70]

Hello, I am a 40 yr old female. I have always suffered from anxiety for as long as I can remember. I have been on lexapro for 8 yrs now, which is an anti-depressant/anti-anxiety med. It seemed to have worked  pretty well in the past, but I believe my anxiety has spiraled out of control, or perhaps I have a severe heart problem.  I have had PVC's wore the halter monitor for 24 hrs, did the EKG's did the stress echo and blood tests in the past. Everything comes back normal with the exception of the PVC's which my doctor feels is not enough to be alarmed about. Thyroid always normal, blood pressures always 90/60 or at highest 115/70. I am about 5'9" and weigh 155, my cholesterol was 120 HDL 40 LDL and triglycerides were 67. I am a little hypoglycemic at times but not too bad.  In the last few weeks I awake in the mornings with extreme rapid heartbeat, before my feet even hit the floor.  It is very scary and has almost sent me to the ER on several occassions. I try breathing techniques I learned in therapy for anxiety, sometimes it will slow it a little but after a few seconds, it returns, this will go on for at least 30mins to an hour. I sometimes break out in a sweat, my hands real clammy and also may have some chest pain. It seems like its out of control and there is nothing I can do to regulate it.  Then usually after an hour or so I can relax and calm down. My husband passed away 2 yrs ago from Aortic Aneursyms, 8cm is the ascending aorta and multiple aneursyms in the abdominal part, he passed in front of me at the hospital, ruptured and bled out, it was the worst thing that I ever witnessed. So now I am terrified of hospitals because I feel they let him wait too long to operate on him. They presrcibed me atenolol for my PVC's but didnt tolerate very well since it does lower blood pressure, and mine is already low.  What to do? I am a wreck!!!

[LUKE22]

Hello, My journey started a lot like yours. I would wake up in the middle of the night with a heart rated of 120+,sweaty palms and feet,and a feeling like I had to just get up and run! Then came the pac's, pvc's .After several trips to the ER, Dr visits and a battery of tests, I was treated for tachycardia, and anxiety with medications. This was about 20years ago. Its not easy at times but I try to deal with it the best I can. Sometimes I just accept it for what it is and sometimes its a real battle. The tachycardia is gone but the skips and uneasy feelings are still around. Its almost like a snowball effect. I feel a skipped beat then start to worry about it and that seems to make the skips increase. When they get really bad I just stay as busy as possible and try not to think about it or think about someone who is having worst problems and would probably trade places with me. One thing that really helped me was this forum. I haven't posted here very often but have been reading a lot of the posts and just knowing you are not alone is a great relief. My "sanctuary" as I call it! Hopefully your Dr will get you on the right track and just remember we will always be here for support! Hang in there! L

[Janpes]

Hi,
Sorry to hear of your loss, it must be so painful to watch a loved one go in the way your husband went.
Although your heart rate could be related to anxiety it could also be something else. SVT and some other arrhythmias can also start and stop suddenly. I know from experience that my SVT started suddenly, I was sweating and feeling dizzy. It would stop in an instance.
While some people do have anxiety, doctors are way too quick to label people with it, especially without even checking people over.
The 24 hour Holter test doesn't prove much as SVT doesn't always come when you need it to.
If you are in doubt and are not sure it is anxiety, ask for a 30 day monitor. At least then you can record any instance of heart palpitations.
I am also like you in the sense I have low blood pressure and didn't tolerate Beta-Blockers either. I had an ablation 4 months ago to try to fix my SVT, so far it is holding.

Please please go and see a doctor and get yourself checked out.
Take care

[bbxx]

ps, you said you are a bit hypoglycemic-- is it possible that you are more so first thing in the morning? I am not familiar with hypoglcyemia enough to help, but I know it can also cause issues. Just a thought.

[bbxx]

So sorry to hear about your husband. You know, I am not a doctor, but from what I understand, your symtpoms are very common with anxiety. I have had that happen to me and I asked a cardiologist who said its common with anxiety. One other thing he said was if it starts OR stops slowly its anxiety. He said when it is  a rythm issue, it will stop in one heart beat, whereas anxiety slowly returns to normal unless you get yourself anxious and it increases again. I am sorry you are having such a rough time. Anxiety can also cause the other things you mentioned. If you really are not convinced its anxiety, ask your doctor for a cardiologist and explain you want to have a 30 day event recorder that way when it happens you can record it and they can tell you what it was (anxiety ro the heart).

[Jerry_NJ]

I am so sorry to read of your suffering, not just the rapid heart rate but all you have told us about.  I would guess the emotional stress is at the root of your morning high HR.  Do you experience the high HR immediately, maybe it was high while you were asleep?  Do you have troubling dreams?

The fact that you hear settles down and that you have such good blood pressure and cholesterol numbers and you have been examined by a doctor (cardiologist?) makes me think you are not in danger of a heart failure.  Still, if the morning high HR is a new symptom, you should discuss it with your doctor. It may be helpful to wear a monitor again, over night to record when the HR starts.

Do you have a number for the HR?  Over 150 bpm?