Gurgling sensation

Question

I found this forum thread by googling "gurgling heart," and my symptoms (if that's what they are) are strangely similar in some ways to the details in the original post. I have the same gurgling sensation in the upper left section of my chest (my upper left), consistently. It's not the same sensation as a hunger or digestion rumble. It's kind of bizarre feeling. Mine happen at night, but also sometimes during the day. I also have the same heart rate issues. I'll wake up with a loud/hard heartbeat, get up and go to the restroom, go back to bed and have a barely-there heartbeat (which is strange having just walked back from the bathroom). In addition, I feel like I'm forcing myself to breathe during these episodes, almost as if there's nothing in my chest if that makes sense. I start freaking out because I can't feel or hear my heart beat, and the gurgling sensation freaks me out even more. And so then, I think to myself... I'm scared right now, so my heart should be beating harder right now... but it doesn't. It just pitters very softly along with the gurgling. I don't really have any other symptoms. I don't know if this is something I should have examined, or just let it go. I haven't been to a doctor in several years, so it's probably a good idea to go anyway. I just find it interesting that someone else has something very similar going on. But I'd really like to find some answers about the gurgling issue.

By the way, I'm 30 years old, fairly slender, non-smoker, non-drinker, average/poor American diet, and hardly ever exercise. I know, I should exercise and eat better. I plan on starting to exercise this spring!

This discussion is related to Gurgling Sensation / Slowed Rhythm.

howwedie88 · Answer

I am 22 (23 next month) I am glad to have finally found some people having a similar issue. The answers you all have are vast, but so seems to be all of your situations. I myself am an active early 20's Male that has a son and girlfriend who keep me busy. I work at a decent paying job that involves moderate to light lifting. It's a retirement job for sure (career if you would) So yes it can be stressful at times since I operate heavy duty equipment and machinery. But I've never been a nervous person. I'm young and have some credit card to debt to get out of but that' not to much of a worry. Either way I started a gym membership earlier in the year and was going about 4-5 days a week training with a body builder. I am all natural, I only use preworkouts. One day I mixed too much taurine in with the preworkout and had a caffeine overdose. I tried to just drink a lot of water and let it ride. But it became to unbearable and I felt the need to go to the ER just in case. They said my potassium levels were dangerously low but said it was probably from working out. I was cleared and I took a small break from the gym (never made a follow up appointment) I felt fine began starting back up my routine and was fine, slowly began implementation of the pre workout back in my process as well. All was fine until I began randomly getting periods of a fluttering in my heart and then a tight pain in my chest. It appeared randomly but mostly at night. I eat a healthy diet (practically the same one my trainer is on minus the quantity) rice/chicken/Lean beef etc..) Occasionally we will get pizza or eat some fried chicken out if we're busy or to tired from running etc. But I was doing a decent job sticking to a strict healthy diet. Began taking a multivitamin with potassium, magnesium, B's C's and D's. Well I recently began getting these gargling feelings like most of you. I thought maybe it was just heart burn, well they are sometimes accompanied by the inability to sleep, due to restlessness and jitters. I feel like I have to get up and walk around. But then I feel so tired I need to sleep. I am going to set up an appointment with a cardiovascular Dr. And see what I can come up with. I know everyone wants to say anxiety but this doesn't seem like it. I have o ly ever had one real anxiety attack, but I just did breathing exercises and continued to drink water and it went away. I also recently came down with gastroenteritis, which I heard can cause severe heartburn and can affect the vagus nerve in the abdominal region and can cause chest discomfort and pain. But I'm not sure if it is related or just adding on to the already existing problem.

Whichwayisthehealthyway · Answer

I have had the chest rumbling sensation that always occurs at night, while in bed asleep, and while going from a sleep to awakening state in the early morning -- or after a few hours of sleep and it seems as if my body is awakened by this rumbling in my left chest. I have taken magnesium supplements (500-1000mg) in early evening or at bedtime and it helps. I understand doctors also prescribe magnesium for arrhythmia -- and I assumed that's what it is, rapid heart beat or flutter. My breathing is shallow when the sensation occurs and I'very wondered if reduced oxygen to the heart by an improper sleeping position is the real culprit. That is, whereby the lungs are compromised somehow, such as when sleeping in a fetal position or on my side with arms clasped around my chest. Also, when I eat too lightly during the day this sensation of rumbling is more likely to occur -- so it seems it may be tied to inadequate food consumption or inadequate nutrition or both. I have noticed that eating chicken may suppress it so I regularly eat it. Chicken is considered a "health" food (organic/no hormones) as its mineral content is pretty balanced, which gets back to magnesium as an aid. Coconut water is high in magnesium so I use it too. Coconut water also enhances my appetite which is good as I have reduced appetite very often. I am nearly 69 and reduced appetite that can cause havoc in the health of older seniors.

But my real hunch is it's a nutritional and digestive issue more than a heart issue, as regular meals with protein (esp chicken) tends to reduce or eliminate this rumbling sensation. But, again, sleep pattern is important to pay attention to, especially if you sleep on your stomach or side most of the night. I have noticed it is less likely to occur when I sleep on my back and position my head to the side and slightly upward. You may want to have a sleep study to rule out breathing trouble, such as sleep apnea.

So, that is the best I can offer. I prefer to solve it myself rather than use medication for arrthymia or acid reflux. Since I get relief by using the above interventions I believe it's within my control. Healthy and sufficient eating morning, noon and evening, proper nutrition, including mineral supplements, and altering sleep position are the best suggestions I have discovered. I have no other serious health problems, related to the rumbling or otherwise,so I am confident if I follow these interventions faithfully all will be okay. Blessings.

Kevin36355 · Answer

dubdub what did the doctor say

iamdunn4 · Answer

I am a 62 year old over weight male. The last three years I've had some  difficult situations that have caused me a lot of nervousness and anxiety. This gurgling just started a couple of days ago. I have acid reflux and take meds for that but I have had much more  acid of late and some bowl problems. About two months ago I had a case of the runs that lasted for about a month off and on. That finally went away  and then about three weeks ago I  started to have sever constipation. On top of that my stress level has gotten worse. About a week ago I started having this pressure in my upper left chest. I did not think it was heart related but considered that it had something to do with my constipation. It actually was making the tissue in that area sore.  I thought it might be gas some how working it's way up there so I got some gasx and that took that pressure away immediately. then this gurgling thing started. It is not just a feeling but I can actually hear it. It feels something like when your stomach gurgles from indigestion. It seems to be in the same area as the pressure. I put myself on a high fiber diet with mostly fruits and vegies and my stomach is much better and the pressure is not a bad but still there at times. I have not had any gurgling this evening so I hope I am getting back to normal. It appears to me that most every one on this forum have some type of anxiety or nervousness. I know from experience that anxiety can play havoc on your digestive system.  I sure would like to hear what a doctor has to say about all this.

tom_h · Answer

In the everyday world, the term "Gurgling" indicates the mix of a liquid and a gas.  Such is not the case with your circulatory system.  Consider that what you're feeling is some sort of brief rapid arrhythmia, perhaps NSVT, SVT, or perhaps even Afib.  If when you feel this, immediately stop what you're doing, pause and "listen" to your body rather than panic, you might be able to better pick up on what is occurring within you.

annemk · Answer

I'm a 22 year old female who also experiences this periodically. I'll just be sitting down reading or writing or something, and suddenly the flutter and then gurgling sensation starts. I also feel as though I can't breathe during an episode like this, and my heart rate increases quite rapidly. Unlike many of the other comments, I don't suffer from anxiety and I am not on any medications. I do, however, have relatively low blood pressure, and I've always wondered if that might correlate. I've read that it might be backwards leakage (valve regurgitation), and it happens periodically in healthy people, and doesn't typically cause problems in those instances. It can be a bigger issue, though, so if you're experiencing it frequently, it's best to bring it up with your doctor.

canadiansnow · Answer

Also if your heart is beating you are alive and if you can't feel it welcome to the undead (;

canadiansnow · Answer

I'm 19 and have the same symptoms. I've been to the er many times and am currently on medication due to I have to many panic attacks. Is the fact that we might ignore pain or emotion, its related. Also it is common to wake up and have a pounding heart you need to calm yourself down or not worry. To young for heart attacks. Panic disadords suck and interference with daily living. Be happy, exverckse a little and find healty food that you like and food good for your vital organs. You'll feel better. Gasternolgy is the gurlgle. The gurgle causes panic attacks. Gasternolgy is the specialized doctors for our stomachs and esophagus... It can be gerd or something less severe. Bulimia causes this....also I didn't not have this gurgle until I od on method. I was constantly burping. Lucky to be alive though and clean. Food and excersice and being happy is key. I encourage looking up what foods are OK and not and make a plan for you, you can go threw with. It is a type of said reflux....pizza garlic tomatoes oj spicy food can cause it also laying down after eating or eating way to much. Hope this helps. Haply to know I'm not the only one struggling and scared.

canadiansnow · Answer

I'm 19 and have the same symptoms. I've been to the er many times and am currently on medication due to I have to many panic attacks. Is the fact that we might ignore pain or emotion, its related. Also it is common to wake up and have a pounding heart you need to calm yourself down or not worry. To young for heart attacks. Panic disadords suck and interference with daily living. Be happy, exverckse a little and find healty food that you like and food good for your vital organs. You'll feel better. Gasternolgy is the gurlgle. The gurgle causes panic attacks. Gasternolgy is the specialized doctors for our stomachs and esophagus... It can be gerd or something less severe. Bulimia causes this....also I didn't not have this gurgle until I od on method. I was constantly burping. Lucky to be alive though and clean. Food and excersice and being happy is key. I encourage looking up what foods are OK and not and make a plan for you, you can go threw with. It is a type of said reflux....pizza garlic tomatoes oj spicy food can cause it also laying down after eating or eating way to much. Hope this helps. Haply to know I'm not the only one struggling and scared.

Kulski · Answer

I have the same rumble in my left chest, freaks me out! It's not the muscle, it's in my left breast under the muscle. WTF! It feels like gases moving around in my chest. Is it cancer? Am I dying?

CaitB · Answer

I am a 22 year old female also experiencing this gurgling sensation in the upper left of my chest usually when I am at rest.  I also have a pacemaker.  I recently have developed anxiety due to some medical problems that doctors have not been able to diagnose.  I know with my pacemaker that this sensation shouldn't be related to my heartbeat, as I have checks often...does anyone know how anxiety can cause this sensation?

robin1987 · Answer

Hi, 

I find your information very useful as all that you have explained there is exactly what I have been going through, I also suffer from panic attack and get the horrible muscle spasms all over my body. my bowel movements are very irregular and my doc believes this is all anxiety. I am 25 years old  male so I understand that doctors would dis regard it as anything serious. i have also had lumps in my neck which led me to believe straight away it is some sort of cancer, again the docs explained that it was just an enlarged gland. i have had the problem for 4-5 months now so getting very anxious. they have only just recently started sending me for tests. my bloods came back negative and the ultra sound on my abdomen came back negative. they have ruled out all the other things i.e crohns,celiac disease etc) i just woke up with this one day from being perfectly healthy and playing football on a weekly basis going out enjoying drinks with friends. i am unable to do any of this now as i get so tired and my heart beats really fast and get palpitations etc.i have lost 2 stone of weight since this problem started. i think some docs are a disgrace and make you even worse. i am also on lansoprazole as this stops my stomach producing acid but gives me a load of other problems(headaches,twitching and palpitations)i am now on a waiting list for a colonoscopy and endoscopy, i really want to know what the hell is wrong with me so if anybody has any other info please post as it would be very much appreciated.

starphlo · Answer

I've been having this same gurgle...also have panic attacks. For those of you who say that this happens when you aren't anxious, I can tell you that just because you don't think you are anxious, it doesn't mean your body is't reacting to anxiety. My last panic attack caught me completely off guard. I didn't think I was anxious at all...I've been to the doctors, who also never take me seriously, it seems. They say it is due to anxiety. Also, I would caution anyone to be very careful with the new drugs, ie psychotropics...maybe good for short periods but they are not permanent answers and can be very dangerous. Explore other answers to your panic attacks and anxiety, like meditation, changes in environment, etc.

Papa_R · Answer

I experienced a gurgling sensation one evening after eating dinner. I didn't think much about it as I thought it was indigestion. I went to bed and got up the next morning and went to work. After I arrived at work I still noticed the sensation. I decided to make an appointment to see the Dr. over my lunch break. I walked in the Dr. office and described my symptoms. They immediately hooked me up to an EKG to monitor my heart. To make a long story short, they discovered I had an irrgular heartbeat and later found I had a 95% blocked artery in my heart which required an angioplasty and a stent placement. That was 15 years ago. My advice is always if you think something is out of the ordinary, better safe than sorry, go get checked out. Good Luck.

dawnd1988 · Answer

How would you have acid reflux or gas in your heart?? My heart gurgles as it beats, has nothing to do with gas.  And heart valve issues or heart problems can cause panic attacks, panic attacks are unlikely in my eyes to cause heart gurgling do to the fact that ive had full blown panic attacks for 5 years and everytime it happened i wasnt anxious, i was sitting/laying in a wierd position.  On top of that, it got better over time but i still have panic attacks.  Panic attacks are proven not to hurt you in any physical way, unlike a heart attack.  Panic attacks will make you pass out before doing any damage if intense so how would they cause heart problems/gurgling?  I dont believe all what doctors say, sometimes they have no common sense.  When i had tests done, it wasnt happening at the time.

dawnd1988 · Answer

Im 24 and about four and a half years ago i developed panic disorder having full blown panic attacks every single day from a traumatic things happening to me.  Anyway, around that time i had also started taking Zyprexa for bipolar disorder which helped in many ways but i started having bad side effects.  I had severe muscle spasms and my heart would gurgle every so often.  It would normally happen when laying on my side and my fiance could feel it if he touched my chest.  Itd only last a few seconds then sometimes happen again right after.  Also had the palpitations and fluttering like my heart was skipping and sometimes slowed almost to a stop.  When having a panic attack it would race for the most part.  I went to the ER and i told them about a gurgling/swishing feeling and they looked at me like i was nuts, ran tests, and everything came back normal.  All i know is i had started taking lower mgs of my zyrexa over time till i was hardly on any and i havent had it happen since.  It could be possible muscle spasms of the heart, our heart is a muscle.  I thought heart valve because that medication causes high cholesterol but it didnt show up on tests plus it wasnt consistent.  Any thoughts let me know thanks    ***@****

hope_16 · Answer

I have the Samee thing , mine keeps gurgling over and over and a tangle feeling with IT ! And a really quite heartbeat ... Its almost like i didnt have a beat so thenn i freakout even more so thenn my heart rate goes up even more and I startle myself oh and im 16 BTW , and when I get up in the muddle of the night to use the bathroom and my heart will be pounding like crazy so hard IT feels like its goona burst , does anyone else feel this way?

Noonahs · Answer

Hi.  Thank goodness I've found someone else with the weird hardness between navel and sternum.  When I push mine it sort of squishes and goes away - I wondered if my bowel is a bit lazy at that point..? (I had an op when I was smaller, so perhaps the muscles got damaged or I've got an adhesion).  I also get the gurling sensation.  Never been to a doc, but do get anxiety so maybe it is related.  Did you ever find out what the lumpiness below sternum is?

JerseyGirlNB · Answer

Hi - I have the same gurgling feeling. Did you ever find out what it is?? Thanks

jess345 · Answer

i have been having this exact feeling minus the light heartbeat. i get the gurgling in my chest upper leftside and i swear its with my heartbeat. i have had all sorts of tests, including halter moniter, ultrasound and ekg but it never happens during those. i wonder if mine is anxiety but it happens when im not anxious...so... anyhow i share your anxiety over this. i have occasional panic attacks and pretty severe anxiety. im 30 non smoker should excersize more also. im just glad to read that someone else feels this strange sensation because it really scares me. i have a moniter that i place on there now when i get the sensation and it records it and sends it to the cardiologist so if i get info i will make another post! good luck!jessica

SassyLassie · Answer

It is probably nothing, maybe gas or, if you have a hiatal hernia, that might be the culprit. I get that feeling sometimes myself, it is the pits. I also get a sinking feeling sometimes right before I notice the "flutter". Sometimes, I can press an area in my tummy, right above the naval, close to the sternum, and when I do, I get a "watery" feeling in my throat, then, it might even bring on a PAC. I tell you, having things like this are no fun.

pookie970 · Answer

i have that same gurgling feeling i hate it went to er was told i have anxiety , i think it has something to do with reflux or gas..if you worried  go to a dr.its probally nothing . good luck let me know how it goes