Heart attack at 23???

[Pres0081]

I'm 23 and have had heart issues for while now. I keep telling my doctor that I have an uncomfortable feeling in my chest. It's like my heart beats fast and hard for a few beats then stops. Lately, it's about 5 strong beats after wards, I feel very lightheaded to the point where I feel like I'm gonna pass out. Then, my arms go tingly. I then have pain in my chest for awhile. It scares the hell out of me but my doctor doesn't believe me.

When I was about 16, I has a holter monitor for 24 hours but nothing came up. He told me I was fine. It doesn't happen everyday so the monitor didn't pick it up.

I don't know what to do anymore. I feel like I'm having a heart attack but I know I'm too young.

Has anyone ever experienced this and if so, what the hell is it???

[MelboSun]

When I was 23 I learned that my heart stops when I pass out, and I have passed out many times in my life. Anyway, I am 26 now and recently had a heart holter for 24 hours. I get strange-feeling heartbeats sometimes. They are strong, making me gasp and pull back for a moment. They happen more often when I'm lying on either side than in any other position. I am not sure how yours was my heart holter had a button I could push when I felt the strong heart beats. When I pushed the button it would mark the time on the device so they could look at that particular moment when reviewing the results.

My heart holter showed that I had tachycardia for 45% of the time I was wearing the heart holter. The doctor told me that the tachycardia was in-line with when I felt the strong heart beats, so he basically said it was a symptom of tachycardia (although I do not completely agree, given the amount of time I had tachycardia compared to the few times I had the strong heart beats). Have you ever taken your pulse when you are feeling these beats? I normally forget because the feeling is uncomfortable and surprising but you could try it. It's really easy. Just place your index and middle finger on the side of your neck under your jaw until you feel your pulse pretty strongly. Have a clock or stopwatch nearby so you can watch the seconds. You just count the amount of beats you feel for 30 seconds, then multiply the number you get by two (for example, if you count 40 beats in 30 seconds, that means you are having 80 beats per minute). I think tachycardia begins once you have over 100 beats per minute.

I also have begun keeping a log in one particular notebook when I have symptoms. It helps me remember what has been happening when I have a doctor's appointment and the doctor is asking me questions. Some doctors actually look at it, too. Another thing to do is get an echocardiogram to make sure the structure of your heart is normal and to get an ekg to make sure your rhythm is normal. I am not sure if they have done these things for you yet. I will be seeing a heart rhythm specialist soon, too, because a few abnormalities have been found with my heart. I am not sure if your cardiologist would refer you to that type of cardiologist or not.

It is not fun to be in your early 20's, just beginning your life and finding out that there are scary things going on in your body. I hope you find something useful from mine and others' posts. Just keep with it, continue seeing doctors until you are satisfied with the care you are provided. Good luck. :)

[Pres0081]

Thanks for the advice! I've noticed that I do have days when anxiety sinks in but the heart thing doesn't kick in till later in the evening when I've calmed down.

Thanks again!

[sugarlynskie]

It sounds a lot like an anxiety induced panic attack, which closely mimick a heart attack.  I have the same thing.  My heart will race or beat randomly, pain/tingling in my left arm, and pressure/pain in my chest that doesn't go away immediately.  Definately keep in touch with your doctor, but maybe look into some anti-anxiety meds...low dose ativan worked very well for me, I didn't feel any side effects from the meds, and I didn't get sleepy or groggy, so I could carry on with my usual routine!!

[Jerry_NJ]

I think all would agree you are "too" young to have a heart attack. But, I believe it is not impossible for a young person to have heart problems, including rhythm problems. Your doctor agrees, otherwise why would you have been put on a Holter monitor?  Unfortunately, rhythm problems can go undetected in a simple 24 hour monitor process, and the lack of a "catch" in any given 24 hours period doesn't dis-prove the existence of a rhythm problem.  That's why some of us have to undergo a longer term test.

I am not saying that is what you need, but given your ongoing symptoms I think it best to discuss further with your doctor how to proceed.  It could be that now your rhythm problems are frequent enough to be caught on a Holter monitor.

In any case, most rhythm conditions are not high risk problems, but they do need to be diagnosed.  It could be a good idea to take an aspirin a day until your doctor gives you some specific medical advice.  If your stomach can tolerate aspirin it can't do any harm.  I take one myself, with breakfast every morning.  

[DMK1981]

Sounds to me like you are having panic attacks. When i have a panic attack that is what happens to me. Sometimes I would not even know why I was having one. My heartrate goes up, I get dizzy & tingly but it always goes away. Now I am experiencing Tachycardia and that doesnt go away! Hope you get to feeling better.