Heart palpitations

[Carrie619]

Hi.  I'm a 29 year old female who's in good health.  Last night I was relaxing and watching TV when my heart started racing and beating irregularly.  I suddenly felt dizzy, hot, and light-headed and thought I was going to faint.  I tried to tell my husband what was wrong but could hardly talk.  After about 45 seconds, I started feeling better.  It took a few minutes for me to feel completely normal again, though.  

I usually experience heart palpitations around the time of my menstrual period, but I've never been light-headed or hot before.  I had a baby 13 weeks ago, and I'm breastfeeding.  (I'm not currently menstruating.)  I've left a message at my doctor's office, but since it's Sunday I won't hear back until tomorrow.I'm wondering how concerned I should be.  Anyway info would be great.  Thanks!

[Tonya83]

I have had the same things happen to me, and I am 5 months pregnant right now.  They started after my son was born, and have progressively become more frequent with this pregnancy.  I have had an echocardiogram done, blood work, and about 5 EKG's over the last few months, and everything has come back normal.  I dont have the patience or the time to wear the holter monitor, so I am just going to trust that my Dr is right when he tells me it is nothing to worry about.  I occasionally will get a rapid heart rate and sometimes my heart will skip a beat.  But the more i get upset the worse it gets.  I think the same could be true for you.  Since my hormones are all over the place with the pregnancy, I am going to attribute some of the flutters, etc to that.  

[Barbmag]

Nick, I find your post very interesting and I am going to my health food store and get the aloe to see if it will reduce the PVC episodes that I get daily! I am always trying to find a natural way to rid myself of these annoying palps. I find the info about fish oil v interesting, as I have been taking fish oil for years b/c I thought it helped w/the palps! I will try flax instead!

Thank you so much for your suggestions. I for one really do appreciate it so much!! I will  ck out your blog. Again, thanks!
Barbara

[rangefire]

I had the same issues starting in 2002.  I thought I was dying.  To keep the story short.. I did all of the doctors tests.. treadmill, heart monitor etc... and saw a very good cardiologist.  They were unable to find blood or  hormonal links.  Since I am a research analyst I went to work on it.  If found sever health blogs and began a database.  I corresponded with dozens of people that had similar issues.

The bottom line is this:  For some people this health issue is triggered by inflammation - specifically internal inflammation.  As we age inflammation gets worse and ultimately triggers one of several diseases.  There are also foods that trigger inflammation.

If you are one of these people, then this will stop your problem:

1.  Cut out all fish products - including fish oils
2.  Buy a gallon of ALOE GEL (not aloe juice) and take two ounces three time per day.  Take one ounce before bed.
3.  Reduce or eliminate, if you can, refined sugar.

I know it sounds simple, but believe me - I've put five years of research into this.  I have friends from Egypt to Australia to the USA who have used this method to right themselves.

For more.. see my blog at triple W dot lucidboomer dot com.

Nick
http://www.lucidboomer.com

[Artaud]

Hi,

It's not uncommon for Doctors offices to provide a contact for emergencies, even during evenings, weekends or Holidays. If the answering service picked-up the call, did you explain that you wanted to "speak" with someone about your concerns? Also, if the situation arises again before you can speak with your Doctor, consider going to the Hospital Emergency Room.

I experience PSVT (Paroxysmal Supra Ventricular Tachycardia) that can cause symptoms similar to what you described. I'll be watching TV and suddenly I am in a very fast heart rate. Mine are usually preceded by a PVC, then I get a very fast heart rate, sometimes lasting a minute or more, and the episode commonly terminates with another PVC. You mention that it was beating irregularly, how did you assess that? (Pulse, feeling in your chest, etc.) In many people PSVT is not considered serious, yet is a significant cause for anxiety and stress for the afflicted.

Adrenaline can wreak havoc on your heart, and I suspect that you had quite an amount flowing after the event began. The addition of the adrenaline certainly would compound your symptoms. Lightheadedness and feeling hot may have been from the anxiety caused by the situation. But lightheadedness can also be due to an insufficiency of blood flow, possibly due to the fast heart rate, so following up with your Doctor is imperative.

Being that you are breast feeding, I would guess that you are not using caffeine, alcohol, consuming chocolate, using stimulants (diet pills, decongestants, etc.) and not taking any unusual supplements, such as St. John's Wort, high doses of regular vitamins etc. Alcohol and caffeine (such as in chocolate and coffee), and any natural supplements or mega vitamins should not be used, (with the exception of vitamins provided by your Doctor) especially without consulting with Him/Her.

Please keep us updated on what you discover to be the cause and your progress with it.

Best Regards to You and Your Family.