Irregular heart beats

[Queenofhearts68]

I have suffered irregular beats since my early 20's I am now in my 40's. I have been to my Doctor who told me at the time it was all in my head and I am just sensitive to my body. I have had 2 24 hour holters on which both showed normal. In the past 4 years my beats have gotten worse, I went to my Dr again for a visit, luckily while in his office an episode came on he had me walk down his hallway which I nearly passed out and made me grab the paddles of the Cardiac machine which is the only reason he caught my SVT's. Whenever I have an EKG it's normal.Except for one day when I had PAC's all day and went in for an EKG, while I was on the machine I was telling the nurse "there's one, there's one!"  Since then I have been on a beta blocker ( Inderal LA ) have not had any SVT's but a heck of alot of PVC's and PAC's I get them all the time. They are very debilitating and cause high anxiety for me. I am on Lexapro the lowest dose known to man because antidepresents make me more anxious and Xanax which is the only thing that stops my panic. I think I may have WPW since my mother gets this also. Since I have only just discovered WPW what should I do?? My Dr thinks I can live with this, but I can't anymore. My Dr has even suggested I see a professional to help with my anxiety! but how can I do that when I know what causes my anxiety and that will never go away as long as I have irregular beats. I think it may be time for a Cardiologist, which is going to cost me fortune as I only have major medical! What to do??? Can I live with this??

[tsco]

As I write this I am dealing with all of these flippin pVC PAC and yes they grab my mind everytime they hit. I hate it. I also have WPW and have had three ablations since all of this started ten years ago. To be honest I can deal with the SVT easier than the extra beats!  I used to run to the hospital now I fig if I die I die. Actually with the SVT I take a Toprol and it usuallyquits 3-4 hours. I know coping is the hardest part.  I just try to live my life and be happy and its hard when there is this activity going on in your chest. I can tell you the anxiety makes it much worse, so one key is finding something to control the anxiety. Reading these forums and having people respond has been such a great help also.  I have had docs blow this off like its no big deal and it hurts ev time I hear that. I pray for a day we can all be cured. This will NOT kill you. You just have to get through it. Relief will come.

[Mom2four85]

I think we've all heard "it's all in your head" I've heard it about different things since I was young.  Fainting? all in your head, chest pain; shortness of breath, arrhythmia's, hr's all over the place, severe bleeding, extreme swelling of my feet etc etc - it's a cop out dr's use and sometimes it turns out to be wrong.

You may benefit from talking to a therapist, or trying a different beta blocker or anti anxiety med; each of us are different and what works for one of us may not work as well for the next person.  I had to go through 5 or 6 bb's before I found the timed release Inderal worked well for me and Lexapro did nothing however Lamictal worked wonders and really has helped with depression from

If after all of your tests are normal or considered benign, then you need to find a way to cope and deal with what's going on no matter what the condition is.

Even with 20,00, 50,000 or even 80,000 pvc's & other things thrown in the mix you can get through this - it's even possible to live with dangerous malignant problems - whatever you chose to do; set your mind to it and keep a journal of your progress to remind yourself you CAN get through it.

expect that not every day will be bright and sunny but don't let that bring you down; just get up the next day and start a new day and don't let fear stop you from doing the things you enjoy

[merileegal]

Your story sounds all too familiar to me and many others in this forum. Tom gave some great advice and information. I would just emphasize the need to find a physician who doesn't just blow your condition off to anxiety. I went to doctors for over 20 years and finally had an ablation for AVNRT last June. I haven't had an episode since then, only PACs which I can easlily live with after having episodes of SVT with heart rates up to 250 bpm. The PACs can be annoying, but I've learned to stay away from certain things that trigger them such as caffeine, fish oil, msg, not enough rest, going too long without eating, or eating too many carbs. You might think about starting a journal of things that trigger the PACs and avoid those things. Many people here have talked about how taking extra magnesium helps with a more regular heart rythm.

As I mentioned, I saw many doctors for over 20 years. I finally was referred to an electrophysiologist who specializes in the electricity of the heart. He asked me why I hadn't been sent to him before because my problem could be fixed easily, which was. I simply don't understand why so many doctors don't take this seriously enough and are unwilling to refer patients to experts. Take matters in you own hands and see someone else who will address you concerns. I might want to add that different parts of the country must have differences in the cost of the ablation procedure. Mine was around $25,000.

[tom_h]

"Can I live with this?"

Yes, most definitely!  Many of the forum members experience thousands of PVC's daily, and their life goes on.  If your current doctor isn't sympathetic to your condition, if he can't grasp how these PVC's and PAC's are affecting you, if he's telling you that it's all in your head, then perhaps it's time to find a new physician.

I think you'll find that drug therapy will have some-to-no effect in lessening your symptoms.  But there are many different kinds to try,a nd within each there are different strengths.  This veritable smorgasbord of drugs also presents some risk as each one contain some nasty side effects.  So caution must be exercised when experimenting.

SVT... quite often, the PVC's you're experiencing are the triggering mechanism for SVT.  Timing is everything, and when everything "lines" up perfectly it can trigger an SVT event.  Most SVT's are non life threatening.  I had it for over 50 years.  From 6 to 60 before I went for a cure.  BUt they do interfere with your daily life, and the thought of having one is always lurking; at least it was with me.  Wolff-Parkinson-White (WPW) is a particular type of type of tachycardia.  WPW usually leaves a distintive marker, a small delta wave  with a shortened PR interval. Most of the time.  So don't assume that you have WPW unless your physician has informed you of this fact.  You could have a garden variety AVNRT which is probably the most common form of tachycardia.  Even if it is WPW, only a minute number of cases are dangerous.  Most will race like any other SVT until converted.

SVT can be cured with cardiac ablation, but this typically costs over $70,000 (US).  Perhaps there is a clinic that can help you, thus reducing your costs.  Search the internet, and ask questions, and perhaps you'll find somebody that can help you.  In the meantime, get an understanding of your condition, read up on it.  There are volumes available to you out there.  Maintain a log of your events; time, duration, how it started and stopped, etc.  This will help "pleading" your case to the physician who are often all too eager to blame your condition on anxiety; the easy diagnosis rather then trying to delve into other possibilities.  Trust what you're feeling, and keep on his case until you get the answer.