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pvcs

i have been having pvcs the past couple of nights when i am trying to sleep ill have 1 every 3-5 minutes should i go to the hospital im 18 and a little on the big side
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Avatar universal
As lisa says, whatever works for the individual.

A large number of those who post here are somewhere between anxiety and all out panic because their pvcs, and similarly, a great majority of these people will (lisa excepted!) turn out to have benign arrhythmias.   They are the 'worried well.'  

And as most veterans of the PVC experience know, once you have them or--more accurately--become aware of them, they will be with you, off and on, forever.  The issue then becomes how you deal with the sensations.  Does fear of them dominate your thoughts, limiting your activities and the pleasure that life offers?  Even a casual reading of posts here indicates that that is exactly the case for many with benign PVCs.  It is NOT that anxiety causes PVCs or that lack of anxiety will make them go away; it is a matter of dealing with a crippling emotional response to disturbing physical sensations.

While there are mental exercises and therapies that help some people with panic and anxiety, these modalities are simply less efficient in dealing with this problem than medication.  That is the reason that I support the use of certain antidepressants for those whose repeated testing indicates a healthy cardiovascular system (except for lisa), but whose lives are circumscribed by fear.

And although an individual may personally 'know someone' whose heart was damaged by an antidepressant, and a lay person's research on the web will turn up various resources that  convincingly state that antidepressants are safe or dangerous for the heart, I have studied human anatomy and physiology and subscribe to medical journals.  I stand by my statements concerning these medications.

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Avatar universal
I wont even try to fix my spelling mistakes! lol
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967168 tn?1477584489
no laughing! I give up, hopefully everyone gets the point lol

my hands want to...is supposed to be my hands won't cooperate....no more typing today

/cry
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967168 tn?1477584489
aree=agree  boo-hiss at my typo's ... my hands want to cooperate with my brain alot of the time :P
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967168 tn?1477584489
hehe :P  I'm not for or against ssri's in any way, just thought I'd point out while they work for some, others have reactions and systems that will not work with them...I think the medical profession uses anxiety and stress as a catch all when they don't understand or don't have answers; just look at our forums - a patient has arrhythmia's and then gets anxious over them and bam! they prescribe meds far too easily in my opinion...now that's just my opinion and there's an old saying about opinions LOL

just like I have my opinion about the side effects of meds; and not everyone will aree... I did tons of research about a med I took once and it scared me spitless; the research on generic vs brand meds leaves alot of questions unanswered about the way things are done (it's in my journal) and that's just what I dug up, who knows what else is out there...

if a med works for a certain person; grand! keep with it if it does it's job, but there are so many of us out there with adverse reactions - that I'm leery to take anything again...soon i'll be forced to take something or shorten my life span even further - Friday is my dr's appt and I'm going in with my file folder full of questions and concerns and meds is high on my list.
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Avatar universal
Your ewwww comment made me laugh. I could envision the soured look on your face as you said it. lol I agree with you wholeheartidly, we are all different, and perhaps I should have left my first comment as it was. Have a good day. :)
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967168 tn?1477584489
ewwww, lets not even get started about the effects different meds have on our bodies...everyone is different and all of our genetic makeup is not the same, making us individuals...

what can affect one person may not affect us...just as our cells change what may work one time may not work another time.  for example - many take SSRI's and it works for them, but others not so well...some can take nitroglycerin but if I take it, makes my heart stop! just like beta blockers...my system can't handle them for some reason, yet I have 3 close family members who take them and have no problems.

I agree with Itdood - he just posted this and it really makes sense - http://www.medhelp.org/posts/Heart-Rhythm/Hi-There/show/1438526

"When you peel back all the layers that's what you're left with, heart cells that are misfiring. The majority of 'benign' ectopics are caused by something called "enhanced automaticity" (EA) of the heart cells. There are outside influences that can make EA worse, such as certain chemistry."  

sums arrhythmia's up in a nutshell...
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Avatar universal
I am sorry if anyone was offended by my comment warning about antidepressants. I can only speak of personal experience of personally knowing several people that have been harmed by them, and one friend developed a heart rythm issue from them and she was seeing a professional psychiatrist. This is why I asked my cardiologist before trusting a psychiatrist or general doctor since this is what they do--dispense anitidpressant. However, since  I was wanting relief, I went to a second cardiologist who verified what the first cardologist said, and my heart is healthy with pvcs. I then did research on top of it, and came to the conclusion, that these medications are not harmless, and its not a risk I am willing to take. Every drug will effect various organs differently in each person. When I read your old posts Yarrow, I noticed you enourage people to take antidepressants and you tell them they are safe. I am assuming your motivation is to help them get relief from anxiety, but I was concerned that people know there is another side to them, and in my own life, 2 real cardiologist told me they are not the harmless drug they are touted as, and I just want to be sure that people know and understand that the cardiologist would know more about its effect on the heart than a physchiatrist, or i should say, they may be more willing to be honest. (sorry, thats my opinion). Yarrow, what you said is true about the older antidepressants, but there are cases reported that I found in my research where the newere ones have (albeit it more rare) caused long QT in some individuals. Anyway, I apologize for upsetting everyone here and causing offense. Believe me, if I thought they were as safe as they are portrayed, I would take them myself. But I dont.
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967168 tn?1477584489
please be very cautious when you're looking for answers (as we all are) on the internet; find a doctor you can trust near you or in a large practice and find some answers, even then it's a toss up...

When I first started searching in June 2009, I did what most people do - look for answers any and everywhere. I asked drs lounge, all experts, MH, etc - 2 of those sources helped me make a decision not to have an EPS and check for the source of my VERY frequent pvc's (54,181 daily).  I really started doubting my cardiologist even more and questioning that the EP I first saw, he disagreed with my cards and said I needed an EPS quickly, and I didn't believe him I went on to get 2 other opinions since EP's I've read are in the field for the money. on top of that, I had these 2 'expert' opinions from these internet sources.

They quoted almost exactly as each other and told me my echo was "fine" and there wasn't anything to worry about and the number of pvc's DID NOT matter! basically said the same thing as my cardiologist my echo showed NO structural problems and anyone who had malignant or dangerous pvc's had structural heart problems before. (not true btw)

Imagine my shock when 5 weeks later I was diagnosed with MALIGNANT arrhythmia's pvc's/vt, cardiomyopathy which DID NOT show up on my echo only on my cardiac cath at 40% - my EP told me my echo was a bit off there was no way my EF could have gone down from 55-60% in such a short time (check my journal one size fits all echocardiogram for more info); my heart stopped 3 times during surgery and I had to have a pacemaker/defibrillator implanted.

Yes, I'm a very RARE case - I have an echo which shows very mild stuff (it's in my journals) ekg's which show unifocal and multifocal pvc's; and echo, stress test that echo says is "normal" and my stress test was slightly "abnormal" - so where is the flaw; what caused my heart to do this? I've gone to 2 other EP"s and 4 cardiologists and none of them have answers.

one day maybe they'll break the arrhythmia code and give us all some answers, until then we have to pick & choose and hope we roll the dice the right way and get a winner!
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Avatar universal


"As to the antidepressants, be very careful, my cardiologist said they are known to cause heart issues"

This is a blanket statement which is both incomplete and needlessly frightening.  It needs to be elaborated on.   Antidepressants are indeed known to cause heart issues in some cases, but the relevant questions are "Which antidepressants?", "What heart issues?", "How often?", and in which patients?"

For some individuals, certain neuroleptics and antidepressants (particularly among the tricyclics, a different class from the SSRIs) are noteworthy for their adverse effects on the heart.

To some extent, SSRIs may also have cardiac effects--in patients with real, pre-existing heart disease (as opposed to benign PVCs)--and it is extremely important that the prescribing doctor be familiar with the pharmacology of the antidepressants he is working with.  This is the reason that I always suggest that people seeking relief from psych-related symptoms go to a psychiatrist rather than a GP or cardiologist for advice on these matters, simply because the intelligent use of psych medications belongs to specialists who have spent real time studying the subject.   My own shrink, being a doc of this type, prescribes carefully, bearing my medical history in mind as he does so.

Here is more complete information on the subject of the effect of SSRIs on the heart (and there's a lot more on the web--just pay attention to the sources):

From wikipedia:
"Cardiovascular side effects

Cardiovascular side effects are very rare with SSRI use, with a reported incidence of less than 0.0003 percent.[46] SSRIs inhibit cardiac and vascular sodium, calcium and potassium channels and prolong QT intervals.[47] However, a number of large studies of patients without known pre-existing heart disease have reported no EKG changes related to SSRI use.[48] In overdose, fluoxetine has been reported to cause sinus tachycardia, myocardial infarction, junctional rhythms and trigeminy. Some authors have suggested electrocardiographic monitoring in patients with severe pre-existing cardiovascular disease who are taking SSRI's.[49]"
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Selective_serotonin_reuptake_inhibitor)
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Avatar universal
I was in the ER having 8-15 pvcs a minute and noone flinched. (except me) lol
As to the antidepressants, be very careful, my cardiologist said they are known to cause heart issues, and the SNRIs can cause a dangerous rhythm. If they were safe I would take one just to stop the anxiety over these things, but they arent and I am not going to risk adding to my pvcs. He told me if I did insist on going on one to only stay on it no longer than 6 months.
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Avatar universal
I hope your talk with the doc is fruitful.  It's worth noting that antidepressants like zoloft are effective with some people and not with others.  Often it's necessary to try several (if I recall, I had to try four before hitting the right one).

Also, in general SSRIs are not effective at once.  I am a very fast responder, and usually feel a real change in a day or so, but that's most unusual.  In general, you have to give the med a solid two-week try, and you won't get the optimum level, steady-state thing for a month.  So, be patient.

I understand the reluctance to take xanax and so on, even the baby dose you were given.  There's something about emotional states that makes us extremely reluctant or embarrassed to seek help, but that should not be the case.  Anxiety is as much a medical condition as thyroid problems or tendinitis.  So dive right in there and take the meds your doc gives you.  If you notice any significant side effects such as excessive sleepiness or jitters, report them to the doc, but you probably won't have anything noteworthy, and the minor stuff tends to fade in a week or so.
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177337 tn?1310059899
Maybe I'll ask my doctor about zoloft today.  He gave me xanax two years ago when I was crying in his office like a crazy women.  Believe it or not, I didn't take any until just last month.  They sat in my purse for 19 months.  Only 0.25 mg and I just take a half.  He told me that was like peeing in an ocean and to take the whole thing.    Doesn't really work that well so again I will ask about zoloft.

I'm off to see him in a few hours.  I'm already starting to get that anxious feeling.  ugh

Jodie
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Avatar universal
I also tend to get pvcs in bursts that occur often several years apart, but which then may last for many months, and the recurrence always freaks me out.  You'd think a person would get used to it, but noooooo....

My EKGs, echos, and stress tests show a healthy, fairly normal heart, and having studied human anatomy and physiology, I should be totally reassured by these findings, but the emotional response is a different story.  If my anxiety level reaches the panic state, I do take zoloft for a number of months to 'let the alarm system cool off," as my shrink puts it.  The effect of the drug is that it (a) quiets my awareness of the odd beats--I literally can no longer feel them--and (b) they gradually become less frequent and kind of fade away.

Until the next bout a couple of years later.

One learns to deal, and a good shrink and a good SSRI can help a lot.
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177337 tn?1310059899
Thanks for the information.  I already know about the Doctors Lounge and I have been a member on this site for over 15 years so I also know how to search the site for answers.
The problem for me is that  I can have months and months where I only feel a handful a day.  During that time, it is extremely easy for me to offer support to others which I have done many times throughout the years.
THEN they start up after a stressful situation..and...they feel different. Pauses are longer, pvc's are closer together, more a minute etc....
So your mind starts the what if game.  For me, the only solution is seeing my doctor (which I plan to tomorrow) get another holter and then hopefully the reassurance I need that although they indeed feel different, they are still benign pvc's and they won't hurt you.

I am very graetful for this site and people such as yourself that go out of their way to help.
Thanks again
Jodie
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Avatar universal
One PVC every 3-5 minutes?  8 or 9 a minute?   On one 24 hour Holter monitor, I had 4800 of them, which is pretty far below the level where MDs even start to look at them with interest (assuming the EKG is otherwise normal).  There are people on this board who are dealing or have dealt with 30,000 to 50,000 per day.

For perspective, your heart beats about 100,000 times per day.  If you have more than 10,000 PVCs per day, a doc might consider that number worth a closer look, but in general 15% to 20% of 100,000 beats is considered medically significant.

You would probably find it useful as well as comforting to use the search box at this site, or even a google search, to learn more about the possible causes of PVCs, the numbers of people who have them, as well as symptoms that are of medical concern.

One good source is this one, which the medhelp site won't let me link directly:

The URL is doctors lounge (all one word) ******* followed by cardiology/forums/backup/topic-24286.html

Hope this works, but if it doesn't, google these words--John Kenyon, CNA, PVCs--and you should get to a good explanation.
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177337 tn?1310059899
Your comment made me feel better.  Although I'm sorry you can get 8 or 9 a minute, it is nice to know that other people feel that many.  I'm getting at least 3 or 4 a minute for a few minutes, then maybe nothing for 5 minutes, then another round of 2 or 3 a minute...then nothing for maybe 10 minutes and so on for a few hours.  Then they just go away for the rest of the day.  Is that a pattern other people get as well?  Just curious because this is a newer pattern for me and I'm trying not to get too anxious about it.   The most pvc's I have ever had in 24 hours is 288.  I"m wondering if they have increased.  I'm told that it doesn't matter if they have as long as my heart is normal and it is.  I just had my echo and treadmill and they were perfect.   ***** because THAT doesn't even ease my mind when they start up.  The pauses are really bad this time around.
Jodie
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Avatar universal
Hey,

I understand your pain.  I go sometimes where I am having 8 or 9 a minute for several hours, and then out of nowhere they quit and everything is fine for awhile.  It gets really bothersome.  Go ahead and go to a cardiologist however and make sure everything is okay with you.

Best of luck
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221122 tn?1323011265
1 pvc every 3-5 minutes is no reason to go to the hospital.  If you want to make yourself feel better, you can schedule an appointment with a cardiologist and have a work up just to make sure your heart is structurally fine....otherwise, try not to worry too much.  They are quite common.
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