worried about having a cardiac arrest

im a 22 year old male who was diagnosed with  ventricular ectopics about a year ago. through a 24 hour monitor . they were said to be benign. but since then these ectopic beats have got stronger.there less frequent but there is more symptoms when i have them. the main symptom i have is a head rush like im going to faint for about a few seconds and a shortness of breath feeling. and for the past few months i have been having spells of feeling dizzy and unsteady everyday and   a feeling like im going to blackout for 2 seconds. i also keep getting really strong quivers in my chest mainly on the left side. im not sure if it is my heart quivering or something else. i had a ecg and a chest x ray and a blood test done about 2 months ago which came back fine. i went to the doctors the other day to tell him about my symptoms and he has sent me for a blood test. im really worried im starting to think this lightheadedness is because there is something wrong with my heart. which will result in death

[bbxx]

Hey there. If you are feeling symptoms like faintness and shortness of breath along with ectopics, the best thing you can do is wear a 30 day even recorder so you can record when you feel symptoms. The results will show if its a rythm issue. Try to not panic. If you have something happen, go ot the ER. Please try to not freak out though, because the more you are aware of your ectops, the more anxious you will be. I am not saying its anxiety, I am only saying it is possible. Hang in there. :)

[BRADZANGEL712]

It sounds like you are having what is called Ventricular Tachycardia, which , yes can be life threatening if not treated.  I suggest you make an appointment with a cardiologist and let them give you a monitor to wear for a few weeks.  If they catch that you have somethign like this, you will most likely be placed on an antiarrhythmic drug, and possibly have a device called an AICD placed (to help if the irregular rhythm doesn't go away).  Good luck!!

[niko467]

because i had a 24 hour monitor and a heart scan done when i seen the cardiologist about 8 months ago which came back normal other than occasional ventricular ectopics. the doctors feel it's not serious even though i have told them they are stronger and leaving me with a head rush. they say im young and healthy and it could be down to anxiety. i was supposed to see the cardiologist again at the end of march but it got put back to the end of april and now it has been put back to june. i thought ventricular tachycardia is when your heart is above 100 beats per minute. when i check my pulse it is usally about 70 and no higher than 80

[tom_h]

I don't know how common AED's (automated external defibrillator) are in your country, but they are becoming more prevalent here in the US, and can often be found right in your place of employment.  Where I work, we have two on each floor of our large building.  When I had my SVT, it was suspected that it was Wolff Parkinson White, and I was concerned that I could go into some sort of wierd arrythmia becasue of it.  I made sure that the people I work with, my immediate colleagues, my manager, and the company nurse knew of my condition.  This way, if I hit the deck and was unresponsive, they'd know to go for the AED first.  Time can be of the essence, and the faster someone can react, the better the chances of survival.  Until you can get a handle on your situation, it probably wouldn't hurt to let others close to you know what's going on.

[niko467]

how do i get to have a 30 day recorder. the doctor thinks im ok and it's nothing to do with my heart and is just giving me a blood test to see what could be causing the unsteady spells. i seen a cardiologist about 8 months ago and had a 24hour monitor recorder and a heart scan done that came back fine other than occasional ventricular ectopics. so the cardiologist thinks there is nothing to worry about. i was due to see the cardiologist again but the appointment has been put back 3 times and now i have to see her in june. im just worried that since i have seen her the ectopics are causing a head rush and a shortness of breath feeling which i think was not there when i seen her.

[bbxx]

You can either
1. Tell your doctor you insist on a 30 day event recorder because you really think they missed something with your heart.
2. Tell your cardiologist in June that you really want to do a 30 day event recorder since you did not have the symptoms during the 24 hr one.

[yarrow]

Heart pain is not felt on the left side.  There are embryological reason for this, but it is a strong clue that your symptoms are generally not heart related.  Your symptoms of 'head rushes,' faintness, dizziness, and fear of blacking out have much more common causes, especially in your age group.

This is not to say that young people do not have heart problems, so by all means, have more tests of various types to make sure that your 22 year old heart is not diseased.  The tests will almost certainly indicate that you are OK.

After that, you might want to google Da Costa's Syndrome.

[rilesnic]

I agree with yarrow. I have many of your symptoms, headrushes, faintness, dizziness...all pretty much daily,along with symptomatic PVC's and PAC's, since I was 22...I'm now 39. My dr. told me many years ago, when I called and woke him up in the middle of the night, that heart pain is not felt on the left side. You should always have heart testing done to make certain all is well and especially let your doc know of any new symptoms. You should insist on a 30 day event monitor just to be sure. Sometimes peace of mind is the very best medicine.

[is_something_wrong]

"t sounds like you are having what is called Ventricular Tachycardia, which , yes can be life threatening if not treated."

That's quite a statement. I think we all should be really careful suggesting diagnoses here, especially because people with high levels of anxiety visits us. There is a long way between benign PVCs and life threatening conditions.

Ventricular tachycardia is uncommon in healthy young men. Atrial tachyarrhythmias are far more common. Besides, the symptoms doesn't necessarily even indicate a tachycardia. Pauses after PVCs, short runs of bigeminy, vagal reactions, sudden drops in blood pressure, they all can cause the mentioned symptoms.

To the original post:
I agree this should be investigated. The first thing you can do, try to measure your heart rate while you have symptoms. Do you have a sudden rapid heart rhythm that immediately slows down afterwards? If you do, you should try to monitor this. A new Holter, R-test or event monitor can be useful.

Ask your doctor what the next step is. Maybe an ultrasound of the heart is a good idea, too.

[itdood]

"It sounds like you are having what is called Ventricular Tachycardia, which , yes can be life threatening if not treated.  "

Just my humble opinion, I don't think there's enough info to make a call of VTACH.  plenty of people get symptomatic benign ectopics, it's rather common.  I think it warrants more study.

[niko467]

i have been feeling terrible for the past 4 days. because i honestly think im going to die. i keep feeling unsteady/off balance when i stand and walk and also i get some sort of head rush and today i got pain in my left chest and center. and when im in bed or sat down i feel like im slowly dying. im really scared i keep crying,im not eating much because i feel sick with worry. i went to the doctors and he has said it's anxiety but i dont think it is, i have had anxiety problems for 5 years and have never felt like this. im due to see the cardiologist on wednesday but i dont think im going be alive by then.

[bbxx]

If you are experiencing bad symptoms, call 911. They can tell you if its your heart when you are hooked up.

[niko467]

i seen the doctor today and he checked my pulse, blood pressure and listened to my heart. and he said not to go to the hospital because it's just my anxiety.  i think im going to die. my dad will be mad if i phone for ambulance because the doctor said im fine and he thinks it's my anxiety. but i dont. i have a history of anxiety and most of my family just say it's your anxiety
you have had the tests done stop worrying.

[Elli126]

Hi Niko, I sympathize with you believe me. I am a 53 year old woman who has been dealing with rythym issues for about 20 years. PVC/PACs at first, then a couple of years ago I started with PSVT and now something brand new that scares the hell out of me. I just had all the things you described the "head rush" dizzyness and feeling off balance...it felt like my heart stopped for several seconds and then BAM! started back with a powerful thud, then it raced for a bit and now has finally slowed down to a normal rythym again. I can't tell you how many times I have been in the ER in the last 20 years and I hate every minute of this stuff but my point is I'm still here. Every time something scary happens ( like the episode I just had ) I come on here and read the posts and see I'm not alone. It gives me a bit of comfort. I think if the doc says you're alright you are, get all the rest of the testing done and when you come back with a clean bill of health you'll feel much better...and keep coming here it helps.

[is_something_wrong]

Why do you think you are going to die?

You need to start trusting your doctors and stop paying attention to some of the posts here. The posts about life threatening conditions really made me angry. You are a 22 year old man with anxiety and a healthy heart.

To explain how heart diseases work:

You can be born with them (and if you were, you would have noticed problems earlier) and you can get them from changes in your heart (usually caused by heart attacks etc.) At age 22, this is almost impossible, and it would have caused symptoms if you did.

Just for your information: When my cardiophobia was at the worst, I could have an irregular heart rhythm at rate far above 200 just by walking. It wasn't anything worse than sinus tachycardia with PACs. All caused by extreme stress levels. Short runs of rapid heart rhythm is usually a line of PACs (atrial tachycardia). I would like to quote my cardiologist (I've had the same symptoms).

"Short episodes of rapid heart rhythm are usually benign ectopics. If you have a rapid irregular heart rhythm for several minutes, go to the ER and register an EKG to rule out atrial fibrillation".

And please stop reading about ventricular arrhythmias and sudden death. If your EKG and echo is normal, this isn't an issue (even if you had a short run of VT).

[niko467]

i think im going to die because i feel horrible like when i wake up i feel calm but feel as though im not getting enough air , i get headache and blurred vision like this morning. i get pauses in my heart only occasional but they leave me short of breath and with some sort of head rush. my heart this morning kept speeding up and slowing down. yesterday when i was walking i kept feeling off balance and kept getting rushes and occasional pain in chest.

[is_something_wrong]

1. The variance in heart rate:

Young nervous people (like me :p) often have a little low blood pressure in the morning. When you are anxious, you have major imbalances in the autonomic nervous system which controls the heart rhythm. You can have moments of slow heart rhythm and moments of rapid heart rhythm. This is normal - I have them too. Remember to drink enough fluids. What happens is mostly the same as during a hangover, if you measure your pulse when you have a hangover, it's the same.

2. The pauses

Premature beats are exactly like you describe. The head rushes are an adrenaline effect of them. The shortness of breath is often caused by variances in blood flow in your pulmonary circulation. Two rapid beats pushes a lot of blood, followed by a pause. Nothing to worry about.

Do you still think you are going to die from this?

[niko467]

you have helped. but i am still very worried. my mum has gone on holiday and i keep thinking im not going to be here when she gets back. she has been through so much in her life losing her first son and i think if i was to die it would send her over the edge. the thought of that really scares me.

[niko467]

why do you think i keep feeling off balance when im walking. i have been feeling unsteady/off balance for about 3 months but it has gotten worse in the past few days. one thing that is confusing me is that for the past 5 days i have been waking up with a bad headache but it seems to go when i get up out of bed

[is_something_wrong]

I can't explain your headache but heart diseases rarely causes headache. Could it be tense muscles?

The unsteadiness may be another sign that your blood pressure is a little low or unstable. You may want to ask your doctor about all this, but young healthy people don't die from heart diseases! That's the most important message here (even if it feels like we do sometimes..)

[niko467]

i had my blood pressure checked yesterday and it was fine. so i dont know why im feeling off balance. i spoke to the doctor and he doesn't seem to worried. i keep getting hot sweats also

[is_something_wrong]

Two possibities:

1. Your BP is low but higher at the doctors office (pseudonormalized)
2. Dizziness can be caused by classical anxiety (along with hot flashes).

All cardiac conditions causing dizziness would give a low blood pressure, but you can have low blood pressure without cardiac conditions.

[colby12]

Take magnesium. Magnesium Malate is actually the best form of Magnesium to take for PAC or PVC because not only is it a chelated form which has a high bio-availablility but the malate form works with a part of the Krebs cycle that targets muscle cells including your heart muscle cells. Studies have shown the people who die from PVC induced MI had a very low functioning or non exsistant Magnesium Malate Kreb cycle function. I am in a Respritory Therapy program and we have to know ion function as a matter of routine to keep patients alive. Magnesium is a ion that is  critical in the balance of homestasis as it relates to cell function. It is simple in the fact that if your magnesium is low your cells lose their ability to perform their normal function and in the case of heart muscle pace maker cells they will lose the ability to fire properly at regular intervals causing PAC & PVCs. Also normal blood serum levels of  magnesium does not indicate that magnesium in your cells is normal or not deficient. Thus the chelated forms should be taken as most know by now. I had arrythmias that were getting so bad that it was getting hard to breathe on occasion. I started taken Magnesium Glycinate and my PACs went down by half. Then I read the studies on the Krebs-Malate cycle combined with my own knowledge from my University work. I do not have ANY arrythmia as long as I take the Malate form of Magnesium. I take Magnesium Malate from Source Naturals.  

[rilesnic]

Anxiety will make you feel terrible! I get hot flashes that make me feel like I'm going to pass out, head rushes, dizziness...oh my goodness the dizziness is unbelievable...sometimes spinning, sometimes falling, and sometimes like I'm going to pass out, headaches, I feel my heart beat every time it beats...every time! I feel my pulse throughout my entire body, almost all day. I feel every missed beat, every extra beat, every run of crazy beats, and I can even tell the difference in my PAC's and PVC's most of the time. My heart is fine, it just does it's own thing. I have had every test, every monitor, and it is healthy. Does it make me crazy? Does it make me have physical symptoms? Does it increase my anxiety? You bet!

When you are sensitive to your body and you can feel everything, it's only natural that anxiety and panic kick in. We have to learn to deal with the panic and anxiety. I have horrible adrenaline rushes too, but in reality, by the time you feel the hot flash, the skipped beat or extra beat is already over...it's the BP falling and catching back up, normal response...terrible feeling, but normal response....I also have low blood sugar, GERD, and many other problems I could bore you with. I too used to be afraid I was going to die. Then I realized, it wasn't death I was afraid of, it was dying. There is a big difference.

Some of us feel things that others don't. Some people consider this lucky...I have a friend who has cardiomyopathy and has an IED and pacemaker. He tells me when he feels his heart palps, he feels alive! He knows his heart is beating! Think about the 6 billion people on the planet....It is not possible for every heart to beat...lub.dub.lub.dub.lub.dub....24/7....many just don't feel what we do.

You said your Mom lost her first son...I too have lost most of the people I was closest to, to death. I believe this has caused me to have my fear of dying. Losing those we love and are closest to is very difficult.

Trust your doctors. You are so young, they are not going to let you have something wrong and not try to fix it. Feeling bad when you wake up could be lack of sleep. Sometimes I feel like I have a hangover and it is from not getting enough sleep.

Hang in there and like issomethingwrong said....try not to look up a bunch on the internet. They put everything on there...good and bad. I wish you the best and hope you start feeling better soon!

[niko467]

i might go to the hospital. and they will probally give me a ecg but what concerns me is that the ecg is 14 seconds long. what if i dont get any symptoms during the ecg.

[Mom2four85]

I don't have alot of time; heading out pretty soon but I've been reading your thread and wanted to post.

I think some people get confused about VT/Vtach and are scared of the word Vtach, but not all VT is dangerous. I think you would be surprised at the amount of people who go through this and are fine; it all depends on the rate, where it originates and if you have structural heart damage.

Tachycardia rates between 110 and 150 may be tolerated even if sustained for minutes to hours. However, faster rates (>180 beats per minute) may cause drops in arterial pressure and produce syncope. Very fast rates (>220) are imminently dangerous because they rarely terminate spontaneously and invariably cause drops in blood pressure and low cardiac output.

since you had a 24 hr holter did it show any VT or high rates, prolonged pauses? (sorry if I missed this) have you had a 30 day or other monitor? if not it may help to ask for one

Here's some info that may be helpful - http://www.medhelp.org/user_journals/show/284968/Ventricular-Tachycardia-VT---Vtach?personal_page_id=861727

lightheadedness/dizziness, headaches, off balance can be caused by alot of thing but may be caused by a mixed signal in the autonomic nervous system (ANS) or CNS; which regulates heart rate, blood pressure, body temperature, respiration, digestion, etc. while it probably won't kill you, it will certanly make your life miserable and make you feel like dying and can be caused by a great number of things.

http://www.medhelp.org/health_pages/Neurological-Disorders/Autonomic-Dysfunction-FAQ/show/181?cid=196

I know it's not easy, but try and cope the best you can and don't dwell on what may kill you, try to focus on staying strong, healthy and be as positive as you can; not every day will be roses but accept the days that aren't and move forward.

[niko467]

i went to the hospital last night and they checked my blood pressure, listened to my heart and gave me a ecg which they said was fine. but i was not getting a fast heart rate or pauses in my heart beat when the ecg was performed. can they still tell if my heart is fine without seeing the symptoms on the ecg

[is_something_wrong]

Well, they can't diagnose the arrhythmia, but they can look for changes consistent with increased risk of sudden death. With a normal EKG and normal heart function this is almost not possible, no matter how many PVCs you have.

[niko467]

so your saying the chances of me having heart attack/sudden death is unlikely because my ecg is normal.

[r9c]

If echo = normal,ECG stress test = normal,resting ECG normal,blood test those potassium etc..all normal..then its very very unlikely to have a cardiac arrest.also ur age 22 is so young,together with all those full cardiac workup those cardiologist gave you,holter etc..if all come back normal..then very very unlikely to have a cardiac arrest,further more people who drop dead suddenly usually have some heart defects when born which never goes detected through cardiac testing until its too late.

[is_something_wrong]

Well, chances for sudden death are always small, and in young people they are almost nonexistent.

Sudden cardiac death in young people may occur from the following causes:

LQTS (ruled out with EKG)
Hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (ruled out with EKG)
Myocarditis (will give changes on EKG and signs of infection as well)
CPVT (extremely rare and will only cause problems with heavy exercise. Can't be seen on EKG)
Abnormal coronary artery positions (will give angina pain during exercise)
WPW with atrial fibrillation (ruled out with EKG)
ARVD (usually indicated on EKG, ruled out by echo/MR. Very rare condition).

I think your problem is in your head, that you for some reason have convinced yourself that you're dying. I think that's what needs treatment.

[is_something_wrong]

Please be aware that those conditions (except myocarditis) are conditions people are born with.

[niko467]

im also getting occasional chest discomfort when i get my ventricular ectopics and some sort of flutter in my chest which feels like twitching. which i feel very strongly

[is_something_wrong]

I understand that, arrhythmias may feel overwhelming but that's not a signal that you're going to die. The more we focus on the premature beats the more we get of them and the stronger they feel.

[niko467]

I seen the cardiologist yesterday and he went over the results of the tests i had done last year and he said the structure of my heart is normal and there is nothing wrong other than occasional ventricular ectopics. But im getting these weird feelings now and again like my breath gets taken away for a few seconds along with feeling unsteady. it makes me feel like im going to stop breathing and die

[is_something_wrong]

What do you want me to say here? You've seen a cardiologist, the one that knows most about heart diseases. You need to make a choice:

You can trust your cardiologist, stop worrying about your healthy heart, and live a good life accepting the small events as just "noise" from your body.

You can refuse to trust the cardiologist. If you do, you need to ask yourself this question: If you can't trust a doctor specialized in heart medicine, who should you trust? Yourself? Do you really believe you know this better than a cardiologist?

Yes, cardiologists may be mistaken in cases regarding rare, severe heart diseases. But in the setting of PACs/PVCs they are telling you the truth.

[yarrow]

In my experience, many people would almost rather die or at least have a major physical illness than consider a psychological cause or treatment for their symptoms.  This is strange, since panic and anxiety are disabling medical conditions as worthy of treatment as diabetes, for example, but something makes people shy away from getting help for what's going on between their ears.  

[niko467]

now and again i feel as though my breath gets taken away and coughing choking sensation. even when im calm and at the same time i feel a horrible sensation which i find hard to describe. i keep feeling unsteady. i think im going to die. i have had anxiety for 5 years and have never felt what im feeling now. but the doctor thinks its anxiety

[yarrow]

After all your tests, you can bet it IS anxiety, Niko.  If you want the anxiety to go away, you will have to make an appointment to see a doc who deals with that disorder.

[niko467]

i think im having a breakdown. i dont feel with it. even speaking seems like so much effort and im very jittery. even though im calm

[yarrow]

Time to call your regular doctor, Niko, not the cardiologist.   Tell the GP that you think you feel as though you're having a breakdown and ask for help with that.  No later than tomorrow, please.

Believe me, you can and will feel better.

[Madge270]

I always have a tickle in my throat and have to cough when my PVCs get bad. I also can feel the pounding or heartbeat in my neck or stomach at times.  Even when my heartbeat is normal, I often hear my  pulse pounding in my right ear. An MRI with contrast dye of my head showed nothing wrong, so I just live with this stuff.  

For awhile I had over 8500 irregular beats a day (PVCs). Since taking magnesium (just a few hundred mg a day) I don't have nearly as many.  That has helped me some.

I just wanted to mention the coughing issue. I think a lot of us get a tickly cough with our arrhythmic heartbeats.

[niko467]

i keep feeling short of breath. like the need to take deep breaths even though im calm. im getting a weird feeling in my heart and head also. but everyone thinks its anxiety. im not so sure, i think im going to die

[niko467]

i keep on feeling out of breath like the need to breathe deep even when im calm. And im getting chest discomfort. and my breath now and again gets taken away. the cardiologist has put me on beta blockers 40mg pills three times a day. im just wondering is there any danger in taking one not long after the other.

[niko467]

i also dont like the way i feel on these beta blockers

[niko467]

i keep on feeling some sort of rush in my chest and stomach which makes my breathing pause for a few seconds like i cant breathe properly and then followed by a head rush even though im calm. it feels as though im dying for them few seconds. i have been put on beta blockers but i dont like the way they make me feel. i keep on feeling unsteady aswell. but the doctor thinks its all anxiety. i have had anxiety on and off for 5 years and i cane never remember getting these symptoms. i had a ecg done 2 and half weeks ago which came back fine. i had blood test done a week ago which came back that my white blood cells are low as was the same the other time i had a blood test. but the doctor doesn't seem concerned. i really feel like im going to collapse and die