Fear of heart failure.

[gshanereid]

Hey, I have a serious fear that I will die of heart problems. I am only 18 and only recently stopped working out. I followed a very intense workout from last march to september. I was very physically active everyday and ate healthy. One day I started having heart palpitations and became convinced I damaged my heart. I had an EKG at the doctors and they said it was normal. Even with that I am still scared. My heart will skip beats every once in a while but only when I panic. My heart also beats very strong and fast. All of this concerns me because I can't even workout anymore. Somedays it is hard and very scary just to stand up off the couch. Im not sure if the panic just overwhelms my heart or if I have serious heart problems. I am on Xanax and that seems to help, so I am led to believe I just have a anxiety disorder. I also have panic attacks. Nobody seems to be able to convince me my heart is fine, and I sure as heck cant do it on my own. I am constantly checking my pulse and blood pressure. It is normal 85% of the time, but I still have panic attacks, this is really affecting my life because I think I'm gonna drop dead of heart failure. Does anybody have any advice, or reassurance? please.....

[kathyanne100]

I sense you are pretty desperate.. I would say you have 'health anxiety'. Basically this may shift to another area of you body if you don't check it now. I have 'health anxiety', which I have had for the past 5 years. I have feared everything from heart failure to cancer. I still have it. It's awful. You need to sort it out right now. I have no doubt that your heart is fit & healthy. If you have had it checked then that's it, it's fine. It's in your mind i'm afraid. This is only my opinion you understand, I am not a proffesional. Only that I have experienced it myself and have totally 100% research the whole subject trying to find an anwswer to it. The answer is inside of you, your mind. Only you can make it go away. Something sets it off. You may have got a few miss beats whilst working out, which is normal, but it frightened you. That's it the panic switch is ON. The next time you exercise you are looking and waiting for it. That's where the mind kicks in and plays trick on you. Part of anxiety is palpitations, miss beats etc. Go to your doctor but this time say you are there because of your anxiety/panic attacks and not your heart. Hope this has helped slightly.

Kathy

[RubyWitch]

You heart has been checked and is fine.
Palpitations are normal and happen to  just about everybody. Unless they become VERY frequent, learn to ignore them. They will not hurt you or your heart. Check out the Heart Rhythm Forum for reassurance on this.
When were you dx'd with anxiety/panic disorder?
Did they just toss some Xanax at you and not mention getting into some therapy to deal with the under lying cause? If so...........find a different doctor, your's is a moron.
Stop checking your pulse and BP.............your anxiety will only make it worse.
I'd recommend a second opinion, possibly from a cardiologist, not because I think you need to, but maybe you'll be more inclined to believe a specialist. While there, ask for a referral to a good therapist.
You are too young and obviously healthy to let this "disorder" take over your mind. Face it head on NOW.
Let us know how you're doing, OK?
You're fine...........but YOU'RE the one who needs to believe that.
Peace
Greenlydia