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Feeling of heart racing but it isn't

Sometimes I get the feeling that my heart is just racing but when I take my pulse it is actually around 50 bpm. What could that be?
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Avatar universal
I have been getting the same symptoms. It's like my heart is going crazy but the pulse in my wrist seems normal. I don't know if its my hypoglycemia acting up or anxiety. I have seen a cardiologist and he said everything about my heart looked normal but he just wished I could have ran a little bit longer on my stress test :P I am glad I'm not alone!
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Avatar universal
Actually, the best way to take your heart rate is to use a stethoscope right on your chest.  You will clearly hear every beat, and a whole lot more.  This is much more reliable than using your pulse.
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Thanks for that.  I always take my pulse at my wrist when I feel something abnormal in my chest.  I'll try to do it at the neck from now on and see what difference it makes.  

Also, I got a copy of my event recorder events.  It seems like when I get the "vibration" in my chest it says "SINUS BRADYCARDIA".  I thought that was interesting because I always assumed my heart was racing when I felt the vibration.   There was a couple sinus arrythmia events but nothing that made anyone stand up and take notice.  In your opinion/experience, does everyone get an arrythmia now and then??
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61536 tn?1340698163
NO DON'T LET THAT SCARE YOU!  Oy, that was not the intent.  In my experience, when I am having an episode of supraventricular tachycardia, I feel a weak, slow pulse in my wrist, but my heart is actually going 180, and I can feel *that* at the carotid in my neck as well as in my chest.  I should have specified the wrist pulse, I am sorry.

Typically yes, your pulse is consistent with your heart rate.  I was just pointing out that it can be difficult to tell sinus rhythm from an arrhythmia without equipment or experience.

Don't freak out, that was not the intent at all.  I really think you're probably just having a nerve or muscle irritation, because when my pulse is lower I do tend to feel that stuff more...quite likely because I am relaxed at those times and more aware of my body's little quirks.

If your carotid pulse feels normal, you have no symptoms like dizziness or chest pain, it's quite unlikely you have an arrhythmia (a serious one).

I hope that clears things up.
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Avatar universal
I thought your pulse rate was your heart rate. Is it not?
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Avatar universal
Do you mean your PULSE can feel "normal" yet your heart can actually be arrhythmic?  I have been having strange feelings for a while and was somewhat comforted by the fact that my pulse seemed to be normal at the time it was happening.  Oh boy.  

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61536 tn?1340698163
Your heart could be racing, pulse isn't necessarily indicative of whether you're in rhythm.  More likely, I get that sensation as well, and it's usually a muscle twitching rapidly in my chest near the heart area.  An unsettling feeling, and I also notice it when my heart rate is lower, when I'm relaxed.
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