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Avatar universal

questions about irregular heartbeat

My son who just turned 18 has asymptomatic irregular heartbeats occasionally.  MOst noticeable when he is at rest.  He does not feel them nor does he have any disturbing accompanying symptoms. The only way they were found out was I do check my childrens pulse once in awhile to make sure that everything this is fine.  ONLY reason I check their pulse sporadically is because I am a 25 year PVC sufferer who has finally learned to live with them and I must say I am doing very well with this!  I took my son to our family GP and she gave his  heart a long listen with the stethoscope and also asked him some questions.  Later she called me at home and told me that he was fine.  His heart sounded good with no abnormal sounds and she told she would not order any more tests because he seemed a little alarmed when she was checking his heart and she doesnt want him to get obsessed with his heart.  I agree with this, I dont want to get him worried, but since he is totally asymptomatic is this okay?  Should I insist on more testing? I guess the main question I would like to ask you is if he had something "wrong" with his heart, would he have some other symptoms that he would be aware of? Also doctor, if you were to see an asypmtomatic 18 year old in your office with same history as above, would you also not order further tests?  I guess I just need some good reassurance so I can just move forward and stop worrying.  Thanks for your time.
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Avatar universal
Its interesting you should mention the pronounced sinus arrhythmia in your daughter.  Can it really be that pronounced that it feels quite irregular?  I was told that its just a speeding up and slowing down, no real noticeable missed beats.  Can sinus arrhythmia present itself like that also?  Looking forward to your answer.
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Avatar universal
I apologize for asking two questions so close together.  I was under the impression that we can post 2 questions in a three month period.  I am afraid I was wrong and I sincerely apologize.  I do understand that this forum is for everyone to ask questions and I am sorry that I took someone elses turn.  I promise I will not post for a long time.  That said, I just want to tell Christianirc to tell your father that the best time to try and post is very early am.  I have found no problems getting a question in both times I have posted.  Hope your father gets his question in and gets some answers.
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Avatar universal
I DO suffer from PACs/PVCs and I DO know how hard they can be to deal with so what I am saying comes out of sympathy and also concern.

Anna: Are you sure that you have finally come to accept these in your own life? Maybe you are simply transfering your own anxiety and fear to your son. ??? Maybe. ??? You have asked this question before and it is unlikely that the doctor is going to change his answer. Maybe, just maybe, some counseling on how to deal with these yourself would help your anxiety for your son. If you really believed that they are not going to hurt you, then you could accept that they are not going to hurt your son. ??? If your son does not feel these things and is not bothered by them and the doctors say he is fine, leave him alone. When they begin bothering him, he will come to you for advice, but only if he thinks you are not going to freak out. Then you can take him to the doctor for additional testing. I know that you don't want to act in such a way that would cause him to begin 'obsessing' over his own heartbeat, like so many of us on this site do?

And to Anna and Everyone else: Do not say that I just don't understand how it is to worry over your child! I DO. I have gone through many health crisis with my daughter! The latest being a fainting episode which resulted in an EKG which indicated that she has left hypertrophic cardiomyopthay. A follow-up echo indicated that she did not but we have to do yearly follow-ups to make sure it does not develop. She also has moderate asthma which we could not get controlled without the help of a pediatric pulminologist and suffers with a ticcing disorder which affects her body movement and speech! So I know how it is to worry about your child's very life. If I did not force myself to listen to and accept what her doctor's tell me, I could easily make her an emotional and physical cripple. However she and I do not view her as 'sick' and she is a very active child who does participate in sports regularly because that is what the doctor's say will benefit her most.

Sometimes I think that peace of mind is the hardest thing to come by and I pray that we all are able to live in it most of the time.
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Avatar universal
i hope you arent checking your sons pulse anymore, based on the facts that his physician said hes fine, and that she expressed concern that he is beginning to become alarmed. At this point i think it would do more harm than good.  If everyone looks through the archives, our own forum doctor strongly discourages this. If you are having a hard time accepting his health and its time to move on, there are alternative ways to find solice rather than to keep pushing for more tests and possibly push your child into anxiety attacks which im sure you're familiar with and dont want your son to get. I'de say as long as your doc says he's fine, and your son isnt complaining of anything, try and let it go.

Ide also just like to add as a side note, to everyone. This is a forum and people are going to have differences of opinion. Its not ok to attack anyone for their point of view. When you put your problem out in the open you are inviting people to comment on it, and aside of outright rudeness (which i havent seen) i see no need for defensive rudeness or attitude
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Avatar universal
It's easy to say "move on" but when you think there is something wrong with your child it is not that easy to do!  My daughter has very pronounced sinus arrhythmia and when I felt her pulse bounding all over the place it scared me to death.  I am a PAC/PVC sufferer, too and don't want her to go through what I do and the fear it causes.  So, it's not just that easy to "move on" and anyone who has ever had PACs/PVCs likely knows this.
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137307 tn?1330973997
Anna,
You have asked this question before.  You need to move on, it isn't healthy for you or your son.  I understand your concerns but you have asked this before.

I hope I don't think I'm picking on you, but I don't understand how some people get in to ask questions multiple times, when other people can't even get in.  My father has been wanting to ask a (non pvc/tachy/pac related) question for months now and he always gets that message that they aren't taking any more questions.
Helpful - 0

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