I want to go to sleep NOW but i'm paranoid about cardiac arrest (betablockers and low HR)

[jonaz]

It is my first day i dared to take a really small dose of betablocker again,
but i already regret it! I'm kinda sensitive to them.

I'd love to go to sleep RIGHT NOW but i have a low heartrate caused by my the beta blocker..
I don't feel dizzy and feel pretty great,

except that when i checked my pulse a few minutes ago while lying in bed it showed a HR of 50
and it also felt like my heart stopped beating for a few seconds.

During sleep my HR will definately go below 50,
i'm paranoid that my heartrate will go too low during sleep and that i will die of cardiac
arrest. - is that even possible?



My heartrate when sober is 60bpm, so 50bpm is 10 beats below normal.
I'm not in good shape so i doubt this is healthy. The reason i took the betablocker is for daytime tachycardia.

[BobRBob]

Is cardiac arrest a possible consequence of bradycardia? I'm on Sotalol and my resting heart rate during the day often falls into the high 40s so I'm sure it's sometimes even lower when I'm sleeping. I've never suffered any ill effects from this that I'm aware of, at least not during the day. No low blood pressure or dizziness, shortness of breath etc. What would be the symptoms of slow heart rate while sleeping. I consistently have problems getting to sleep and awake frequently, sometimes with a slightly pounding heart. I attribute the insomnia to the Sotalol. As for the waking up, I am scheduled for a sleep study in case I have sleep apnea. Could the waking be caused by slow heart rate? My cardiologist has never mentioned this as a concern.

[razzi00]

just want to relate my story with what I thought was bradycardia, and like you I was afraid to go to sleep because my night time resting rate went into the high 40's and low 50's while on beta blocker's, so I just quit taking them. I instead took control of my health by keeping a diary of when my tachycardia was happening etc....and I was able to determine what foods , or what stress caused it and made worse. I also started to exercise at the gym, which in itself was scary at first because exercise would sometimes trigger my heart to go tachy, but inspite of this I kept going. The end result of all of this is that in the last 11 months I have lost 90 lbs, watch what I eat, cut down on fats , sugars, salts, and here is what happened. I very very rarely now have any tachycardia, and day time resting rate is 64, and nightime rate is 50, but is no longer scary because it is there naturally from strengthening my heart. I still do have some pvc's but maybe only 10% of what I used to have, but the big benefit is I no longer spend my life in fear of cardiac arrest, and instead of spending my days in fear, I am enjoying my life. Will my heart rythm problems cause cardiac arrest, well maybe, but I know i have done all I can for my health, and have decided to drop the "worry" part and life is now a whole lot more pleasant.

[jonaz]

Thanks but i think i probably won't take any betablocker again.
I've taken 1/8 of the minimum dose this afternoon and i already have this bradycardia problem again.

Or maybe i should try a non-selective betablocker instead of the ß1-selective blocker i am on right now?

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During sleep tonight my HR will definately go below 50,
i'm paranoid that my heartrate will go too low and that i will die of cardiac
arrest. - is that even possible?

[ireneo]

How about taking the med during the morning (assuming you'll be up all day). That's what I do when I start a new medication. I also make sure someone is with me just in case I have a reaction. After the first dose or two, you'll know whether you'll be OK.

[jonaz]

I'd drink some coffee to counter the effects but coffee would send me into terrible tachycardia in an instant.