Aa
Aa
A
A
A
Close
Avatar universal

Irregular heart beat, difficulty breathing and pain in chest

I have been ill for a month now - firstly with a constant intense headache at the back of my head which made it impossible to sleep. That went away after 2 weeks and I started exercising again 2 weeks ago - I sweated alot and lost control of my breathing in a hot yoga class (40 degrees) and had what felt like a seizure- my hand went numb and clammed up - I felt sick and dizzy and I was breathing very fast. Since then my heart has been beating irregularly (sometimes palpatating so fast that I have been unable to sleep all night), my chest feels tight and hurts sometimes, I feel exhausted, extrememely dizzy and sometimes sick. I have headaches but not as intense as before.
I have seen the doctor who said my heart was beating irregularly and my blood pressure was very low, but he told me I need to go home for tests as I am temporarily living in this city. However i feel too ill to get out of bed! I dont feel up to the journey home.
Please can somebody help me! I feel like there is something wrong with my circulation or liver as I often take a long time to get better after a cold, but I'm confused as to why my chest is hurting and my heart is beating really fast and then slow and I am often feeling breathless and constricted.
20 Responses
Sort by: Helpful Oldest Newest
Avatar universal
Sarah, how are you doing now? Is everything ok now..know it's been a while since you had the PE? Did you find out the cause? Thank God they found it for you. My docs have come to conclusion that mine was a COMBINATION of heat exhuastion (from bierkham yoga), 8 hour car ride with minimal breaks, and possibly flight. I was also doing endurance training during all of that for 1/2 marathon, so not sure if that was related. Hope all is well with you now.
Helpful - 0
Avatar universal
Sarah..I just read your post for the first time. Looks like you posted in Jan 11. As I read the beginning of it, I kept saying to myself this sounds like a pulminary embolism. Then read further and I saw that it was. I only could guess this cause of my recent experience. A few months ago, I attended a Bikram yoga class, my first one. A few hours after class I began to have symptoms of heat exhaustion (hot/cold sweats, bad headace, naseau, and then rapid heart rate). It lasted all night. I should have gone to ER then, but I did not. I got no sleep that night and next day I was better (drink gatorade throughout night, bananna, and water). Three weeks later I started to experience symptoms again, although this time it was mainly rapid heart rate (a bit of naseau and sweating too). I couldn't believe I was having heat exhaustion again (although I had been training for 1/2 marathon before and during all of this, which could have added to heat exhaustion). Three days later, after sleepless nights due to my rapid heart rate, I went ER. My EKG came back abnormal and CT scan spotted small PE. Was in the hospital for 8 days and now on warfin for 1 yr. I keep wondering if this birkam yoga could have caused it?? I know there's some that say heat exhaustion could be a contributer, while others say they dont' know..but I'm so mad at my teacher in the Birkam yoga class, as he was very demanding of us to stay in the class and made fun of me when I tried to leave. I do believe you have to watch after yourself, but what a poor leader he was. If yoga's about inner peace and peace for everyone..connecting everyone, why would he push someone to those limits..why no watch out for people. Instructor should at least warn newbees to ensure they acclamate their bodies to heat before working out in the extreme temps. They should also ask or people how much water they've drink that day.  This should be part of their training. My life lessons after all of this (and possibly coming that close to not being here anymore).. is sometimes pushing the body to extremes is not the best answer..moderation is key. Less is more, pay attention to your body (we are fragile), and it's ok to do 80%..not 100%. What a life lesson!
Helpful - 0
1137980 tn?1281285446
This is all good news Sarah...sounds like you have a great doc treating you who is getting super proactive with your treatment program which is a huge plus in hopefully putting this all behind you and taking care of whatever needs to be taken care of here.  You have to wait until all of the test results are in and then should be able to make some sort of informed decision on the how's, why's, and what to do's on this.  Just remember if anything just doesn't feel right Sarah do not hesitate...make that call (911) so that you can get a grip on whatever is happening the the getting is good as they say. If the tiredness seems to be progressing i would make a simple call and ask the docs if this is normal for you and whatever you do do not try to explain any of the symptoms away in a situ like this....time will be of the essence until all of your ducks are in a row and you get all  of the answers.....and solutions......Godspeed Sarah we are all here for you and please keep us all updated......
Helpful - 0
Avatar universal
Cindy, my angel!

Sorry I haven't written back to anyone. I'm still feeling exhausted but am being treated with ,..heparain I think its called  - injections and have been referred to the arrithmya (can't spell it!) clinic this week for a follow up plan,so I'll be finding out lots of things I hope.

I'll be back in touch, sorry havent written.

Thank you again my angel : ) xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Helpful - 0
1137980 tn?1281285446
Just checking in with you Sarah.................how are you doing?
Helpful - 0
Avatar universal
Cindy--you are the real deal---love your humility. :)
Helpful - 0
1137980 tn?1281285446
I think bbxx like with anything medical it begins with the nurses and ends with the doctors and nurses are basically a doctors assistant but have alot to put on the table in terms of professional experience and training.....sometimes thats all it takes is a simple suggestion to point a person in the right direction and you don't have to be a nurse to do that.  I think absolutely everyone on this site has so much to offer each other and i swear i have learned more from Medhelp over the years that add to my training anyway that made me want to research and learn more about specific things and then start questioning docs, etc.  I think thats why this is called a community....a family of sorts as you will......kind of like seeds that are planted in the mind and start growing and take hold i guess....personally i think we are all on a level playing field no matter what anyones training or personal experience is...my grandpa used to say that its a fool that thinks they know all of the answers in not respecting the opinions of others and taking them into consideration and that there is no such thing as a dumb question the only dumb question there is is the one that has not been asked because as with Murphys Law if you don't ask it it will happen LOL
Helpful - 0
Avatar universal
At the risk of annoying many people, I serisously think we would all be doing better if treated by nurses instead of doctors! I had a nurse diagnose me once when TWO doctors insisted it was anxiety---this nurse got the third doc to pay attention!
Helpful - 0
967168 tn?1477584489
oh my goodness this just sent shivers down my spine reading this thread

saralouarm I hope you're feeling better and they are treating you and glad you got sound advice to get to the ER/A&E sooner than later.  I've heard of PE's but not often, so I don't know any of the symptoms but it sounds like it can be very dangerous.

good luck and let us know how you are doing
Helpful - 0
Avatar universal
Oh my goodness! YAY CINDY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Helpful - 0
1137980 tn?1281285446
I am so glad that you got treated sarah......that could have been super ugly if you had not gone...i guess like we all say this is where we all pay it forward for one another and i know for myself this site also made a huge impact for myself and without it as well i personally feel i would not be here posting right now w/out all of the enouragement that i received.  JUst make sure you follow up now that they have taken care of the issue and hopefully they have you on a treatment plan to avoid all of this.  Godspeed to you Sarah and remember you need movement after going thru that....laying in bed is not a good idea when you have an emoboli because your circulation needs to keep flowing...take care and thank you so much for the feedback and we are here for you.....
Helpful - 0
1465650 tn?1316231160
OMG I am sickened to think that the first doctor didn't help in any way, instead he just told you to get treated at home????? What kind of world are we living in????

I cannot stress how lucky you are as a PE can be and often is deadly. I myself had a blood clot in my leg and worried constantly about getting a PE.

Did they scan your legs to see where the clot came from? Usually a clot will form in the legs and then break off into a PE.
Did they do a thrombophelia test to see if you have any clotting disorders?

I guess you are on the usual treatment of clexane injections into the tummy and warfarin pills, have they told you for how long? usual treatment for a first DVT/PE is 3-6 months.

Have you flown recently or had any surgery or been inactive? My own DVT came from having surgery.
I am so sorry that this happened to you and that you were not treated asap. hopefully you will recover and get better quickly.
Take care
Helpful - 0
Avatar universal
Just want to say thanks guys. I'm being treated for pulmonary embolus - blood clot in lung.
I have to say that I probably wouldn't have gone to the hospital if it wasn't for cindys advice

Cant thank you enough :)

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Helpful - 0
Avatar universal
And when you're better, no more hot yoga.  That concept is so weird it boggles the mind.  We humans normally live very close to our upper tolerances of heat:  Our internal temperature is about 38° C, as you know.  If that goes above 40°, we are in trouble with what is called 'heat stroke,' and at 41.5° we are in danger of death.

The demands on the circulatory system in high heat are tremendous, and the nervous system is at risk, too.

Facts about heat and exercise:

http://www.faqs.org/sports-science/Ba-Ca/Cardiovascular-Responses-to-Fluid-Replacement-During-Exercise.html
Helpful - 0
Avatar universal
Oh! ok, yes, I think I will go. Thanks xx
Helpful - 0
1137980 tn?1281285446
E.R. is an emergency room sarah or a hospital that offers services for acute cases of symptoms that are or may be serious and they will usually run a lot of tests to rule out what may be happening with you.  If you are still having trouble breathing and chest pressure it could be something simple like asthma but only a doc can tell you that i am just tossing out ideas here.  I think in England an E.R. is called an A & E.....i would go sooner rather then later if you are still having breathing issues Sarah...you don't want it to get to the point where it can become irreversible and if you are in the shape that you cannot even get out of bed you need to get some help either by calling a friend to take you or calling 911.....don't let this go something is obviously going on with you..............
Helpful - 0
Avatar universal
Thank you for replying !!

I think I will try to see a private doctor in London to test for these things as I am not feeling well enough to get home.

I really appreciate the advice. Thank you :)
Helpful - 0
Avatar universal
Thanks for replying!!!

I know, I just dont seem to be able to get help from the doctor - although he did tell me to come back but i havent' felt well enough to get out of bed.

I have thought about sugar levels and electrolye imbalances as I've been trying to read my symptoms on the internet. I got some sports drink to try to help it.

My doctor did a full blood count - but I wasn't sure what was included in that. He didnt' tell me what he was testing for. I think he said my blood pressure was 50/88 but I must have got that wrong.

What is E.R ? Sorry, I dont know that term.

Thank you so much for responding, it really helps emotionally as I feel really confused about what to do and obviously really scarred when I can't breathe and my chest is hurting!



Helpful - 0
1137980 tn?1281285446
Sorry you are going thru this...i don't understand why this doc told you to wait until you go home before trying to figure out what the heck is going on with you.  Was this an E,R, doctor?  No matter what if this doc felt they couldn't deal with this they should have at the very least referred you out to another doc.  Sounds to me like this could be anything from issues with your sugar levels in your body to electrolyte imbalances but all we would be doing is throwing that spaghetti noodle against the wall and seeing if it sticks since we don''t really know your complete history, etc.  I would heed Ireneos advise tho and lay off of the intense yoga for now and if the symptoms persist if it were me i would head to the E.R, and not leave until someone gave me the answers as to why this is happening to rule everything out that is what you pay them for...good luck to you
Helpful - 0
187666 tn?1331173345
Did he do a thyroid test?  There are so many possible reasons for your symptoms. It would be best if you found a doctor that could do a full exam on you and pinpoint what's causing your problems. Until you find an answer, I would recommend avoiding the hot yoga class. It's very stressful on the body. Do regular yoga if you feel a need to stretch and relax.
Helpful - 0
Have an Answer?

You are reading content posted in the Heart Rhythm Community

Top Arrhythmias Answerers
1807132 tn?1318743597
Chicago, IL
1423357 tn?1511085442
Central, MA
Learn About Top Answerers
Didn't find the answer you were looking for?
Ask a question
Popular Resources
Are there grounds to recommend coffee consumption? Recent studies perk interest.
Salt in food can hurt your heart.
Get answers to your top questions about this common — but scary — symptom
How to know when chest pain may be a sign of something else
A list of national and international resources and hotlines to help connect you to needed health and medical services.
Herpes sores blister, then burst, scab and heal.