skipped heartbeats

[jo380]

i have a history of skipped heartbeats or PVC'S, as they are formally called, and  for the past week they have been nonstop. it is driving me crazy!!! i went to the ER three nights ago and waited 3 hours, never got checked out as they were too busy for me. go figure!!! then i went to my primary care physician who precribed Atenolol, a beta blocker, which has done nothing for me, the skipped beats are just as bad now as they were before the medication. today the doctor told me to increase the Atenolol to 2 pills a day but to watch out, they could make me dizzy. my cardiologies duggested i come in to get an event monitor but i had one last year and it drove me nuts wearing that thing, it's big and bulky and annoying, plus every single time you feel a skipped beat you have to call it in, jeepers, i would be calling all day long and i do not have the time for that. i'm not really surprised at the lack of care i am getting, i am just a little nervous that this is something more serious than PVC's since they won't stop, i don't want my heart to just stop or something. also, i had an echocardiagram last year and everything was fine there.
if anyone could give me some suggestions on where to go from here and if they have anyof the same things going on, i would really appreciate it and maybe it would put my mind alittle more at ease since i am a panicky, stressed out person by nature.
thanks
jo

[iamfaithful]

Those skipped beats are awful, I know.  You may want to give the medication some time to work.  It took my beta blocker close to 3-4 weeks to REALLY work, and for me to notice a difference.  So I don't think a day or two is enough time for it to really get into your system.
Yea, I had to wear an event montior myself in the beginning.  I didn't like wearing it either as it made me more anxious; however, I wanted them to find out exactly what the problem was, so I wore it.  If you are having them constantly then a 24 hour holter would seem better as someone else stated.
MIne have taken a break for the time being and I am SO grateful, but I am waiting for them to return, whch is kind of crazy I know, but I just don't like getting my hopes up high, been there done that.

Let me tell you that I finally had to stop THINKING all of the time, because it was causing me so much stress, which was just feeding the PVC's.  I have tried my best over the past couple of weeks to think in a more positive manner, and I can say that there is a difference.  
I hope you feel better soon!

Oh, and thanks Tjalsma for clearing that up-haaaaaaaaaaa.  I knew what you meant, but it still kind of unerved me to read it-lol.

[Tjalsma]

I just wanted to point out that when I said PVCs and stress are a deadly combination - I meant mentally, not physically :)

[Tjalsma]

It is most likely stress causing the PVCs.  Stress and PVCs go hand in hand and can be a deadly combination.  I go through phases where I will have a month of PVCs then they will just stop for months at a time.

The even monitor can be helpful for a doctor to see exactly what type of palpitation you are having.  If you have been confirmed as just having PVCs, rest assured they are benign and as long as there is not an underlying heart condition - it won't affect your lifespan in any way.

I do suggest you ask your Doctor for a different kind of event/Holter monitor.  The one I was provided with was worn for 48 hours and was always recording.  When I felt a palpitation, I wrote it down and gave it to my Doctor along with my Journal.  I found it to be pretty easy and very reassuring to find out I only have PVCs.

It is hard for even me to believe when I am having symptoms.

[jcatron]

I know all of this can be nerve racking.  If your skipped beats are happening frequently, I would not think an event monitor would be necessary.  Try asking for a holter moniter that you would wear for only 24 hours (24 hr EKG).  PVC do take on minds of their own.  I was diagnosed with them about 10 months ago (3100 in 24hrs).  Some days are definitely better than others, but hang in there.