Another PVC question

[joeyk53]

Sorry this is so long but I need help! I am a 29 yr old female. When I was young I was diagnosed with a heart condition called something regurgitation. I'm not sure what the proper name for it is but I've heard it called different things. It caused a lot of chest wall pain. Apparently it went away on its own as I grew.Don't know how they figured that!  I started getting PVC's  when I was 21. I got a lot of them at the time and nothing has changed . I got them at first when I lied down at night and then for a few years throughout the day. It has affected my ability to work a normal job and right now I'm on leave of absence due to them not sure if I'll ever be able to go back or work again. My triggers seem to be when I'm too hot (summertime working out in the garden), when my body seems tired, after physical activity, caffeine( I will get them 2-3 days later) , and in a stressful situation. When I do get them I get A LOT of them one after another  Maybe 100 a day or more that I can feel.In the past yrs or so They have got worse. Now I feel like I'm being choked and about to fall over. I have been back and forth to the doc and seen a cardiologist. I had maybe four different tests done
(holter, event recorder, EKG's, stress test, echo, muga, and so on..) The problem is that the doctors don't believe me! The monitor came back empty once cuz the battery died, the next time for some reason I had no PVC's and the stress test came back with showing no PVC's as well. I told the docs my triggers .I get them when I'm hot and doing something strenuios. It just happened to be cold in the room when i did the tests. I went back to my doc and pushed her some more after she told me I was fine. She said " in order to calm you I'll send you for an ultrasound of your heart". After that last test I found out that I had Mitral Valve Prolapse. I was furious with my family doctor for making me look like I was just a freak. So now I know I have MVP with the PVC's . I have cut out caffeine yrs ago from my diet. I avoid anything that might make them come. I feel so limited in my life and it causes me to feel depressed. The docs say its anxiety that causes them. WRONG I never had anything to worry about until I had these PVC"S .Is it not supposed to scare you if one of the two major organs in your body is not working right??????
That's terrifying!! Am I not supposed to get  afraid when my heart is skipping beat after beat and I feel like I'm about to pass out? It says on my EKG's now "abnormal or heart damage" but yet they cant help me. They wont give me meds and if I want to go back to see a cardiologist I have to get a refferal again!!!! I dont know what to do this medical system is so WRONG . I am a mother and a wife and feel afraid I might die from this getting out of control. Please help!!! any suggestions on how to stop PVC's . How do I deal with the doctors and get them to understand that this is ruining my life and help? Do I really have to live like this everyday?


This discussion is related to Sinus tach, PVC's and anxiety relation.

[tap24]

I ruptured one of my illiotibial band it ruptured bad and I had a lot of bruising from my thigh all the way down to ankle, and 3 weeks later started having PVC'S. The freaked me out. Couldn't sleep, thought if I did I would never wake. After many hours of searching and no help from family doctor except for a bill for the holter monitor which confirmed i was having PVC"S. I have found that taurine and L-Arginine taken several times a day get's rid of them completely. If Itake five grams of taurine and 3 grams of L-arginine in a day for several days then the PVC's dissapear for days sometimes weeks. Hope that helps some of you.

[Linda1058]

I am 50 yrs old and have had excessive PVC's since I was 25. I also have Mitral Valve Prolapse. Like everyone else here, I have good days, bad days, and when they are bad they are really bad....I cant sleep, cause they are constant. I feel like I'm going to pass out when I am standing or bending over. I am on Zoloft, toprol xl and have xanax when I need it, and STILL have frieghtning episodes. This past month has been the worst, I have an echo scheduled for next week and will also wear the heart monitor again. I am afraid to go away (on vacation). I am also afraid I wont wake up when I do fall asleep. I went a year without caffiene and alchol and still had awful episodes. I don't get it!

[BethTX]

I also get PVC's and originally thought I was anxiety-free as well. However, the more I learn about panic attacks, the more convinced I am that I have been in a cycle of anxiety causing PVC's causing more anxiety, etc. Please consider reading up on anxiety or talking with a mental health professional (don't feel embarrassed as 25% suffer extreme anxiety at some point). If you find yourself anticipating the next PVC (as in "I usually get PVC's when I drive so I will avoid driving") you will benefit from treating the anxiety.

[VAC33]

I can understand what you are going through.  I started getting palpitations when I was 25.  Just out of the clear blue, my heart would start racing and skipping.  My heart rate would get up to 160-180 at times.  I went to many doctors and couldn't believe that nothing was wrong.  I thought, how can a normal heart act up like that.  I have had stress tests, holter monitors, echo cardiograms, event monitors...the whole 9 yards. I showed PVC's but they say there is no heart damage so I am ok.  I went through some really bad times in the beginning because I would get so upset.  I wouldn't eat, exercise, geez, I was afraid to walk.  At some point, you have to say,,,,I am living my live no matter what, and just live again.  I know this is hard. Believe me.  It is going on 26 years of those things.  I am on Atenolol and that stops the racing,,,,but I still get PVC's.  Some days a lot and some not at all.  I've had a few good years and then they are back with a vengance.  No rhyme or reason.  I get them with exercise and without exercise and that is with cutting out caffeine completely.  I don't eat chocolate, drink soda, coffee, and take no stimulants at all.  I don't even drink alcohol.  When I am tired and run down, I definitely notice them more.  During menstuation, definitely more.  I think they may be hormone related as well. I go to the cardiologist every 6 months for a check up, but he always says the same thing.  They are not going to kill you.  After 26 years,,,,I have to believe him.  I have had them really bad where I had 4-5 skips a minute for days.  It was exhausting, but I am still alive.  I went to the ER and the doctor said to me, "Oh, they are just PAC's" and sent me home!  As hard as it is,,,,there are a lot of people out there with the same circumstances and they all say the same thing.  And their doctors all say the same thing.  There is something to be said about that.  It took me awhile,,,but I finally accepted them.  I hate them,,,but I can now live with them.  They were ruining my life and life is too short.  So you can worry and not live or not worry and live your life.  Either way,,,,what is going to happen will happen.  It will change nothing.....worrying may only cause them to happen more.  Read the posts on the internet and you will see you are not alone.  I hope you feel better soon.  I wasted a lot of years not living and wish I could get that time back.  My advise would be to stop all caffeine and stimulants.  See how you feel.  Seek a 2nd opinion and if he/she says the same thing....accept it and move on.  It can completely destroy your life if you let it.  I wish you the best!  Take care.

[paanda2]

i get PVCs too, and they are scary, even though i've been told they're harmless. at first i just wouldn't accept this, but over time i've just gotten over them in a way. my dr told me that some people never feel them, which i find incredible. my dr also showed me what my holter captured at the moment i felt like my heart was freaking out and about to stop, and it was nothing really dramatic, just one spike downward. my last holter showed about 20; i only felt 2. he said most people, many who can't even feel them, get many more than that. some people get one every three beats! i couldn't even imagine that.

MVP can cause regurgitation, and although i don't know much(really anything) about this, i think it's something that needs to be monitored, but it isn't terribly serious, unless an echo shows major structural issues. MVP can cause PVCs too, that's for certain.

if i were you (this is what i did), i went to my gp after i was in the ER for palpitations and a resting hr of 140, and flat out asked for a prescription of xanax. whenever i got the PVCs they made me really nervous, and i would just take a half a tablet and feel better. she also gave me breathing exercises, which helped a lot. i now take yoga too, don't smoke or drink caffeine. i think the trick is to convince yourself, while still calmly going through the motions of getting a dr, that you are okay. if you had something deadly, most likely the ekg and echo would have spotted it.

let us know how everything goes!

[Donna552]

I'm sorry that you are so upset about this.  It really is unnerving and hard to understand and live with day to day.

Can you start over again with new doctors?  If there is anything wrong, a second opinion would really help.  You don't need a referral or past records.

Many people have Mitral Valve Prolapse (MPV) with no ill effect, and the regurgitation might not be serious, but you (nor I) will rest until you are educated about your condition.  It is just not fair for doctors not to sit down and go over this with you and calm your fears if it is not serious.

The ultra sound should tell you if the regurg. is serious.  As a matter of fact, you have a right to request a copy of the report to satisfy your own need to know.

You appear to be very conscious of the PVC's, and with time and just knowing that you are OK, you will not feel them eventually.