PVC's and how to control them

I am 28 years old. White male, married, active and healthy. Sept 2010 I ate sausage and mac and cheese, chuged a diet coke and laid down right away,. My heart fluttered and was out of rhythm. had a SVT/Afib episode. I say both because when it fortst happened I had know idea what was going on and was not alarmed. I just thought my hear t was a little off. So i went to bed. I woke up and had my wife listen to my heart and we decided it was abnormal. That put me in panic mode and by the time I had the ems there I was at 193 bpm. Aka SVT. Prior to that I had nothing wrong with my heart. After the episode I always felt like I was having palps so I got a heart holter and everything came back fine. Shortly after the palps went away completely but I could make my heart flutter occasionally when laying on back and breathing deepin in through my nose. Nothing alarming but weird. Lost 40 lbs got into great shape and nothing happened for 10 months (not a skip) and man I was drinking a lot of caffeine and taking l-carnatine plus creatine. Lifting har core weights and my business is window cleaning so I'm up and down a ladder 40 times a day. After I got married I went on a 3 month food bender. I would binge eat really bad food at night, and not eat all day while working. I managed to only gain back 10 lbs. But then Oct 20, 2011 came. I was sitting upright about 2 hours after I ate dessert that followed a huge really unhealthy meal , which was followed by a very busy and stressful day. Anyway sitting up my heart skip, jumped, and next thing ya know I'm in A-fib. I had no real knowledge of how benign Afib is so I freaked and went to the ER. I corrected about 8 hrs later was released and told to get a ECG, eat some potassium, and stay off the caffeine. So I did, things seemed fine but my OCD which I am in therapy for spiked and I thought I was having a heart attack every night. I started experiencing panic attacks which I never really had before.OCD spikes are like being at a 7/8 out 10 in anxiety and staying there for an extended period of time. These panic attacks would be a 9/10 for long periods. Constant lightheaded, as well as being cold. Got my ECg everything came back great! BUt then the anxiety kept coming and now I have PVC's. Sometimes 20 a day sometime 10 but anywhere between there. They will happen at these times: Bending over, laying on back after meal, about 10 minute into a jog, after a OCD spike, deep breathing when on back. And of course random times. SO Im going back to get another holter or a event monitor. I have Dr' that are clients and they tell me its more of an annoyance than a health risk. But I want them to stop. I started eating 3 bananas a day takinh 400 mg of mag. Hell I even got on celexia (ssri) antianxiety meds. I drink hawethorne berry and chamaile. DO yoga. Next stop betablockers. Sorry for speling, its late just wanted to see if anyone had anything for me. Like what kind of chinese herbs work?

hey everybody, just wanted to share my story as I was helped by others' stories previously in this thread. I'm currently 23, and have a history of bicuspid aortic valve. It was bad enough that at the age of 1 1/2, i had surgery to repair the valve, and may well have to undergo another surgery for a replacement valve in the future, as i currently still have my original bicsupid valve (and from what i read they don't age as well)... anyways, i've had a few concerns including elevated blood pressure (i'm active and do lots of cardio, but it's a battle to get systolic below 140 most of the time) as well as those dreaded pvcs. i injured my back a little while ago and went through a period of time where i was horribly inactive, to permit my back to heal. after about a year of said inactivity, i noticed my pvcs were getting drastically worse. on my backpacking trip, i would have them every third beat as we were lugging our backpacks in the sun; these were only during exercise. a few months later, however, i was getting them on most evenings, and hangover days were brutal. i could go for 12 hours around the evenings skipping on every third beat (i also had a stronger and slower heart beat, so i felt every. single. one.). i got a little paranoid, and decided to spring into action. i started running and swimming almost on a daily basis, from 40min moving up to an hour 5-7 days a week, in the hopes i could improve my health. lo and behold, after about a couple of weeks, the pvcs all of a sudden disappeared. those two weeks i still got them just like before, and during the exercise i would have tons of pvcs, but after that time i felt almost completey normal. i guess i just wanted to say i've been there, and exercise can go a looong way to making you feel better. i've kept at it, and i still do get maybe 5-10 pvcs a week, but i don't even bat an eye as relative to what it was before, i couldn't care less. and not only have my pvcs practically disappeared, but i feel less anxious (probably contributed to pvcs). also, a big thing for me is that i feel my heartbeat less (i can feel my heartbeat almost all the time, it's usually about 50-60bpm and just pounds in my neck and sometimes my temples); feeling that beat pounding away raised my stress way up, and with the exercise it seems to have relaxed a little. so if some of you reading this have yet to try good old-fashioned cardio, i highly highly recommend it. good luck with it, and take it easy

A little over a month ago I was coming down with a cold/flu and started having PVC's at about 1 per minute. They seemed to come on in the morning and last until late after noon when they would just disappear. Now a month later pretty much they show up whenever. Like so many of the threads here saw a cardiologist and got the same song and dance about how they are normal but they in themselves cause a lot of anxiety and I'm sure that anxiety and stress has a lot to do with them so its kind of a never end cycle. Have PVC's which cause anxiety which cause more PVC's and more anxiety. I'm just wondering if anyone has found a treatment that works cause these things are really annoying and getting more so as time drags on. I've had them in the past at 2 or 3 a day but nothing like the last few weeks were I'm getting 100's if not 1000's. Anyone experiencing anything similiar? Exercise helps for short periods and checks on my electrolytes all showed normal. Wore a halter monitor for a day and it recorded Ventricular as well as a few atrial PVC's and again told its no big deal. Yea.. try sleeping with that poking you in the chest every couple of minutes.
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Post Edited (Numil) : 2/6/2012 6:41:43 AM (GMT-7)

Malicek

Welcome to HealingWell.  I am sorry to hear about your concerns.  I am wondering if your symptoms are related to your anxiety as many people with anxiety will experience PVCs as well as most people without any problems will have PVCs.  If your cardiologist has checked you out and found nothing wrong then I would work on ways to learn to decrease your anxiety.

When someone we know dies suddenly of a heart attack it is bound to make us think about our own problems and worry that this is something that could happen to us.  Keeping your thoughts in perspective will serve you well. 

When you feel the anxiety try some self talk to ward it off.  Tell your self, " What I feel in my body when I am anxious are only normal feelings that are exaggerated.  They do not mean anthing else is wrong or that something bad is going to happen."

You overcame a huge problem in your life so I believe that you can overcome feelings of anxiety.  Congratulations for making wise choices.

Kindly,

Kitt

glennn

Hello and welcome to HealingWell.  I am sorry to hear your heart is pounding - could it be that you are just noticing it as you are sitting down and not active.  Are you having any other symptoms with the pounding heart - chest pain, short of breath? 

If this is new for you please do see your physician to rule out any medical problems you may have.  Anxiety is another cause of a pounding heart - any increase in stress in your life ?

I cannot explain why when you feel an ectopic beat your heart stops pounding. Perhaps another member will be able to identify with this issue.

I wish you well and do let us know how you are doing ?

 

Hello, I am new to this site but came here for support. I too have PVCs and have had them for 7 years. I am a 50 year old female, athletic, and eat well. I've learned that I can decrease the frequency of my PVCs (but not "cure" them) by cutting out caffeine, getting enough sleep (not always possible), staying hydrated, and exercising daily. I also take 100mg of CoQ10 daily. Still, my PVCs will come in "bouts" and I will have them practically all day long, several a minute, despite doing all the "right" things. They can last for days, weeks, or months. If I'm really lucky, I might have a day or even a week or two when I don't feel any.

I'm currently in a period where I have them daily and a new development is that I sometimes have them while exercising. Like many of you who have posted here, I have had an echo, stress test, etc and am told they are benign. My cardiologist isn't concerned about them not even if they happen during exercise. My main problem is that I can't seem to accept that I have to live with these and each time I have one, I become fearful. Some days I get to a point where a dread when the next one will come. It reminds me of lab rats who are shocked at random but they don't know when the shock is coming. They are always on edge and as a result they are under great stress and their bodies reflect the stress (hormone levels, weight loss, etc.). My question is, has anyone found a way to accept their PVCs and live with them without feeling fearful and anxious? I would greatly appreciate your tips!

Hello and welcome to both of you - kiranu and Raven,

Heart palpitations can be caused by anxiety, stress, fear and many other things.

Reducing stress and anxiety can help lessen your heart palpitations. Try breathing exercises or deep relaxation (a step-by-step process of tensing and then relaxing every muscle group in your body) at the time of your heartbeat sensations. Also, consider practicing yoga or tai chi on a regular basis to reduce the frequency of your palpitations.

Keep a record of how often you have palpitations, when they happen, how long they last, your heart rate at the time of the palpitations, and what you are feeling at the time. This information may help your doctor figure out both their seriousness and the cause.

 

Once a serious cause has been ruled out by your doctor, try NOT to pay attention to heart palpitations, unless you notice a sudden increase or a change in them.

 

Kindly,

Kitt

You might try my mantra:

"I will stay in the present moment and notice everything good around me."  Keep your mind from wandering into "what if?" territory.  This takes a lot of concentration I know and it is not always easy but keep on trying.

Kindly,

Kitt 

Hello Guineverre, I have had PVCs on and off for 7 years. Some days I will have 2 to 3 a minute for hours at a stretch, they will stop for an hour or two, but start up again. This has lasted for 4 weeks straight so try not to worry about them continuing for days at a time. Sometimes I will go weeks without having any. I check my pulse way too often too, mainly to verify that what I am feeling is a pvc because I can feel my "pause" in my pulse. If you read the other messages on this post you will likely feel better. For years I never had pvcs during exercise but a few months ago started having them during exercise too. My cardiologist said he wasn't concerned as long as I wasn't feeling faint or having other symptoms. As Kitt advises, try to focus on what is good in life and remind yourself what your doctor tells you - that pvcs are benign. Good luck with your appointment! Feel free to ask any questions.

Ty both very much

Today wasnt such a good day for me. Because now I have a pain (on the left side) upper back and sometimes under my breast. But I did decide to move a china cabinet this morning (the cat lost his toy under it of all things for me to do!) So I dont know if I hurt myself doing that or if its related to this darn heart thing :(

Of course my anxiety is off the charts too.
I decide tomorrow I will go to the ER. I really rather avoid it but I am way to anxious at this point and I need to make sure nothing is seriously wrong.

I would of went tonight but I just have no sitter for my daughter till tomorrow and my pulse is fine, I dont feel faint. And not other pains. If anything changes over night I will go in for sure. But if not I'll go tomorrow for peace of mind. Hopefully all is well.

Like many others, I am new to this forum.   I am 56.5 years old and in pretty good health except...  In May 2011 I had my aortic valve replaced even though I felt no symptoms.  It was defective at birth (1 of the 3 flaps never developed and leakage - backflow into the heart - was occurring).  Recovery went very well.  Since, I have developed major PVC's and have about 2 more hours on a Holter monitor.  I will take it to my cardiologist after lunch today.  Even though he is not concerned about long-term issues, I am hoping once the readings are analyzed, something can be done.  Sometimes the competing heartbeats occur every other beat, while I may go hours without one occurring.  The tend to 'take the wind out of my sails'!  I'll repost once I get the readings back.   I agree with other posts, upon exertion, they are practically nonexistent, but at rest or at my desk chair, they drive me crazy.  Kind of a heavy feeling in my chest and a feeling of not getting full oxygen in my blood.  I find myself taking frequent deep breathes - although my finger oxygen meter show 97-99%!   My cardiologist thought it might be a result of low potassium.  I loaded up two weekends ago on bananas, raisins, baked potatoes and they diminished over the weekend, but returned on Tuesday, the PVC's returned with a vengeance.  I'm guessing it was increased activity during the weekend.   Anyway, I thought I'd share my experience in the event someone else could benefit and/or had similar experiences.   Back at ya’ later!   Life is still good despite a few setbacks!!  

Hello all, ive been having these things for about three years. there have been so many comments made on this thread that have made me say out loud "Yes that's me!" so im really going to go just reiterate what a lot of people have already said.
My best friends wife died from a heart attack three years ago aged 36. She left behind a husband and two small kids. Iv'e got two young kids and ive known my friend since we were 12 years old. I felt like I was saddened by her death, but I felt determined to live my life to the full having been given a tragic example of how short life can be. Apart from the sadness I felt unaffected on a deep emotional level.
I was swimming a lot, 3 or 4 hours a week, i noticed what I called "palps" after a couple of swims. I started dreading the drive home from the pool because I would anticipate getting them.
Fast forward three years, iv'e had a 24hr blood pressure monitor, which was fine. Iv'e had a 48hr heart monitor which was fine. Countless ecg's and a meeting with the chief cardiologist in my area and he said i'm fine.
I ride my bike quite a bit and get no chest pains and the PVC's seem to improve. But i'm STILL freaking out about them. I get them all day everyday, I had a trip to the dentist today and I was very anxious, My heart was going crazy, afterwards i felt serene and my heart calmed back to normal. I dont think that I'm EVER going to be able to rationalise these things, mainly at night when i'm trying to sleep, that's the worst time.