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So Tired of Palpitations Part 2 (Still Tired)

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Posted 2/26/2015 4:52 AM (GMT 0)
I'll try not to post as much as before so this doesn't fill up so quick. I honestly believe they are getting worse. I had another run of them tonight. I didn't eat a bit supper. Just a pork chop in fact. about an hour later I started having minor PVCs. They were big enough to feel, but they weren't the hard thumping kind I was getting with the pizza.

Even so, I had about one every ten minutes or so for about an hour to 90 minutes. They ended up driving me crazy as each one again brought on those thoughts.

So I don't know if something is physically causing them to increase or if my stress levels about them are increasing causing me to have more when I have a few. Last night, I was fine. I had a couple, but I forced them out of my mind and focused on relaxing. That seemed to work like a charm.

This afternoon I had a few PVCs as well. Though they were fewer and farther between. It was about like a day I would be used to. The excessive beats are the thing that is really starting to drive me bonkers and make me worry that I am on the verge of death (again, that might be playing into it.)

As always, heart rate never got into any red zones. In fact, when I was having those PVCs after supper, I checked my heart rate and it was running about 85 beats per minute.
Posted 2/26/2015 11:27 AM (GMT 0)
Hi

Sorry to hear you are not feeling well it sounds like you are having some health anxiety and anxiety can cause heart palpitations.

I would suggest if this is really worrying you to go and speak with your doctor to give you peace of mind.

I hope you feel better soon.

Hibee
Posted 2/27/2015 9:36 PM (GMT 0)
Had a few PVCs today. None that really made me worry. Had a bit of stress today. about the usual for someone with GAD I'd suppose. I sat down at the computer and had a run of about 2-3 back-to-back-to-back. So of course I fell completely off the relaxed wagon and I've been the last 45 minutes trying to convince myself I'm not going to die. These things are seriously ruining my life.

Even if they are benign, they're going to kill me through stress.
Posted 2/28/2015 4:50 AM (GMT 0)
CSA08, the pvc's are not ruining your life, it's the thinking that is hurting you, i am 73 and i have had them
since i was 35, dont wait until you are my age to train yourself to ignore them, i know that mindfulness
will help but so will many other distractions, i have had two heart surgeries, and one HA and i know the
pvc's are harmless, heck i say i'm glad its still beating, Peace,

Larry ***
Posted 3/1/2015 8:19 PM (GMT 0)
You are right on that. Everytime I feel that thud or thump or flutter, no matter how minimal or how stout it is, my first thought is immediately "death." So hard to train myself away from that mindset.
Posted 3/2/2015 1:12 AM (GMT 0)
CSA08 i have noticed that most of us have a o crap i'm dying first reaction, not going to happen, we all need to stop rehearsing the moment of our death and start getting ready for Life, Peace

Larry ***
Posted 3/3/2015 3:43 PM (GMT 0)
You're right lgm. The worst was last night. I was eating supper. I took a bigger bite than normal, and I could feel it irritated my wind pipe going down.

A few minutes later, I felt discomfort on the left side of my chest, and for the rest of the night I had to convince myself it wasn't angina or a heart attack. I cannot wait to find a therapist that can help me with this GAD.
Posted 3/6/2015 7:16 PM (GMT 0)
Update. I continue to have them after eating. Sometimes just one or two, and like today five or six after a larger than typical lunch. Though I am trying to stay more relaxed and not focus on them too much since I know that will probably make me have even more not related to my eating and only make things worse.

I've exercised an hour a day every day this week taking 2 30 minute segments on the treadmill to make sure I can get it all in while it's still icy. I don't do anything but a slight inclined walk, but working up a sweat and getting my heart rate up a bit I feel no pain or symptoms. I also do not notice any type of increase in my palpitations.

In fact, I've felt only a single, minor PVC while walking this week and that happened after a quick snack to boost my energy. So I am taking that in stride (no pun intended) that it's a good sign. I've heard having PVCs at rest is normal and having them when exerting yourself is a sign you might need to get checked out.

My blood pressure has averaged about 130/80 all week long with low going about 120/80 and high about 140/90. So I am keeping it where I've been for several years now. Just gotta convince myself these PVCs aren't going to kill me (easier said than done after...years of trying.)
Posted 3/6/2015 7:56 PM (GMT 0)
Fantastic job on the exercising!!

...and such good news to hear that you are not having as many palps...and that they sound more gastric in nature than anxiety at this point.

With time, watching your diet, and continued anxiety management including your exercise...I really think you are going to see them fading more and more!

Keep up the good work.:)

S.C.
Posted 3/14/2015 4:27 PM (GMT 0)
This week has been up and down. I had some terrible PVCs Thursday after a night of little sleep and I made the mistake of drinking an extra glass of Mountain Dew to try to perk up. Had several PVCs in the hour or two after. Seemed to be about one or two every five minutes for a couple of hours.

The rest of the day was almost free of them after that. Only had a few episodes besides that.

I did some Spring cleaning yesterday, and have been exercising all week as well. Still no signs of anything askew with my heart when I'm doing those things. I worked up a good sweat while cleaning and rearranging and bending over dozens of times, but never felt a single palpitation.

I have been trying to keep myself from getting worked up over a sensation in my arm. In my anxiety riddled mind any unusual feeling in the left arm automatically = "heart problem." (My grandmother passed away after her arm developed a blood clot and it broke free into her heart.)

It's not painful, I just feel a tender sensation on the back of my arm above my left elbow just about the opposite side of my bicep. It's not sore or anything, even. It just feels like a bit of pressure on it.

Also had a couple of terrible days of anxiety where I had to convince myself I wasn't likely to die young, that heart disease for someone in their early 30s is rare without having had it since childhood, and I seem to be in good health. So that was a bad couple of days as well.

Like I said, it's been an up and down week. Blood pressure has remained around 120/80 to 130/90 with a few freak outs during anxiety episodes sending me into the 150 range.
Posted 3/14/2015 8:32 PM (GMT 0)
All in all...pretty good I'd say! :)

Great job on managing the anxiety through rational/postive thinking and exercise and distraction!

Your BP's look to be in good range as well...keep up the coping skills as you been doing to keep them optimal.:)

Thanks for the update...hope you're having a good weekend, and talk soon!

S.C.
Posted 3/15/2015 4:09 PM (GMT 0)
I have been having these two but have had a lot of stress in my life lately I try to ignore them but I know they are very unsettling. I honestly do think that the more you think about them the more they happen. It's easier said than done believe me I know. Exercising has always helped me in the past too but I haven't done it lately I'm about to go to the zoo though and walk around for a few hours so there's my exercise for the day. Haha I'm going to see my sister next week when she starts chemo too and that makes me anxious thinking about it because I do not want to see her unwell. Good luck to you and keep up the good work if you ever need to talk you can email me because I understand just try not to focus on it too much. larry is right. gotta love that guy
Posted 3/16/2015 1:30 AM (GMT 0)
I came across this site when I Googled "icy hot sensation in chest". I read your post and it made me get an account to answer you. Try giving up MSG. That stuff is poison. What made me think MSG could be your cause is when you said it happens after you eat. Try eating only fresh things that you make yourself so you know exactly what's in it and see if they go away. You'd be surprised what all has MSG in it.
Posted 3/16/2015 6:56 AM (GMT 0)
Just had a flip flop in my Chest , felt like my heart is doing a flip, ugh they are yucky :/,, hope ur doing ok :)!
Posted 3/20/2015 6:33 PM (GMT 0)
Not sure what is happening to cause it. Not sure if it's boosting my exercise from 30 to 60 mins per day (I broke it into two 30 minute segments) or if it's the garlic supplements I am taking. It could be the fact that I am more mindful of my posture now or just the fact that I am more relaxed. Whatever it is, my PVCs have become exceptionally rare this past week. A combined total of 10-15 between Monday through today. Almost all of them coming after I ate, and many of them weaker than I am used to.

I do know that after I started keeping up with my blood pressure on a daily basis, and realized I was staying around 120-130 over 90 and I realized this limited my risk for heart disease being involved I had a significant period of calmness come over me.
Posted 3/21/2015 4:33 AM (GMT 0)
Whoot Whoot!!!

Congrats, and we'll done.

Sounds like you are finding some great management skills...keep up the good work.:)

S.C.
Posted 3/27/2015 1:45 AM (GMT 0)
I'm still doing well. I'm still exercising 60 mins a day and I have started to lose some weight (at least some of my old shirts are fitting better than they did at this time last year.) My PVCs/palpitations are still limited to only a few a day if any at all. Earlier this week I ran fever and avoided eating a lot (just a couple of eggs in the morning and a few toasts for supper.) On that day I had almost none which, again, gives credence to the idea that diet and anxiety play a huge role in my PVCs.

I do have a new concern though that I wanted to run by everyone as it may change some stuff I've posted in the past. This year I have been using a wrist cuff for my blood pressure readings. After doing some research, I found out that wrist cuffs are not very accurate.

I started comparing my wrist readings to a normal arm cuff and found the wrist readings for my top number appeared to be off by as much as 10 points (the bottom number was right about on target for both.)

So I went back in my journal and wanted to give a sample of my blood pressure readings with both my wrist cuff readings and my arm cuff readings from last Summer to make sure that there is still no danger from blood pressure.

First wrist cuff readings (I randomly chose a week back in January/February) the number in parenthesis will be how much higher it likely was if read on an arm cuff)

January 30th 135/90 (145/90)
February 1st 135/85 (145/90)
February 2nd 145/90 (155/90)
February 4th 120/80 (130/80)
February 5th 140/90 (150/90)
February 6th 120/80 (130/80)

Again, I can't be certain it's exactly ten points or anything like that.

Here's arm cuff readings from last July right before I went back to the doctor for my last check up

July 1st 135/80
July 2ne 135/80
July 3rd 140/80
July 4th 130/80
July 5th 120/80
July 6th 140/80
July 7th 140/80

I have to say this has made me a bit more anxious if the wrist cuff readings that I've used the last several months have been off by that much, I may have had my blood pressure go back up on average and put me back into a dangerous category without me knowing it.

When comparing readings tonight they showed that the arm cuff read several points higher than the wrist cuff 3 different times. So I am at a loss for just what my blood pressure actually is now.

Any words of advice or encouragement while I start to redo this blasted blood pressure journal and begin fearing that I may have higher blood pressure (and thus an increased chance of heart disease) after all?
Posted 3/27/2015 3:37 PM (GMT 0)
CSA,

I wouldn't worry too much over this. Call your doctor just to be sure, but since you are still in the moderate range (not extremely high) even after adding the 10 systolic points. Your diastolic is still good and steady, so that is fantastic.:)

See what your doctor has to say, and go from there...but for now, no worrying about it! You are going to be fine. Your pressures would have to be significantly up for an extended period of time for the cardio damage that you fear to happen.

Keep up the great work on all you are doing for your health!

S.C.
Posted 3/27/2015 7:54 PM (GMT 0)
Maybe next time you go to the doctors take your BP machine with you, and calibrate it with your doctors, so you know how much it is off.
Posted 3/29/2015 2:46 AM (GMT 0)
With arm cuff blood pressure last night was 127/83 (heart rate 71) and tonight was 120/75 with a heart rate of 69

Maybe the wrist band wasn't as bad off as I thought?

Well I am relaxing about that now. Relaxing about my palpitations only thing left is whether or not I have gerd. I have felt a strange, momentary sensation in my chest from time to time. It got worse yesterday (and I ate a salisbury steak with copious amounts of onions for dinner and garlic bread for lunch) so I just wonder if it is GERD related.

I know I've had GERD symptoms before. This feeling lasts about 1-3 seconds at the base of my sternum and doesn't feel painful. It just feels like radiating pressure almost like someone gently pressed on the area from the inside. Also, afterward for a little while I get this subtle feeling I've swallowed Scope or mint or something like that in that area.

Is this reminiscent of GERD or is this something to worry about?

So...any words of wisdom as I maybe finally getting a handle on all this anxiety? I feel like I'm close to getting it under control finally (at least for now.)

Post Edited (CSA08) : 3/28/2015 8:52:04 PM (GMT-6)

Posted 3/30/2015 12:37 AM (GMT 0)
I would proceed with what your doctor has recommended with your gastro treatment, keep monitoring your BP and continue working on your anxiety management! ;)

Sounds like you are on your way to feeling your best!

Great job on pro-actively getting the answers and treatment underway that you needed!

S.C.
Posted 4/5/2015 10:33 PM (GMT 0)
Had a good week for the most part. Only a handful of PVCs that I felt. I stayed calm after all of them until Sunday afternoon (a few minutes ago.) I fell asleep on the couch and when I woke up, I felt what I thought were PVCs. I had a couple of them, so I checked my pulse.

Now, in my chest it felt like every 5th or 6th beat for a few minutes was a PVC. I got that typical feeling I get with them. However, while checking my pulse, the PVCs I actually felt (a noticeable skip to the heart beat) were only a few.

I would feel the sensation in my chest on some, but while checking my pulse I did not feel any skip for some of them. Others I did feel the skip.

None of them have been the "thump" variety that I usually get, either. I haven't felt anything like that in several weeks in fact. The PVCs I've gotten recently have been more subdued and gentle to the point that I question whether I was getting them. I assumed it was because I was relaxing and calming down about it.

After a few minutes, I checked my blood pressure and it was fine. It was showing me as having about 125/85 but my heart rate was elevated to about 95.

While I typed this, I have felt a few more sensations but, again, I have no clue if they were actual PVCs or if it was like earlier where I felt the sensation but the pulse did not match to it.

First time I've had a spell like this in a long while, and first time that I can recall one in which I felt either legit or imagined (or both) PVCs coming so soon on top of one another (one every 5-6 beats.)

So, it can be said that I am a bit uptight now which probably means I will have more.
Posted 4/6/2015 3:58 AM (GMT 0)
CSA,

Responded to your other identical post.

S.C.
Posted 4/6/2015 4:21 AM (GMT 0)
Can you direct me to it? LOL I think I messed up when posting this afternoon. Not sure what exactly I did but I remember thinking something was off kilter. So I may have posted a couple of times without meaning to.
Posted 4/6/2015 4:55 AM (GMT 0)
You must have just accidentally started a new thread...

Here is the link. ;p

https://www.healingwell.com/community/default.aspx?f=9&m=3374984

S.C.

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