Heart issues/anxiety symptoms after eating or standing up
Posted , 23 users are following.
Hi everyone,
Does anybody else mostly just have issues only after eating or standing up/ moving around? Lately every time I eat, about 10 mins later my heart starts racing and feels irregular in its rythm, almost as if it stops for a second and then suddenly goes extra hard/fast. Sometimes I get a thudding/squeezing pain in my heart as well, which makes the whole left side of my chest hurt for days afterwards. It feels like I've strained my muscles doing chest exercises or something! Also, when I stand up after sitting or lying down for a while, I feel light headed and my heart races, and my stomachs feel odd - like all the blood is rushing to it or something. It's hard to describe. I also feel out of breath after eating and standing.
i just feel really scared because these symptoms don't just feel random any more, they feel related to eating or moving around somehow, and it has me convinced that this is evidence that there's something wrong with my heart. If it was anxiety, wouldn't it happen randomly throughout the day no matter what I was doing?
Also, When these symptoms first started happening to me a few years so ago, they were really mild and very infrequent, and seemed to happen randomly. Now, it happens everyday and it feels like they are getting worse. The pain is stronger and the heartbeat feels much more erratic. I feel so scared, especially as there is a history of heart attack and stroke in my family. I feel like I'm going to have a heart attack any day now, or sudden heart failure. I've had resting ecgs which were fine, had an echo which I'm waiting for results for, and getting a 12 day monitor in a week. Despite this, I don't feel reassured at all.
Has anyone else experienced any of this, with eating and moving around etc?
0 likes, 61 replies
sarah45814 fedup53409
Posted
I also have thyroid issues but I suggest researching POTS syndrome or dysautonomia. I suddenly had many of these same symptoms and you'll see that laying down relieves the heart racing.
zach57041 fedup53409
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I've had these symptoms for years. One thing that a lot of people who suffer from anxiety don't know, and something their doctors might not know or remember, is that high circulating levels of epinephrine changes the balance of electrolytes moving into and outside of cells. This will undoubtedly cause parasthesias and other unspecific muscular symptoms. Epinephrine has a big impact on the movement of Potassium across the cell membrane, for example, and most of us have chronically high epi. I am an anesthetist and my symptoms are out of control if I overreat or have unhealthy food.
lauren8165 fedup53409
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I know this post is old, but I'm literally having the EXACTLY same issues you're having and the EXACTLY same concerns, so I was wondering if you ever got any answers? I Google alot since I've been dealing with this and get all kinds of answers. Doctors tell me they think it's anxiety, but since it comes out of nowhere, it is scary.
fedup53409 lauren8165
Posted
Hi Lauren,
I posted some updates a few months ago in some replies to other posters which might be helpful to you. I never got a definitive answer about what exactly was causing the symptoms, but they went away almost completely after improving my diet and being told by a cardiologist that there is nothing wrong with my heart.
When I look back now, it does seem to me that it was a mix of anxiety and poor diet and they were feeding into each other. From doing some reading and hearing other people's stories, it seems anxiety and the stomach are very closely tied to one another, and problems with one can cause problems for the other, going both ways. There are some helpful posts on this thread about that, and some others I've commented on elsewhere on this site. That really helped ease my anxiety about it, but also being told by an expert cardiologist that I was fine massively helped reassure me in the end. I also found that eliminating bad foods and keeping regular bowel movements really helped ease my symptoms.
id recommend going to the doctor and getting any tests you can, if you haven't already. It helped me a lot, having an expert reassure me. Also, everyone is different so it is worth just making sure you get your bloods, thyroid etc tested as there can be links there as well with these symptoms.
I hope that helps a bit. Let me know if you have any more questions, and good luck with getting this all sorted!
jason23978 fedup53409
Posted
Hi,
I read through the posts, you've been diligently posting since 2 years, that is worth applauding, i was very anxious but i read through the thread and thought i have to register, i've been dealing with anxiety symptoms since 5 years now and have been to the ER thrice with racing heart beat and high Bp, happened the 1st time after smoking pot, have never been the same since. i was 22 then , am 26 now, still dealing with this s**t.
Won't trouble you with the history, but few days back on the 18th of july back, i received a very happy news which i had been expecting since a long long time and i had a very strong emotional response to that, i felt giddy, chest pain in the centre of the chest for the whole day and indigestion, acid reflux, i thought i was having a heart attack, i felt better today so i had a glass of sweetened milk with ice cream at a street vendor after which the stomach symtoms started somewhat so i thought to take a walk and i walk really fast, at the end of my 10 minute walk i started getting pain in my chest , upper chest left side at a specific spot, but no other symptom, no breathlessness, no pain else where, but i stopped for a minute and the pain stopped as well, which got me thinking if it's angina. i came home and checked my bp and pulse and my bp was 132/85 and pulse was 87 then. i was very anxious but calmed down after reading the thread. Just a simple question, can the pain in the chest be GERD related (stomach related) or Angina? from your non professional experience?
fedup53409 jason23978
Posted
Thank you for your comment. I feel bad that I disappeared for a little while after you even mentioned my diligence with replying to comments! I was having a bit of a rough time and reading comments about anxiety and heart issues was making it worse, so I do apologise.
how are you feeling now? Did you go to the doctor? It’s always my first recommendation as they can be very helpful, and at the least, you can get your blood pressure, cholesterol, vitamin deficiencies etc all checked out.
pain in the chest can indeed be GERD related, as well as breathlessness and coughing (other symptoms too of course). I have no idea about angina so can’t comment on that, sorry. But I do think you should go to the doctor if you still have any concerns, as they will be a lot more knowledgeable than I am, and you could get some heart tests out of it.
hope you are feeling better
jakes54692 fedup53409
Posted
I have been having the exact same symptoms for the last 7 months. It started when standing up and then gradually started happening after eating as well.
I dont have any anxiety issues though. Can only imagine that must make it 100 times worse for everyone sorry. I have seen countless doctors and still no answers. Couple of questions for everyone:
Has anyone been checked for stomach or throat ulcers? This is my next check
Has anyone had a root canal done prior to symptoms starting?
Was anyone fasting for extended periods before symptoms started?
I dont believe i have any reflux issues, but did notice that I usually experience more pain and palpitations after eating spicy foods and especially after taking asprin or ibuprofen. This obviously means there must be some kind of stomach or digestion issue involved?
For the palpitations I recommend taking magnesium. This really made a massive difference in calming my heart down.
tracy95804 jakes54692
Posted
I have the same symptoms and responding to Jake's I did have a root canal but it was a month before symptoms started.
I having severe heart palpitations
Left shoulder blade hurts
Severe shortness of breath when I eat and or drink and thay includes when I drink water. The last 3 days i jabe woken up with chills and legs tingling and feeling heavy. its like I'm having a panicl attack and allergic reaction and another panic attack at the same time after I eat just a bite of food or drink
I have never drank alcohol or smoked or tried any drugs
My chest is sore like someone punched me.
I have been to the ER twice and all my blood work is normal. EKG normal. Dr normal. I stopped eating 3 days ago because I could no longer take not being able to breath.
I googled some stuff and found an article about Histamine Intolerance I started taking benadryl after eating an having the attack. I went from 1 benadryl to 2 and a Xanax and still didn't seems to calm this last event. I went to ER doctor last night recommended I see a GI for a barium swallow test and also see an allergist to test for mass cell activation syndrome
I woke up this morning and just starting walking and had the same breathing heart palpitations issues
I am doubling back because I wanted some more information on what happened after your root canal
jakes54692 tracy95804
Posted
Sorry this happening to you. I wish I could tell you I am doing better, but I am still suffering somewhat. I can however tell you the cause of my symptoms and likely yours and this should ease away all your anxiety that something is wrong with your heart etc.
When going for the barium I would ask they do an endoscopy first. Most likely this will show a small hiatal hernia. What happens then is that this little hernia irratates your vagus nerve causing havoc on your nervous system and all symptoms you are experiencing.
You can search for "hiatal hernia vagus nerve" and read all the responses from people on this very site who have identical issues to ours. Unfortunately it seems most doctors do not recognise this problem and often want to treat the individual symptoms with a myriad of drugs.
I can tell you that anxiety makes my symptoms much worse so calming down and minimizing stress will do wonders. Other people will give you good tips on foods and exercise to avoid and also supplements and stomach exercises that will help so read up on that.
Rest assured you are not alone in this. Let me know if I can help. Best of luck!
fedup53409 jakes54692
Posted
dinotoro tracy95804
Posted
I had daily heart palpitations end of November and all of December, half of Jan. After wearing a 2 week monitor, the data showed I had PVCs and PACs. When they were occurring, it kind of sent me into panic mode and during that time went to ER by ambulance 3 times. Of course the tests were always negative.
I can’t say with 100% certainty about this, but after I was desperately searching for help online and found out about magnesium supplements, and have been taking them for almost 3 months now, I haven’t had anymore palpitations for 3 weeks now. At the end of each day, I still feel thankful I made it without any events.
I take high absorption Doctor’s Best magnesium that I order in amazon.
An interesting thing, after I went through the terrible experiences with the palpitations, I came down with pneumonia, which I’ve had for 3 weeks now and taking antibiotics. It’s like my body was so worn out from the palps, seemed my immune system was vulnerable. Been non stop coughing with phlegm, but at least no palps - crossing fingers.
I’m looking forward to feeling normal and healthy again. Had enough of doctors and sickness. Once this cough clears up I’ll get back to exercising.
dinotoro fedup53409
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fedup53409 dinotoro
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I’m still doing okay for the most part, thanks. I’ve not had any big episodes so I still haven’t had to go back to the doctor. I do occasionally have an odd feeling now and then, but I try not to dwell on it as I’ll start to spiral again. Sometimes it will feel like I get palpitations when walking, especially in this cold air, or other times it feels like the blood in my body is being pumped really hard...I know that sounds weird, it’s hard to explain lol.
but for the most part I feel completely fine, and I manage to disregard these feelings (most of the time) as I don’t want to end up panicking about every little thing again - that was truly hell on earth. But I’m aware I don’t get any issues after eating anymore, apart from coughing sometimes a chesty cough).
I hope you are feeling okay, and definitely try and come back here with an update if you can, as it is so helpful for people to hear other people’s experiences, and even just to reassure them that things can get better if there ends up being nothing wrong
dinotoro fedup53409
Posted
I thought the cold was a factor for me also, and still may be, as the palps would occur outside when I was walking. But it seems to happen to me just walking around in a warm apartment.
Last night I triggered multiple skipped beats from bending and picking up clothes. Thought I was dying again and had my hand on the phone waiting for it to settle down. But I recorded it all on the monitor. My cardiologist better not tell me that’s normal.
dinotoro fedup53409
Posted
Now the palpitations are being triggered more frequently, from urine/bowel movements, brief walking in my apartment or just standing. I’ve been sitting mostly the past couple weeks, afraid to do anything!
My 2 week monitor is done in 6 days but I want to send it in asap. I already have multiple events that happen daily that I have recorded. It feels like I’m just living day to day, not sure what will happen next.
I have experienced anxiety and panic attacks before that occurred randomly - sharp chest pains, heart spasms. But now, these skipped or paused beats are happening directly related to mild physical exertion. It’s not that I’m paranoid about death, I just want to be with my wife longer and be stronger. Not this pathetic scared guy sitting on the couch all day.
When I get these multiple skipped beats, I have to sit down and wait for it to go away. Then my feet are usually cold for a half hour. A week ago I tried taking a bus back from the docs then after a minute of walking, I started getting dizzy and the skipped beats happened one after another - I recorded all of it on the monitor.
I don’t know what I’ll do if the cardiologist says that is normal!
I read magnesium supplements can help with these symptoms, but I’ve been taking 500mg per day for 2 weeks now and no help from that.
I will post the monitor results when I get them.
eddie00791 dinotoro
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dinotoro eddie00791
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I posted all my updates not long ago, if you go to the original post and then filter “newest” comments. Let me know if you have any problems.
Dean