Palpitation worries.

I had this too, so turns out like our bodies do this all the time as your activity level increases so does heart rate and stuff like that well when you start to feel anxious you tend to start hyper fixating on everything your body does and then it turns into a spiral where the more you start looking for patterns the more you find which in turn makes you more anxious which in turn makes you notice more things, like also the writing notes to your kids and stuff tells me you are already at catastrophic thought patterns, it's crazy cause i have alot of health anxiety and I remember one psychiatrist said the best way to combat it is to check the facts of whats happening and what you are thinking.

fact one you are alive and breathing and living.

fact two your if your doctor had any actual concerns for your mortality you would have been rushed to emergency department.

fact 3. you had the mental clarity and awareness to type this up.

just live your life, clam your mind tell your body if it wants you dead fine you dont care anymore I do stuff like that, we will probably both grow up to be old and like it can go one of two ways you spend your life living and experiencing things and joy and freedom, or you can grow old worrying your life away worrying about an untimely death that never comes.

hope this made sense.

also once I had a really bad headache and convinced myself I had brain cancer and then ended up in a pysch ward like doom scrolling googling can lead you to some bad places in your own head.

don't be like me, all those nights days months spent worrying driving myself mad and all for what.

Hi,

I am speaking to you as someone who has been struggling with anxiety since the age of 26 and now I am 65. I can say that I have gone through everything you described + others such as: hypertension, panic attacks, etc... Can you tell us if you take any energizers or multivitamins or if you have been prescribed any medication for the tachycardia you have? At your age, I don't think anything bad can happen to you, you have to be more optimistic. Easy to say hard to do !!! If you can't relax, you should ask for specialized help, i.e. a psychiatrist, otherwise you won't succeed on your own. Of course you should also have the support of your family. Believe me, you too will end up living your life the same as me or the same as the millions of people who suffer from this disease. Anyway, we are waiting for news from you, I hope you calm down and be happy with your family, now for the holidays. Hope dies last!!!

Hello,

I'm a retired health professional from the U.S. and would like to offer a reply. Heart palpitations very understandably induce considerable anxiety that are often accompanied by fear for the obvious reason that any disruption to one's heart rhythm is perceived as warning of a potentially impending fatal event since the heart is the driving force that maintains life.

You are experiencing what we refer to as isolated PVCs, or Premature Ventricular Contractions. They very often arise in connection with significant anxiety and are essentially a benign phenomenon that induces many persons experiencing the events to present themselves at their local emergency room under the pretense of an impending cardiac event that, although worrisome, is an entirely misguided belief.

Heart failure, contrary to belief, is not an instantaneous event but rather an insidious process that is years in the making and is comprised of either congestive or non-congestive variants. Atrial Fibrillation is also quite distinct from isolated PVCs in that Afib is a episodic arrhythmia that is initiated in the atria of the heart from electrical impulses arising from outside the heart's normal pacer that results in a quiver effect of the atria at a rate commonly above 400 cycles per minute, thus preventing the atria from properly filling. The effect is translated to the ventricles where abnormal and most often insufficient ventricular actions result in pooling of blood that can result in clotting. The most important point here is that isolated PVCs such as those being experienced by you are incapable of transformation into a subsequent pathological arrhythmia of any type that would place you at risk of some type of cardiac event. No such transformation has ever been recorded regarding the type of PVCs you are experiencing.

To illustrate the benign nature of isolated PVCs, all people experience them at some point in their lives and one example is when suddenly startled or frightened. People often exclaim "Gosh! that made my heart skip a beat!" or "That nearly stopped my heart!" What these people are actually describing is the sensation of an insolated PVC or heart palpitation often accompanying a sudden fear response. The difference is that it produces no worry because it is not considered out of context. In other words, it is a rational occurrence that does not ensue a path to worry because the causal circumstances are understandable.

In the instance where no precipitating event is present, however, the mind quickly seeks to link the palpitations to a cause and most often an irrational one since it is accompanied by anxiety. You also mention that you are simultaneously experiencing gastrointestinal discomfort in the manner of bloating and gas. It's important for you to realize that gastrointestinal function is mediated by the vagus nerve, which is a mixed nerve that is also connected to the heart and brain. Gastrointestinal disturbances such as those being experienced by you can unintentionally stimulate the vagus nerve, wherein impulses can ascend and be reacted to by the heart in the form of electrical impulse. These impulses can result in an extra signal being imposed along with the heart's normal pacer node and result in an extra beat that is felt as a thump or even a skipped heartbeat. The heart normally responds to these errant beats, or ventricular PVCs, with a corresponding and oftentimes strong beat as the heart's normal pacer resets to normal sinus rhythm. The heart is absolutely capable in every such instance of re-establishing normal sinus rhythm.

The greater the gastrointestinal discomfort, the greater the potential for isolated PVCs to arise that may come about as much as every other heartbeat, in pairs, triplets etc., known as bigeminy and trigeminy. Regardless, these classified variants are harmless with no effect to either the structure or performance of the heart. Most importantly, isolated PVCs are entirely incapable of stopping the heart. They are benign.

So undergo your tests that will likely include a standard 12-lead EKG and a 2-D trans echocardiogram, the first of which will verify the electrical performance of the heart and the echocardiogram the mechanical structure of the heart. Rest assured that both tests will result in normal findings. Also be mindful that almost all such tests can indicate incidental findings such as trace mitral valve regurgitation but these are not indications of heart trouble whatsoever but found to be common in nearly all persons with normal healthy hearts.

You'll also likely find that successful treatment of your gastrointestinal disturbance will quite literally result in a simultaneous reduction or even conclusion of the isolated PVC episodes. There are also medications such as low-dose beta blockers that reduce the workforce of the heart and subsequently can diminish or even eradicate the presence of the PVCs until such time that anxiety is reduced. Beta blockers also impose a mild anxiolytic effect as well that also helps to reduce the presence of the PVCs and needless worry.

Regardless, you're going to be just fine. Steer clear of caffeinated drinks, smoking and other stimulants since these can aggravate the presence of PVCs. Otherwise, you'll find these circumstances to slowly dissipate into history and the test results will provide the added confidence in the fact that you have a healthy, normal heart.

Best regards

Hello Dan

You've been through the mill with all this, I can tell. I'm twice your age and I know from experience how easy it is for our minds to affect our bodies...especially when it's impacting our miraculous, incredible 24/7 blood pump!

I think we can sometimes underestimate its resilience. But the first way it "complains" is via its super-complex electrical system. Stresses and strains of daily life...not quite eating what "it" wants (leading to mineral & vitamin deficiencies)...just making it grumble...and believe me, I know how scary that can be! One GP told me that skinny people can also actually notice heart rhythm disturbances more easily than bigger folk...which can be a double-edged sword.

My main advice would be to try to eat natural "proper" food...ie fresh, unprocessed meats (including red meats), fish (like salmon, sardines etc...even if it's out of a tin). Don't be scared to eat saturated or mono-unsaturated fats, like the fat in a steak, butter, or extra virgin Olive Oil. Don't worry about eating eggs. Get a few leafy greens too. Go a bit easy on the spuds.

DO WORRY about eating foods with a load of crappy ingredients. And DO WORRY about anything with sugar in it. Try to cut added sugar out as best you can and try to reduce your refined carbohydrates consumption (which you'll automatically be starting to do if you cut out the sugar).

Try to limit alcohol consumption as much as possible. And drink plenty of water, maybe something with minerals in it, like San Pellegrino. But just tap water is good. Especially if you're actually experiencing the palpitations. Drinking water has helped me ward off a few very unpleasant episodes in the past.

Think of all this as "feeding your incredible, amazing ticker"...that annoying thing that's actually doing a fantastic job down there. Love that pump!

All the very best

Steve

hi firstly im really sorry you're going through this. im glad you're doctor is still doing tests and hopefully it will relax you. what you're describe could 100% be from anxiety alone. im going through similar but with head pressure and headaches. its so frustrating because i dont feel anxious what makes me anxious is the physical symptoms! like you im on dr google or thinking about my children. i have had palpations before too when im lying down. i get it its really scary but for me ive had them on and off for months now so i no its anxiety or something would of happened by now. when i tend to relax about one symptom it manifests to a new one. ive been told i need to fear anxiety and work on that being the illness and not focus on symptoms of other diseases. my illness is anxiety not anything else. easier said than done though. physical symptoms are draining. hope you feel better soon.