What do I do about my palpitations(Strong heartbeats)

Posted , 5 users are following.

I started noticing that my heartbeats have been stronger than usual a week ago, and since then I'm not able to sleep at night. There's a lingering feeling of uncomfort in my heart area, but no pain. I can't sleep on my sides or bend down to pick something up without feeling pressure on my heart. Asides from this, I barely have the energy to do anything. I recently came back from a Dr's appointment where I had an EKG test that revealed a slightly abnormal heartbeat and that I would be going through an ECHO and Holter Test. However these tests are scheduled for December 16, and early January as these were the first available. People who have had palpitations, are those appointment timeframe normal? Should I be concerned and try to escalate my situation as urgent and get tested ASAP or go to the ER to have everything done. I'm not in critical condition, but this has seriously messed with my daily routine and has caused tremendous lack of sleep. Thank you very much

0 likes, 11 replies

11 Replies

  • Posted

    Not sure how to edit my post, but I'm a 22 Asian Male with no current stress problems (except my heart problems causing the stress).

  • Posted

    Hi thanh81928,

    It sounds to me like you’re doing exactly what you should be doing. If you want to speed up the process you can call the cardiologists office to check if there have been appointment cancellations. That happens all the time and they might be able to get you in earlier. Palpitations are uncomfortable for sure. I started having them a few years ago. My heart skips like a broken record sometimes. Other times it pounds so hard it visibly shakes my body. I’ve had the echocardiogram, a CT angiogram, many EKGs, a tilt table test, and wore an event monitor for 40 days. I was found to have SVT and PACs which the cardiologist assured me are ok. They ended up putting me on Metoprolol which is a beta blocker anyway. It slows the heart rate by binding beta receptors in the heart reducing the effects of adrenaline. It’s helped me a lot, though I still go through times where my heart acts up. I can’t really say it gets easier because even with the reassurance of my cardiologist it still causes me a great deal of anxiety. But I’ve learned my triggers and try to live in such a way as to avoid certain things that cause episodes. Dehydration is a big trigger of mine, as well as stress, and I seem to be much more prone to palpitations when I have a cold. I sometimes have long periods of time with no palpitations at all, and then I’ll have days or even weeks where my heart just seems to go haywire. Anyway, you’re doing the right thing by getting checked out. If things get too difficult and you believe it’s an emergency then go to the er and get checked out. But if it’s just more of an annoyance you’re probably perfectly fine to wait for your appointment. Out of curiosity, do you take any decongestants on a regular basis? They can sometimes cause palpitations. I cut caffein out of my diet as well. Take care and I hope you’re able to get this sorted out. 

    • Posted

      Thanks for the reply! I do not take any decongestants and rarely consume caffeine. This all happened so suddenly when I was trying to sleep last week and noticed that something was off. Now all of a sudden I can't do simple things like bending over or sleeping on my side without making my heart feel like there's a lot of pressure on it.

  • Posted

    Do you just get strong heart beats? Do you ever feel like your heart has skipped a beat?

    Does your heart ever go really fast when you’re at rest (i.e. doing nothing)?

    If this does happen - do you get lightheaded or faint?

    Any Family Hostory of Heart Problems?

    How long have you had the lingering feeling of discomfort? Any Breathlessness or Chest tightness?

    Do you know anything more about hwat the ECG showed.

    That is a normal timeframe for a cardiology referral. I would not advise going into A&E unless you are critically unwell. They dont do ECHOs in A&E - nor do they do Holters.

     

    • Posted

      Thanks for the reply! It's only strong heartbeats that also gives me a tightness and pressured feeling constantly and worsens if I perform certain actions (bending over to get something or laying down on my side). My heartbeat's been about the same, and sometimes I've gotten lightheaded when I'm just sitting at my computer. My mom has had a minor heart valve problem in the past. This started a week ago all of a sudden and I do run out of breathe for a minute when I lay down. I've also noticed the chest tightness tends to happen randomly while my heartbeat stays strong throughout the day. All my doctor told me about my EKG test was that my heartbeat was stronger than normal. As regards to the timeframe, I didn't expect the appointment delay to be so far especially given it's related to the heart. Thanks again

    • Posted

      Hi Ben,

      I've had Anxiety for just over Two years I am in Setraline (50mg), the symptoms I had were similar if not mirror your questions. I've had blood, ECG's Xrays amd nothing, I explained I feel my Heart beating in my Chest, I've had a racing heart 133bpm, but no pain. I've had hyperventilation weak knees and dizzyness and I have skipped beats, but after research and Cardiologists consults I was told my skipped beats are infact extra beats and the pause or dropped beats are noticed as with Anxiety your more intune with your body. It isn't uncommon for the Normal heart to skip beats and this is more noticeable in fit and healthy people its just not all notice it, as I've said I've them Two years and mine is brought on by Anxiety don't het me wrong when it first happened I was taking myself up A&E every other week and after tests sent home but you become obsessed that there is something wrong when your told otherwise which they call White Coat syndrome. So I've learned to live with it and it doesn't affect my daily routine nor my job, I had nothing but Positive support on here when I had no where to turn to and this forum is a God send with peace of mind and experience and are here every step of the way🖒

    • Posted

      Sorry foe Typo and appalling Grammar it's been a long day 😊

    • Posted

      1. Do you know what your oxygen saturation is?

      2. What blood tests have you had done? Have you had a D-Dimer done?

      This could all just be start of anxiety neurosis, but if you remember a specific day when it started - then i think PE does need to be ruled out.

    • Posted

      White Coat Syndrome = When Blood Pressure goes up because of being in a medical environment.

      Health Anxiety or Hypochondriasis is what you mean.

  • Posted

    I also had this for about two months solid was horrible same as you bending down sleeping on my side worse on the left still not had any answers thank your self lucky your not in Scotland the time you need to wait is a joke that’s nine months so far and the past few days ave had a few of them etopics a tho k they said they were called if you find anything out let me k ow please 
  • Posted

    Looking at my recent test results, I've had some blood work done called TSH, Hemogram with Differential, and Panel 7 with fasting/no food. All results came back normal, but I don't think I have anxiety as this started happening out of the blue with no stress as the cause. As a side note, my mom and grandma were both diagnosed with mild mitral regurgitation and my grandpa also died of a heart attack when my mom was very little. Not sure if that factors into anything. Will continue to wait for my Echo and Holter appointments.

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