I have been suffering with ectopic heart beats for about 5 months. They started when I was in bed one night and appeared to be random but recently, after councelling, I have realised that there is a trigger - not always associated with how I feel at the time. I looked on a US web forum and found that most people who suffered with ectopic beats said that they were worse when dehydrated. So I experimented a little, and low and behold, if I drink more water, they are not as strong. This week I was suffering with ectopics and a tight chest and on two occasions it passed shortly after drinking a couple of glasses of water. I'm not saying this will get rid of them, altogether but it might provide some temporary assistance and it works for me.

I also read on the forum ways to stop palpitation attacks (when the heart continues to thump). The first is to cough hard 3 times and the second is to hold your nose, close your mouth and blow - as if you are clearing your ears after landing from a plane. Apparantly, this forces the lungs backwards and applies pressure to the nerve leading to the heart. I don't get attacks so I don't know if these methods work.