Heart anxiety; again so scared I'm dying

[Freaked]

A bunch of docs have said they didn't think I was in any particular danger of dropping dead, but it's so hard to believe them at times. My as yet undiagnosed illness (hopefully pots syndrome; it doesn't kill you) has left me completely debilitated and, even though it's not really a heart problem, involves palpitations and fainting, which always puts you in mind of sudden cardiac death syndrome. I keep looking stuff up, and I'm reassured by the fact that nothing deadly seems to quite 'fit', but it's so hard to keep my spirits up when I'm so sick all the time :weep:

My cardiologist has basically discharged me and I have no medical help scheduled until July. It's been four months and I'm just so worn out from dealing with this all the time and trying to convince myself I'm okay. How do you deal with collapsing and not be terrified? I'm just getting so depressed.

[eastofeden]

hiya, a few months ago i was in the exact same boat as you! i had my heart skipping beats sometimes every 3rd beat, constant racing heart and lightheadedness/dizziness, and blackouts. i was terrified of SCDS too. my heart would go up from 65 to 130 beats just from sitting to standing.

eventually i was diagnosed with - tada - pots syndrome!
unpleasant but a million times better than arrythmia!!!
pots syndrome and fainting are incredibly common in young women.

i bugged my doctors for echocardiograms, about 20 ecgs, a 48hr tape, and they still could not find what was wrong!
eventually i got a tilt table test and was dx with pots.
it sounds like you're a potsie too! the fainting is caused by low blood pressure.

it literally started one day out of absolutely nowhere. before i couldn't stand up more than 30 mins without fainting. it seriously made me bed ridden for months. my head was spinning and i was terrified. if it was too hot id faint. get jolts like riding on a rollercoaster.
now my symptoms are 90% controlled by beta blockers and i can stand up for hours! thank god i listened to my body. i knew it wasn't anxiety. no doctor took me seriously. i had to fight for myself, research and talk to other potsies who shared my symptoms.

if your cardiologist is waving bye bye to you then you can rest assured there's nothing wrong with your heart. a cardiologist would never ever ever send a patient home if he/she felt they were even at the slightest risk.
its actually a defective vagus nerve that causes pots palpitations and faints, not your heart itself. did you know that? well now you do. the vagus nerve has the power to slow down the heart rate. in potsies, the vagus nerve is a bit haywire and doesn't slow the heart down enough. so the heart beats faster because it's trying to keep blood pressure and the blood flow going up. then sometimes the vagus is overstimulated and makes the heart rate too low. that's when not enough blood goes upwards to the brain and thus, as a protection method, we need to lie down to get blood flowing to the brain again, and thus fainting occurs. passing out is your body's way of keeping the brain nice and oxygenated when it feels we're not getting enough blood flow. i can assure you you are 100% fine. it sounds very much like pots. try adding salt to your meals, drinking more water and ask your doctor about beta blockers. they reduce symptoms and anxiety. i wish i had had someone to reassure me all last year. it was anxiety hell.

trust your cardiologist.