CRAZY heart beat (at rest) ...

[panicface]

Suffered skipped beats all my life (since 15 / I'm 43 now).

Over the last few years I have been getting (once a week) these CRAZY palps - it's like my heartbeat has gotten scrambled and is jumping all over the place at random!!!

It ONLY happens when I'm at rest, laying in bed watching TV, playing on computer, or today (40 min ago) when I was pulling out of the driveway on my motorbike.

Not sure how long it lasts - maybe 3 - 5 seconds - long enough for me to feel it, realize it's BAD, then i start coughing hard (read long ago that coughing can help settle it).

I normally bolt out of my chair in a wild panic - thinking I'm heading to hospital - and by the time I make it to the bedroom door it's gone. I never feel light-headed, or going to pass out - just this bizarre fast irregular heart beat.

Recently I've been trying to lose some weight - and I've been doing a lot of cardio. For instance this morning I did 70 min on the elliptical - I normally do about 90 min a day between elliptical and upright bike - along with weight lifting etc.

I NEVER ONCE get these crazy beats during exercise.. Always when I'm calm, relaxed and feel that all is well with the world.

My 'normal' skipped beats - do come more often when I eat (vagus nerve) or upset..

Two years ago I wore a holter monitor for 24hrs when I was having 'normal' palps and they said everything was fine (statistically within reason) -but I've never been able to catch one of these crazy fast ones..

Anyone have an idea what this could be? Scared to death!!!!!

[dreamies]

I'd go to your GP and ask for a stress test or ECG they should hook you up for 24 hours (stress) hopefully that will give you some answers. X

[panicface]

thanks - did that a few years ago. everything was fine on stress test. this crazy palps come out of the blue and only happen once a week, every other week. very hard to catch.

[rsanchez]

Do you feel it's getting better now that you are exercising and losing weight? Might not even be your heart, might be your stomach and gas passing.

[Aaahhfreakout]

You may be getting runs of PVCs or PACs. You will obviously need a portable monitor for a week to catch them.

It kind of makes sense when you think about it that if the heart is in a mood where one skipped beat is possible, then it's in a mood where more than one is possible.

You might want to make sure you're getting enough vitamins and minerals, as you may be losing some through exercise.

Also, reducing exercise a bit can help sometimes. As you become fitter, the heart gets bigger and its electrics get stretched. I read of an Olympic team doctor who said his athletes had all sorts of heart arrhythmias due to training but were healthy.

[Strawberry_3]

It sounds as though you experience what I get.

This happens to me all the time. I understand that it's super worrying when it happens at rest because....well it just doesn't make sense does it! ''Why are you beating so fast when I'm not doing anything right now?!''

I've had so many ECGs, a 7 day holter monitor, two 24 hour monitors and an echocardiogram, millions of blood tests, all results apparently normal, but with many episodes of 'sinus tachycardia' which is apparently absolutely harmless.

It might pay to pop along to the doctors and get some reassurance (although I know reassurance is so hard to get when symptoms just don't make sense).

Remember that the mind is so powerful. You may be getting slightly anxious without even realising it, causing the palpitations. and at rest we're often more aware of our heart rate anyway.

I remember reading that the PVCs/PACS are harmless, especially when they do not occur during exercise!

x