Hi There !

[stick girl]

Hi there,

I'm 35years old and have always been a pretty anxious person. Over the last 5 years I have suffered from heart arythmia, which is like a giant heart spasam. My heart seems to stop beating, then do a few double beats to catch up. I've had several tests done several times and their seems nothing wrong with my heart.

The worst thing though is when they happen my bodies nervous system just flies into automatic panic mode and stays their for weeks. Every cells of my body feels as if it is ready and waiting for a massive heart attack and no amount of rational thought seems to affect my nervous system.

At the moment I am going through a break up which for many reasons seems really hard. One of which is a general lack of support. I am no longer in touch with any of my family. It has been suggested that I take beta-blockers but I have slightly low blood pressure already and I am very phobic about taking medication, (feel it will somehow send me into a downward spiral).

I feel very alone and very frightened most of the time. I have tried doing yoga and walking every day but when my heart wigs out on me all I want to do is stay still, which again is a viscious cycle.

If their is anyone out there who has a similar problem I would love some advise on how to deal with it.

kindest regards
Rebecca[Yeah!][Yeah!]

[seh1980]

hi Rebecca,

I'm so sorry to hear about your troubles. It sounds like you are in a bit of a vicious circle but I'm sure that some help will come along soon. Everyone on this site is very nice and supportive so I'm sure you will get some good advice.

Sarah :D

[trac67]

Hi Rebecca,
Sorry to hear you are having a bad time. I used to get the feeling that my heart was skipping a beat and it used to really frighten me too, my doctor says everyone gets them , but because we suffer with anxiety and are always looking for 'something' that isnt there we notice it even more. I managed to learn to just carry on when i felt them and after a while they disappeared or in other words i stopped noticing them. Next time you feel them try to make yourself busy and then you will be so occupied doing something else that you wont feel them. It takes time but suddenly one day you will think i have not felt my heart skip a beat for a long time.
Take care
Trace:D

[Karen]

Hi Rebecca

Welcome to the forum. I also get this sensation of my heart skipping a beat but know it is due to anxiety and am therefore able to ignore it, rather than dwelling on the sensation. This is a common symptom of anxiety.



Karen



It is not easy to find happiness in ourselves, and it is not possible to find it elsewhere.

[Meg]

Hi Rebecca,

This is so common but the reality is that if you were going to have a heart attack you wouldn't notice these jumping around beats as the main symptom and you would have several other symptoms that you do not mention ..

One of the the ways to get over it is to change how you
view your arrhymias. Instead of deciding and believeing that this is the final hour and its going to stop on you you might want to decide that your heart is your best friend and will do whatever sequence of beats is necessary to keep you alive and stable . That may involve some ectopic beats and may involve periods of irregularity but it has always come good before and wil do each time for many years to come. An NLP session may realy help with this.

Hearts really lke you to take care of them too so regular cardiovascular exercise and good diet too.





Meg
www.anxietymanagementltd.com

You cannot conquer fear until you have learned what it is you're afraid of. The enemy is ignorance. Vivian Vance

[JPF]

Hi Rececca

Welcome to the forum. As you can see from the other responses, what you're suffering is a typical factor in panic/anxiety. I had my first panic attack in early January 05 and was convinced it was a heart attack! I too have had my heart skipping a beat and then trying to catch up. I think it's anxiety that's the major cause but I also have a feeling that some people just have slightly irregular heart beats but that it doesn't affect them and is nothing sinister to worry about.

You're not alone, there are millions of people out there suffering from this nasty condition and by coming here, you've found not only a great resource for information and practical advice but a large bunch of people who understand, sympathise and want to help! I was very lucky that I found this place so quickly - it's really helped me - I'm sure it will help you too.

Have you tried cutting-down on (or cutting-out) caffeine at all? That can cause palpitations and other things. I've cut-down and feel much better for it. I take Bach flower remedies (especially Rescue Remedy) which also seem to help me. The trouble with panic/anxiety is that physical symptoms (like missing a heartbeat or feeling like you have missed one) act as a trigger which sets the whole thing off again, the classic vicious circle. Accepting panic/anxiety as the cause of the symptoms does help because you can start to be more objective about it - instead of thinking "Oh no, my heart's missing a beat again!" you think "Hmm, feel panicky again, better do something to stop it" and gradually, by tackling the problem you recognise the physical and mental/emotional triggers/symptoms and can begin to try to ignore them. It's not always easy but it is achievable and by coming here you've found a wonderful resource brimming with practical advice and genuinely helpful and understanding people!

Have a look around, post away, check the parent website too and I'm sure you'll be feeling much better very quickly! :)

Good luck and good health

J

[FAN]

hi and welcome you will find lots of useful advice here and always someone to help out with any questions you have

fan x

[linjane]

Hi Rebecca
Sorry to hear about what you are going through and I can totally sympathise with how you feel, because I suffer exactly the same thing. If you read my intro you'll see whats happened in my life, but basically I have these skipped/ectopic beats/palpitations for nearly three years and like you can't get past being scared no PETRIFIED of them. Do you wait for them to come and when you don't get them still find yourself thinking of them? I have had an ecg and 24hour monitor and found nothing wrong. Please feel free to contact me for someone to talk to. I think this has to be the worst sympton of anxiety I have ever had.

Take care and try to take everyones advice and try to ignore them! I wish I could, maybe one day......I am determined to get over them.

Linda

[nomorepanic]

Hi Rececca

Just wanted to welcome you aboard the site and forum and hope we can be of some help to you.

Nicola

[lainey]

Hi rebecca

Welcome to the forum, you will find lots of help and support here.

Take care

Elaine x