Panic when going to bed!

[petmad]

I have been worrying about my skipped heartbeats for some time now. I am trying not to check my pulse so I don't hear them as they scare me! Trouble is they are always worse it seems at night. I go to bed and read and try and chill but then when I turn off the light, I lay down and panic as I hear my heart against the pillow and dread to hear the skipped beats.
Its hard then to calm down and not worry but whatever I do I seem to hear my heart thumping away and I panic its beating all over the place!!
I try to breath deeply and take my mind off it but its getting silly every night.
I had an ECG a while ago which was normal but what if my skipped beats weren't on there and they have missed them?
Is this my panic/anxiety causing them? When I feel alone and think about them, I always feel more worried, hence at night.
Does anyone else experience this or is it just me....

[P!nk!sh]

i just can't sleep sometimes , then i go and stay outside for hours

sorry i was not much a help to you

[CONS]

I used to go to bed and automatically put my hand over my heart to monitor it, at first intentionally and then it became a habit.

The heart beat monitoring your doing can be combatted though, in this sub-forum there is a tips section that explains how to combat hearing your own heartbeat.

http://www.nomorepanic.co.uk/showthread.php?t=23461

Give it a try.

Maybe you feel vulnerable when your going to sleep, might be worth looking into sleeping tablets?

Cons

[countrygirl]

I have had ectopic heartbeats ( PVC's) for over 20 years at their worst its every3rd Beat! They always get worse when you relax SO going to bed is the worst possible time for them. Try laying on your right side as you can hear your heart less on this side. Rmember that in almost all cases these ectopic beats are totally harmless but really really unpleasant to experience.

I was told at hospital that if a patient doens't mention noticing them then they don't even tell people they have them as they are harmless and why worry someone!

[Lauradee]

i have anxiety when I lay down and constantly check my pulse. You should try having some background noise like the tele or radio and prop yourself up right until your on the verge of drifitng off sometimes the stillness of the night and silence just makes things worse.Hope this helps

[petmad]

I think it is to do with the silence of the night and no noise and once I turn off my lamp its me and the darkness! Then my heart seems to become noisy when I lay down, normally I don't hear it but the pulse is there and its spooky. I sincerely hope these missed beats are normal, I know many people have them but don't know, they are luck they don't notice as once you do its constantly on your mind, or mine anyway!

[Marginalia]

Lots of good advice in this thread. :)

Same thing happens to me sometimes. In fact I just got used to it being normal and stopped being so bothered by it. I used to feel exhausted from it, but then I managed to make that into a positive thing: I'd have the heartbeats but afterwards I would feel properly tired, like the heartbeats actually helped me get sleepier. Reverse psychology :p

Currently I don't get them much, but instead just as I'm actually falling asleep my heart suddenly jumps and I wake again with my heart speeding. But again it's happening so often I'm adapting to that too, and just think "ah, OK, there I go. Now that's done I can sleep".

Marginalia

[xLJx]

nighttime has always been my worst time for panic. and the heartbeats thing was something i really picked up on.

one morning i awoke to beats of 143 and panic stricken i had to be taken to A and E.
this led to me being properly diagnosed as having panic and seeing help!!!

basically the help i recieved told me tht hearing your heartbeat shud be seen as a good thing, as its a part of being alive and well!! so dont let tht worry you too much

by thinking about it youll definitely be helping fuel anxiety and this will make the heart beat a lot faster, so do try and take your mind off things. the background noise idea as suggested is a great one!!

try and stay calm, and dont worry too much. hearts are stronger than we think :):)

ive managed to stop constantly checking my pulse now and learn to live with the beats (altho the propranalol has helped slow it down majorly)

together we'll beat this.


xljx:hugs:

[minihaha]

i often experience bed time panics and increased heart beat - its very worrying and traumatic but i keep telling myself its normal !! as someone else posted its that time of the night when its just you, your pillow and your heart beat and it just intensifies the anxiety in my case. Going to bed should be a time to relax, rest and recharge yeah...? if only !!!

I no longer count or check my heart beat - took me ages to get into this mindset and it wasnt easy. I make sure that before i go to bed that i sit in my lounge for 10 mins with no tv on, low light, blinds down etc and take myself through my day...and unwind. I focus on the positives of the day and what i have achieved - i dont dwell on the negatives as i reckon these can be sorted tomorrow and by worrying about them now will not enable me to tackle them in the morning - i need to rest and sleep and recharge , i keep repeating this to myslef. If i still dont feel relaxed after this 10 min chat to mysef, i run myself a bath with some lavender - i make sure the heating is off or down low and i have cool, crisp nighwear to put on - sounds daft i know but after battling panic disorder for over 4 years now - these things really do make a difference.

The still of the night is a lonely anxious place but we can turn it on its head and make it a safe place in our thoughts.......its the inbetween as our brain switches off from a busy stressful today ready to meet the new challenges of the next day. And beleive me you will be there to meet those new challenges - nothing will happen to you when you fall asleep xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

[shaz01]

Hey there,

I always notice my skipped beats when Im lying down to try and sleep or sometimes if I wake in the night I notice them, I now lie on my back and Im sure I could feel them worse lying on either side...also make sure your not to warm or to cold in bed as this wont help them.

Shaz x

[petmad]

Thanks for all your help and advice, its the missing beats that always scare me badly. When I can hear my heart against the bed I try and talk to myself and not listen to it, breathe deeply and it sometimes helps. Its nice to know we are here to support one another and not feeling alone is a big plus. Unless you suffer from anxiety and panic its hard trying to talk to people who don't! they are lucky people...