View Full Version : Missed heartbeats!
I have had anxiety/panic attacks for nearly six years now and have pretty well had all the symptoms during that time but one I thought I'd got used to was the heart irregularities but they are worrying me again.
I get a fast heart rate sometimes (in fact I think its fast but my pulse is never much more than about 80) but that is my least frightening one, far more scary are the missed heartbeats which are happening daily at the moment whereas I usually get them once in blue moon.
I've been scaring myself silly about this recently (its not happening in the night or at least if it is, its not waking me). Also my palpitations feel like a muscle twitching/fluttering rather than a fast heart beat.
Over the years I've been a few times to the doctors and he's never been able to hear any irregularity - I did ring last week as I wanted to know if my palpitations were the same as everybody elses and he did feel what I described fell under my anxiety umbrella (it was a phone consultation) and offered to put me on the moniter but we both agreed that the likelyhood of capturing it was unlikely. My doctor does know me well and I like him but somehow I'm still fretting about it.
I had such a good year last year with my anxiety and getting out and about on my own but then had a panic attack in Jan while out, which I have let get quite out of hand and unless one of the kids will come out with me I can't much further than the end of the street.
Does anybody else have a) phases of missed heartbeats that are every few hours over a period of days? b) fluttering or twitching heart muscle/beat lasting a few seconds? c) Does it happen sometimes on movement aswell as when you're still?
Love Piglet (I've used the name piglet as sometimes I find it hard to be brave)!
Hi Piglet. Yes i get them all the time The doctor told me it was all to do with the stress.I suffer from post traumatic stress disorder. Like yourself i cant go out myself unless i have someone beside me.Its so scary my heart gets these palpations and pain in my chest. But if your doctor has put you on the ecg machine and your hearts fine try not to worry.But if you are like myself you still will.But as i said i suffer from that nearly everyday.Ijust try to forget them I tell myself i have had them so long and been to gps about them. And everything is fine. please try and chill if you need to talk we are all here for you. take care piglet and i no its hard but try not to worry about them as it feeds them if you do.I have been getting mine for three years now. take care ..bye fran1888
Frances Gill
Love & Respect to you all...
Thanks Frances,
Have just done an hours yoga and 75 steps on my stepper and didn't get one missed beat or anything, then got one putting the washing in the machine. I'm going to try really hard not to concentrate on them so much and see if that helps - I had Ibs in Feb and was really down with it and couldn't have left the house if I'd wanted to but as soon as I genuinely stopped being scared it got better so I am hoping this might happen again with the heart worries.
Best wishes
Piglet
bananarbabe
18-04-05, 13:35
Hi Piglet,
I got those irregular hearbeats in the past as well. My doctor was nice enough to put me on the 24 hr monitor and it came out fine.
One thing that was recommended to me was to start doing some exercise whenever an irregular heartbeat happens. That way, its a distraction and when you think about the abnormal heart beat you just relate it to exercise, which is pretty normal. I doesn't have to be like going out for a run but something like push ups or situps should be enough.
hi piglet
Yes i get them to nearly all the time. My doc has said they r anxiety related but it took me a long time to b reasured they r not dangerous and still being told there not. Even when i am relaxed i get them and when i am doing things so u r not on your own.
I try not to let them bother me but when i have them alot it can b worrying,Yes i had palpatations to but i don't get them as much now. I am now over my anxiety {for now} but i am still getting ectopics {missed beats} i think i will have them all the time mine have been going on for 3.5yrs when i had my first anxiety/panic attacks.
take care
lin xx
Thank you so much everybody for answering, it has helped tremendously.
I might print them off to keep in my handbag and everytime I get silly about it I could read them for reassurance (I wonder if I can do that).
I think the site is great and have chuckled outloud at many things as it all feels so me!!!!
I wish I didn't feel so embarassed/ashamed of having anxiety its just people around me seem to see me as so confident and strong. I'm trying to work on 'this is me, take me as I am' at the moment and be more honest about it rather than make up excuses all the time as why I can't do things (hiding it is really just adding more tension isn't it) my youngest can't understand why I don't just admit to people this is how I feel and why would I be ashamed anyway.
Going off the point a little there - its just my goal this year is to work on my self-esteem.
Thanks again
Piglet x
Hi Piglet,
You're totally correct in all your assumptions - ignore them and they subside.
Palpitations: palpatations (http://www.nomorepanic.co.uk/showthread.php?t=2284)
Meg
www.anxietymanagementltd.com
Watch your thoughts, they become your words...
Watch your words, they become your actions... Watch your actions, they become your habits... Watch your habits, they become your character... Watch your character, it becomes your destiny...
Hi Piglet
Welcome to the site. Just to let you know i've suffered with these ectopic beats for about 24 years now and i'm still here :D. Granted they still freak me out from time to time but its just a case of knowing how to deal with them when they happen.
I'm like you can be doing something strenuous and not get any then i might be washing up and get a couple.....weird or what.
Anyway take care.
Tracy
x
Hi Piglet,
I've had them for nearly three years and get them just like you do. Some days are worse than others, but as everyone else has said, we have all been told they're not dangerous. Wish I knew how to convince myself, but we are all in the same boat and still here, so it must be true!!![8D]
Have you tried any relaxation/deep breathing. I have got a good relaxation CD called Complete Relaxation, by Glenn Harrold and when I started using this I did feel calmer. I also take Vitamin B100 B Complex from holland and Barrett, Magnesium and Vitamin E and always have a bottle of Rescue Remedy about.
Hope I've helped a bit.
Take care, Linda.x
Thank you again everyone - I feel so much better about it now and only had one today so far and that could have been as I was overbreathing abit ie; from my chest rather than my tum.
Over the last 5/6 years I have picked up some tips/books/props etc which have really helped and I'll put those on the site sometime soon in the relevant section but I have to say coming on here would score right up on the top of my list of real help and reassurance, even before I had asked my question just reading some of the postings was reassuring. My other goal this year is not to brood or bottle anxieties up and now I feel I've got somewhere appropriate to go to ask.
You've all really helped.:):):):)
Piglet
Hi Piglet
Glad to hear you're feeling more positive today :D. Keep it up you'll get there.
Take care
Tracy
x
Hi Piglet,
Keep it going. Some day are just too hard to do it alone all day - we'll still be here on that day ..
What are you going to be doing to work on your self esteem this year ?
Meg
www.anxietymanagementltd.com
Watch your thoughts, they become your words...
Watch your words, they become your actions... Watch your actions, they become your habits... Watch your habits, they become your character... Watch your character, it becomes your destiny...
Hi Meg,
Regarding how I'm building up my self-esteem,
1. I've been reading up any books by Richard Carlson 'Don't sweat the small stuff' range and trying to incorporate some of his suggestions into my everyday life. I like this guy as he's not too holier than thou and his idea's are reasonably normal (like all the books by him I've read so far).
2. I got some affirmation cards by Louise L Hay, she does some for teenagers which are really funky and I got for my kids (never too young to think positively). I've got two sets (widom cards and I can do it cards) they are beautifully colourful and lovely to look at. I pop them around the house and use one as a bookmark to keep reminding me of the sentiment. I also bought two cd's by her (you have to be selective with her stuff though as some is way too cheesy for me and over my head - she does say to only take what is appropriate for you at any given time though, and this may just be my northern roots denying anything too different). The cd's are affirmations repeated over and over again and I do think by the law of averages if you keep bombarding yourself with positive thoughts, some must take. I got 'Feeling fine' which always jollies me up and 'Stress free' which is a calmer one.
You did ask!!!!!
Piglet
NB: All bought off Amazon - I'll try to remember about the link in future. Think my bank will always know if I'm a bit agoraphobic as my purchases off Amazon go through the roof - reading being such a good distraction!:)
Both good choices. I know what you mean about the Louise Hay ones that can be ' pass the bucket ' stuff.
You might also like to view
'what to say when you talk to yourself' - shad helmstetter which makes you work a bit harder at recognising what your current self flagellating patterns are...
and later for the mother of all big reads 'Feeling Good ' - David Burns .Chapter 3 particularly.
Meg
www.anxietymanagementltd.com
Watch your thoughts, they become your words...
Watch your words, they become your actions... Watch your actions, they become your habits... Watch your habits, they become your character... Watch your character, it becomes your destiny...
Thanks Meg,
I have put both of those books on my Amazon wish list to get as soon as my bank balance catches up.
Not feeling at all bad the last couple of days symptom wise - now I need to deal with the agoraphobic bit. This the worse phase of this I've ever had so far. Often I just have a couple of weeks then I get out and about again. I am going out intermittently with one of the kids as an escort (even if they don't always realise it) but in the last few months really haven't wanted to ever be out by myself. I am amazed really as I've always been so independent but I get so fed up of feeling ill when I'm out and really wish every outing wouldn't feel such a flippin challenge.
Probably being a bit negative about this, as last year I was getting stronger and more confident all the time (I know as soon as I hit a bad patch perspective seems to go out the window and my memory doesn't remember that there have been more good patches than bad).
Later on I'll have a little look round the site on agoraphobia.
Piglet x
HI all...im the new boy..lol...
i get these...well, they seem exactly the same as everbody elses at least. 2 yrs ago i lost my mum suddenly, i was 29 and over the past two yrs its hit me in so many other ways other than just emotionally. my life since then has just one big bundle of stress and anxiety to a level that ive never experienced before.
only in the last 3 months or so have i felt these "flutters" or what i now think are "ectopics".....and its weird...cos i can run 5 miles with my friend and feel fine but then when i hit the sack i get them....i have no idea why theyve suddenly come...ive been under "the kosh" of stress and anxiety for the past 2 yrs...but only now i have them.
"MEG" on this website copied a link to me which explained these ectopics perfectly and in a non medical, easily understood way.
is there anyone here who has had them for years? does it mean now that as i have them ill always have them or will they go with time? ive suffered imeasurably from post traumatic strss since suddenly and unexpectedly losing my mum and wish my negative fears and anxieties would go....i guess time is the key right? please say it is! [:I]
russ..
It's funny to see this post again as it was one of the first I did and what brought me to the site in the first place.
I have to tell you the ectopics etc have lessened incredibly since this post and although I will never like them I don't think my fear of them is anything like the same anymore.
Meg once said (in a simiiar thread) to see them as no more serious than a run of inconvenient sneezes and for some reason that has stuck with me and seems to really help keep it in proportion if I do get a little bout.
Funny how some lines/quotes really strike a chord isn't it.
Love Piglet :)
"Supposing a tree fell down, Pooh, when we were underneath it?" said Piglet.
"Supposing it didn't," said Pooh after careful thought.
piglet....i like your quotes!
Yeah i guess your right and although im still new in expriencing these "ectopics" as they continue and i slowly realise that nothing is actually physically happening or wrong with me the better i feel about them....
russ
westmeathangel
22-02-06, 23:17
Hi Piglet... I can really relate to the heart beat issue... I was sooo scared when that became part of my day, my dad died at a young age of a heart attack so i had myself convinced that was goin to happen to me.. ive had 24 hr monitors on several times even had a wrist band on cos no matter how many times the doctors told me it was stress related i convinced my self i was about to die from a heart attack... but eventually i learned to live with them and if they happen now i keep repeating over and over again im not going to die.. one doctor suggested i splash my face with very cold water and the shock will bring the heart back to a normal beat or to hold my nose close my mouth and push down ( as if you have constipation) for a few seconds and the heart rate comes back to normal.. i find the freezin cold water very helpful when im at home, im now back leading a very active and normal life and ive learned to accept and live with the panic attacks, its taken me 15 yrs to realise they wont kill me
Liz
westmeathangel
22-02-06, 23:19
by the way Piglet forgot to mention but did you read the article on this site about egtopic heart beats its wonderful and will put ur mind at rest
Hi everyone, I've only just found this site and it seems to be just what I need to keep me sane!
For more years than I can remember I've had runs of ectopic heartbeats which have scared the life out of me - I'm usually fine for several months then suddenly there they are again. I get 3 or 4 ectopics in a row, which feels like my heart is completely irregular - this can happen every few beats, or every few minutes, no real pattern. I've had some awful nights, convinced I'd wake up dead!! This goes on for a few months then fades away. No idea why. Had ECG's, 24 hour monitor, which on the third try actually caught some of the blighters:D, and the docs said "You ARE having ectopics ([Duh!]but they are nothing to worry about." That's ok then! Tried atenolol and propranolol (I think) and now on bisoprolol - but nothing stops them.
I'm really trying to ignore them, but it's very hard. I don't have any big anxieties - apart from these things! - and my husband is very supportive. It's great to know other people have the same problems, I feel very alone sometimes.
I'd like to tell you all about a fantastic book called Self Help for your Nerves, by Dr Claire Weekes. It's published by Thorsons (Harper/Collins) and is so helpful, really easy to read and makes such a lot of sense - I keep it handy for when I get too worried. It's far the best book I've seen.
I tried to download Meg's info on palpitations etc but can't make it all fit on my paper - all the right hand side misses off - not technically minded, anyone suggest anything?!
Sorry it's so long, hope I strike a chord with someone!
Rosekay ;)
mine speeds up right upon waking then goes back to normal but the skipped beats are really fast double beats thats what my doc has told me and its nothing ti worry about..
Cor nearly a year after I posted about this, this funny thread is up again for the third time!!!! and just look how many have read it!!!
I have to say I have been having a run of them again this last few weeks but unlike this time last year seem to be dealing with them much better.
Love Piglet xx
"Supposing a tree fell down, Pooh, when we were underneath it?" said Piglet.
"Supposing it didn't," said Pooh after careful thought.
april tones
06-04-06, 17:15
hiya! ah thats so good when you can see you have improved x
fibrochat) http://apriltones.proboards54.com
Dear all
I have only started getting these in the last 2 months ...from no-where they appeared and they are the boll***s i hate them so much...does anyone ever remember the very first time that they had them, gee that was the most scary time ever, i thought that was my lot,,,still do though.
Does anyone get dizzyness with them too, because when i get the pause i then get a slight dizzy spell and then its like the pause goes into play again with a great big thud... i cant ever get used to them and theyscare me and now i am so depressed by them.. without the other thousand things wrong ith me...but this are the scarest... my eptopics have never been shown on an ecg... oh because they hide when they see a monitor..so of course i think i really do have a heart problem... any advice more than welcome...oh going to start my clitrapramwill these help as beta-blockers didnt..
ashley x
Dear Ashley
I know how scary these wretched things are, I've spent so long absolutely panic striken and convinced I'm about to drop dead - it really affected my whole life for years. I got so I was afraid to go out and do anything, and I pestered the doctors so much! (Still do, actually!!) Everything I've ever read about the things says they're harmless. Every doctor and two cardio specialists have told me the same. I had a heart scan which was completely normal. You have to allow yourself to believe the experts - and all your fellow sufferers! - though I know it's not easy, especially if like me you get bad attacks at night (everything seems worse then). My turning point was thinking to myself, I'm going to end up at the end of my life looking back and realising how much time I'd wasted being afraid, and I really didn't want that to happen. I keep a little collection of articles about ectopics handy for when I get a panic, which I still do sometimes, then I can re-read and calm myself. Also, the book by Claire Weekes I mentioned last time is so helpful, I'd really recommend it. Hope this helps a bit - you're really not alone, we all know what it's like.
Thinking of you
Rosekay :D
Thanx for that,when i read that last message from you rose i wanted to cry.because i am just so scared--im at a point where things just have to get better ..or i will end it...sorry
ash x
Hey Ash,
Hang in there Kid! It WILL get better, honest. I'm not saying it'll be easy or quick, but you will learn to manage the panic. I've been having these things for about twenty years, and I'm still here! Don't give in, pester your doc to get checked out perhaps with a 24 hour monitor (I had 3 goes of that before they caught the things, so persevere!), that'sl going to help ease your mind. It will take time, don't expect miracles, but you'll get there. I know its terrifying - I remember lying in bed thinking I would die, and I just didn't care any more, I felt so bad.
Sites like this help, keep in touch. :D
All the best
Rose
hey ashley,
just want to say as well that i have the same thing, have had the 24-hour monitor that never caught anything, my mom and my sister have them too...and they really are harmless! but it just feels so strange to have that skip and then thud, i think it could be the anxiety that causes the dizziness after you feel that. i have had them since i was about 15 (am 30 now) and they come on and off, and i have learned to sort of live with it...normally i only get them when i am stressed out...i am getting them now too.
the good news is, they won't stay! i hope you can do something to relax today, and just try to pamper yourself in some way if you can, have a bath or whatever it might be for you.
all the best,
kelly
Thanx kelly
I do appreicate the surport people have given me in regards to my eptopics... its so hard to get ya head around them as they are just so freaky..
ashley x
Fellow Scardey Cats
I get these almost daily some days more than others. I have had irregular hearts beats and flutters for a couple years and it still freaks me out. I have them when I am moving and more often when I am still. I also gets light dizziness with them at times. I almost feel like the flutter moves up from my heart into my face and lightly takes my breath away. Does that sound familiar? Also have quite a bit of tightness and even heaviness in my heart area.
love
Ardyce
Forrest
I think you are the first person I have heard of who also has them first thing in the morning. This is especailly frightening because I think*here I am having heart problems and Im not even doing anything strnuous...it must be bad ....perhaps Ill die in my sleep soon* Good to know this may be common anyone else experience these as you wake? Also can someone post the link to the eptopic beats? I have yet to read it but am always reassured to know that I am not alone.
Ardyce
http://www.nomorepanic.co.uk/default.asp?t=cms&c=palpitations
There you go mate.
Love Piglet
"Supposing a tree fell down, Pooh, when we were underneath it?" said Piglet.
"Supposing it didn't," said Pooh after careful thought.
I wake up in the morning with eptopic beats, and go to bed with them ..i have fluttering,thuds,flips,spins... you name it.. actually at times it feels like i have a tiny tiny washing machime in my chest and my heart jumps in it .. yeah sometimes to have its wash.and it feels like my heart is getting thrown around the washing machine..
I have had 5 days eptopic beats free,just a few flutters here and there..what with all my other symtoms from my medication i dont need them to show thier ugly face either..
eptopic beats..i cry when you cry
ashleyx
Hi everyone,
I've had these strange 'flutters', missed beats, irregular beats since I was 18 (now 38). They first started about a year after my dad died suddenly from a heart attack. At first I was convinced I was going to drop dead too...and went on to have full blown panic attacks where I couldnt even go into the garden without thinking I was going to die. The doctor said it was stress (I moved away from home and started a new job a couple of weeks after my dad died....and hated every minute). Thing was I didnt feel particularly stressed till I started having them!
Eventually I got through that and they settled down until my older brother suddenly died too from heart problems and then they were back full force. I was pregnant at the time which seemed to make them worse. I had ecg's etc but was told they were 'normal' ectopics, common in people my age.
They settled down again until last year when I was under real pressure both at work and home and ended up going off with stress/ depression. I must admit at times they do really scare me, but I've had them for so long and nothing terrible has happened so far so I kind of use that to talk myself round. In fact they kind of give me a warning sign that I'm starting to feel under pressure.
I also suffer them at odd times....during the night, first thing in the morning, during the day....but strangely never during exercise.
Propanolol really helped but I stopped that when I started feeling better, but as we speak I am considering going back to my GP, to ask if I can go back on them as I feel myself getting really anxious again.
Dont know if this is any use to anyone but thought I'd share it anyway. I know how frightening it can be.
Take care everyone
Coni X
Hi Piglet,
I too am plagued by the skipped beats although at this point I also refer to them as thuds or shuddering as well
I do not think they are palps as that would be very fast beating
It is more for me like thud, shudder, or flip flop sensation
Immediately afterwards or in fact as it is occuring, I get a feeling of released adrenaline- do not know if it is because I am fearul of the sensation or if the fearfulness causes the sensation. I would have to say the sensation comes first. I alos get right away a tightness in the throat and that tightness lasts for a good bit.
I can get a lot of them- for a spell it seems that i was having them for days and weeks at a time
They can occur out of nowhere meaning I was not feeling anxious or frightened prior to it occuring ,well, at least not on a conscious level
Of all the anxiety symptoms I have had they are the most scarey and annoying
I would take the lightheadeness, inability to take a deep breath etc over the heart thingys in a minute
I went about two months ago or so for an echogram as the doc thought he heard mitral valve prolapse- I did not have it and he said the test was all normal
Ok says I then why do I get these sensations?
If I recall correctly I think it was you who posted that you had the heart things and then they went away for a long time only to return. Ditto for me, Piglet. Do they think we miss them? LOL. I should post a No Vacancy sign on myself.
I think too for folks like us they continue due to a heightened sense of awareness of them- I got them a lot in the evenings when I got into bed thus now whenever I get into bed I am rather on guard- soooo being on guard certainly does not make one relaxed.
I wonder too if you or anyone else that experiences these heart things also feels a need to cry when they occur? That is the case for me.
I think too that a lot of this and with anxiety in general is a result of pent up anger and being people pleasers.
You are welcome to PM me anytime about this
Us " skippys" ( as in missed beats- LOL) gotta stick together
Hugs from across the pond,
Soup ;)
" I 've developed a new philosophy.....I only dread one day at a time." Charlie Brown
Hi to all, I am new here but unfortunatley not new to panic attacks and anxiety. I have been reading with interest piglets messages and the replies, I thought, hope this information might help. I am a 48 year old male, VERY happily married with the BEST two children in the world ever. I have had anxiety and panic attacks for over 18 years, I was seeing the Doctor almost every week at first convinvced I had cancer, heart failure in fact you name it I had it. I have been in the last ten years, a Local TV Presenter, working LIVE in front of camera, I have run a succesful Recording Studio, past my driving test first time, had two children, well I was involved at some stage!!, am Now running my own very succesful business and am in the middle of moving both house and business, and as I type, I am missing heart beats, there is a lump in the lower part of my throat, I have wicked wind ' around the heart ! I have just walked to my Bank up a steep hill and checked my heart almost every step. This has been going on for 18 Years, and guess what I am still here, it gets better with time, acceptance and a little relaxation. MANY MANY things, in fact EVERY THING is acheivable when you are anxious or panicky. Think I don't have it as bad as you? yep me too, I thought no one could possibly be going through what I go through, or at least was going through, how could any one understand? how could I tell any one? Then I realised, hey what do I care what they who ever they are? think! I am me, I am proud of who I am and damn proud I am going through this and as I do learning so much more about myself and others than those who have never experienced this ever could. So I told people, I didn't take out an ad in the Local paper but started to share my feelings, worries etc with others, You will be amazed at how many people we all think 2" oh if only I could be like them, strong, comnfident etc" well YOU ARE, Exactly like them, talk to these people and you will be amazed, truly amazed at how many also 'suffer' maybe the same as you or in different ways, they didn't dare tell any one simply because they are so strong brave and confident, we all suffer to lesser and greater degrees, trust me on this no one here is alone, no one here is unique and no one is worse than any one else, and this is important, there are more of 'us' out there than you will ever think. I have weeks, months when nothing happens, and then bang, missed heart beats, racing heart what ever, I reach for my Claire weeks books, I highly reccomend these, have a read and like to think I take strength knowing " it's only my nerves messing about again, it happened over 10 years ago and I am still here....." bUt as we all know the time between 'sessions' takes it's toll on our memory and when having a 'session' it seems so new and fresh and hard to deal with, as the shirt says " same sh_t differnet day" and that is all it is. I will stop writing war and peace and just add this, I have had these feelings on and off big and small for 18 years, I have achieved, I am happy, I am healthy and I am still here. And that my friends is YOU every single one of you can/will/have coped, seen it through laughed at it and forgotton it, you will again, and next time the bogy man can't scare you quite as much until like me you end up writing a LONG LONG essay to friends you dont know but wish the very best to here. Take care all, and remember it ain't no big thing. learn from it, even dare I say come to like it, because when you do It's going away.
chris
Well thankyou for your kind words of surport chris,i think thats just what we all want to hear on this forum.
I have been suffering with eptopics since december but in the last few weeks they seem to have gone.And guess what im having a heart monitor in june!They wont find any of the bu...gers.
S..ds law ahh xxxxx
Funny that! I'm waiting for an appointment to be fitted with an event monitor and guess what? Yep, mine stopped about a week ago!
Shiv x
Smashing post Chris - thanks for that!!
I was having them badly again a month or so ago and now they have calmed right down again. I seem to be handling them better with the passing of time however if I do get a good long gap between it can give me a new shock when it happens. It takes having a firm word with myself before I can 'accept' them.
Piglet xx
"Supposing a tree fell down, Pooh, when we were underneath it?" said Piglet.
"Supposing it didn't," said Pooh after careful thought.
Yes thats what scares me they will come back with full force piglet!
I seem to get them around time of the month,i expect thats because im more anxious.What about you chaps?xx
There doesn't seem to be any rhyme or reason to mine - they come, they go, I get scared, I accept them and so it goes on :D
All part and parcel for the course I think - being able to come on here for reassurance sure does help alot though doesn't it.
Love Piglet xx
"Supposing a tree fell down, Pooh, when we were underneath it?" said Piglet.
"Supposing it didn't," said Pooh after careful thought.
Yes its great for reassurance piglet,thankgod for the forumxxx
Hello all,
My hearts pounding as i type this. I get these extra beats too it seems. I started to feel stressed and not my usual happy self about 3 years ago and about 2 years ago one evening my girlfriend was laying on my chest and i felt that sensation which i'm sure you all are familiar with. I prompty s**t myself. I've been getting them on and off ever since. Up until then i could cope with anything but since i've struggling a bit. Wether thats because of the stress brought on by these little heart orientated events or because of other things i don't know anymore. I'm finding that the more i worry myself over them the worse they get and the worse they get the more they happen. Vicous circle. When i have these sessions of irregular heart rhythms initially i get worried and panic and get that feeling of fear in my stomach but eventually i get control of the situation and pay no attention to them and they eventually stop but usually it starts again 2 - 3 months later and i'm back to square one again and have to do it all over again. This week has been particulary bad mostly due to the hot weather i think and my stressful job. Everytime i get it and i have to rebuild my resistance to the fear i eventually go on the net and read up on it. Seeing it officially being called not dangerous in the slightest helps no end and even better than that is coming onto one of these forums and hearing from other people in the same situation going through the same thing helps the most so here i am again doing that to try (and i will) help myself. I always assumed that i was a strong person impervious to the daily stresses of life but i guess not and this does serve as a wake up call that tells me i need to take care of myself and try not to do too much that can cause stress and anxiety which brings on the extra beats and palpitations which then brings on the anxiety and stress which brings on more palpit. . . . . you know the score. Sorry for rambling on but i needed to tell someone and who better than others like myself!
Gavin
Hi Gavin,
This post is my original post that I joined the site with over a year ago and it makes me smile to see it still poppin up from time to time.
Just goes to show a lot of us have the same experience - even in May this year I was having them again but I have to say they have gone again for now and I havent had them for weeks.
I think I am beginning to see this as a pattern now so when they do come my level of terror is getting more managable and I dont feel the need to run to the doctors everytime.
I am sure if you stick around you will see this topic come up time and time again and eventually your level of 'terror' will drop to managable terror too. :D:D:D
Love Piglet xx
"Supposing a tree fell down, Pooh, when we were underneath it?" said Piglet.
"Supposing it didn't," said Pooh after careful thought.
Well mine are back and i had the heart monitor two weeks befor they came back!Bit cross about that.They still scare me no matter how many i get.
I find i get more when im bending down to do something all relaxingxxxx
Hi, I love this site!! Only found it today and it has really helped me!! I get the heart flutters and had an ECG today whilst having pains etc, it all showed up okay. When will I belive them!!! When I have my sensible hat on I do belive that all is okay, but I keep knocking that hat off!!!! Sarah x
A big welcome to you Sarah!!
:D:D:D
Piglet x
"Supposing a tree fell down, Pooh, when we were underneath it?" said Piglet.
"Supposing it didn't," said Pooh after careful thought.
Thanks piglet!! I it really nice to know that I am not alone with my funny thoughts!!! [8D]
Thanks for the welcome people! I must say i feel so much better since reading and posting on here. Just hearing that lots of other people go thru the same thing and get the same answers from their doctors, that being "you're fine and you've not got any heart problems!" helps boost confidence no end! Thankyou again!
Hi everyone......
Glad I found this site, and this topic!
I've been having missed beats, the feeling of a dozen butterflies in my chest and feeling beats in my stomach for about three years now. This first occured out of the blue, and frightened me so much that I went straight to A&E. They hooked me up to a monitor, but as you all know, the blighters stop when those things are around. So, I was sent home, where they promptly started again! I've been to my GP many times, have had further ECG's but they always stop. They always have no ryhme or reason to them. They quite often occur when I've just gone to bed, so I lay away, feeling my pulse, counting beats and generally worrying when I should be getting to sleep. I am overweight, so that does worry me a lot that they are more than just missed beats. I was at work last night and a friend asked me about them. I said I hadn't had them for a week. An hour later they were back in force, and I had to catch my breath a few times during work because they were so strong. I like the visual that was given above of the feeling that your heart is in a washing machine. That is spot on. I'm having them now.
My pulse on my right wrist is visable. I can just look at my wrist and there is a slight bulge that pulsates with my heartbeat. When I'm having missed beats, the pulse misses too. It's very scary and I can spend ages just staring at my wrist.
But, it is very reassuring to read this. I'm not alone and it looks like these things are pretty harmless....annoying, scary, pain in the butt....but harmless!!!
Tracey
No you are most certainly not alone Tracey - a big welcome to the site to you hun.
Love Piglet :D
"Supposing a tree fell down, Pooh, when we were underneath it?" said Piglet.
"Supposing it didn't," said Pooh after careful thought.
lisamarie36
08-08-06, 20:50
[Hi, I have been visiting this site on a regular basis now for some time, and have just registered myself as a member. I have been suffering with panic attacks for about 10 yrs now, and experience a whole range of symptoms. But the most frightening symptoms are the eptopic heart beats that i have been reading about a lot on these pages. I myself have had many trips to my GP only to be told thay are part of my anxiety and panic attacks. I to have had an ECG which cane back normal, but no reasurance from the GPs ever stops the constant fear of something iminent about to happen, eg, a heart attack. I have found that the more I worry about them, the worse they become. Also like many of you, mine can occur out of the blue, even when i am not feeling anxious. So glad to have found a site that has many other people suffering with the same thing!
Hi just found this site glad im not going mad!
i have these missed heartbeats all the time dr wants to put me on anti depressants but i dont want to cos its the palps that are getting me down any one else had this?
Cazza - welcome. I just found the website on Monday and like you starting crying with relief (literally). I have suffered on and off for quite a few years. Have been clear for about 6 months but they came back at the end of last week. That said all I can put it down to is a break in my exercise and diet regime over the summer period (bar b ques and white wine!!!) I went through the whole Doctor and Consultant thing about two years ago but nothing. Like a few others, the Holter picked up some missed beats but as they say 'the buggers disappear when you test them'!! (Would you believe that mine are calming down as I type this! I know this is simply because I am not spending every second focussing on them). I truly believe that they are something which have to be lived with and we each have to find our own method or way or pattern of relief. I have a few stresses in my life right now (nothing serious but enough to bring them on) I am not a panic attack sufferer but I suffer anxiety about flying (not the crashing but the confined space syndrome) I am due to fly to New York for the first time in late October and I honestly believe that this is niggling away at the back of my mind and causing the anxiety which is bringing on the palps. I had got myself into such a state by Sunday that coming upon this site was like manna from heaven! My advice to you - by all means let the docs do tests to set your mind at rest but try your own techniques too.
Keep talking to us all
Dublin girl
A big welcome Lisa, Cazza and Dublin girl :D:D:D
Funny how many of us are brought to the site with the symptoms of strange heartbeats isn't it and what a relief it is to find it!!:D
Love Piglet x
"Supposing a tree fell down, Pooh, when we were underneath it?" said Piglet.
"Supposing it didn't," said Pooh after careful thought.
<b id="quote">quote:</b id="quote"><table border="0" id="quote"><tr id="quote"><td class="quote" id="quote">Cazza - welcome. I just found the website on Monday and like you starting crying with relief (literally). I have suffered on and off for quite a few years. Have been clear for about 6 months but they came back at the end of last week. That said all I can put it down to is a break in my exercise and diet regime over the summer period (bar b ques and white wine!!!) I went through the whole Doctor and Consultant thing about two years ago but nothing. Like a few others, the Holter picked up some missed beats but as they say 'the buggers disappear when you test them'!! (Would you believe that mine are calming down as I type this! I know this is simply because I am not spending every second focussing on them). I truly believe that they are something which have to be lived with and we each have to find our own method or way or pattern of relief. I have a few stresses in my life right now (nothing serious but enough to bring them on) I am not a panic attack sufferer but I suffer anxiety about flying (not the crashing but the confined space syndrome) I am due to fly to New York for the first time in late October and I honestly believe that this is niggling away at the back of my mind and causing the anxiety which is bringing on the palps. I had got myself into such a state by Sunday that coming upon this site was like manna from heaven! My advice to you - by all means let the docs do tests to set your mind at rest but try your own techniques too.
Keep talking to us all
Dublin girl
<div align="right">Originally posted by jmcb - 05 September 2006 : 22:05:01</div id="right">
</td id="quote"></tr id="quote"></table id="quote">
Hi dublin girl
Thanks for your thoughts I have been through a lot of stress about a year ago and did not have any palps while i was going through it all! they just seem to come along about six months after when im feeling better! I had an echo cardiogram and needless to say i was not having any then and they said there was nothing abnormal but it is so hard to beleive when these things keep happening. I am alot overweight and worry about this but am doing well with diet and exercise. Also going to ibiza in two weeks and these are certainly taking the pleasure out of going! god i hate them! nice to talk to someone in the same boat
take care:)
is anyone on lie at the momment who can chat about these wierd terrifing palpations i keep getting
Hi there is a geat website that really helped me
www.resonancedirect.com thre is a doctor called rlr that explains palpitations really well and willanswer any questions hope this helps carol
Hi everyone I'm in desperate need of some common sense and understanding please!! My palpitations have been feeling a bit different over the last few weeks, so again the panic which is never too far away has come dashing in! I always used to get the irregular feeling with gaps and bumps etc right in the middle of my chest, which is as you will know just awful.... now I'm noticing thumps which are pretty regular, but very strong, almost as if my heart will burst out of my chest (yuk!) It last about 3 or 4 beats, several times a day......... I just want to feel normal and not be worrying about my stupid heart all the time! Rosekay
Hi again
Just checked out the website Cazza mentioned - when I selected the first link, called First Step, it was full of references to rape in all sorts of forms, BE WARNED.
Rose
Hi Rosekay,
I know of the site you mention, unfortunately it was overwhelmed by extremely bad and malitious spam, and so it moved elsewhere, which seems fine and has been a great help to me.
Please do not use the resonancedirect site at any time.
Please use this link instead http://rlr.qersys.com/cgi-bin/YaBB.pl
Hope that helps.
Stu
Hi Stu - thanks so much - found the site, it's great!
Rosekay
guitarboyuk
07-08-07, 19:02
am so glad i found the site I am 17 and you all know the fear of these ectopics/palpitations. i really didnt believe that there were this many people who am going through what I am. and of course i was convinced i was going to have a heart attack (sometimes still am). for now im trying to control my breathing and think positive thoughts.
guitarboyuk xxx
Hi everyone,
I am having one of these weeks where everyday sitting at work my heart goes haywire then I panic, then I feel so stressed. Sometimes I can go for months with the odd bad day however other times its just a nightmare. I have days when I know from when I wake up thats its going to go weird, I dont know why, does anyone else feel like this?? Its like I can sense it, or is this because for whatever reason I feel stressed and this brings them on? It would be interesting to know if others feel like this?
I have also had them for years and years, visited the doctor and had the heart monitor and off course nothing picked up, I cant take beta blockers as asthmatic but I would just like to say its nice to be on here and know everyone else is feeling the same about them.
Oh a friend has said to take a magnesium supplement, does anyone else take this?
Shaz x
Shaz I've never tried the magnesium.
I am like you though cos mine definately come in spits and spats - I can go months without having any and then have weeks of having them horribly.
I must say since starting this thread over 2 years ago now I have learnt not to be quite so afraid of them as I once was.
Love Piglet :flowers:
Hi Piglet
I get these two and have been checked out and told that it's fine and nothing to worry about, I get them a lot less now I drink less - do you find alcohol makes them worse?
Grreneyed xx
Well you know I really don't drink much at all these days but I did find the last time I had Baileys it happened.
I find if I bolt my food too quickly the resultant trapped wind doesn't help either.
Piglet :flowers:
hi
i get ectopics realy bad i have them most days ,i have had all the tests and they say i am fine well you know i dont feel fine i am feeling very upset and angry tonight as i have had to come back from my holls 3 days earlyer the ectopics have got the better of me my little girl seems to not be to botherd but i feel so sorry for her io have cryed all day about it i feel i am a horrid mum for doing this bt i just couldnt stay ii was getting ectopics every other beat and started to0 feel very scared it has been like this all week but today was so bad i just told my hubby to take me home i like packed our things in 10 mins and we went :weep:
sorry for the rant i just feel sooooooo bad tonight :weep:
jodiex
Hey Jodie,
Dont feel bad about it, I hope you are feeling better tonight.
Shaz x
Hi Piglet, I have similar symptons ! Mine is every TEN MINS EVERYDAY for the last eight days. It feels like they are in my throat, even when I am walking my children to School which is a fair old walk. I feel the funny sensation in my throat, I don't know if its skipping or just a funny sensation as I dont stop and take my pulse. But I would if I could lol I just carry on walking. HOw often do you have your missed beats on a daily basics? Please reply?
Leesa welcome to the site hun. :yesyes:
My palpitations or funny heart flutterings of any sort seem to come in patches - I can have a good few months without any and then get a good few months with them again!!!
On a bad day they will happen probably every few hours and on a good just a couple of times - I know I have already said this over the 2 years since I started this thread but if I try and see them as no more important than a run of sneezes then they assume a much less scary identity and I am able to not build the fear and so avoid getting even more anxious which is one of the things that feeds them anyway.
Love Piglet :flowers:
HI piglet, maybe mine happens every couple of hours also lol but feels like every ten minutes, i really dont know why???? it did happen when i was stressed last week, and it has not stopped, i have been to the docs, AGAIN lol and she wants me to have blood tests, and ecg, had all that before and thts right it was normal lol, i told the doctor this and she said she has to rule out the blood test first, what things do they test for do you know piglet??? and is it one thing or a range of things, dont like to keep askin the doctors in case they think here she goes again lol, thnk you for your reply, LEESA. xx
Aww sweetheart I'm not sure what they are testing for really.
I wonder have you ever read Claire Weekes book 'Self Help for your nerves'?? It has some very good sections on our worries about palpitations etc!!
Love Piglet :flowers:
yes i did read that book years ago, and had a panic attack lol, also have the book peace from nervous suffering, im not too worried about them as such, its just the frequency of them and also the way they feel lke they are in my thoat at the bottom, i can actually feel them just before they pause and then thud back, it feels like something is pushing back my throat and then the pause then the thud in the throat, horrible feeling, is your symptons anything like these???? love LEESA. x x x
All I know is I don't flippin like them and always stop and stare at myself waiting for a heart attack - however this year I seem to have been much better on that score, I just stare at myself and cough and then get on with what I'm doing!!:yesyes:
Piglet :flowers:
nicktaylor
17-09-07, 16:59
Ugh. Had a bout of these the last few days. Today I've had two, like a thump low down in my chest, then a sudden rush of adrenaline, makes me sit up suddenly each time it happens. I'm left feeling dizzy and achy after each one, especially around my diaphram, below my ribs.
The aching and dizziness is what really worries me, and the sudden rush of adrenaline - like someone flushing a toilet just below my tummy. So weird, and really nasty. Does anyone get that feeling too, apart from the thump in the chest?
richard sharp
18-09-07, 08:12
keep having this stop-start heart beat feeling in my chest and its freaky. i, like many of you have had many tests [about 3 years or so ago] and the doc said there was nothing to worry about but when they start i still get really worried. ive woken up with them the last 2 mornings and it develops into a panic attack. i then find it difficult for the rest of the day as im waiting for when them to starts again. today im supposed to be going out with friends and it involves travelling 240 miles in their car, but as ive got these feelings im unsure if i should go.
richard sharp
28-09-07, 08:50
woke up this morning with what seemed like my heart quivering, but my pulse was regular. it stopped happening within seconds but i still felt disturbed by it. this as happened in the past and as usually stopped when i move about.
I completely sympathise with you guys. I too have the dreaded things. Have had them constantly for the last year and a half. Had 24 hour monitors etc all saying they're normal! I try and ignore them but sometimes its very hard and when my heart seems to go crazy i sit there and think, well this must be it! I do sometimes feel like i bring them on cos i sit there and monitor, waiting for the dreaded things to appear.
:hugs:
Love Piglet :flowers:
Hey Piglet
I think you are great. I have read many of your comments over the last few months, keep up the good work.
Hugs
Tracy
Aww thanks hun - you can have another squeeze for that. :hugs:
Piglet :flowers:
Hi,
I am new to all of this!! That is message board, and the site, but just wanted to say i think it is fantastic!
I have suffered anxiety and panic attacks for 30 years...groan!, but it hasn't all been bad.
recently though i have suffered from these missed heartbeats and they are scaring me to death! I have read the posts, which are quite reassuring, but my problem is that the beats are coming every other beat and so far, constantly over the last 4 months or so.
Has anyone else experienced them this bad and do they ever stop???
I was doing so well, but these have put me back in to the depths of despair. Please help:lac:
Loopy loo.
countrygirl
24-10-07, 22:36
I too have the dreaded ectopic beats for past 15 years and one Dr told me that some people have then every other beat constantly for life!!! i think he was trying to reassure me silly man. So its not at all nice to ahve them every other beat but he didn't seem to be concerned if it was.
Rick_ji@mac.com
06-04-08, 23:28
Hi,
I'm new here. I found this site by googling 'missed heart beats' and was strangely reassured to find people whose symptoms exactly matched my own. I've suffered with anxiety for most of my life, but have managed to live happily for most of the time. When things are good it's Ok, but when things are bad...they really are bad. The worst thing I can think of is the missed heart beats which terrify me. I've had all the checks time and again, but reassurance doesn't work. I had CBT too, which seemed to have done the trick, but now I seem to be falling into the old patterns of thinking. I am aware that there is a particularly stressful event going on in my life right now and no doubt this is causing the missed heart beats, but I can rationalise all I want and all I think is, I just want this to stop. I'm 55 now, so I suppose there's not much chance that my life will ever be any different. Anyway, it's good to know I'm not alone at least. My friends try to be supportive, but I know they get bored with this issue time and time again, as do I.
I don't think we ever actually get to like them do we but I certainly don't feel quite as bad about them as I once did.
Love Piglet :flowers:
scouser1959
15-05-08, 20:42
hi im very new to this and im terrified of these missed beats im having! they started a few months ago after i took sudafed for sinus problems! i have had 3 ecgs and 2 lots of blood tests and have been told all is normal my gp says they are eptopic beats and nothing to worry about! i am starting propranalol beta blockers in a few days but im scared i have heart disease, it seems to happen after a meal and i have just began the menopause!!
Actually when I'm having a run of them it can also happen after a meal with me too.
There are a few things that can trigger them such as bending over in a funny way or having your bath water too hot - none of which we need to be getting our knickers in a twist about though.
I was talking to my Cognitive Behavourial therapist on Tues who said that once we start to be alarmed by our different heart beats then we become far too aware of them in a way that none anxious people just shrug off.
I've just had a very stressful 6 months and mine came back with avengence this last month and it's been very hard getting them that bad again - however each day that I am calming down in emotions so are the heart flutterings too.
What's helped me again is reading my Claire Weekes 'Self Help for your nerves' book which describes our symptoms very well indeed and is very reassuring (I would deffo get this book if you haven't already) and also just reading a few heart threads on here make me realise how common this symptom is and how we all sound the same.
Love Piglet :flowers:
scouser1959
16-05-08, 11:12
hi piglett im glad im not the only one who has them after meals!!! i never knew how popular they were until i discovered this website! im still not convinced i havent got heart disease!!! has anyone benefited from betablockers i.e. propranalol? i am starting them in a few days.
Rick_ji@mac.com
14-06-08, 22:58
My advice is not to be worried about using beta blockers; I've found them very helpful for missed heart beats and other anxiety related problems. Compared to a lot of other medications, I think they are quite a good option. My biggest problem with anxiety has always been the different feelings that I get with my heart (palpitations, ectopic heart beats). Beta blockers attack the problem at source and have a rapid effect. If you take them for a long time, you will need to wean yourself off gradually. They can make you feel a bit tired. I have taken them at various times in my life and I find them much more effective than any of the anxiolytics or anti-depressants that I've been prescribed.
I also find that food and upset stomachs exacerbate my ectopic heart beats but have yet to find a remedy for that. Actually, I have had a bad time over the last week with ectopic heart beats and came onto this site to reassure myself by reading the other messages, which so accurately describe my own symptoms. I've had the usual ECG's and blood tests and all is well, so I just try to accept them and I know that eventually they will go away again.
I'm also a fan of Elizabeth Weekes book and would recommend it to anyone. I was very ill a few years ago and reading her book got me back on the road to recovery when the traditional services seemed incapable of helping me.
withnail and i
29-06-08, 16:11
Hi everyone, i have had the usual symptoms for 3.5 yrs, seem to be worse when i lie down or get an adrenalin rush. Anyway they do seem to come and go, often lasting for weeks. I'am reasonably, fit don't smoke etc, and do around 15 miles a week on my cross trainer.
I have had bloodtests and ecg tests which all were normal, but during my blood tests it was discoverd that i had a slightly high liver enzyme count.
This really scared the hell out of me, and i abstained from booze for 3 months. The funny thing is during this time of worry i didn't get the usual heart flutters as i wasn't thinking about them, No! i was more worried about my liver. Once i was told everything was o.k. low and behold they came back again, or i started to notice them once more. The point is if we have something to take our mind off them then we don't notice them.
3.5 yrs now, some days bad some good, but still alive and able to exercise and have not had any progression in symptoms.
One last thing, i was diagnosed with GERD. This can cause an irritation of the Vagus nerve, which in turn can cause palps, flutters etc. It is an indigestion sort of thing.
Sorry to ramble.
Good luck and good health.
P.S i'am not an alcoholic.
I am so glad to find this site! I have had PVC's for a couple of years now off and on. I, too had all the tests and everything came back fine.
They still scare the heck out of me, though. My heart doctor told me a story about one of his patients who just couldn't believe him and went on to have many other tests and went to other doctors and after 2 years came back and said, you were right. My doctor said the hardest thing is getting patients over the fear thing with this condition.
I get them after I eat, too. Thank goodness I don't normally get them at night.
It is so helpful to hear all the other stories here and know that you are all still OK!:hugs:
Hi Guys
I too have suffered with the strange beats, ectopic etc for many many years. I go through different phases with them. I worry heaps and seem to get them all the time, then if I can accept them they seem to go aways (for the most part). I'm never sure if they stop so i stop worrying or whether i stop worrying so they stop! I do know that they are very very common. I have had all the tests etc and scans and everything is ok. I still worry about them but my doctor told me to embrace them!!!!!!!! still it does seem to work if you can accept them (easier said than done I know).
Good health to us all
I have been having ectopic beats for several weeks. I have been assured that I am in no danger and have therefore carried on with my normal life - However these beats are happening several times a minute, I don't always notice them and only know I've had a few together when I become light headed and go off balance, (I have even fallen over). My doctor said it is because my blood pressure drops!!!
I am waiting for a holter monitor so that they can work out what is causing them from the pattern - All I know is that it all started after a chest infection.
I am a very calm person, never had panic attacks, cut down on my caffeine and just try to get on with my daily life, but they are driving me nuts and I have worked out I am having more than 4000 of these per day - surely this will take it's toll eventually?
Hi janiep!
Actually they won't wear out your heart at all as long as your heart is otherwise healthy. There are people having over 7000 of these every day without even treating them, so they are not at all dangerous as long as your heart is structurally normal.
They are just extremely uncomfortable.
Most common causes are stress, anxiety, psychological arousal, benign pvc's (which your doctor probably suspects you have right now), anemia (check your b12, iron, magnesium and b9 levels), somatization (you can experience even more of them the more you think of them), stimulants (coffee, nicotine, alcohol, medications etc) and irregular sleep. Some people also experience them when they are dehydrated, and some when their bloodsugar is low.
In some cases arrythmias can be the cause, but this is rare, and the holter will reveal if this is the cause.
Hi Piglet,
I am so happy that I found this site. Since the birth of my first child I have been experiencing panic attacks and anxiety that have led me to become extremely aware of missed heartbeats. I could be just watching TV (not stressed at all?) and it will happen. Sometimes consecutively in the space of seconds which freaks me out even more.
I have become so scared of these episodes that I am becoming more and more anxious every single day.
Just hearing that someone else knows how frightening this is has been great medicine for me and I hope that by me understanding what it must be like for you will be helpful to you.
My doc is going to put me on 24 hour monitor in Dec. and I have had an echo and they said structurally everything is fine, but I still find myself obsessing over my pulse rate and crying every time it happens. I am going to try the breathing exercise as instructed and wait for the results of the monitor.
I have been so embarrassed about my 'condition' so to reply to your initial message has been a big step for me, I usually call my partner at work in a panic, but now I will just look on this site and calm myself down!
I hope all goes well with you Piglet, take care of you.
Vitsy1
Vitsy hello hun. :D
It's funny and I know I've said this before but this was my first post when I joined NMP in April 2005 and now we are here in Oct 08 and it still gets added to by new members.
It's an issue that brings many of us to the site because its one of the most common but scary symptoms. I have to say while I do still get them from time to time when my anxiety is high they are alot less frequent now and when I do get them I handle them better!!
A big welcome to Nomorepanic to you. :yesyes:
Piglet :flowers:
Hi fellow sufferers
Thought i might be of some help to those of us suffer from palpitations/missed beats etc.
I suffered from these for approx 1 1/2 years, sometimes they would dissapear but then they were coming thick and fast and all day, i kept having my pulse and blood pressure taken from the nurse at work and always came back fine. But then Tuesday last week they were so bad i was feeling quite light headed and couldn't concentrate on anything and felt like my heart was bruised. So took a trip up to A&E hoping they would say i was being a drama queen and send me away. But NO. I was hooked up immediately to heart monitors bloods taken for every test possible even asked if i was on drugs, and no im not by the way. So then the cardiologists came and told me i had an ectopic heart beat, and were even able to show me them on the heart monitor, they were very frequent too which shocked me, i was frightened out of my wits. But guessed i was in the best place. So next they wanted to keep me on heart monitor for 24 hours to see if the heart rate did anything funky overnight. The next day the consultant told me nothing too sinister happened overnight but wanted to keep me on this monitor for a further 24 hours. Next the funny thing, he asked if i had any hair loss or thining of hair which i had, and that these palps tend to get worse after eating. I was put on a drip containing some Vitamins, and when i told the nurse i felt better after having the first drip she said "thats funny, it doesn't normally do that", but this continued after having the drip then a few hours would pass id feel them come back, then here comes the nurse with a new drip, i started to be able to know when the drip would come by when my palps started again. So anyway to cut this long story short. I had a vitamin defficiency which i now take thiamine and Vitamin B. And tablets for my tummy to stop gas building up. But the biggest breakthrough was when the consultant then told me that i can no longer drink any form of alchohol as it is toxic to my heart, and has caused it to become flabby, hence my latest sensation that instead of beating my heart felt as though it was flipping and flopping over. I have been on my medication for 4 days now, and i feel like a new woman. My energy levels have gone back to normal, and my anxiety seems to have calmed right down, not even getting the dreaded fear of dying thoughts now. I hope i have helped some of you, i think i may have had this to an extreme level, and must point out that the consultant said my ECG did look slightly strange, but said i might just be one of these people who had a strange ECG.
Anyone who is worrying like i did, i read all the forums and scoured the net for months looking for advice, maybe try asking the doc to test for vitamin defficiency and if you drink any alchohol then take a break from it and see if that helps.
So to recap the tests i had they were: Blood test. Heart trace for 48 hrs. Heart Echo. and Treadmill Test. None of this hurt so don't suffer in silence go and get checked out.
hope this helped
shona
got palps and missed beats yesterday when walking into town. it was slightly uphill and into the wind. these calmed down for a while but after a short rest came back. every time i went to sleep i woke up with more palps etc this carried on all night. the doc has told me its linked to an electrical impulse in my heart and it is benign. i now feel achy and uncomfortable.
Hi kestral, as your doc says, ectopics are caused by a little electrical misfiring of the nerve that controls your heart rhythm. I've seen it described as being like a "hiccup" or "sneeze" of the heart. I get them every day. Not normally during/after exercise, but I did have them at dance class the other day. Most recently, I woke up to go to the loo in the night, when I went back to bed I had some ectopics. Thanks, heart! I find them freaky too, I think pretty much everyone who is aware of them does find them at least a little disturbing. Your heart is so important, it's difficult not to feel worried when it does anything other than beat in a nice, steady rhythm. However, they are very common, almost always benign, like your doc says. Try not to worry :).
having had those flips etc the other day i now find it difficult to convince myself to go out as i dont like the idea of feeling the same. i have arranged to see a concert tonight and a football match tomorrow, both about 80 miles from home. now im getting symptons, probably due to the stress. dont even like the idea of taking the dog for a walk either.
hiya
just wanted to ask do any of you get more ectopics when you have flu or cold
i have had these dam ectopics for years now and the last 2 years i have been doing much better with then ,but i have cold and last night i got them while i was trying to go to sleep :mad: this was a big thing for me years ago as i got ectopics worse at night found myself sitting up most the night for a long time which i know did not help
thanks
jodie xx:hugs:
Yes, it's common to have ectopics when your have the flu, especially when you have a fever.
It's really embarassing, but I have a veneric disease from my stupid youth, herpes, and whenever that one kicks in every three months or so I have lots of them as well.
Seems as if the body is struggling with infection, it affects the heart
having had those flips etc the other day i now find it difficult to convince myself to go out as i dont like the idea of feeling the same. i have arranged to see a concert tonight and a football match tomorrow, both about 80 miles from home. now im getting symptons, probably due to the stress. dont even like the idea of taking the dog for a walk either.
The trouble is with 'flips' (as you call them) there isn't always any rhyme or reason for when they come and because of that they stand an equal chance of coming when you are not doing anything physical, or indeed when you are!!
When they come and we are doing something physical we immediately connect the two and then want to avoid whatever we were doing when they came. I once had them walking up a hill and from then onwards got scared to walk up hills and yet the silly thing was I was also getting them sat on the sofa watching tv!!
Eventually I decided the best thing to do would to be exercise regularly to try and keep fitter (I could still do more on this front :blush: ) and I got a little trampette thing to bounce on to raise my heart rate.
Meg (a super old time member on here) wrote a post once about trying to see the flips as no more annoying than a run of sneezes would be and that really helps me to keep things in perspective.
I wouldn't change your plans hun to do the things you've arranged - so many of us do this and then leave ourselves suffering with moderate agoraphobia (which is what happened with me over the past 8 years).
I now think to myself if I wait for the ectopics to stop before venturing out then I will be waiting a long time so I go out anyway. This has the bonus of giving me confidence of acheivement which has the knock on effect of lowering the anxiety, which has the knock on effect of lessening the ectopics .............. do you see the pattern!
It may not be easy at times but stick with it.
Piglet :flowers:
Hi Piglet!
I just want to thank you for sharing your experience with heart irregularities. I just got back from having an ecg - normal but my missed heart beat didn't happen during the ecg anyway. Been having these for about 10 days. Starting to think it's all stress related but also have had tummy bug so at a low ebb aswell. It's really scarey when it happens - I don't actually notice the missed heart beat - just that the next beat seems to come back so strong and thats the one I notice. Was initially trying to ignore it but when my husband felt the missed beat when checking my pulse it really freaked me out. Have not slept properly since. Also have just self-checked my BP at docs and its 141/85 which is really high for me - am guessing this is adding to my stress. Reading yours and others entries on this site has helped my put it into perspective but wondered if anyone else felt that follow on beat really strongly and if this was a normal experience too? Also I'm really light headed but am now guessing this is due to BP, would appreciate any comments on this last BP related query too. Thanks in advance to anyone who replies.
but wondered if anyone else felt that follow on beat really strongly and if this was a normal experience too?
Yes now that is exactly what I get - you put that into words very well!
I would say over the last 8 years these are the following sensations I get
1. A missed beat that can feel like a 'lurch' or dropping sensation.
2. Unevenly spaced beats feeling the follow on beat as an extra strong beat like a small punch.
3. Racing heart beat - beating faster than normal and making me feel het up.
4. Palpitations - a little run of fluttering heart beats.
5. Strong heart beats - not necessarily fast but just like I seem to be extra sensitive to every beat, so feel every beat etc.
I don't get all these symptoms at the same time thankfully lol and neither have I had them consistently over the last 8 years but when I do get a few weeks (or even months) of them at a time then they can take the form of any of the above.
Suze your blood pressure might be high for you hun but in the general scheme of things is still well in the normal ranges.
My BP always hits the roof when tested at the doctors (so they stopped doing it there and let me borrow a BP unit from the surgery to try at home - big success for me that was as it's always normal at home) until a few weeks ago when I had it done at the surgery and it was about 130/84 which for me at the surgery is brilliant. When I do it at home its always very nicely in the 120/80 range or lower.
Our BP fluctuates all through the day depending on what we are doing so that they always like to take the resting BP reading and would want to do that consistently over a period of time before deciding if someone did indeed have high BP or just the old 'white coat syndrome'.
Welcome to any of you that are new members to the site BTW! :yesyes:
Piglet :flowers:
Once again thanks so much Piglet!!!!!!
Also, I wanted to add that your Piglet/Pooh quote coupled with your comments on this topic have helped me so much this week! Whenever I start to worry about stuff I imagine the scene in my head - along with Pooh's pause while he has 'careful thought'. The quote is so apt in its simplistic wisdom. (also helps as I'm a disney fan)
Thanks for sharing that. I wrote it on a piece of paper and it's on my computer desk.
:)
Suze.
You're very welcome mate.
The quote still does it for me too lol! :yesyes:
Piglet :flowers:
Hi all,
Just had an interesting weekend and am hoping that sharing this may help to alleviate some anxiety I'm experiencing today.
On Friday morning I woke up aware of some fluttering in my chest and a little dizziness. I'm a fairly fit and healthy person, eat well, don't smoke, don't drink excessively and have a very relaxed attitude to life. By the afternoon this continued, so I called a healthline provided by my work and they told me to dial 999 immediately. Ok, so this was a little shocking as I didn't feel particularly unwell. So rather than call for an ambulance I drove to the local A&E dept. They hooked me up to an ECG machine and took some blood etc. I (and the staff there) could actually feel by my pulse that every 3rd or 4th heartbeat was missing and this also clearly showed up on the ECG trace. A cardiac doctor came down and they told me that I had heart block and would need to be admitted to the cardiac care unit immediately (not quite what I had expected!). Things were going so quickly that I wasn't even able to call my wife which was actually my biggest concern at that stage.
The doctor then told me that I needed to have a temporary pacemaker fitted to fix the missing beats. He said that this was a quick 15-20 minute procedure and that it would be done under local anaesthetic. So I consented to having this done and so was wheeled into an operating theatre. To cut a long story short, 3 hours later (1 hour trying to insert a central line into a vein in my neck, plus another hour trying to thread a wire into my heart and a further hour trying unsuccessfully to get the pacemaker to work) they decided to call in the consultant cardiologist who took one look at me and said "This is not necessary, we should probably just monitor it overnight and treat you as an out-patient". Which was relief, but the evening had been a tad stressful for me (and my family) nevertheless. So I spent the night in hospital with a painful neck watching my (very regular) missing 4th beat on the monitor.
The next day all the blood tests had come back normal and the consultant was happy for me to go home. I still felt exactly the same way that I did on Friday before going to the hospital and the skipping has continued since then. I'm still a bit worried about the cause, long-term impact etc of it all. It will be several weeks before I will get my out-patient's appointment.
Anyway, reading the posts here (and writing my story) has really helped and it seems that the best advice is to try and ignore the heartbeat and try and get on with things. I'm not expecting to get a definitive answer to why this happens, but hope that I will be able to continue doing everything I was doing beforehand. I'll keep you posted on the outcome.
I get these all the time, i am pregnant at the moment and i get them everyday at least five times so there worse. I have been told they increase with pregnancy i did suffer from them most days before i got pregnant.
I hate them....its like my heart stops a few beats n flutters. Went to docs again last week, he listened to my heart and sent me for bloods to check thyroid and full blood count.
Have had ecg's done in the past, but these still terrify me.
My reply didnt mean to go onto that thread!! It was meant to be on another thread!
Sorry to hear about your horrible experience.
valleybear
13-01-09, 21:44
Ectopic beats are a bummer, but everyone was spot on. They lessen when exercising or when you ignore them. I had a bad bout 8 years ago and used to cry as they were so bad. they disappeared after a 18months and haven't been back untilnow. I don't panic so much about this symptom now as I know they can be beaten........other things send me into sa spin though!
:) I am so pleased that I have found this website. I too suffer from missed beats, have had 2 ECGS over the past two years and they have been normal. I have suffered from anxiety for many years mainly because of events in my life and family problems which to this day haven't been resolved.
The missed beats have started up again over the past 10 days, I am getting paranoid about taking my pulse. Yesterday I had a good day but had a couple this morning when I got oput of bed. I convince myself that I am going to 'drop dead' very soon. My GP said the missed beats are harmless and mainly caused by surges of adrenaline and worrying about them makes them worse. I am on Citalopram 40mg for anxiety. I am 57 and somedays I am convinced that I won't make 58!!
I find it very hard to accept that they are harmless.I also get very very anxious about any forthcoming events especially social gatherings etc.
I do hope someone will reply to this,at least now I know that I am not alone and can share this problem with others. x.x.
hi hollydog
ive had some of the experiences youve had and responded in the same ways, such has constantly checking my pulse. i have blood pressure problems and take 10mg citalopram as well as bp and cholesterol medication. the gp said some time ago the missed beats i have are benign but it does send the stress levels up quite a bit. everyday finds me checking my pulse and feelings which is down to health anxiety.
best wishes, alan
:) im glad i found this website and although i wouldnt wish these horrible ectopic beats on anyone,it is reassuring to hear other have similar symtoms. Have had mine every few beats all day for several days then a break of a day or two then they return. this has gone on for nearly three months. Any one have similar pattern?
Thanks Mel x
I have had anxiety/panic attacks for nearly six years now and have pretty well had all the symptoms during that time but one I thought I'd got used to was the heart irregularities but they are worrying me again.
I get a fast heart rate sometimes (in fact I think its fast but my pulse is never much more than about 80) but that is my least frightening one, far more scary are the missed heartbeats which are happening daily at the moment whereas I usually get them once in blue moon.
I've been scaring myself silly about this recently (its not happening in the night or at least if it is, its not waking me). Also my palpitations feel like a muscle twitching/fluttering rather than a fast heart beat.
Over the years I've been a few times to the doctors and he's never been able to hear any irregularity - I did ring last week as I wanted to know if my palpitations were the same as everybody elses and he did feel what I described fell under my anxiety umbrella (it was a phone consultation) and offered to put me on the moniter but we both agreed that the likelyhood of capturing it was unlikely. My doctor does know me well and I like him but somehow I'm still fretting about it.
I had such a good year last year with my anxiety and getting out and about on my own but then had a panic attack in Jan while out, which I have let get quite out of hand and unless one of the kids will come out with me I can't much further than the end of the street.
Does anybody else have a) phases of missed heartbeats that are every few hours over a period of days? b) fluttering or twitching heart muscle/beat lasting a few seconds? c) Does it happen sometimes on movement aswell as when you're still?
Love Piglet (I've used the name piglet as sometimes I find it hard to be brave)!
Hi Piglet
I have been having missed beats for about a year now and they are scary so I know what you mean. There have been times I would take myself off to bed and be scared to even move. I hardly go out without one of my children with me and even get scared at times in the house on my own. Ive had 3 ECGs and found nothing, docs all tell me its anxiety. I feel dizzy a lot too but the best way is just to tell yourself its your mind playing games. Try to push it under the carpet and ignore it as much as you can. My husband has been having them for over 20 years and one day he counted 52 missed beats in 1 day and he is still alive! so although its scary so many people have them and they are all fine too. Take care and keep strong x
katielou80
10-11-10, 06:56
hi people im new to this, I also have severe health anxiety and have had many things this year!! But not!! ( if you know what i mean! lol) Well at the moment i am suffering with the worst skipped beats ever, they have lasted over a month, and they are pretty constant!! Like 1 beat missed in every 10!! I cant help checking my pulse!! But i know it makes it worse. I have been to my dr twice in 2 weeks, and he assured me im fine, they wont kill you, they are very common, and lots of people get them!! (even him, he also gets another weird heart thing too!) Im still so worried. He has prescribed me propranolol, which i AM going to start taking, for my familys sake!!!! I have even written to an online cardiologist and he too says many many people have them, some people every other beat, and they are truly harmless. I find all this REALLY hard to accept!! And it is totally ruining my life, i think about them, feel them and google about them all day!!! People think im truly nuts that i have been to a dr and im still freaking!!! Helpppp!!!!!!!! xxx
Yes I do get them I feel the exact same way as u do!
Catherine S
23-02-16, 18:51
Hi Emran , just to point out that you've revived an old thread that was created in 2005 and last replied to in 2010, so don't worry if you don't get any replies from the people on this particular thread. I can see that you have created your own thread on this issue, and had some advice from fishman, so you should get some more response on that.
Take care
ISB x
jab in the heart with missed heartbeats
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