irregular heart

[molly36]

Hi there ,i am so worried tonight about my heart ,i have had ectopics ,fast ,flutters for many years now.Had all the tests came back saying anxiety and panic .But tonight i was just sitting watching tv and out of the blue my heart went really haywire ,like small fast heart beats then it went all over the place,it lasted around 1 minute then because it wasnt going back to normal i panicked and then my heart starting racing terribly but with ectopics aswell.The thing is i feel like if i hadnt panicked causing my heart rate to race the irregular rate would have continued,i feel like the panic heart rate jolted my irregular rate back to normal,if that makes sense.I am just so scared of it happening again as i nearly called a ambulance it was so bad.Im 35 and had panic for a long time but palps just ruin my life.please anyone who has this before please tell me xx

[crazyhayz]

u need to see a doctor about getting medication to control the ectopics if they are affecting ur life so much hun.. that does sound scary but as u said, uve had them many years, so im sure ur fine. tell ur doc about it, and ask for an ECG to check it all out. Just for ur peace of mind :) x

[RLR]

Okay, you can relax. This type of phenomenon is induced by the vagus nerve and not a sign of an impending cardiac event whatsoever. Unlike pathological arrhythmias, benign palpitations do not originate from within the heart. They are the consequence of chronic elevated stimulation of the nervous system to some extent.

Body position can sometimes have a great effect upon the potential for this to occur for several reasons; The GI tract is innervated by the vagus nerve and at that level is called the pneumogastric nerve. If excessive air becomes trapped or displaced within the lumen of the intestines at certain points, it can produce irregular stimulation of the nerve and the signal travels upward until it reaches the terminal points, one of which is the heart. All of the terminal points become stimulated, but because the heart is such a dynamic organ and muscle, you immediately sense the response. Depending upon precisely where within the cardiac cycle the signal occurs, it can produce sometimes dramatic sensations. The vagus nerve terminals into the larnyx as well and this is the reason that stimulation also produces a cough reflex in some persons that appears simultaneously with the palpitations. Some patients even complain that their respiration seems erratic or that they feel the need to help themselves breathe. These sensations are all due merely to stimulation by the vagus nerve and do not constitute a warning sign of anything dangerous.

Always remember that these palpitation events can never interfere with the heart's normal pacer and are incapable of causing your heart to stop for any reason whatsoever. It's also critical to realize that the sensation you are experiencing is extremely magnified by comparison to the actual event at the level of the heart, which is far less in intensity.

Also know that the vagus nerve stimulates the locus ceruleus region in the brain. This is the center where emotional regulation of fear is partially intepreted and regulated, so the fear response you experience is also to some extent being produced by the vagus response and not simply your awareness of the event.

Whenever you experience an event like this, a change in body position will always help interrupt the continuation of the vagus-induced palpitation events, in addition to drinking small sips of water. In most cases, an audible sound can be heard as trapped air moves beyond certain points to relieve physical compression against areas where the pneumogastric nerve (vagus nerve) may be stimulated.

Just so you're aware, in more than 40 years of practice as a physician and specialist, I never once even heard of a patient suffering any type of cardiac event whatsoever as a consequence of the type of palpitations you are experiencing. Not even once.

They are frightening to be certain, but it's important to try and remain calm. They will always pass and you will never suffer any actual harm. They cannot cause a heart attack or any such dramatic event.

You're just fine. Take a breath and relax.

Best regards,

Rutheford Rane, MD (ret.)

[benjamin222]

Wow! There is an actual doctor here! A quick question simply because I also have heart concerns, the big one that bothers me is the stabbing sensation I get daily. I'm 24, not overweight, and had 3 EKG's a few months ago when my panic attacks started. My doctor has assured me a few times that nothing is wrong with my heart, though wasn't really able to explain this symptom to me.

It typically happens when I'm sitting, out of nowhere I'll have a very intense pain on the left side of my chest that radiates to my entire body, it feels like someone just jammed a needle in my heart. It only lasts about a second, but when it happens my adrenaline goes up, and then for an hour or so afterwards I'll feel dizzy, lightheaded, and unable to concentrate.

I know it must be anxiety and harmless, but without understanding of the sensation it's very hard for me to ignore.

[molly36]

Thank you for your replies ,also thank you to rlr for taking the time to explain all that to me.I think i was so scared as this time it didnt last a few seonds it lasted around a minute which is a long time with palps .I still feel the only reason it went back to normal was the panic attack i had which raised mey heart to a very scary spped but at least it seemed to regulate the beat from the small fast irregular beat .I hate them they rule my life.Rlr can u please tell me your website please i have heard a lot about it .many thanks kind regards molly

[jothenurse]

RLR -
I would be interested in your website also.

[Kelley]

Me too. You sure sound like you know what you are talking about!
Just for the record Molly, i have experienced something similar and it scares the bloody hell out of you! Having a sister who is in charge of a Cardiac Ward doesn't help either.....i'm almost certain my problems with PVC's began when she started working there!!

Take care :)

[shorty1969]

I can sympathise with you molly ! I go through the same thing , can be sitting there feeling pretty good and relaxed , then out of no where it happens , like my heart is trying flip over , it realy puts you into a downer and feel scared . i can go for weeks , months with nothing ,then they can plague me for weeks ,, if im stressed or anx i get them bad , Ive had ecg s done a few times , im waiting to see a cardio doc in a few weeks , just want to be checked out more thurough , to give me peace of mind .

[molly36]

tHANKS for all the replies im very gratefull ,i just get so scared its afib as some people talk of the flutters on here and have been diagnosed with afib,i have had loads of ecgs and week long recordings of my heart but it never happens then .Im just scared they are missing it .My heart really goes haywire for a while and it scares me so much .My doc is great but he says its anxiety kind regards molly

[Ella_Jayne]

RLR -
I would be interested in your website also.

Here is a link to RLR's website:

http://palps.chemicalforums.com/cgi-bin/YaBB.pl

[molly36]

thanks i found it kind regards molly

[jothenurse]

Thanks for the website address.