Perhaps others have seen my posts about shortness of breath, especially after moving around a good deal or climbing a flight of stairs.
Other than that, a little background. I am now 46. I am two years younger than my father when he got heart disease (he is still rolling at 78, so no sad story there, though his heart is a mess right now--I also take far better care of my body than he did). I fluctuate in health from working out religiously to seeming to let it slide for a month or so. I am a little overweight, needing to lose 10-ish pounds. I am conscious of my health, and try to eat well most times, but have not always eaten well in the past. I never drank, I smoked 5 years but quit 19 years ago next month. I have a prolapsed mitral valve in my heart, but otherwise no major health issues. It doesn't, or hasn't given me much trouble.
Obviously, by me being here, I have health anxiety as well--actually probably generalized anxiety as I can get pretty spun up over non health issues too. That said, I recognize it, and have gone to therapy and learned a lot of successful CBT techniques, and overall manage it pretty well. But I have periodic episodes, triggered by small things or big things. Lost a friend to cancer, and it awakened my HA, though it wasn't until a year or so after his passing. Sometimes hearing health issues on the TV or radio trigger me, but not usually, not unless it applies to me very directly. I try--usually successfully these days--not to let my imagination get the best of me, and even near full episodes I can seem to overcome successfully.
Enter my Apple Watch. I have had an Apple Watch for a year and a half, and a fitbit for years prior to that, usually to track exercise, diet, weight loss etc. One thing I never used or paid much attention to was the heart rate monitor. I mean, for years now I have used a fitness tracker of one sort or another, and never paid any attention to heart rate--until now.
When I had the shortness of breath, which I am still pretty much attributing to anxiety at this point, I turned it on and took a look, not so much because I was freaked out, but because I was curious. Was that ever a huge mistake!
I have a good resting heart rate, at least good enough for my current level of fitness, being mid 70s, if I am really relaxed it drops to 68 or 69, if I am feeling anxious, it rides around 80, sometimes as high as 87, but normally right in the middle at 74-77, all withing the normal, healthy parameters for my age. I do not have high blood pressure that I know of (last doctor visit was a physical last May).
But when I stand, and move around, even casually, like just walking around the house from the kitchen to the living room for instance, it seems to jump right to 105 to 108. Sometimes it hovers around 100, but often rides around 107. I can find NO information (and for the first time in thirteen YEARS I broke down and googled) describing what a normal "walking around" heart rate should be. Luckily, I didn't see anything in my google-relapse that sent me in a worse direction, but I found NO information about anything related to your "walking around" heart rate other than what your resting heart rate should be.
Now I have this damn device on my wrist that basically feeds my hypochondria. I am happy with my resting heart rate, but now I cannot seem to stop checking and obsessing over my heart rate on the thing. I cannot take it off, as my Apple Watch ties into my work (phone email and text alert which I need for work). And now, try as I might, I cannot quit obsessively checking my heart rate. I am reassured when sitting around and it is 69, but I check it walking to the kitchen (I work at home), and bam, it is 108 or 115 and I freak out.
I don't have any idea what the normal walking around pulse should be for a 190 pound 6'3" 46 year old man should be (and I will leave google well enough alone) but have a couple of questions for people out there suffering with HA. First, have you obsessed about your heart rate, and if so, did it have anything to do with a fitness tracker? How did you overcome it?
And, out of curiosity, does anyone know if my 107 "walking around" pulse is high? Or is that normal? I know my target heart rate for excercise, I know my resting heart rate. What I have NEVER been told, probably because it doesn't matter that much, is what is our "walking around casually, or doing dishes" heart rate?
Obviously a real problem, but do mean this post a bit tongue and cheek. I am ruining a good run of being light on HA with this dang Apple Watch. All my OCD stuff is creeping back, and I may just ditch it for a while anyway.
Any shared experiences or heart rate info from someone more rational than me would be welcome!
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