I’m really worried and could do with some other people’s perspective.
So here I am at quarter to 5am writing this after being woken up with palpitations. I’ve had them to a greater or lesser extent for years now and have had a couple of 24 hour monitors which showed PVCs but nothing for the Dr to be concerned about - there was a comment about one run of them of a few (about 6) in a row one one of them but they didn’t think this was worthy of further investigation.
I’ve had anxiety for years (inc health anxiety) and used to suffer from awful panic attacks which I’ve fortunately managed to get over, and unfortunately (for anyone, but particularly someone with HA), had a very large post-surgery pulmonary embolism just over a year ago which put me in resus/CCU - which started with me waking up in the middle of the night with palpitations that just didn’t let up (the PE has enlarged my heart with all the backed up blood so it was struggling). Anyway, I was given the all clear after a while in hospital and follow up tests inc. an echo. but was left very depressed and anxious and was diagnosed with PTSD (which has been treated with EMDR). Started having palpitations again during this time (and had one of the 24hr monitors), which I eventually managed to reduce dramatically by starting magnesium tablets daily (bloody amazing).
Thing is, they single ectopics have come back with a vengeance, even on the magnesium, and are behaving differently - having quite a few individual ones spaced out over 1/2 an hour or so before having a bit of respite, I am having chest pain too, not central, more to the outside of both sides, which comes and goes. This has been going on for a week or so and I’m kinda ashamed to say that I did end up in A&E a couple of days ago, the ECG coming back fine, as did the troponin, d-dimer and chest X-ray (think they do these as standard on me now considering my history) - the doc, who was absolutely lovely, telling me that these were most likely non pathological palpitations and pain due to stress. I am definitely stressed - just started a degree as a mature student 2 weeks ago (lots of anxiety about failing etc) and just prior to starting became obsessed with my speech as I noticed I was forgetting/jumbling words up which convinced me I was either suffering from a brain tumour or early onset dementia (oh lovely health anxiety) - so the anxiety about starting uni, plus the anxiety about my speech (probably caused by the uni anxiety) has been rotten.
But they’re so different this time, I’ve never had them happen so regularly over a short period of time, never had the pain (the palpitations and pain don’t necessarily happen concurrently - so it isn’t that the palpitations themselves hurt if you see what I mean), never been woken up by them. Could this really be stress/anxiety?
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