Here we go again.. heart rate extremely high this morning.

[Chlobo]

Can anyone help?
Last year around May time I woke up and once I was out of bed I realised my heart was racing, it was around 140. I wasn’t anxious upon waking and I couldn’t figure out the cause. This happened again the second day so I went to the doctors, had a normal ECG and was diagnosed with anaemia after blood tests. I was given a beta blocker for anxiety and some iron. Fast forward to now I haven’t taken those beta blockers for a while due to not feeling the racing heart. Well this morning it happened for the first time again after a year. It felt like it could have been around 180. I panicked so badly and paced around the living room trying to breathe and calm myself but I couldn’t get it to slow down. It almost felt stuck in this high loop, holding my breath didn’t work, nor did sitting down which I found hard because of the adrenaline coursing through me. I found a beta blocker and took that and it came down quite fast after. I’m terrified that it’s happening again. I have messaged my doctors to arrange an appointment but I’m so scared it’s a heart problem. My chest has felt sore all day and my heart has been in the 70’s/80’s. Can anyone offer reassurance? The doctor said before it was anxiety and low iron causing it but I’m terrified it could be SVT or something similar

[Sunflower2]

I have SVT along with a few other issues that cause a fast heart rate. It’s generally a benign condition and as you said it came down quickly, either by itself or because of the beta blocker, that means you already know how to deal with it and should feel reassured by that fact. The chest pain is likely from your heart working hard, the same as if you did hard exercise. Hopefully the doctor will be able to explain more to you about it!
Mine is generally under control now, but I found that lying on the floor with my legs in the air helped drop the racing heart quickly. Other things that can help are splashing your face with cold water, drinking a cold drink, holding your breath to try and pop your ears.

[Chlobo]

Hi sunflower, thanks for the reply.
Do you know what your heart rate goes up too during a SVT attack?
I mean I haven’t been diagnosed with this but maybe it’s a possible fit. I’m under a lot of stress at the moment, can that be a trigger for an episode? Hope you don’t mind my questions.

[Sunflower2]

When I’ve had true svt it’s been over 200bpm, but you can also just have a high heart rate that is in normal rhythm. I can get a heart rate of 150-190bpm very easily, and I know lots of people that have the same. It’s actually quite common! The only way of knowing which one it is, is with an ecg monitor. Stress is a trigger for so many things, mine is certainly worse when I’m stressed or haven’t slept enough. Hope that helps!

[Chlobo]

When I’ve had true svt it’s been over 200bpm, but you can also just have a high heart rate that is in normal rhythm. I can get a heart rate of 150-190bpm very easily, and I know lots of people that have the same. It’s actually quite common! The only way of knowing which one it is, is with an ecg monitor. Stress is a trigger for so many things, mine is certainly worse when I’m stressed or haven’t slept enough. Hope that helps!

I’ve had a lot of life stress the past month and it’s flared my health anxiety up massively. I’ve had a lot of worries the last few weeks and it’s constantly changing from one thing to another. But I don’t know if stress can cause the heart rate to suddenly go that high for no reason. And as it happened last year for about a week every morning I’m worried it could be SVT flaring. I cut out caffeine yesterday and only had one cup of tea and drank a glass of water before bed and this morning my heart was highish but not like it was the day before. It honestly felt like it could have been around 200 but I was too scared to check. I just quickly took the propanolol. It felt like it was stuck in a fast loop and it needed a reset, it was strange

[Sunflower2]

Stress makes everything 100 times worse for sure!
What makes you so worried about the fast heart rate? I know it’s not pleasant but short bursts of it are usually completely fine. Your heart is an incredibly strong muscle and can take a lot! Hope you get some relief from your stress soon and also are able to talk to a doctor about your worries. Until I understood what was happening it used to really freak me out too. Health anxiety must be so exhausting for you!

[Chlobo]

Stress makes everything 100 times worse for sure!
What makes you so worried about the fast heart rate? I know it’s not pleasant but short bursts of it are usually completely fine. Your heart is an incredibly strong muscle and can take a lot! Hope you get some relief from your stress soon and also are able to talk to a doctor about your worries. Until I understood what was happening it used to really freak me out too. Health anxiety must be so exhausting for you!

Well I went to the doctor and he didn’t seem concerned. He listened to my heart, he took my oxygen and listened to my chest. He said all sounded fine. He said he could do an ECG but I had one last year which was fine due to the same symptoms. He said medically he wasn’t worried.
What scares me is that I could have a heart condition that’s being unnoticed. I’m very afraid of medical settings so it takes a lot of mental strength to go and get checked out. I feel exhausted just going to see the doctor now.
I can always feel my heart beat now and it isn’t racing and it feels like it is. I’m not sure what to think. He gave me beta blockers but that’s not an answer for what’s happening. He said anxiety can be a monster to deal with.

[Fishmanpa]

Well I went to the doctor and he didn’t seem concerned. He listened to my heart, he took my oxygen and listened to my chest. He said all sounded fine. He said he could do an ECG but I had one last year which was fine due to the same symptoms. He said medically he wasn’t worried.
What scares me is that I could have a heart condition that’s being unnoticed. I’m very afraid of medical settings so it takes a lot of mental strength to go and get checked out. I feel exhausted just going to see the doctor now.
I can always feel my heart beat now and it isn’t racing and it feels like it is. I’m not sure what to think. He gave me beta blockers but that’s not an answer for what’s happening. He said anxiety can be a monster to deal with.

Chlobo,

Take what you posted and apply it to your post history here. Time to put this to bed and get back on the treatment/therapy/healing bandwagon.

FMP

[Chlobo]

Chlobo,

Take what you posted and apply it to your post history here. Time to put this to bed and get back on the treatment/therapy/healing bandwagon.

FMP

Hi fishmanpa, I will go back over my old posts but I have read so much about SVT and it’s difficult to catch on an ecg unless it’s happening at the time. But now I am completely focused on my heart

[Sunflower2]

If the GP isn’t concerned then that’s great news. They take any suspected serious heart issues very seriously. Even in your worst case scenario say that you are getting short runs of SVT that hasn’t been caught on an ecg yet.. it’s still a completely benign condition and causes no damage to your heart. Loads of people have it without even realising, and most of these people often don’t need to treat it. SVT doesn’t stop me doing anything at all, I still play sports, am very active and for 99% of the time it doesn’t cross my mind. I treat it a bit like hiccups, annoying but easy to treat and not at all worrying. It also feels very different to your normal rhythm, so if you had it you’d certainly know about it.

The best thing to do is like fishmanpa mentioned and work on your stress and anxiety.