Phantom ectopic beats?

[dabend36]

I am 15 months post ablation and still in sinus rhythm. Occasionally, usually while lying awake in bed, I can feel my heart beating when suddenly, it almost feels like it stops beating. Then it will feel like it is beating irregularly. However, when I go to take my pulse on my wrist, everything is in rhythm. When I have checked it with my Kardia, it is in rhythm. My doctor has even given me heart monitors (one for 3 weeks and one for 48 hours) and not once did they record any problems even though I felt the sensation while wearing them.

My question is whether anyone else out there experiences the sensation of an irregular heartbeat even though their heart is in sinus rhythm.

Thanks!

d

[BobD Volunteer]

Sounds like normal ectopic beats to me which as you will have been told are benign. We AFers get far too obsessed with our hearts and notice things nobody else does I'm afraid and it does take a lot of self control to tune these things out and get on with life.

[Hidden]

All fairly common dabend, even folk who have never had AF can get loads of ectopics and are not necessarily aware.....

[TamlaMotown]

Yes I get exactly what you describe every single day 😝

[Hidden]

I have episodes where my heart rate drops to 30 and regular for a few seconds and I feel faint. The rest of the time, I am in AF. In my case the pauses are due to heart block.

It is over so quickly that I can’t catch it on my Kardia.

Although a Holter monitor will pick up pauses, I believe the cardiologists generally only regard pauses of more than 3 seconds as significant unless you are fainting. In my case the pauses are 2 seconds. So if you get symptoms from this in the future you could ask the arrhythmia nurse to check the Holter report.

Both rate and rhythm control drugs have the potential to cause this problem in people with or without heart block.

Are you saying your heart continues to feel like it’s stopped beating even while you can feel it beating regularly at your wrist?

[dabend36]

Sort of. I am not asking about the normalcy of ectopic beats. I am asking if anyone else experiences the perception of ectopic beats that are not actually happening. IT's one thing to have an ectopic beat that is no longer there when you use the kardia. I am asking if any one else experiences the perception of ectopic beats as well as rapid heart beat that is not picked up while wearing a monitor.

[Hidden]

Yep, every day.

I am 17 months post ablation and felt them from around the 12 month period.

Annoying and initially worrying, but i just kind of ignore them now

[emilyboom]

9 months post surgery. This started a month ago. Been through all the test/monitors and passed. Thank you for posting. I thought it was only me. :.)

[KMRobbo]

Yes I get them. I had ablations in January and February this year. Normally I try to ignore the ectopics but if I get one when I am in bed and trying to go to sleep then it is difficult to ignore! I had one a few days ago and it felt like my heart stopped and I was fully awake trying to find my pulse in my neck in a few seconds. I am assuming at this stage that my heart did not stop as it appeared to last several seconds so is unlikely.

Cheers