Anybody ever get 'strange' chest sensations that aren't afib?

[DaveT81]

As an afib diagnosee and somebody who had an ablation back in 2017, I'm all too aware of the wonderful things afib and heart irritation can bring.

But sometimes things occur that are not the usual and are sometimes odd and just, well... plain terrifying.

Got to work this morning, after about 45 minutes, I just didn't feel right. Felt like I may have had an upset stomach. About an hour later my heart start giving hard ectopics, which has been happening frequently lately.

Then I suddenly felt strange, centered in my chest, can't really describe it any other way. My heart gave a good 10 seconds worth of palpitations, random beats and made me feel breathless and flushed. Blood rushed to head and I panicked a bit, I'm not going to lie.

Since then I've had a lump in my throat, feels almost reflux like and my whole upper body just feels heavy and... I dunno, off.

I can't really describe it in a better way.

I do have IBS, get reflux and I'm aware of the heart and gut link. Also know my afib is vagal stimulated too. But this was bizarre. I had a similar sensation a year or so ago when I first tried fluoxetine and couldn't tolerate it. Not on anything other than ramipril and omeprazole at the minute.

[jeanjeannie50]

Dave I'd ring my GP or the NHS 111 number and ask for advice. I'd be too afraid that this was linked to a heart attack.

Jean

[DaveT81 in reply to jeanjeannie50]

Thanks Jean. I'm hoping it isn't linked to a heart attack, as this happened about 6 hours ago. I still feel a bit 'off' and I'm exhausted right now.

But I also have an undiagnosed breathing problem and ME, so that would probably explain why I'm so tired, along with the heart activity!

[Ppiman]

I would say that what you experienced is similar to what I have, but that a call to your GP is what you should do now.

In the end, having had my ablation followed by a confirmatory ultrasound and, eventually, a cardiac MRI, I've pretty much convinced myself that the various awful feelings I had - which, as I say, seem just like your own - were anxiety related and triggered by the heavy ectopic beats. I still get these, but, in general, I can put them to the back of my mind. The cardiac stress MRI was what helped me a great deal to do this since it showed there were no issues with my heart.

The gastric feelings and the "lump in the throat" (called globus pharyngeus but which was called globus hystericus in the day!) are classic anxiety symptoms or related to digestive issues such as acid reflux, a hiatus hernia or even brought on by IBS and constipation.

Steve

[DaveT81 in reply to Ppiman]

Hi, and thanks for your reply Ppiman.

I spoke with a GP at my surgery a few weeks ago when this first start to get quite bad, along with my non-related breathing problem, and they told me to download an app called 'Headspace', as they can't actually see my face-to-face at the moment. I've been doing that, meditating for 5-10 every day and I'm awaiting a call from a locally funded councillor group to see if talking about my health problems helps.

I'm definitely going to contact them again once I can speak to my usual GP though.

As for the anxiety-triggered 'heavy beats', I definitely have to agree there. My health has been getting worse for the past 18 months and it's started to really have an effect on my mood and stress levels. So it's possible that these are being brought on my anxiety that's just under the surface.

I had and MRI (not stress) about 9 months ago that was fine and I was due a 7-day tape a few weeks before the lockdown. But the hospital had our first covid cases so I cancelled. All indications over the past 24 months though is that my heart health is generally good, just these blasted ectopics that seem to be getting more frequent. I'm 3 years post ablation next month.

Re: the lump in throat, again, you are right - anxiety or reflux? It's never easy to know. Likely could be both in concert. Either way, it's reassuring to know that I'm not alone in experiencing this! So thanks for taking the time out to respond.

[Ppiman in reply to DaveT81]

It's nice to speak to someone who has similar issues as myself. I always find that is reassuring. The MRI scan is the gold standard, so if that was "okay" then you can put worries behind you about the heart.

The lump in the throat is, apparently, a really common effect of anxiety as well as acid reflux. I've got it a little even now but it rarely bothers me much at all. I suspect some people either suffer more than others or "feel" the suffering more. We're not imagining everything - if you see what I mean. It's a rather lonely existence in the sense that no one else can imagine the feelings and, since there's no curing them, they just have to be endured. I often wish there was a better tablet to wind the feelings volume down a touch, but no.

I send warm wishes that you'll get through all of this messy time with a smile!

Steve

[KMRobbo]

If you have any pain in your chest, numbness in your left side or left arm or a feeling of weight on your chest then you need to get emergency help. And better safe than sorry if you are concerned. I am not medically trained.

That said I get the symptoms you describe very occasionally (less so now than straight after my ablation 28 months ago) and think they are Ectopics. Its like 10 secs or so of rapid big beats that are not regular, like a rock drummer playing a solo. With me they make me hold my breath (or did first times I had them). I think this breath holding is nothing directly concerned to the beats but just my fear reaction to them happening as in any other sort of nasty surprise. Sounds like the panic you describe. The lump in the throat could also be fear.

I also get a more straightforward "missing beats" randomly Ectopics that go on a lot longer (can be days).

To be honest the ones over in 10 secs (after the first few times) worried me less than the less violent, longer lasting runs , which the longer they happen lead you to thinking AFIB is back, as the violent ones are over and done in 10 secs.

I have no co-morbidities.

I am also aware that my heart is likely to misbehave if I have cold or virus infection.

If I were you concerning the fast beats, I would try to contact your EPs secretary and ask if you sent the secretary a short email with the symptoms, could he/she get the EP to look at it and comment. The EP will be more knowledgeable than the GP. (EPs are generally always so busy is why I don.t try to call them. They maybe less so currently owing to Covid). I have asked questions this way in the past post ablation, and got a reply.

The other thing is to try not to worry, as worry on heart issues only makes things worse in my experience.

Best wishes

[RichMert]

When you offer advice on here it is great to read that others are suffering from the same glitches. I have had 2 ablation and I am fairly sure that I have been AF free for 6 years now. That said I like you and the others here get either the sudden ' oh God its all over' feeling or a prolonged episode of Eptopics. I am currently suffering from bouts of missed beats (10 weeks now).

The doctor has given me Propranolol as a pill in the pocket and we did switch for a while to Nebivolol but ended up with a tingling hand, chest pains and a gold fish bowl feeling. I have never had chest pain with the heart issues and coming off the Nebivolol resolved this.

I have asked for a 24 hour ECG but doctor cannot see point as my heart has had so many different kinds of tests over the years.

What he fails to realise that like Ppiman said, you need some convincing from time to time otherwise you continue to worry which, makes it worse. I can confirm that I get the 6-10 second burst of the Heart not being able to get it together, it takes your breath away and you are waiting to die. It normally finishes with a few seconds of tachycardia then click back to normal. The Ectopic missed beats do not give me a thump but I feel every one of them. You get the feeling that you are going to heave up for a fraction of a second. This issue can last for days, weeks or months.

[DaveT81 in reply to RichMert]

Yeah, I usually am mainly looking for similar experiences from others so that I can feel reassured. It can be quite scary sometimes, having something heart-related. You can know the total ins and outs of the condition but sometimes an issues will crop up and you find yourself floored once again.

I had that 'oh it's all over' feeling on Monday, for sure, followed shortly by that period of hard, forceful ectopics. I've had it before but never have two times felt the same. I think that's what's scary. I also still vividly remember my second episode of afib 4 years ago. I can quite safely say my life almost flashed before my eyes and I had to wake my wife from her evening kip on the couch, mainly to say goodbye because I thought I was about to die.

But memories aside, I think that's what I probably need right now, convincing that my heart is in - generally - good condition. It's caused increasing problems lately and I think I'd like a 24 hours ECG or week long tape or something to check it out. I also wouldn't mind a PIP for a while. I've never had that before. Had 2 occurrences of afib in 2 months and was ablated 4 months later at the age of 35. Three years later I'm having a lot of other health issues and I could do without my heart piling on top of that as well.

[RichMert in reply to DaveT81]

You don't want to hear the stressed related possibility then. The doctor hits me with that one and I have to bite the bullet and accept that some times. I know what you mean about getting used to a certain feeling and then panicking because the next time it is different. I never get the hard thump with Ectopics which makes me question it. Currently mine feel different and first time it felt this way I went to A&E..... Diagnosed Ectopics but with a slower bpm than usual. I think your bpm and Blood Pressure play apart in how an Ectopic feels each time.

[DaveT81 in reply to RichMert]

What, as in stress irritating the heart or causing these periods of ectopics? Oh yeah, I'm totally open to that. I'm almost certain that that's a big part of what's happening. I mean, the last few years, I've lost my dad, had afib diagnosis, ablation, ME diagnosis, got undiagnosed breathing problem, working on Covid 19 clinical trials and then my wife left me because I couldn't quite live up to my previous standards. If I'm not stressed, I don't know who is! hahaha.

Sorry, I'm not arranging a pity party, but yes, I'm very stressed and my health issues are exacerbating that 5-fold. I just wish I could get a handle on some of my health stuff a bit to relax the stress.

Did your GP/family doc prescribe the PIP, and does it drastically slow your heart rate? I'd always had a low HR and 6 months post ablation, it was down to about 55 at rest. Top 95 when I was running.

These days, I'm hitting 125-30 just from a slow walk to get the bus. I'm not 'unfit', but feel all of this is putting a lot of stress on my heart. So if some meds could help alleviate some of this, that might be worth looking in to.

[RichMert in reply to DaveT81]

The Nebivolol caused too many problems but I can take the Propranolol as a half or full tablet as and when I feel like it. Flecanine is normally used as PIP but that made me feel rough especially in evening... Chronic indigestion feeling. Now I just feel as if I have minor indigestion so will be down to Ectopics. That 130 you speak about... Mine was like that in the first year after second ablation... Would get back home and it would take 2 hours to get back to 70. I am running at 55 whilst sitting at the moment which is way slow for me, I think that is why the Ectopic feels different. I agreed with the Doctor that it seems to play up during the after party. I lost both parents 16 months ago but the stress with handling it all at the time was fine. Now I am what I believe is relaxed, it is playing up. I think this a common theme you will see others are talking about. I have a sick sense of humour which is just as well because Doctors stance is..... Well you first came to see me with this in 2011 and you have not dropped dead yet.

[Prince123456 in reply to RichMert]

I would demand a ecg monitor if your concerned but a 7 day one. I started off getting ectopic beats 2019 my doctor kept fobbing me off saying it was anxiety. I eventually got a second opinion and had one fitted and on the last day before I took it back it picked up a run of none sustained ventricular tachycardia I now have a icd fitted for safety precautions and also take 15mg of Bisoprolol but I still get lots of pvc everyday. I should of been seeing the cardiologist a few weeks ago but it was cancelled due The the Covid-19 situation. I will be asking for an ep study and an ablation when I go see him. I’ve also enquired to go private I’ve been quoted £15k for ep study and ablation but again due to Covid the clinic isn’t taking any private cases on until further notice 🙁

[RichMert in reply to Prince123456]

Yes, I am getting close to demanding a 7 day monitor.

[5195]

Hi Dave

I have had the same things happen to me, in January my mother had a heart attack and we had to dash back from a holiday in the Scottish Highlands to be with her, then in February we got badly flooded (and are still living in our bedroom) the night of the flood I had an episode of AF but since then have had more or less the exact symptoms as you, heavy thudding ectopics and an awful sinking, strange feeling, in my upper stomach/chest. I’ve worn a seven day ECG and the only things it picked up was AT and PACs, which the wonderful Dr Sanjay Gupta assured me was obviously down to stress. I know we’re all different and you can’t generalise but stress is so destructive and the mind is so difficult to control, I’m currently battling the urge every morning not to panic as I wake when my heart feels like it’s racing, it’s not it’s just my anxiety making it speed up slightly and immediately I try and calm it which actually has the opposite effect! Am I the only person who finds deep ‘relaxing’ breathing when I’m panicking actually makes me breathe harder and makes me worse? I find distraction works better for me)

Anyway Dave I really do understand how you feel and even though we know can often be psychological it’s often really hard to manage it.

[DaveT81 in reply to 5195]

Hi, yes stress can be awful. I'm going through a lot of it right now, if I'm perfectly honest. Most recently my marriage ended and I'm now living at my mum's house. So I'm fully stressed.

I'm almost certain that this is making the heart stuff much worse, but with my other health issues, I'm struggling to get a handle on any of it. Particularly with not being able to see my GP for months. I was referred to talk Liverpool but the waiting list is at least 6 weeks and I've been told to download the HeadSpace app, which I get full free access to, I found out today, as an NHS worker.

You're not the only one who finds deep breathing quite stressful. Albeit, I have breathing issues that nobody can get to the bottom off but when I breathe too deeply, I end up losing control of my breathing a lot of the time. I sometimes find that singing along to songs I like helps. I also recently got a device that's meant to strengthen your breathing muscles and I've been trying to gradually build up strength in that area too.

Appreciate you taking the time to respond though.

[Aegean56]

In the past I have had similar random episodes of feeling slightly "unwell" . On a couple occasions while on amityrptyliine for migraine . Others preceded anxiety attacks or trying a new food without knowing what additives are in them .....especially true with alcoholic beverages. So review food, dietary and medications as potential culprit. But if persistent or frequently recurring...perhaps you need cardiac monitoring