Tachycardia

[EmilyR1997]

I just got diagnosed with tachycardia after having an episode where my heart went 210bpm. It’s terrified me I’m scared to sleep I’ve been to see a cardiologist and he has prescribed me bisoprolol but I’m still getting really anxious and that sinking feeling. Palpitations, the feeling of dread and chest pain. I’m so scared I’m exhausted I have had such a stressful few days so thinking it’s my anxiety playing up and just making me worse (my anxiety is constantly thinking I’m going to die, have a heart attack have a stroke) and I’m reading things online it’s the worst thing to do I wish I never done it now x

[Kirdba]

Hi Emily, I have the same but I've had episodes since I was a child and they never phased me. I just thought they were normal so I just lived with them and never mentioned anything. When I was 33 I was pregnant and had the episodes frequently due to increased blood flow. I happened to have one during a routine appointment and that's when I was officially diagnosed through a series of tests. Mine is actually SVT (supra ventricular tachycardia) and its an extra circuit in the upper chamber of my heart that misfires and so the fast rhythm kicks in. Often randomly or in times of stress. I decided I'd lived with it for so long that I didn't want surgery or medication. A few years later I had a series of traumatic events happen which I motored through and then BAM! I started with generalised anxiety a couple of months after things settled down. It came out of nowhere and I was convinced I was dieing. All sorts of mad symptoms just coming and going for months. That's when my heart SVT became an issue because I was convinced it was more serious than I thought and that I was going to die, or that I had cancer or something because why would I physically feel these symptoms if there was nothing wrong with me. Anyway, the tachycardia was much more frequent so I had to accept that medication would be worth a try. This was something that itself made me anxious because I don't like to be dependent on any pills as my mum was mismanaged and took many different prescription drugs over the years. I have to say that since I have been on bisoprolol I have had very few incidents and I have been on the same 2.5mg dose for about 5 years now. With regard to my anxiety, it's still lurking in the background but I condition myself to think that I have very little control over what the future holds for me health or otherwise and so I just try to live in the moment each day at a time and be mindful of something positive that occurs. Hope that helps and reassures you that your tachycardia is very common, as is the treatment.

[Coolvibes311 in reply to Kirdba]

I too was just diagnosed with SVT. I have it happen infrequently and it does not last very long so Dr. agreed for me to have meds on hand and take when and if frequency increases or if duration increases. Do you take daily.

[Kirdba in reply to Coolvibes311]

Hi there! Yes I take mine daily. I would have preferred the 'pill in pocket' but my doctor said that because the episodes were frequent that a daily dose would be more suitable. I now get ectopic beats though which are a nuisance but much better than the pounding SVT episodes.

[EmilyR1997 in reply to Kirdba]

I get this too! Feeling like your heart has skipped a beat ? I literally breathe in so fast when it happens as it feels like my heart has stopped. It’s horrendous ! It must be a common side effect. I’m still so so anxious I can’t sleep on a night thinking it’s not normal. My anxiety is playing up x

[EmilyR1997 in reply to Kirdba]

thanks so much for your reply ❤️❤️❤️❤️ makes a huge difference

[Kirdba in reply to EmilyR1997]

You're very welcome! I hope you are feeling much better and that this new year brings positivity and good things 🙂

[designguy]

You might benefit from checking out the youtubes and websites of Mathew Codde at Restored Minds and Paige Pradko. Both are therapists who had health anxiety and OCD and healed themselves and now help others. A common issue with health anxiety is dealing with uncertainty and loss of control and they both have good info about it all.

[EmilyR1997 in reply to designguy]

Thank you ❤️

[designguy in reply to EmilyR1997]

You're welcome, hope it's helpful for you.