Sinus tachycardia - how to stop

[dunestar]

I recently ended up in hospital for a 48 hour stay. I never got to connect with the cardiac team but the A&E doctor thought sinus tachycardia from having a look at the ECG. Does anyone have any tips on how to calm the heart down when it goes racing off? Want to avoid ending up in A&E again.

[Milkfairy Heart Star]

Hi Dunestar

I often have sinus tachycardia.

My Cardiologist has increased my Calcium Channel blocker recently as a result.

We also discussed my yoga breathing strategies such alternative nostril breathing and yoga nidra.

He is very supportive as he practices yoga himself.

You might find some more techniques on this free app.

insighttimer.com/

I hope you feel calmer and more at ease soon.

🧘‍♀️

[dunestar in reply to Milkfairy]

Thanks Milkfairy. It's a bit disconcerting as you don't know when it's going to happen. Thanks for the information on yoga and the meditation app.

[Palpman]

What normally always works for me.

1. Lie flat on the bed on your back and lift your knees and sit up. The effort reverts it to NSR.

2. Failing this. Go to the loo and press hard as if you are passing putty.

3. Stick your thumb in your mouth and blow hard against it or buy a large syringe and force blow the plunger out.

4. Pick up a heavy object off the ground. I used a bag of cement.

5. Walk upstairs while holding your breath.

6. Ice cold water on your face also helps.

This is in order of my personal preference.

[Kathryn1818 in reply to Palpman]

Hi, this may seem silly but how would you perform the lie flat on the bed and lift the knees up? Is it feet flat on the bed and the knees bent and pointing upwards towards the ceiling or lifting the legs up similar to a sit up? I would love to try this.

[Palpman in reply to Kathryn1818]

It is very difficult to do a sit up if your stomach muscles are not rock hard.

Lie flat with a pillow under your head and then arch your back with your hands behind your head while allowing your legs to lift automatically. Now just follow through with getting into a sitting position.

This is also called "stomach crunches".

In the hospital the nurse stood at the foot of my bed and held my legs down while I did a sit up. When I went back down she raised my feet to her head at the same time. She said that this is the method she was taught.

[Kathryn1818 in reply to Palpman]

Thanks for your prompt reply. I’ll have a go at this — next time!

[dunestar in reply to Palpman]

Thanks Palpman. I get the idea that you have to put some sort of effort into it. I think lifting bags of cement may be a step too far for me but I could have a go at the sit ups and also the putty passing.

[Herthelth]

There are many reasons why you might be having Sinus Tachycardia. I am guessing the doctor must have conducted some investigations including a holter/ telemetry monitoring of your heart during the 48-hour stay. If the Sinus tachycardia was accompanied by dizziness, shortness of breath, or chest pain then it's worth reaching out to your doctors at the hospital to seek some answers on what they found in the investigation.

I know of a few people who use this device ( Frontier X ) developed by my company which just needs to be worn on a chest strap and in addition to continuous monitoring of the heart it allows you to preset thresholds for Heart rate, breathing rate, and cardiac strain. The device will buzz and alert you when crossing these thresholds. The ability to share ECG in real-time with anyone across the world can help to screen for the seriousness of symptoms. You may consider the use of any such device to help keep a check on your condition. Hope you feel better soon.

[dunestar in reply to Herthelth]

Thanks Herthelth. I got very short of breath. The A&E doctors established I was in respiratory failure but I don't think it was too bad because I wasn't given oxygen.

Sadly I never had any contact with anybody from the cardiac team during my hospital stay. I'm not sure why they kept me in for so long when they must be short of beds and I was on a respiratory medicine ward. I was told I would be followed up through outpatients.

[freddiefox]

Check out Dr. Sanjay Gupta on either You Tube or Google. He's a Cardiologist in Bath and does some fantastic videos and advice on all aspects of Heart issues. I've found him very caring and helpful. If I lived in Bath I would pay to go and see him. He does a lot on SVT's. Would like to hear what you think if you take a look. Make sure you get the right Dr Gupta, as there is another one on You Tube. As I said this one is from Bath Cardiology. Good luck!