Recent ER Visit

[Brightfuture22]

Hi Friends, i hope everyone is doing well. I had an episode the night before last that landed me in the emergency room. The ER doc basically chalked my heart issues up to stress and anxiety, but I’m not buying it.

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A little back info. I have palpitations daily. I’ve come to terms that those are normal for me. But, for the last 2 years I’ve been experiencing a new type. (Idk if that’s the right work lol) The palpitation is stronger and takes my breath away. It almost feels like it’s connected to my vagus nerve as it travels from the center of my chest down my abdomen.

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Anyways, so for the last 6 months to a year, I’ve been having these “episodes” right as I’m falling asleep and no one can figure out why. I’m hoping someone in here might’ve experienced something similar. Basically, in that space between when you’re falling asleep and actually asleep, my heart beats out of rhythm. Sometimes it’s just fluttering for a minute or so. Other times I’m ripped out of the ‘almost sleep’ and woken up with a pounding, erratic heart rate that I cannot control. That’s what happened 2 nights ago. I was thrown into this episode where my heart felt like it was trying to escape my chest, whilst beating out of sync. My vision was tunneling, I couldn’t breathe, I was on the verge of passing out. It took me a solid 5-7 minutes of forced deep breathing to finally come out of that episode and my heart rate slipped back into sinus rhythm-albeit still beating fast.

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I decided enough was enough and went to the ER. They did an ekg that showed AFIB. (I’m a 35 year older female btw.) My BP was 200/102 and my HR was 130. (I hate the hospital so a portion of that was caused by my anxiety) When they finally got me back to a room, they did a repeat EKG that showed normal sinus rhythm. Doc took a closer look at the first and said the machine was wrong. I wasn’t in AFIB, but my rapid pulse made it seem that way.

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Troponin was in the normal range. As well as all the other lab results, with the exception of my thyroid. That is raised and I need to get back on meds for it. My EKG shows non-specific T wave abnormality, but the ER doc didn’t mention it. 🤷🏼‍♀️

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So my question is, does anyone have flash moments where their heart flips out and beats crazy right as they’re falling asleep? This isn’t like anxious flutters, but hardcore, hard beats that lead me to nearly passing out. I can’t catch my breath or rein in my pulse. If so, what causes it and can it be treated?

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Sorry for the long post, thank you to those who take the time to read and comment! 🖤

[statinsinthebin]

it happens to me also like some kind of sleep apnea.i awake abruptly and it feels like my heart stopped for a few seconds and palpatations start.my GP put it down to a amlodipine side affect.

theres no pain just a lot of anxiety.

[Brightfuture22 in reply to statinsinthebin]

Yeah, I have no chest pain with it, just a severely pounding heart and lightheadedness, which triggers my anxiety and creates a feedback loop