My heart has skipped beats for many years. This would happen occasionally and wasn't anything I concerned myself about. I went to the GP and was prescribed 2.5 mg Bisoprol. Life carried on. I have taken them for over 7 years. But in the last 3 months these skipped beats are happening more frequently some times daily. Particularly in the evenings. I have always had normal BP. My bloods are all normal. My GP increased my Bisoprol from 2.5 to 5mg. I dont suffer with a racing heart beat just this increases in skipped beats. I was wondering if anyone has experience of skipped beats? Feel occasionally dizzy since increase in Bisoprol. Awaiting 48hr monitor. GP referred me but circled of 'moderate concern' on the request form. So I expect a long wait.
Heart skips beats. : My heart has... - British Heart Fou...
Heart skips beats.
Sorry to hear you have been having trouble with ectopic beats hope your 48 hour holter monitor shows what's causing them. I was put on verapamil 40mg x2 a day because of mine it was making me light headed. I have since been told at my check up that I don't need to be on it and to stop for a week and see how I get on with that so instead I've cut it down to one a day and seems to be working I get a few occasional skipped beats but I couldn't risk stopping cold turkey. Hope you find out what's causing yours x
Thank you for the quick reply. I was thinking that verapamil may be a better tablet for me. Good to hear your able to reduce your dose. Agree with you doing that slowly. Hopefully the monitor will pick up the underlying cause. Keep well and warm! Thanks again for replying.
Thanks I'm glad too x yeah let us know how you get on with your ectopic beats, do you know what triggers them? Mine is stress x
I will keep you informed. I have been trying to note triggers. I feel caffeine is having an effect so I've switched to decaff. I'm also trying to not focus on it, I was finding myself holding my pulse every time I was feeling the ectopic beats and getting more anxious. So I'm trying to stop that. Today has been a good day only felt a couple. Not continuing as they did yesterday. This time of year is hectic and can get stressful. So being concious of that too. Thank you again it's good to chat to someone else who experiences this too feels less lonely. Take care ☺️
That's good you know your triggers, I have to stick to decaf tea aswell but that's because of how ill it made me feel having regular tea. My ectopic beats lasted weeks when I first started getting them was awful the slightest movement and it felt like my heart was dancing around in my chest x
Hi I am suffering with awful anxiety because of mine. I have a fitbit and continually looking at my pulse . I have had two a and e visits last one being the early hours this morning. My heartcrate was over a 100 so instantly that made me panic which didn't help. I also get a constant whooshing in my ears with a constant heart beat in my head. Does anyone else get this x
Sorry your suffering with such anxiety. You do sound very worried. I can understand that. Can your GP prescribe something to help you feel calmer. Holland and Barrett do some natural remedies that may help. I hope they can resolve what is causing your problems very soon. Sorry I can be of more help.
Hi, I have the whooshing in my ears constantly too. Also if I lie on my right side I can hear my heartbeat thumping in my head. I am really anxious about it as an ENT doctor told me it was a blood flow problem. I had a scan on my carotid arteries which they said was normal, only very slightly narrowed and not significant. I don’t know whether to push further for a head scan. I’m worried it might be serious but I’ve actually had it for 4 years now. I have Atrial flutter and just take Rivaroxaban . Originally I was on beta blockers but caused my heart rate to be so slow so they said I could come off them. I too constantly check my Fitbit but my GP said they are mot accurate if you have an irregular heartbeat. To be honest the whooshing worries me far more than the AFL. Good luck and try not to worry, it’s easier said than done .
I have been having missed beats and irregular heart beats for a number of years. had 24/48/72hrs heart monitor. Now I have dilated cardiomyopathy. I am still having missed beats and irregular heart beats. Doctors appear not to concerns about the missed beats as these can happen in anyone. As you have been referred you will be tested for if any underlined causes. In the meanwhile if you feel concerns and have these continue systoms I would go straight to A&E
Thanks Winter4519 I to have had them a long time over 10 years it was the sudden increase that got my anxiety going. I'm not one to suffer from anxiety normally but it is a little scary how it increased. It certainly helps chatting with people who experiences the same and have done for a long time. Feels less lonely. I will go to A&E if I get worse. Thank you for your reply.
I take 5mg bisoprolol but I get 2.5mg tablets and take it morning and evening so I’m not having the full wack in one go. 5mg in 1 go was lowering my BP too much. So if you’re getting side effects from the bisoprolol if the GP is okay with splitting the dose it might be worth a try.
Hi I split my dose aswell, 3.75 in morn and 2.5 in eve, currently it seems eve dose isn't even touching my ectopics, so bad at night I can't even sleep. Still waiting for more investigations. In n out of hospital a lot lately, it's awful, stress is a factor even more so now my partner left me last week because he can't handle my health issue
That’s difficult for you. After my heart attack and stuff 2yrs ago i had counselling and started on sertraline 50mg. Both definitely helped. The sertraline has given me my life back I’d developed generalised anxiety ( nothing to do with nearly dying as I had a very good near death experience), the EP said anxiety doesn’t cause the heart arrhythmia’s but can aggravate what you have. He said sertraline is the safest with my heart arrhythmias. Good luck.
HiI am new to this group as just started with AF and on Rivaroxaban but note you can't take Sertraline with Rivaroxaban.
The EP looked into the safest medication for me for anxiety with my medication and heart history. He said that sertraline was the safest, I noted the riveroxaban and sertraline link and spoke with the pharmacist. He said it’s a theoretical risk and a use with caution together and was happy for me to have it as my EP was aware. He just advised me to observe for any unexpected bruising or bleeding issues ( of which I’ve had none, no bleeding gums nothing), I re spoke with my EP who was aware of this issue but said you have to weigh up the risk vs benefits ( with most things in life). I also googled some research about it ( can’t remember the name sorry), and I saw the risk is noted but seemed to be a minor increase in bleeding if both used together.
I badly scraped my shin yesterday on a spin bike and thought ohhh no but it hardly bled at all .
Anxiety isn’t causing my heart arrhythmia’s but can increase the burden of them on the heart. Good luck
That sounds hard Spooks74. I feel for you I hope they are resolved soon. Coping on your own is bound to be more difficult. Best wishes for your recovery.
Hello. Yeah things really difficult when in constant ectopics, despite taking bisoprolol it never seems to go away, meds been adjusted 4 times already, 6 trips to hospital, I've a 7 Yr old child to think about, so lots of stresses, but I still get them even when I feel relatively relaxed, support from family is non existent, I have to rely on the friends I have to get my daughter to school and back every day, I've really taken a huge dip
Thsts so hard on you Spooks74. So sorry your experience. It really sounds like your going through such a lot. Obviously this isn't helping your ectopic. 😔
Hi BEATbump Yeah its taking its toll, spoke to gp this morning and told me to up my meds now to 5mg in morn and keep the 2.5 same in eve, and I'm still getting them now, it's all getting to much.
Hi Ewloe. I actually started by taking it twice a day when it was first increased about 8 weeks ago. They continued so I'm taking the full wack at 8 am I'm actually finding it as had an effect but the odd day I do feel light headed and dizzy if I'm turning my head to suddenly. I am finding my BP at the low end of "normal" on occasions so I'm resting when this happens. Fortunately I'm retired so I can rest when I feel a need to. Thank you for your advice. 🙂
I have always had ectopics, my triggers are caffeine and anti-inflammatories especially the latter, I drink decaf and avoid anti-inflammatories like the condition that dare not be named and minimise but not eliminate ectopics, very good luck with this worrying but luckily I understand normally harmless condition.
Hello peterjones105. Thank you. Yes the more I'm reading about ectopic the less fearful becoming. When they first started and I was having them every day for half hour at a time throughout the day I was getting very scared, but they've calmed down significantly now and reading everyone's experiences is helping with that too. Thanks for replying.
Aren’t they annoying? Normally only have the odd one but this past Sat was having them constantly and all day long. No idea why! Went to bed and on waking they were gone! I know most times they are harmless but they do get me all worked up. Read deep breathing and exercise can help to erase them. Hope yours ease off soon.
I know how how you feel, I'm exactly the same, I've had some tests done, still waiting for holter results from 8 weeks ago, been in n out of hospital, had dose upped, been getting them bad evert eve from about 5pm, dunno why it's that time, my eve dose of meds don't seem to touch it, can't sleep at night because it's constant, I'm absolutely exhausted, roll on 11th Dec when I see cardiology team. In the mean time I'm still waiting for another holter monitor and an ultrasound
Hi LouiseGardener. Yes very annoying. I'm a very active elderly woman and they were knocking me off my feet for a while back. Now they're calming down I'm feeling less anxious. I experience the same I was going to bed with them but all gone when I woke. Hoping they're nothing to worry about just something to continue living with and getting on with life. Thanks for replying it really is comforting reading the replies. ☺️
Fellow suffer here, im surprised they havent told you its anxiety (thats the go to reason) yeah no sh#t sherlock if your heart was bouncing around youd be anxious too, anyway for me im convinced its gastro is origin (i have a hiatal hernia and GERD) just had last result which was CT angiogram and that came back clear so it would appear my heart is not the issue. I have/had 2 different versions of the buggers the great thumping ones (which is what started all of this) i had 2 salvos of them (so 4 one after the other twice in a row) and ive had the smaller less intense ones (feels like a hicup) over a few days to a week and doubling up on my PPI's did start to lessen them, not saying yours are the same just my experience.
Hi Stuartc100. I think anxiety has been a cause. Not something I have consciously been aware of before but a family issue recently does co inside with them happening and the issue has caused me some anxiety. I'm aware that coffee hasn't helped not that I drink lots 2 tea a day and two coffee but caffeine all adds up so drinking caffeine free for now. Thank you for the reply they're all helping in calming my nerves. 👍
Since my OHS to close my ASD I've had a few rhythm issues, ended up having a DC Cardioversion to bring me out of atrial flutter. Since then I've noticed a number of cardiac 'bumps' every day - some minor, some arrestingly unpleasant. I'm on 2.25mg Bisoprolol. I raised this with my consultant 2 weeks ago and she described ectopic beats to me which was kind of helpful but also not? Didn't seem like they wanted to do anything about it! I think there is a link to anxiety as I defintely notice more of them when I'm stressing about my heart...
It took me a full year to find out exactly what was causing my ectopic beats. When they are random like yours, even a holter monitor may not catch them. They aren't actually missed beats. One beat comes a bit late and coincides with the next one making you feel a thump. I had ECGs, holter monitors and nothing caught mine until one day I had a stress test - (treadmill). During the test there was nothing at all but they left the electrodes attached while I sat down to recover and lo and behold I had several ectopics one after the other. Finally they could see where they came from and that they were harmless. In my case anxiety was making them far far worse. It took me a couple of years to learn to ignore them and the less I thought about them the fewer happened. I've only had one or two in the past 10 years, always when stressed.
Thank you Qualipop. I did think that the chances are they'd be missed if I was wearing one now there'd be non as I haven't had any or yesterday. So I'm expecting this will be the case. Most people seem to agree they're not usually a problem and since reading these replies I've felt much more relaxed about them. Thank you I'll continue trying to be less stressed and hopefully learn to ignore them. Thank you 🙂
I have had them for years, sometimes they bother me and other times I ignore them!!
I have been on decaf tea for years now and try to sleep well and keep stress levels down ( ha!) as I know they make them worse. I have had a multitude of tests and all have come back OK with no concerns.
I am now on Bisoprolol 1.25 mg as my heart rate is quite high and I become tachycardic at the drop of a hat!! After three different episodes over the last few years I have in and accepted Bisoprolol and my heart rate feels calmer! However I still have the ectopic beats, but they generally feel more muted instead of the previous wacky bumps and thumps!
Ectopic Beats
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Etopic heart beats and feeling dizzy
Ectopic extra heart beats
