Sleeping with ectopics

[Westlancs1]

I have been getting ectopic beats for the last three weeks. At times it can be as many as 1 every 30 normal beats, at other times I don’t get one for hours. No idea what the triggers are. Already on BP meds, including Bisoprolol. Went to see GP last week, she sent me off to ED where an ECG, blood tests and chest x-ray all looked normal. Waiting for Holter monitor now. I have been taking PPIs for years and so I decided to try taking a Magnesium supplement - only two days in and not much difference. I can cope in the day time as normal functioning is not affected. But night time is awful as I lie there, aware of my heart beating and waiting for the next skipped beat followed by a thump. Any tips on how to get some sleep through this? Any experience with Magnesium supplements?

[Stuartc100]

Fellow suffer here, ive had all the heart checks all came back fine, i suffer with gerd and have a HH, the school of thought now is there are gastro in origin and not the heart, re at night try sleeping on your right hand side, seemed to "lessen" them for me

[Em1380]

Hi West!

Hope you’re having a good day.

I suffer with ectopics too. They’re vile!!

I’m also on bisoprolol.

Like yours, mine get worse at night. I can lie there for hours worrying and waiting for them to go but sometimes they are just so persistent. There’s only one way I can get rid of them and that’s to get up and do 10 minutes of exercise. After that they fade away and I’m able to get back to sleep. It doesn’t work perfectly every time but it’s the only thing that has helped.

I’m also taking magnesium, been doing this for about 6 months with no signs of improvement yet I’ve heard it is very effective for others though so I’m not loosing hope.

I hope your monitor puts your mind at ease and I really hope your ectopics vanish for good one day soon.

Take it easy!

Em

[Noodlesalad]

Having very similar experience with my now uncontrolled high blood pressure and irregular heartbeat, hope you get some answers soon and have a peaceful nights sleep.

[BEATbump]

I've took to listening to podcasts at night to stop me lying there waiting for a skip beat and holding my pulse. It needs work trying to ignore them, but I find if I concentrate on the podcast I relax enough to sleep. Just had my ECG and monitor. Three weeks for any results. I hope you find a way to relax about them.

[devonian186]

Three weeks ties in very closely with the stresses , strains and over indulgence of the extended Christmas period.

Have you put on weight? Drank too much? Eaten over rich food? Been anxious at holiday arrangements?

It might be worth spending an hour sitting down and trying to think when the ectopics started and what you were doing in the days previously.

It might all be a coincidence of course but worth checking out

[Choccie55]

Hi, ectopics are a nuisance. I’ve had them for over 25 years. I’m on Bisoprolol for SVT and it keeps the ectopics in check. My ectopics become much worse during peri menopause and are definitely linked to my hormones. I find sleeping with my head and shoulders raised helps.

[WardijaWardija]

If physically, there's nothing your medical team have flagged up - apart of course from your underlying heart issues, and dependent upon your forthcoming Holter results, I'd look at this from an anxiety perspective, specific to the nightime/sleeping issue.Initially you might try relaxation techniques/breathing. Changes to your sleeping environment - room temperature, light levels, comfort of bed/pillows etc.

Other than that, maybe you might consider asking your GP to prescribe an anti-anxiety/relaxant, (not a sleeping tablet). Such as Amytriptyline.

As to Magnesium, I don't have a clue, I've never tried it. I'm not a fan of "supplements" to be honest.

You don't mention the dosage of your Bisoprolol. It might need increasing.

Ask your GP/Pharmacist for a full medication review.

I take Bisoprolol 10mgs at night, it's the max dose. I started on 2.5mgs 3 years ago and it's been incrementally upped to today's date.

I hope you manage to get some relief.

[Westlancs1]

I have discovered “pillow with a hole”. If you sleep on your side your ear goes over the hole and it eliminates the pulsatile tinnitus. It works and has been a godsend.

[Evaluna]

Hi Westlancs1,I can't offer an instant cure but, as you may have been told, many people find ectopics are worse when they are in bed... maybe because they don't notice them as much when busy doing other stuff.

I have had had them for nearly forty years and still hate them (but I am still here lol, and at 74 do not have other heart issues). I can get several a minute going on for hours. I can have them badly for months and then suddenly they reduce to just a few a day. I am on bisoprolol 2.5mg but it doesn't really help.

Some people find cutting out caffeine works. Big meals often can set then off as can anxiety. Try watching Sanjay Gupta from York cardiology. He is very reassuring on ectopics. Also Oliver Segals website-another cardiologist who is emphatic that, unless you're getting in excess of 10,000 ectopics a day for weeks on end your heart will not be harmed.

Wishing you luck.

[Westlancs1 in reply to Evaluna]

Thank you, it’s really kind of you to provide this reassurance. My ectopics went away completely for a month and now they are back - brought on by a long haul trip! Of course their disappearance coincided with my 24 hour ECG, the results of which were normal, as was the echo. So at least I know my heart is perfectly ok at the minute!

[Evaluna in reply to Westlancs1]

Yep, as soon a you get a 24 hour ecg you can almost guarantee you won't get as many!

[revel_runner]

Another fellow sufferer here. First started 30 plus years ago, I am now 61. I am also a big fan of Dr Gupta, though unfortunately not had any success with Magnesium, various beta blockers or avoiding Caffeine and alcohol. When they are really bad (every few seconds) I can't sleep, which drives me crazy as these spells can last days, four is my record . Thats usually when I end up on the forums, hoping someone has found a magic cure. The pillow with a hole sounds like a good idea listening out for the next missed beat is hard to avoid.

There was a time when exercise would stop them, but that doesn't seem to work now. On the basis that electrolyte imbalance may be a trigger I tried dioralyte, it stopped them within 20 mins, but only once! I can also recall a miserable work trip in the the US where they plagued me for days but stopped the second I landed back home.

Most of the time they are manageable you are always wating for the next time they kick off again.