Hello everyone, looking for sure reassurance if that’s possible.
I started feeling continuous palpatations over a week ago, no pain, but still very uneasy feeling that, especially in the dead of night, panic sets in. I saw a doctor who sent me straight to hospital to be assessed immediately due to irregular beat. ECG done and chest X-ray done, sent home with bisoprolol for 7 days. I’m clueless and scared and this has turned my world upside down, I don’t know what’s going on or what this means, I am in a constant state of panic and worry that every little twinge or ache is the end!! The pills have helped a little, I can no longer feel the regular THUD of my heart but still feel flutters and can feel the irregular beat on my pulse, I’m so paranoid that I’m going to die, I don’t feel any relief knowing that these pills might help because I feel they are just hiding the problem. I’ve a follow up appointment in a cpl days with a nurse, should I not be seeing cardiologist? It feels like I’m the only one that thinks this is a big deal, I can’t imagine a point where this won’t consume my thoughts, help!!
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PopjamQuinto
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Hi there, been there, got the t shirt and still wearing it as are thousands on this forum so you have plenty of support so ask us for our experiences tho we cannot give medical advice. I had a heart attack in April and subsequently in September was diagnosed with the irregular heartbeat (in my case the most common one being atrial fibrillation). I felt that the GP was pretty casual when they said it's an irregular heartbeat, put me on an anticoagulant to thin the blood and told me to put my bisoprolol up to 2.5mg (as I'd just had it reduced to 1.25mg as it had made my heart rate a bit low) and sent me on my way. I've been referred to cardiology and my rate is under control but the rhythm is still irregular 24/7 and making me so tired that I'm now on a list for something called a cardioversion to shock it back into rhythm.So back to you, the bisoprolol should have got your rate back down, do you have a smart watch that monitors your pulse ? Assuming the irregular heartbeat is not 24/7 they may just leave it at that , when you see the nurse they may run another ECG to see if you're back in rhythm and they may suggest an anticoagulant. As you say when you have health anxiety the nights are worse, you lie awake thinking should you go to A&E, will I wake up , and every morning you wake up. Hopefully the nurse will give you more info, put your mind at rest and hatch a plan. Saying don't worry is easy, however don't worry...x
aw hi, thanks for reply. When you say 24/7 do you mean irregular all the time? Because I believe mine is constant, well close enough, ecg showed was every 4th maybe 5the beat, so it’s relentless, I can always feel it but the bisoprolol has only dulled down the severity of what I feel, it’s still there. Hoping seeing the nurse will help, but I know the meds has not fixed the beat as I can literally feel it in my chest and in my pulse. I don’t have a watch that monitors my rate, I’d worry I’d become even more paranoid lol. I’d love to be able to find out why my heart suddenly decided to start missing a beat, that’s not normal.
Cardio version sounds scary, but what a difference that would make. Thanks for reply, and hope your well.
Yeh, I think I had a couple of episodes early in the year but I know in April when I had my HA that my rhythm was regular but just a bit too fast and wouldn't come down. I've got all the technology (which I agree does make me paranoid, many people on here and some medics say take your Fitbit off and leave it in a drawer especially at night). My heartbeat just went regularly irregular in the summer and it was only being completely knackered that meant I decided to see GP in September who diagnosed the AF. The cardioversion will hopefully shock me back into what's known as normal sinus rhythm, how long it holds is an unknown, days months or years.The bisoprolol won't fix the rhythm but will slow the rate, there are drugs that may help rhythm and I think I'm going to start one of those in the new year before the cardioversion.
The other thing is anxiety, at times it's the off the scale but for sure it doesn't help, If you can find a way to relax a bit that can only help.
Hope the nurse will reassure you and come up with the right plan for you x
it’s good that you are seeing a nurse, who will be in a position to reassure you, and will hopefully have the results of your tests. Before you see the nurse, try to make notes of what you need to know and take someone with you who can listen. Just in case it’s all,a bit much to take in.
You don’t know what’s going on and that’s why you are seeing someone who can help. The NHS is pretty much crammed so to see a cardiologist would be a bit difficult.
The pills are there to make you feel better, and to treat the problem, not to hide it.
Of course I don’t know, I’m not a medic and none of here are - but we might be able to provide reassurance as we’ve all been through the same sort of thing that you haves and here we are!
It’s scary bless you but this forum should reassure you hopefully as many have been with you and many much worse! I had my first AF in my early 40’s but I’m surprised they let you home and didn’t correct it at the hospital there and then. It isn’t life threatening but it’s unpleasant to live with and we should all be in normal sinus rhythm if possible. I see many in this forum who are living permanently in AF and every time am grateful that I am not 😣
There are different ways they can revert your heart to normal, I’ve had intravenous flecainide 3 times and several cardio versions but just had an ablation procedure and hoping to avoid the flips into AF now!
Reading this is like reading exactly what I am going through! Palpitations constantly for 3 years now! I’ve been referred to Cardiology, seen, had tests, discharged. I had a 48 hour monitor done which showed ectopic beats and was told I could be started on a beta blocker if needed. They calmed down for a few months. Started again and I ended up going to A&E and they started me on propranolol and said I had an irregular heartbeat. Long story short I ended up having a 7 day monitor and changed to Bisoprolol 1.25mg. I can’t say the bisoprolol has worked. I’m still feeling them most days however I do think anxiety around the whole situation isn’t helping me. Like you I’m so anxious that I’m going to die in my sleep or just drop down one day of a massive heart attack. I have a telephone consultation with a cardiologist in Jan to go through results of 7 day monitor. I have had a clinic letter but I don’t understand all the medical jargon. All it says at the end is normal sinus rhythm so I’m clinging onto that to try and calm me down. One thing I will say, and this is my own personal experience, is being a woman is not helping! I think I’m in perimenopause due to other symptoms and having read up a lot on that I didn’t realise how much our hormones, and their fluctuations, affect our hearts. Palpitations can happen in perimenopause and menopause and perimenopause can start 7-10 years before menopause so maybe something to think about? I hope you feel better soon 😊 It’s not nice at all so I can completely sympathise with how you are feeling x
Really sounds like they are trying all sorts to fix yours, hopefully January call with cardiologist will shed some light and give you good news.
Yes, I am of that age, probably perimenopausal, so don’t doubt for a second it could play a part 😭 and the anxiety like you say, if I could get on top of that I’d feel so much better, but it’s so hard when it’s your beating heart that you can feel that’s giving you the anxiety in the first place, viscous cycle.
As its only a week ago that this started, its worth trying to reconstruct the circumstances at the time.
Did you eat something unusual? Over exerted yourself? Had a traumatic experience or a big argument with someone close? Moved house? Placed a server close to your bed?
Anything at all might help you or the nurse you are seeing to try to find out what is going on.
Hi, thanks for reply. I have thought about it and nothing unusual, different or stress worthy happened to cause it. You mentioned a new server etc, the only thing relative was that I changed my internet supplier the day before this started, had fibre installed because we were still on the old copper broadband which was unusable tbh. So yeah a new bb connection, but it’s in same location as old router and not close to my bed.
Interesting. For what its worth i have linked to a BBC article on electrosensitivity. Whether it applies to you I can not say and don't want to get into conspiracy theories. Its a coincidence though
Nothing 'conspiracy theory' about someone being sensitive to electromagnetic frequencies, we are all frequency, and different frequencies can affect us in both good and bad ways.
You should also consider looking up 'healing frequencies' on somewhere like Youtube, because they are many content creators on there who put out healing audios, for a myriad of health issues (physical, emotional and spiritual), and they are very effective. ☺️
These 'healing pod' uploads by 'The Sound Healers' have some very positive comments, so would probably help with your heart issues too. They have with mine! 😉
This is just one of them, there are many different ones that could be helpful to you, also look up 'Quadible Integrity' and 'Sapien Medicine' they also have good healing uploads!
It seems you cannot play them through here, so just type in those content creators names and you should find them ok!😉
You really have nothing to lose! If/when you start listening to them though, try to listen a few times to give them a chance to work on you. There are also numerous 'boosters' by Quadible Integrity that you can use to boost/speed up the results.
I went into AF last July,went to a&e bp up too,pulse was 155, put on bisoprolol and had to wait til it went down,was told it was permanent, I bought a Kardia which tells you what heart is doing,saw cardiologist 5months later,had regular heart rate by then,had echo,I have a large hoke in heart that didn't know about,so yes you need to see cardiologist to see why!!
That’s very similar to me. Went in to AF for the first time ever (that I knew), heart rate through the roof. Finally reset itself but an echo showed a bloody great hole.
To Popjam… the drugs aren’t ’masking it’ they genuinely affect how your heart works but if you tell that to the nurse they’ll hopefully explain it all. It’s something that can really prey on your mind but it isn’t necessarily something that will stop you living your life and having fun. Just a large bump to get over.
Very sorry to hear how worried you are. It would be reassuring for you to have a full cardiac workup to include echocardiogram and holter monitor. If it is an electrical problem perhaps a cardioversion and/or ablation would be warranted? Blood tests - Troponin T and NT-pro BNP are essential too. In the meantime I recommend taking the supplement magnesium. It has helped me enormously. I know it’s hard but try not to worry. The extra stress you are creating within you will affect your heart. Use that energy to be your best advocate and find a way to get the cardiac workup. My best wishes to you.
Hi, I was in exactly the same situation as you 7 weeks ago when I was told I had Afib and put on bisoprolol. The most important thing that I clung onto is that while Afib is life changing it is not life threatening which is why, like me, you haven't seen a cardiologist yet. Mentally I was in a mess because my life was based around activities like running, football etc (am retired) which suddenly I couldn't do. The meds plus the condition itself left me tired, depressed, anxious and in a state of constantly checking my pulse. I had a family holiday booked to celebrate a milestone birthday (my 70th) and was in a state of panic as to whether I could manage the flight and hassle of the airport etc, so much so that I was still talking about cancelling up to a couple of days before we were due to leave. Put my wife through hell. But here is the good news. The bad effects of the meds do settle down after 3 or 4 weeks, you do have tremendous support through this group and life will start getting back to some degree of normality. Have just come back from Tenerife. Had fantastic holiday. Don't know what I was worried about when it came to flying etc. Just remember, if you feel tired then rest, don't push yourself too hard. I try to get out for a long (2 to 3 miles) walk every day but that won't suit everyone. Did it in Tenerife but one day forgot about all the hills and pushed myself too far one day. Felt rubbish next day but with a lot of rest got back to 'normal'. Keep strong, you will survive this and hopefully will get to see a specialist soon.
My heart disease started at the same age as you are.
I agree you need to see a cardiologist and get some reasons this has happened. You are entitled to be referred but you must demand.
I could not get to see a cardiologist on the nhs so I paid to see one. Once the consultant sees you - you are in the system abd can get tests from nhs!
Meanwhile - request a cholesterol test. Change your diet to heart healthy - cutting out animal fats ie dairy cheese butter etc. Exercise and keep any excess weight in check.
Do you have any other health conditions? Are there any people with heart trouble like angina in your family?
I had raised BP and was diagnosed at your age with micro vascular angina I suffered severe pre eclampsia giving birth to my son? But FH is in my family causing early HA on my mothers side.
I have been in the same situation and not knowing what is going on is the worst thing, followed by not knowing which questions to ask when you see the nurse.
I think the medics are used to dealing with things that are minor problems to them, and they sometimes forget that anything to do with our heart is a big deal to the person concerned.
They see there's nothing to worry about and send us home without explanation, and what do we do?
We worry that we're on our way out.
The main thing is to take reassurance from not being kept in hospital. You wouldn't have been sent home if they saw anything significant.
I would ask the nurse why you are on Bisoprolol which slows the heart rate and lowers blood pressure.
I don't think afib must have shown up on your ECG or they would have told you and taken different steps.
Arrhythmias can be hard to live with when they're 24/7, I have been through all that for over 12 months but with the right medication and a healthy diet and exercise mine is now starting to settle down.
They're not life threatening or debilitating and it's important not to let it disrupt your every day life.
Be proactive, ask what you can do to help yourself. If you don't get satisfactory answers from the nurse call your GP and ask them. And do whatever they recommend!
And if they use names or terminology that you don't understand tell them, ask what they mean. It doesn't matter if you ask a hundred questions, you need to understand properly. Don't think of going home and googling it.
My cardiologist told me to have a maximum of four decaf coffees or teas a day because decaf isn't without caffeine, it's reduced. And he said I should cut out chocolate because of the caffeine. So I haven't had chocolate since May, which at times hasn't been easy because my husband always has a bar in the fridge and I don't know how I'll go on over Christmas but 🤞.
I'm not overweight, never smoked, walk regularly and eat a healthy diet so I'm doing my bit and my cardiologist appreciates that. Everything else is up to him to sort out.
So try not to worry and find out what you can do to help yourself, which will help you to be positive.
Let us know how you go on, you will have lots of reassurance from this group and you're not on your own.
Hi, this is how my problems started - it's so concerning at first.
The Bisop is a god-send, but doesn't fix it. There's usually an underlying problem and is doesn't have to be your heart. In my cause it was very low vitD, then another episode and blood tests showed very low folate, 5 months later another episode showed iron deficiency. Each time correcting this had stopped the palpitations. HRT has changed things again, not sure if for the better yet.
It's worth pushing for an investigation to confirm no underlying cardiac pathology. I ended up paying out of pocket to see a private consultant as I was so tired I was struggling to function. NHS list was nearly a year - I would have had to stop working.
There's a couple of very supportive groups on FB - "Heart Arrhythmia, PVC, PACS, VT, SVT, Cardiac, Ectopics, Support Group" and "Heart Arrhythmias, PVCs PACs AF and Others Sharing and Help Group".
The latter having nearly 17k members, in fact someone just this morning posted the same issue as you describe. I've found a lot of very useful ideas for diet, exercise and lifestyle modifications that have helped. Also friendly advice on dealing with drug side-effects.
Well your opening statement made me laugh and cry 😂 but I’m grateful for the frankness, I need someone like that, that’ll tell me to get a grip lol. I know your not making light of the situation because we all have concerns being here in the first place but I am well aware my anxiety on the situation is escalating OTT and I need to reign it in if I wanna function at all.
Would also suggest York cardiologist on you tube for very good info on ectopics.Also just to say they can be of unknown cause don't always have to be related to issues with structure of heart.
I totally resonate with how big a deal it is for you. I have had ectopics on and off for about 10 years. Everyone says they are benign and as i don't have alcohol or caffeine anymore, it can only be stress and anxiety that causes them. It is important i believe to get checked out that theya re not AFib as that really is a different matter.
I have recently had a stent fitted and i really hoped to be able to take the focus away from my heart but the extopics are back and pretty constant. I don't want to take more drugs than i already have to! Am trying to take life a bit slower and meditating regularly and just hoping they will die down. Some days they do and i get hopeful, then back they come again.
I so know that feeling in the middle of the night when it is really scary. Now i think i have made friends them a bit more and that seems to be the thing to do, otherwise we are in a vicious circle, ectopics cause stress which causes ectopics!!
Sounds like Atrial Fibrillation. Please don't worry I have suffered with AF since 2005. My AF is permanent and the rate is controlled by Adizem- which has done the job and although my heart beat is irregular I now don't feel the symptoms. Ask your GP about blood thinning medications. Cardioversion is a way of getting your heart back into sinus rhythm which they might suggest. Anxiety will indeed make things worse. Please be assured that you are not going to drop dead- we know its scary - you just need to be on the right medication that will keep it under control.
like most people here I have afib in that my rhythm is irregular and sometimes I have palpitations where I can feel my heart beating in my stomach, toes, every where.
What helps me is an anti anxiety medication. It’s considered addictive, but I’ve been on the same dose for 3 years. Also finding the best manufacturer for nadolol , the beta blocker I take. I’m told I still should have an ablation but my veins are very fragile so I am still debating that as I’ve read on this thread that ablation often needs to be repeated multiple times and each recovery period can be 3-6 months
There seem to be no easy or uniform answers
Good luck! Hopefully you have a cardiologist who sees you as a unique individual and not just as a statistic or a disease
If it's literally just palpitations and they have done a ecg and sent you home then there's a very good chance its nothing serious right now.
Majority of the time if it'd just the flutter and the thud thud you feel and nothing else. No.pain. no dizziness or light headed. No other symptom other than panic ( which can also trigger all sorts) then your good..
That said the palpitations maybe a sign that something is off. A chemical imbalance or maybe a problem with heart that needs investigating. 24hr or week long ecgs will do the trick.
But for now rest assured..they wouldn't have sent you home if something was seriously wrong..so try rest. Try breathing. Get out for a walk if they come on strong. Walking can literally be a cure for palpitations! Sleep good. Eat good. Your heart isn't going to stop.
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