New Symptoms

[meganwest2124]

Hi Guys, just an update, I have another review with the consultant on may 23rd to see if my condition has changed, I am now getting

Palpitations

Chest pain

Blurred vision

Dizziness

Orthastic hypotension

Pre-syncope

I was diagnosed with Inappropriate Sinus Tachycardia on the 23rd of November 2015 and they are now testing me for a pheochromocytoma. Do anyone know how I can cope with all or think I have this condition ? I will try anything to slow my heart rate down or help my condition

Thanks Megan

[JonathanPittsCrick]

Hi Megan

There are two main reasons for Inappropriate Sinus Tachycardia:

1) The sinus node (natural pacemaker) is not working properly - either due to sinus node disease or chemical imbalance (especially low calcium, sometimes caused by eating too much magnesium or zinc supplements or due to a hormone deficiency).

2) The sinus node is responding to instructions from you brain, in particular the part (the vasomotor centre) that controls your blood pressure. This is much more likely to go wrong than the SN.

It often happens after a viral illness (e.g. glandular fever or a bad 'flu) and causes your blood pressure to be low, and drop even lower when you to stand up. This makes you feel faint and triggers a hyperventilation reflex making you breath too much (It doesn't FEEL like it's too much as your brain thinks it's necessary) and this causes muscle spasms and pins-and-needles sensations.

There's no quick fix and eventually it usually gets better by itself but there are things you can do to help which can make a big difference:

1) Eat plenty of salt and don't drink much water

2) Get fit by forcing yourself to do regular, fairly intensive exercise.

3) Re-train your vasomotor centre by repeatedly doing the things that make you feel bad like stooping and standing - it feels horrible the first few times but after a hundred times it's not so bad.

4) If you feel the hyperventilation symptoms (muscle spasm etc.) try to slow you breathing by counting to 10 between breaths.

I wouldn't recommend taking drugs for it because artificially slowing the sinus node just makes the low blood pressure problem worse.

A fast heart rate with exercise doesn't do any harm unless it's well over 200. Even at rest it's OK to go up to 140 with stress.

And don't worry about phaeochromocytoma - it's very rare and causes HIGH blood pressure not low.

[stargazer61]

I can tell you one simple thing that has been helping me to calm down and get out of my mind is to play on youtube a slow heartbeat - I am hoping for entrainment, where the breathing and heart rhythm synchronize with the external source. I find it soothing, and hope you might too, anything calming is good, there are some good relaxation backgrounds on youtube and even specific cardiac meditations, have a root around and see if you can find something that works for you. it's frustrating not to be pro-active in healing yourself, so look for anything that can help even in small ways. I am walking about muttering 'my heart is strong,its beat is regular' and regularly sitting down and concentrating on slowing my breath, little things like that - but at least it's something outside of worrying. If you like to read, any Bernie Siegel book is good, or listen to him on youtube. Do anything you can to boost your mood or lift your heart or make you laugh. Hope something in here is of use to you. Sending you a cool, healing wave of well-wishes from one heart to another...

[stargazer61]

Ach darling, i've just looked at your other posts and see you are just a young lass, so sending you an extralovingmomhug xxx

[seasider18]

Could some of your symptoms be coming from a medication ?

Bisoprolol and Diltiazem had such effects when I was taking them at different times.

[meganwest2124]

I am on Atenolol 50mg