I’v always had the odd ectopic beat but during the last week they seem to be almost constant. I went to the doctor and he did an ekg, of course nothing showed up. I had a 24 holter 2 years ago but doctor wasn’t concerned, just said there was the odd ectopic beat. I suffer with anxiety anyway so these increasingly frequent ectopics are really getting to me. I can’t see any pattern really but maybe they are worse after eating? I can see them happening when I’m checking my own pulse on an app on my phone. Any idea what I can do as regards to getting my doctor to send me for more tests??
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Ckd123
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I have suffered skipped beats,racing heart and thuds etc for years.they got really bad after the birth of my daughter 6 years ago and have never been good since.
Been to a cardiologist,hospital,doctors and had ecgs,blood tests,blood pressure,thyroid the list goes on.
All this time I have been told anxiety.
There was one time a few years ago that every other beat was ectopic and I rushed to the hospital and after tests was told I had severe anxiety and stress and nothing more.
What I’m trying to say is,I know how bloody awful it feels.and you can’t help but to panic and hyperventilate.
I now try to sit and when I feel them just let them pass.its hard but now they only happen once a day and sometimes a few times a week.
Thanks so much for reply Minnie, you have certainly reassured me a bit. I just wish all these anxiety symptoms would go away. I’m trying my best to alleviate it, I’v started CBT and am going to ask to go on medication. I’ll also be insisting on getting a full thyroid check just in case there is anything wrong there xx
Yes of course.that will just put your mind at rest.
Don’t get me wrong,some days I can’t believe that my symptoms are anxiety.but deep down I know they are and I’ve learnt on here that acceptance is key x
Try this Minnie - On occasions when my ticker has gone ballistic I have taken a big glass of sodium bicarbonate in water. On occasion this has had a considerable calming affect on my symptoms, and lends itself to my theory that stimulation of the Vagus nerve which feeds the heart and the stomach and just about everything else, could be part of the problem.
Try it, wait half an hour and see if there is any improvement.
The worst that can ahppen is you will burp a few times.
Hi Minnie again, another follow up. As mentioned I have had ectopics for 47 years and always looking for an answer. But I think I am close. I am sure in my case that it is related to my stomach. I have been having a dose of Gaviscon when they start firing up with some success.
Today I had a good lunch of Lasagne and veges around 1p.m. and for the rest of the day the ectopics were absent. I had a few starting aroung 5 p.m. and found a small piece of cooked beef in the fridge so ate that and the ectopics stopped again. At 9 p.m. they were starting again so I had a small bowl of greek yoghurt with a dash of honey to give it some flavour. They stopped again. I know that when my stomach is empty my symptoms can be much worse, so eating seems to have a very positive effect. Maybe getting something in the stomach stimulates the vagus nerve. Try it and see if you get any results.
Try a dose of Gaviscon. It usually works well for me. And if they still persist take a really deep breath, bend over as far as you can, then force a really hard cough out, getting rid of all the air in your lungs. Do it a couple of times if you have to. It works miracles for me. After being driven to the depths of despair I am now well on the way to recovery.
Hi whoever you are I know how you feel, having had this wretched condition for 47 years. One day I had 23,000 of them but when I went for catheter ablation the two hours in the quiet peaceful preparation room caused the symptoms to go away. I was seriously distressed. A week ago I woke up at around 3 am with resting pulse at 150 bpm and ectopics so severe I was just hoping I would die. I have to admit that the night before I had two small gins, two small glasses of home made plum brandy and two beers so that may have been the trigger. I am Australian but in UK for 6 months and am sick to death of this condition. Today I am going to the local doctor to get a referral to a cardiologist then ANOTHER darn 24 hour monitor then hopefully the cardiology department at a big UK hospital. But I suspect that once again I will find the darn things will stop as soon as I get on the table. Stay in touch by cliffo@iinet.net.au and I will let you know what happens. Regards Cliff
Hello, I could say lots about this problem, but I've said it all before in earlier posts - which I think you ought to be able to search and find on this site. Basically, what I have had to say here and there is this: that I've had ectopics since I was in my early thirties, and over the years I have had all the tests. They come and go. Sometimes they've been so severe that they've woken me up of a night. I am now seventy-eight, and long ago I learned to just get on with it and live with my ectopics. They are so extremely common, and, once examined for anything nasty underlying them, they present no problem whatsoever, are 100% harmless. Try to be calmer about them. They will cause you no trouble, and they'll come and go as they please. If you can take this attitude it ought to help you with your anxiety - which quite apart from being unpleasant, cannot help with the problem. Accept the ectopics. Calm down. They will not hurt you.
my post its a long one i dont know how to be happy and live with these ectopics and now a week of magnesium it makes me dizzy
Ckd - On occasions when my ticker has gone ballistic I have taken a big glass of sodium bicarbonate in water. On occasion this has had a considerable calming affect on my symptoms, and lends itself to my theory that stimulation of the Vagus nerve which feeds the heart and the stomach and just about everything else, could be part of the problem.
Try it, wait half an hour and see if there is any improvement.
The worst that could happen is you will burp a few times.
Read your positive posts with interest. I have recently been told I have ectopic and am waiting for an echo. My heart rate stays at 60-72 during these and the aren't single ectopic but manifest as a strongly felt steady pulse under my sternum which goes on for 4-5 hours leaving me exhausted. The reality of these ectopics is just beginning to dawn on me.
I am considering seeing an experienced acupuncturist to work on my vagus nerve. Desperation I know.
Try a dose of Gaviscon. It usually works well for me. And if they still persist take a really deep breath, bend over as far as you can, then force a really hard cough out, getting rid of all the air in your lungs. Do it a couple of times if you have to. It works miracles for me. After being driven to the depths of despair I am now well on the way to recovery.
Try a dose of Gaviscon. It usually works well for me. And if they still persist take a really deep breath, bend over as far as you can, then force a really hard cough out, getting rid of all the air in your lungs. Do it a couple of times if you have to. It works miracles for me. After being driven to the depths of despair I am now well on the way to recovery.
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