I have been having palpitations for about a year now. I'm 34 year old female. I have had an echo and holter monitor completed almost a year ago. Came back normal. Got used to having palpitations more or less. 2 weeks ago my GP sent me to the Er due to left sided chest pain and lots of gas. Went to Er had blood test done. An x-ray was completed. Everything came back normal said it was indigestion. Started on pepcid 2x a day. I'm also on buspar 5mg 2x a day for anxiety. Now it just started last night chest tightness. It's been coming and going all day. It's not a hard squeeze but can definitely feel it. As anyone had similar situation? bc now I need peace of mind. I don't want to go to the Er again and feel like a fool lol. I do have an apt with my heart Dr. next week. I just don't know what's going on and when should I really worry about it.
Chest tightness / palpitations - Heart Rhythm Diso...
Chest tightness / palpitations
I’m having similar symptoms. I had a ablation almost 2 years ago and have been having it ever since. So far all my tests are normal except I had my WPW show back up which is why I had the Ablation. Now they want to send me for an MR Cardiac to make sure there isn’t any additional damage or scar tissue on my heart. I hope you get it solved!! I feel your pain... no pun intended lol
Sorry to hear. Firstly never feel embarrassed to go to the ER. You are the best judge of your condition. If it feels tight - it is.
I don’t know your situation, but I went through many years of panic attacks which saw me at the ER with similar symptoms.
All you can do is get your heart fully checked out and assuming that is fine, then try to deal with any anxiety through medication if needed and/or therapy, diet, yoga etc.
I have found that since I stopped processed foods and simple carbs my heart palpitations have been significantly reduced. Also you may want to ask your doctor or naturopath about natural supplements like Magnesium and/or co-enzymes like GABA, HTP-5. I found GABA in particular to be a fantastic low symptom and safe (I think) anxiety reliever. Some people also have good results with St. John’s Wort or Sam-e.
Incidentally, after many years of seeing doctors I found a good “functional doctor” who really helped me through a mix of medicines and supplements. Also I realised a lot of conditions can be affected by the health of our gut, and often by addressing that symptoms are relieved. Unfortunately most regular doctors are not yet fully supportive and knowledgeable.
If your echo came back normal and your blood tests also came back normal you 99.9% of the time have nothing to worry about.
I went through all the tests because i was getting horrible runs of pvc's in bigemeny, trigemeny, etc sometimes for whole days.
I thought i was going to die several times. Cardiologist checked me out had me do stress tests with echo, echo with no stress test, 24 hour halter twice, blood tests.
They ran me through everything and it turns out my heart is healthy despite the pvc's/ectopics. I was told not to worry about it.
They gave me the option of going on metropolol a beta blocker to take as needed but i declined.
I started taking magnesium supplements and the episodes reduced by a lot.
I still get them but now they will only last for minutes instead of hours.
I imagine before finding out i wasnt going to die it was anxiety that was making it worse.
Talk to your cardiologist about magnesium if your getting palpitations though it sounds like it could just be your anxiety getting the better of you i know before all the tests mine got the better of me and im sure it made things much worse.
Hi there. It can be frustrating when you're having palpitations and then the holter shows nothing... nor does the ecg... yet, you're having them again and again... i've done a lot of reading on possible links between palpitations and gastric issues. I have bowel disease so perhaps there's a link. I do find that if I have a large meal, and I try to avoid large meals, that I'll get palpitations (flutters) just after. Most of my palps are flutters but a some have felt quite violent, more like spasms, quivers, or cartwheels. very scary. I've had occasional chest pressure but not pain. I get lightheaded sometimes. I'm sometimes off balance. Maybe you could get one of those kardia ecg monitors for your mobile phone and a blood pressure monitor and keep a diary including what you're eating and how you slept? or maybe the ecg will pick up something eventually. I had flutters all day yesterday and it's like torture. Hope you're ok. I'd say try not to worry but that's a bit rich coming from me as I worry a lot x
Good morning. I do hope you are feeling better.
I've been dealing with arrhythmia's for the last 20 years. They started when I was 39 and dx'd with Graves disease.
Had PVC's every day for 17 years, even though my Graves was in remission for most of that time.
Suddenly the PVC's stopped. 5 months later the ectopic beats started. 1-3 extra beats thrown in with my regular heart rhythm. All of this was asymptomatic. ECG always comes back normal.
I did some research and found that celexa, which I've taken for the last 3 years, can cause arrhythmia in some people. I'm weaning off that drug as we speak.
The key here is that once you accept that, after extensive testing to rule out heart disease, these stupid things are benign, the better you'll feel. And the better you feel after accepting it the less your arrhythmia will become. Anxiety will definitely make palps worse. Been there, done that! 🙄
That being said, ANYTIME, you feel chest pain, tightness, sweating, acute anxiety, it's ok to call your doc or head to an ER, if you are concerned!
Please don't hesitate to contact me if you need to talk. Maybe knowing that someone else has lived with this for 20 years might ease your mind. 😊
Kelley
Crystal, I also have palpitations and chest tightness, ectopic beats, and nervousness about my heart. I've been checked by my cardiologist, had holter monitor, EKGs, etc., all normal. I've tried to live with them because I have found anxiety makes them worse and the more I have them more anxious I become. It's a vicious cycle. I am taking propranolol and magnesium supplements. I also try to keep hydrated and make sure I'm eating potassium rich foods. I had them about five years ago and finally lost my fear of them and they virtually stopped. Recent stress and grief has started them again, but I'm trying to accept them and get on with my life. Hang in there. I know they're scary but pretty sure they're harmless.
Thank you for your post! I know my anxiety is not helping the situation at all. The chest tightness is new and random. Think that is scaring me now. It's been getting tight at center to left side of chest. Did you ever find anything out about the chest tightness?
I think chest tightness is a symptom of anxiety and stress. It's caused by muscle tension and abates when you relax. When I over-focus on my heart my chest tightens up, as does.my stomach. I've also found chest tightness is a frequent symptom of grief and sadness. If it concerns you, please visit with your doctor, but I'm pretty sure it's muscle tension. Do you ever practice progressive muscle relaxation? That might help.
Is it possible that this tightness you're feeling is you, when the anxiety strikes, tensing your muscles? I've caught myself tensing and causing that tight feeling
No I don't think so bc it feels so different. Like I do that with my upper back/neck muscles I'll notice I hold them really tight. But this is almost like a contraction to me. Not painful like labor but it's the only way I can describe it. I just had an episode where I had stay tight for a out 50mins... Def not a fan of this new development...
Hi
Stress definitely makes mine worse or big meals
Or when I get up from sitting at night or out of bed am or anything if it’s in the mood to misbehave: honestly if you had all the tests it’s normal & you need to learn to accept it , which will get easier as time goes on Beeta blockers helped me so much and can calm them down
When they are happening lots , seriously mine can go for hours every other beat and I get breathless when they are continually but 2 years later much better at dealing with them . It will get easier x
Did your heart squeeze and then start beating fast cause I've had that happen and I don't know what it is
That sounds like a PVC. Do you feel a hard thump after the "squeeze"?
Yes
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