Anyone else have heart palpitations? / Update on post #14.

[Casper]

I was just wondering if anyone else has had these problems before..

For the past few days I have been having heart palpitations.. a lot. I think they are stress-related. I have had them before, but only in isolated incidents that would vaporize before I could think much of them. Now they have been lingering around for the past three days and it is irrefutable that they have outstayed their welcome.
It certainly does not help that they have brought along their good ol' friends... panic attacks.

I have been to the doctor and have had a series of tests done. Blood tests, chest x-ray, EKG, etc...
On Friday I wore a holter monitor. Man, was I glad to get that off! It was like I had a pestering octopus attached to me for 24 hours.

I was prescribed Metoprolol to take once a day because of my irregular heartbeat. My mum was the one to receive the phone call, so I do not know the details. I just know that a followup is on the 9th of June.
I took my first dose this morning at 8:45. Ugh. I have been feeling cold and tired ever since. I am under two blankets and I really don't want to do much more than curl up into a little ball and take a nap. I truly hate this.

I believe Metoprolol is a beta blocker, but the problem with it is that it is also blood pressure medicine. My blood pressure has always been a tiny bit on the low side, and since taking my medicine this morning my blood pressure has been fluctuating. It has gotten as low as 84/61, but usually hovers around 95/53. My pulse is back down to 71, but has been anywhere between 70-107 BPM.

Does anyone know of any ways to raise blood pressure?

I am really missing my equivalent of normal right about now...


I don't know... I guess I figured that if I knew of some other people who had this I would feel a little better. I know this is pretty common, but it does not run in my family nor do any of my friends have it.

Thanks for listening. :)

[Laura's Babies]

Mine has been acting up for almost a year now. When I had my company physical in April, the stress test showed I had multiple PVC's throughtout the stress test. The final report said everything is "NORMAL"..

Mine have caused lightheadness and shortness of breath for quit awhile. Some days I have them all day long, other days they come and go. Sometime it feels like me heart is going to jump right out of my chest..

I too, have normal "LOW" blood pressure. Have you tried Magnesium for the palpitations? I read on the internet that some people have luck with that and got some, the first day I tried it, the PVC's stopped.. Everythying I try, they'll stop the first several days and then come right back. Right now I am trying to decaf myself.. They are terriably scarey and annoying but everything you read says they are "normal"? I am tired of feeling "excited" all the time... that is how I described it to a doctor... the heart pounds like it does when you are really excited over something.

Would increasing your salt intake get your BP up?

[Casper]

Thanks for the reply. :)

My multivitamin contains Magnesium, but I have not been very faithful to my vitamins lately. Mum changed the location of where she keeps such things so I had been forgetting to take them for about a week now. Tonight I left myself a note and made sure to take one after supper.

I am not one to normally salt things, but I added a tad bit of salt to my dinner tonight. I checked my blood pressure a while ago and it was 112/62. Quite a bit better than earlier.

I am feeling rather fine at the moment.



They are terriably scarey and annoying but everything you read says they are "normal"? I am tired of feeling "excited" all the time...
I have only been dealing with this for a little while, but I most certainly see where you are coming from. I don't think I could ever regard these events as "normal".

Best of luck with yours.

[kokopup]

I'm sure the Doctor is giving you Metoprolol to stabilize your heart rate. It is a beta blocker most often taken for high blood pressure. It is often given for palpitations or just to keep your heart from over working. I have taken Metoprolol and it can cause fatique because it is keeping your heartrate from increasing when it would normally need to under exertion.

I have Baroreflex failure caused by Radiation from cancer treatment. I have both high and low blood pressure because the baroreflex sensors in my carotid arteries that regulate you pressuree no longer work.

When my symptoms were mostly low pressure they were giving me Midodrine to raise my pressure. Make sure you are well hydrated because poor hydration can also cause low blood pressure.

I have pressures that will be 180/100 and within 30 minutes it can go low sometimes as low 55/35. I have found that staying hydrated is absolutely essential for me to function at all.

[ILoveMyAbbyGirl]

I'm not taking anything, but I too get heart palpitations quite often, especially when I'm stressed. It used to only happen maybe once or twice a week, and like you said, they were gone before I hardly noticed. But recently it happens a lot more when I am stressed. The one day at work it happens every couple minutes for a good hour. Scared the daylights out of me. :(

Good luck in whatever you find. Hope you feel better!

[Casper]

Thanks for the replies you two.

Kokopup, thanks for the info. I have upped my water intake and it seems to have helped a bit. My blood pressure has not been quite so low today.


Quick update:

Yesterday and last night I began to receive weird sensations in my chest cavity. Sometimes I would get that cold, tingly feeling like I had just downed a glass of ice water, and other times it was just pressure.

We talked to the family physician and he has referred us to a Cardiologist. Thursday morning is the soonest that they could get me in.

Wish us luck!

[smokey the elder]

Did you get a thyroid series? (T3/T4/TSH). These are blood tests. Thyroid disease is woefully underdiagnosed, considering how easy it is TO diagnose.

Your symptoms (I'm not a doctor, at least not THAT kind) seem consistent with the ones I had when I had a hyperthyroid flare-up. Beta-blockers are often prescribed until the thyroid can be brought under control.

Other symptoms for a hyperthyroid complaint are: excessive sensitivity to heat; dry hair and skin, and the biggie for me: ravenous appetite and weight loss.

Good luck with whatever it is and I hope it gets sorted soon.

[Marigold2]

Yes that is how it was for me. Thyroid should be tested. If normal retest in 6 months since levels can go up and down. I was misdiagnosed and went through a very rough three years before finally getting the help I needed from a brilllant Dr at the Cleveland Clinic. He saved my life.
Did you get a thyroid series? (T3/T4/TSH). These are blood tests. Thyroid disease is woefully underdiagnosed, considering how easy it is TO diagnose.

Your symptoms (I'm not a doctor, at least not THAT kind) seem consistent with the ones I had when I had a hyperthyroid flare-up. Beta-blockers are often prescribed until the thyroid can be brought under control.

Other symptoms for a hyperthyroid complaint are: excessive sensitivity to heat; dry hair and skin, and the biggie for me: ravenous appetite and weight loss.

Good luck with whatever it is and I hope it gets sorted soon.

[Casper]

I know my thyroid was tested, but unsure if all tests for thyroid were done. If doctors do a general thyroid test does that normally mean they did the whole thyroid series?

Please pardon me for being a bit ignorant when it comes to medical issues. This is the first medical problem I have run into that I can remember so I am the new kid on the block in this area of knowledge.... :)

[kokopup]

quote by oyster

I know my thyroid was tested, but unsure if all tests for thyroid were done. If doctors do a general thyroid test does that normally mean they did the whole thyroid series?


Usually unless you stipulate that you get a complete profile the doctors, only get T4,T3 uptake, and TSH. The trend is to base every thing off of T4/TSH which is a big mistake. I have low thyroid and had to hassle for some time before I got the Doctors to test my T3. As it turned out my T3 was not being corrected by the T4 medication I was receiving. A lot of doctors have been brain washed by Abbott labs to believe that if you correct low T4 your T3 will be corrected. While high thyroid can cause low blood press Low thyroid can also cause low blood pressure.

[Daisy and Delilah]

Right away I thought it sounded like a thyroid problem. If the thyroid is off, it can cause alot of problems in the body.

kokopup: I am really agreeing with what you're saying about doctors. My doctor is on the same bandwagon. I was wondering where they got those theories. Every time I get tested, the answers they give me are not making any sense when I look at my numbers.:confused:

Best of luck with this. It sure doesn't sound like fun.:(

[smokey the elder]

My GP was savvy enough to put me on both T4 (the usual Synthroid, etc.) AND T3 supplement (levothrine or Cytomel.) Although recent clinical trials have suggested that adding T3 doesn't help, I'm one patient that it did tremendously.

[kokopup]

If the truth was known the clinical trials were sponsored by Abbott lab. They manufacture Synthroid. They spread a lot of misinformation to doctors about dose consistency of generics equivalents. In independent studies abbott labs had less consistent doses that the generics.

I am taking Armour thyroid which is derived from pig thyroids. I elected to go this way to get my T3 rather than the Cytomel route. Until they came up with all the chemical replacements Armour was the treatment of choice. On Synthroid alone I was not functioning at all. Once i added the T3 with Armour I began to feel better almost from day one.

[Casper]

Quick update:
Just wanted to let you all know that my appointment with the Cardiologist went well. He diagnosed me with SVT (Supraventricular tachycardia). I believe that I go back on the 9th to have an echo cardiogram(unsure if that is the right terminology) and then we will go from there. I have the choice of either taking medication for the rest of my life or to have them essentially zap the problem-section of my heart back into rhythm. I am pretty sure I will go with the later. In a few weeks we will be meeting with the heart-doctor in either Memphis or Little Rock. Honestly, I think I would prefer Memphis (a more familiar city with a better zoo!) over Little Rock, but as long as I get good care I guess it does not matter too much....

Oh, and I have gotten my blood pressure pretty much under control.

[Laura's Babies]

I am having mine checked out too, and go back Wednesday for the results of that I have had done so far.. EKG, a untra sound and wore the minotor for 24 hours.. I am betting all my stuff says "NORMAL!"... Like the treadmill tests where the report says the PVC's are "normal".