Update - Tachycardia/Heart Palpitations?

[marie]

Update:
The cardiologist confirmed that I have SVT (supra ventricular tachycardia) which is benign but annoying. Treatment options discussed were: going on a beta-blocker, having ablation procedure, and taking a wait-and-see using various techniques to slow my heart when it happens. I'm going with a low-dose beta-blocker for now. It got really scary - the day of the OP I could barely get my heart rate to go down and stay down, the palpitations kept waking me up through the night, etc. Interesting to note that (and sorry for the TMI) on the Monday when things were so bad AF started with some spotting, and by Tuesday AM (after being up a lot of the night with palpitations) AF started full force and the episodes stopped completely and I haven't had one since. (There were a few days between that day and the start of the beta blocker.) I'll be monitoring this month's cycle closely to see if there seems to be a hormonal correlation.

marie

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Anyone here have experience with tachycardia?

I started noticing heart palpitations back in late August/early September but they were pretty random and not happening often - just enough to notice (couple times/week, not lasting long). This month they've picked up a lot and I finally called the doctor. Saw the NP and she sent me for an echocardiogram and Holter monitor. They never called me with results so I called and talked to a nurse who quickly looked over my file and said "echo looks good, you had two episodes while wearing the monitor (yup - i knew that!), looks like the NP wants you to see cardiology." Been waiting and waiting to hear back from them (they set it up the appointment for some reason?) and I finally called back today and I fell through the cracks.

In the meantime, the episodes are getting worse - much more frequent and lasting longer - starting on Christmas Day. I downloaded a heart rate monitor app so I can really get an idea of how fast it's going (170-190) and for how long. In my appointment with the NP, she mentioned that there is some evidence that this sort of thing (her initial diagnosis is Supra ventricular tachycardia) can be hormonal and they frequently see it in women in their 40s. Interesting because today AF arrived... is this a new part of PMS?!?

Anyway, just curious if anyone has experienced it. Trying to prepare myself for my appointment with the cardiologist.

TIA

[MommyAllison]

DH had a different form of tachycardia as a kid (PAT I think) and was put on beta blockers. He also had to avoid caffeine, which for him meant no chocolate, white chocolate only. When he was 18 they did an ablation, which took care of it. He still talks about how scary it was to feel his heart racing, as it took awhile for them to diagnose the problem and get it under control. I hope you are able to see the cardiologist soon!

[WatchingThemGrow]

Sounds like my DH, who went off caffeine immediately. Cleared it up instantly.

[kdeunc]

I started having palpitations (no tachycardia) about a year ago. I didn't wear a monitor but have had a stress echo and regular echo. Both normal. Mine definitely "show up" as PMS symptoms. I know that they are benign but still it makes me anxious. Love hitting my 40s!

[Indianamom2]

It can also very definitely be a symptom of anxiety/panic attacks. (Panic attacks don't feel like they sound, I think they need a new name!). I've never heard the PMS/hormonal link, but I'm not yet in my 40's. It could very well be true. Follow up with the cardiologist, but try not to worry. I've been through this several times in my life and for me it's always anxiety. It's scary, but if the echo was good, then try to relax.

[mommylamb]

I get them when I'm stressed. I've had all sorts of monitoring of my heart and they can't find anything wrong with me. My doctor told me to lay off the caffeine, which I did for a while, but now I'm back to drinking it. Bur really, it's a stress thing more than a caffeine thing for me.

[marie]

I started having palpitations (no tachycardia) about a year ago. I didn't wear a monitor but have had a stress echo and regular echo. Both normal. Mine definitely "show up" as PMS symptoms. I know that they are benign but still it makes me anxious. Love hitting my 40s!

I have to laugh at this because I *know* that the initial, mild episodes started in late August/early September - right when I turned 40! I thought "ya gotta be kidding me!?! 40 and it really IS all over!" LOL

Just heard from cardiology. The doc I requested didn't have an appt until first week of February and other docs didn't have great availability before then so I took that appt. I then asked if there was anything to do in the meantime to slow down my heart rate since the episodes are getting worse. She called me back less than 15 minutes later after asking the doc (the one I requested, no less!) and he looked at his schedule and will fit me in this Thursday!

RE: Caffeine. I don't drink coffee, occasionally drink black & green teas, but have a fierce chocolate addiction. Hot cocoa is my hot beverage of choice and though I don't drink it everyday, I drink it most days in the winter. (hot milk, little sugar, couple teaspoons cocoa powder - I looked it up and it can have as much caffeine as a cup of coffee.)

Interesting about anxiety. I'll have to think about/look into that...

thanks, all!

[RedSuedeShoes]

Are you on any meds or supplements that could be contributing? I had intermittent episodes of heart racing about a year ago and chalked it up to stress, but it got more frequent/intense until I had a major episode lasting several minutes (last New Year's Day, in fact). Somehow, it occurred to me to Google whether it could be from a supplement I'd started taking and sure enough, it's a relatively common side effect. Stopped that day, and haven't had an episode since. Hope you get some answers soon.

[acmom]

I had an echo during my first pregnancy for this. I have always had random, occasional episodes for as long as I remember, but they increased a lot during pregnancy. The echo was completely normal and the episodes decreased again after pregnancy, but I still have them. I will have to watch mine and see if they could be hormonal/PMS related, but I would guess hormones could effect them since my increased so much during pregnancy. A close family member is a cardiologist and not too concerned with them since I had my echo and all was fine. Hope your dr can help you figure them out bc it is no fun when they are happening often!

[Gena]

I have mitral valve prolapse with a heart murmur and some mitral regurgitation (blood flows backwards through the valve). It occasionally gives me symptoms of tachycardia, arrhythmia, and chest discomfort/pain. I usually get these symptoms if I'm over-stressed, over-exerted, or sick. Managing my stress and anxiety has decreased the frequency of them a lot.