heart going fast

[fisher]

Ello can anyone help me,i am 7 months pregnant but i have had an ecg and 24 hr tape done everything fine but when i wake up and walk around my heart goes fast and can feel the thuds,my doctor when i mention it said we have been down this rd before and there is nothing we need to do further so were do i go from here,i am starting to get really anxious and feel like when i have the baby my heart will go that fast it will stop oh i am trying my best to stay calm but how can you when your heart is going fast,please somebody give me some advice.

[Buttercup]

Congrats on the pregnancy :) Prgnancy is a really stressful time- hormones all over the place, dealing with exhaustion, worry about giving birth etc etc. Trust your doc when he says all is fine, he would never ever say it was ok if it wasn't. When you give birth your heart will not beat to fast that it stops and if there are any complications you will be in the hospital where they are equiped to deal with any situation. It must be a really scary time for you but relaxation is the key. Relaxing when in a heightened state of anxiety is hard but totally do-able. Different methods work for different people. You could try lying or sitting in a comfortable position, closing your eyes, focusing on steady breathing and visualising your heart slowing down and returning to it's normal rate. Music or relaxation CD's can be great especially when worn with those big head phones that get rid of all outside noise. Sometimes folk find that doing something to take their mind off it helps, you are probably not in the best position to do a work out but going for a gentle walk, reading a book or magazine or even doing some housework.
It may also be an idea to ask for help at your next hospital or docs appointment in regards to your anxiety- hopefully you could be put in touch with a professional you can talk to about your fears. Good luck xxx

[bea38]

Hey,
I had the exact same thing and also had the 24hr tape, ecg's etc. I too was terrified that my heart would pack in giving birth but I can tell u now as soon as u go in2 labour you'll be fine, infact I felt an overwhelming calm and just got on with it and forgot about the rate of my heart. I found the build up to the event was a lot worse than the event itself, trust me, you'll be fine :) :) congrats :) x

[alankay]

Why focus on the symptom? Anxiety must be the issue so pursue treatment for that. See another doc if needed. Alankay

[fisher]

i just think is it the heart or something else?i think i keep it going fast because then i get anxious thoughts which i cant stop,i even phoned up today for a private heart scan but it was £420,i just want to know that everything is normal,what scares me is i read that if your heart rate goes above 140 bpm its bad for baby saying they could get lack of oxygen

[alankay]

Fisher, I'm sure with an ECG and the holter monitor they would have saw something if anything were wrong. An echo test would be a waste of money. I think you need to acknowledge so have anxiety. And anxious folks(like you/me) often worry about the heart as part of the flight or fight response is a higher heart beat due to the adrenaline being released. Also the heart is the most obviously active organ and we can pay too much attention to that. Anyway, if they gave you the echo test don't you think you'd worry "did they miss something". This would go on and on. It did for me. Anxiety is the problem........not your heart.
Talk about the things that stress or worry you and the things that have happened to you that might explain why you're so anxious. Start there and see if you can reduce your anxiety that way. Alankay.