Heart speeds up, slows down.

[Jinaiya]

This would be a new symptom to add to my list of ongoing problems so I decided to reach out here too see if anyone else gets this too.

Last night at about 2am I woke up and noticed my heart was pounding. NOT racing... just pounding. After being made aware of this I also noticed that my heart would increase speed for about 5-6 beats and then slow back down again. I thought maybe breathing in seemed to increase the rate but not sure about this. As a result I really had a lot of trouble sleeping last night. :(

I had a lot of palpitations this morning and kept "feeling" like my heart was racing. However, I'd check my rate and find it to be pretty normal 70-80 bpm.

About 10 months ago I had a EKG done because I was suffering severe palpitations. A month later I had a 24-hour Holter Monitor and then a follow up Echo Cardiogram. If ANYTHING was wrong with my heart they would have found it right? What about 10 months later? Is it possible something might have developed since then?

Just hoping for some reassurance.

Thanks all.

[dazza]

Jinaiya... I said this on another thread:


I've read that a sudden speeding up of heart rate for no apparent reason can be, amongst other things, for the following reasons:

1/ A nerve problem such as dysautonomias (unlikely) or a nerve problem which exhibits itself in certain postures.
I've read a few cases where heart rates increased for people say, bending over. This was because as they bent, certain nerves would
get pinched which in turn aggrevated or influenced the heart.

2/ Anxiety / panic (of course)

3/ A / some heart valves may not be shutting properly (prolapse). Unwanted returning blood causes the heart to beat fast to get rid of it.

4/ Thyroid issues

5/ Blood sugar issues

6/ Excessive caffeine

The list above is by no means exhaustive.


Heart shouldn't start pounding / palpitating for no reason. There has to be a reason.

Sure, we know anxiety / panic attacks can cause it but yours doesn't sound like it imo. I might be wrong of course.

You need to get some checks, but you could also try helping yourself and monitoring what you're doing when these episodes occur.
I know you were in bed, asleep on this occasion... but you may have done something before bed, or perhaps it's your sleeping posture pinching a nerve.
Were you sleeping on your left side, do you know? or flat on your back? - both of these positions can cause palps during times of anxiety... I KNOW this because I've been there.
Sleeping on the right side helped enormously... as did ensuring I was absolutely knackered before getting into bed, rather than lie there staring at the ceiling waiting for the innevitable next palp... which quite frankly, scared the f*cking shit out of me.

[Jinaiya]

Not quite the answer I was hoping for... :/ Now I'm feeling quite anxious. I guess I'll go through each of your points...

1) I don't think this applies to me. My heart can pound, race, or both in any given situation. Laying down, doing chores, on the computer...

2) This is what I was hoping it might be.

3) This one is scary to me because when I did get my Echo Cardiogram done, they did find that one of my valves didn't close all the way. They said it was harmless though and should not effect me.

4) Have had my thyroid tested and it came back normal.

5) Never have had an alarming blood sugar test come back except when I was pregnant.

6) I have not drank caffeinated products for about a year now. The only things I am consuming is water and chamomile tea.

When I am sleeping, I often lay on my left side, sometimes switching to my right in the middle of the night. I do sometimes sleep on my back if my Acid Reflux is making me uncomfortable.

[Jinaiya]

I just looked over my echo cardiogram again. This was done last March so... 8 Months ago. I must assume that because the problems have persisted, if it were a problem THEN, they would have found it at that time. Everything just said that I was normal except for two things: Mildly dilated right atrium, mild tricuspid regurgitation. I have looked both up and didn't find anything particularly alarming. In fact I found that almost ALL patients who go in for an Echo have mild tricuspid regurgitation.

Not sure if I feel much better about the whole thing. Good thing I have a doctors appt tomorrow.

[Peak]

Jinaiya hopefully this may calm you. I suffer from pretty much exactly the same symptoms as you. I get heart palps, racing heart, dizzy spells, occasional feeling of being weak etc. I've had ECG's coming out of my ears including a 24hr holter and an echo cardiogram. Whilst the ECG's did record my palps no cause was found and they said that my heart is perfectly okay. If it's perfectly okay, why do I get these palps and racing heart. My GP thinks it's anxiety and I'm currently waiting for CBT. In a recent thread I started I mentioned that day to day I'm not aware of feeling stressed but then the palps start and I do feel stressed. Just now before coming on here I was suddenly aware that I hadn't had any palps for a few hours. Minutes later it felt as though my heart was going faster than it was and I started to feel a bit anxious like I needed to get away from something. No idea why it started. Like you I can't help but think that if it's the palps causing the anxiety than there must be something wrong with me yet I have to keep telling myself that all the tests show that there isn't anything wrong. Doesn't make it easier to deal with but it sounds like we both need to try and accept that actually we are fine and are going to be around for many more years to come.

Be strong!

[Jinaiya]

Jinaiya hopefully this may calm you. I suffer from pretty much exactly the same symptoms as you. I get heart palps, racing heart, dizzy spells, occasional feeling of being weak etc. I've had ECG's coming out of my ears including a 24hr holter and an echo cardiogram. Whilst the ECG's did record my palps no cause was found and they said that my heart is perfectly okay. If it's perfectly okay, why do I get these palps and racing heart. My GP thinks it's anxiety and I'm currently waiting for CBT. In a recent thread I started I mentioned that day to day I'm not aware of feeling stressed but then the palps start and I do feel stressed. Just now before coming on here I was suddenly aware that I hadn't had any palps for a few hours. Minutes later it felt as though my heart was going faster than it was and I started to feel a bit anxious like I needed to get away from something. No idea why it started. Like you I can't help but think that if it's the palps causing the anxiety than there must be something wrong with me yet I have to keep telling myself that all the tests show that there isn't anything wrong. Doesn't make it easier to deal with but it sounds like we both need to try and accept that actually we are fine and are going to be around for many more years to come.

Be strong!

Hi peak!

I know exactly what you mean about realizing you hadn't felt them for a couple hours and then the reappearance. This can happen to me as well. I was out at the store yesterday and had a realization that I had not been obsessing over stuff for most of the day. That realization left me a little anxious in itself but I tried hard to just enjoy my time out.

I also get the confusion on getting these symptoms when you otherwise feel completely fine. As I mentioned in another thread, I can be relaxing watching a movie and suddenly get this string of palpitations. It never ceases to scare the bejesus out of me. I am generally pretty good at handling one odd palpitation, but yeah, a string of them and I am hosed.

Heres to hoping we both feel right as rain soon. :)

[dazza]

Not quite the answer I was hoping for... :/ Now I'm feeling quite anxious. I guess I'll go through each of your points...

1) I don't think this applies to me. My heart can pound, race, or both in any given situation. Laying down, doing chores, on the computer...

2) This is what I was hoping it might be.

3) This one is scary to me because when I did get my Echo Cardiogram done, they did find that one of my valves didn't close all the way. They said it was harmless though and should not effect me.

4) Have had my thyroid tested and it came back normal.

5) Never have had an alarming blood sugar test come back except when I was pregnant.

6) I have not drank caffeinated products for about a year now. The only things I am consuming is water and chamomile tea.

When I am sleeping, I often lay on my left side, sometimes switching to my right in the middle of the night. I do sometimes sleep on my back if my Acid Reflux is making me uncomfortable.

1/ OK, so you don't think it's posture related. Very well.

2/ I hope so to, but I'm not going to pussy-foot you with "awwww don't worry it's just anxiety" when there's a possibility it isn't. I'm cautious in nature.
Although this is an anxiety / panic forum - it worries me a little when people are blaming everything on anxiety & completely ignore the fact it might not be.

I'm no doctor by any stretch of the imagination, but I do sometimes see merit in exploring other avenues BEFORE concluding anxiety.

3/ OK. Although harmless - this might be the cause.

4/ OK

5/ Did the pregnancy / birth go OK? any complications... with bleeding in particular?

6/ Good! :-)


Having suffered heart attack anxiety / panic attacks & palps for a good part of this year, I'm quite familiar with how the heart is affected by it all.

Before this all kicked off, I recall that palps were occuring say, once every few months... pretty insignificant really, but ALWAYS at work.

Then, whilst having anxiety disorder... palps were occuring near everynight and had me trembling with fear in my bed.
(Laying in bed was the worst time for thinking / worrying / stressing)

Palps would also sometimes occur while watching stressy movies... either at home or cinema. In fact, I once had to the leave the cinema when watching a horror... heart nearly burst out my chest.
Loud, dramatic music would sometimes cause them, as would dark, enclosed areas... or enclosed areas with lots of people.
A pattern was emerging... and I can safely say, hand on heart (no pun intended) that I KNOW I was always feeling panicked or scared BEFORE they occured.
I felt scared / on edge / tingling / panicked / uneasy / generally "not right in the head"

When you say you're convinced you're NOT feeling anxious when your palps occur... this is what worries me somewhat.

There is, however, an exception to this which IS related to anxiety... and that is that you may well indeed feel completely anxiety free, but, for a brief split second... the mind can quickly switch to panic mode but switch back instantly.
This can be so fast that you bearly notice it... but this switch can cause a palp.

[Jinaiya]

Hi again Dazza, thanks for all your time :)

Don't get me wrong. I'm not implying I am never stressed when I feel the palps, although there certainly are times where I truly thought I was relaxed and the palps caused my attack.

My heart beating funny occurred in the middle of the night when I woke from sleep. I seem to have developed a bad habit where I check my pulse once I wake up now. I just feel so aware all of the time.

I plan to mention all of this to my doctor tomorrow. :)