Slow, weird heart beat since flu...cause for concern?

[Jess Watkins]

Okay so I had the flu a week and half ago..had a bad fever which made my poor heart work hard and since then...not sure if it is because I was hyper-aware of my heart since being sick in bed....but my heart has been feeling "off beat" if that makes sense. I keep getting PVCs and flutters when I hold my breath or when I am falling asleep. It is very weird. I notice my heartbeat and can feel it as I am sitting here typing this. It feels like it is beating hard and slower than usual.

I checked my BP and it was low...heart rate was around 60 BPM with 100/67 which is not normal for me. Mine is usually 117/80. I went to my doctor back in November and had a heart checkup with EKG and blood work (lipid panel, etc.) and all of it came back perfect. I am 21 years old female white (my doctor told me it would be very unlikely for me to have heart issues) but I am worried the flu damaged my heart..


Do y'all think I should go back for another checkup? I don't want to run the risk of getting sick again because it's high flu season and my doctor's office is packed with germs. What should I do?

Dang...my anxiety is making my heart beat fast as I think something is wrong with me! One minute it was slow then it's fast! SO TIRED OF WORRYING ABOUT MY HEART. After that checkup my fears went away only to come back after the flu...greeeeeeaaaaat. LOL. I WAS very in-tune to my heart while I was ill so maybe I just trained myself to be aware of my heart and that is why it feels weird? I keep bouncing my leg because I feel like it keeps it "in beat".

[TW4569]

I'd get checked out just in case, but I can tell you from experience that anxiety can do some really weird stuff to your heart. I went to the ER when I had my first major anxiety attack, I was so sure I was having some kind of cardiac emergency. I've had heart palpitations that feel like my heart is beating against my esophagus, I've had it speed up for extended periods of time, had it feel like it was beating against my sternum, and I've even had to feel my chest a couple times to make sure it was still beating because it felt like it randomly stopped completely.

Like you mentioned, worrying about your weird heartbeat makes your anxiety worse, worse anxiety makes your heartbeat weirder, worrying about your weird heartbeat makes your anxiety worse, etc, etc, etc. I found that instances of anxiety related heart weirdness were greatly reduced when I had all kinds of tests done that showed my heart was okay. If you can, definitely go get checked out, to confirm that there isn't actually something wrong with your heart. Knowing for sure there isn't anything wrong does wonders for anxiety.

[Brit95]

Okay so I had the flu a week and half ago..had a bad fever which made my poor heart work hard and since then...not sure if it is because I was hyper-aware of my heart since being sick in bed....but my heart has been feeling "off beat" if that makes sense. I keep getting PVCs and flutters when I hold my breath or when I am falling asleep. It is very weird. I notice my heartbeat and can feel it as I am sitting here typing this. It feels like it is beating hard and slower than usual.

I checked my BP and it was low...heart rate was around 60 BPM with 100/67 which is not normal for me. Mine is usually 117/80. I went to my doctor back in November and had a heart checkup with EKG and blood work (lipid panel, etc.) and all of it came back perfect. I am 21 years old female white (my doctor told me it would be very unlikely for me to have heart issues) but I am worried the flu damaged my heart..

Do y'all think I should go back for another checkup? I don't want to run the risk of getting sick again because it's high flu season and my doctor's office is packed with germs. What should I do?

Dang...my anxiety is making my heart beat fast as I think something is wrong with me! One minute it was slow then it's fast! SO TIRED OF WORRYING ABOUT MY HEART. After that checkup my fears went away only to come back after the flu...greeeeeeaaaaat. LOL. I WAS very in-tune to my heart while I was ill so maybe I just trained myself to be aware of my heart and that is why it feels weird? I keep bouncing my leg because I feel like it keeps it "in beat".

For sure go see a doctor. I know of two people who have recently gotten the flu and the flu attacked their heart. One had to get a heart transplant. But I think if you're over the flu and you don't feel sick anymore, you're probably fine.

[mistiblue]

Brit95- this is an anxiety board, so that probably wasn't the best response.

Jesswatkins- My heart beats weird all the time and it's just anxiety. You should see a doc just to ease your mind, but it's most likely nothing to worry about.