Does anyone else have a LOT of heart palpitations? How do you handle them?

Thank you! I was thinking pretty much the same thing about the ER. If they don't find something right away, they blow you off. Heart problems don't run in my family, but you never know. This has been going on for too long now. It just may be that I need more potassium but I'll need blood work done before I can know that for sure. I don't drink a lot of caffeine, but normally have one Coke a day. I'm going to stop completely and just stick to juice and water for awhile. I'll also be calling my doctor on Monday to make an appointment. You are very right about our doctors looking into problems deeper than any ER doctor would. My doctor is an internist and a rheumatologist. She's VERY good. Thanks again. I'll definitely be seeing my doctor, even if this event disappears suddenly. My cholesterol has been higher than it should be, although it's only a little higher than it should be, at least it was the last time I had it checked. It's worth looking into. I'm on blood pressure meds that I take religiously. I've seen what high blood pressure can do to a person. I watch maybe too many of those medical shows. I'll see my doctor a.s.a.p. Better safe than sorry, right? I really hope your husband has no more problems since his surgery. I'm sorry to hear that he did need surgery but, in a way, I'm glad that you had this experience to talk about.

I so glad you're going to call your doctor on Monday! I agree...it's always better to go and find nothing wrong than to not go when something is wrong. Thanks for the nice words about my husband. His heart wasn't damaged by the heart attack because he got help fast. His doctors and I keep on top of his blood pressure and cholesterol, too. Also his carotid arteries. He needed surgery to clear the right one a little over a year ago...they roto-rootered him...and they're keeping tabs on the left one. I hope things go well at the doctor's and I'm glad that I could help.

My dear Hiccup! Yes, I finally realized this and adjusted while the divorce was going on (it wasn't something I wanted at the time but something I really needed) and now during my current legal troubles. I've found the key to beating the palpitations and it's ALL about stress reduction!! I'm just concerned that Mentalward may have a congenital heart condition. I've learned a lot in the past few years about tension control. We could have a lot of laughs together! I think you've had your share of trials and tribulations that you've learned to laugh about rather than brood upon.

Thanks, both of you, for your insight. I'm pretty sure that I have no congenital heart problems because I've had my heart tested before and nothing was found. I've had numerous EKGs and some showed palpitations, some didn't. But, my heart beat was regular and strong, always. I think it's stress. I honestly don't feel particularly stressed, no more than usual, and I usually do something that I love doing to reduce stress when it's worse than usual. I think my stress now is caused by waiting for Social Security to approve me for disability. Funny, huh? Ironic, that they could very well be the cause of my newest problem by them dragging their feet about approving me. With that psyche evaluation being so positive for me, I'm all but convinced that I'll be approved this time and every day, waiting for the mail, is like an eternity! I have a growing pile of medical bills that Medicare should be taking care of, but since I haven't officially been approved yet, the bills are there. I'm now getting phone calls about them because we just can't afford to pay them. The insurance we have is horrible and I can't count on them to pay anything. I will be calling my doctor on Monday and will have whatever tests she deems necessary, but I honestly now think it's just stress doing this. Thanks so much for your concern. I hope your legal troubles are over soon. I wish I could help! All I can do, though, is be here if you need someone to talk to or lean on.

Thank you, my friend! I will undoubtedly be unloading my tensions here on myLot in the coming weeks. My ex wants to reduce my maintenance award because of the economy but his business is doing fairly well and he doesn't want to give up going out to dinner and the movies or taking vacations with his new slu**y wife that took him away from me and our boys. He bought a $350K house and added all kinds of great improvements to it and took out a second mortgage to pay for it all and has a classic car, too. He refuses to live within his means and yet I have made all kinds of sacrifices to put money in my savings account (which I just emptied and gave to my attorney!) and retirement account. No jobs here and I can't work just any job because of my scoliosis. Oops, there I went and started griping already!

I'm taking less medications now than I was a year ago. One that I was taking, Cymbalta, seemed to have the potential to interact with almost everything else, so I stopped taking that... like almost a year ago. I'm not taking anything new and I haven't recently stopped any meds. Both I and my husband have researched the meds I take to see if they interact with each other and, since stopping the Cymbalta, everything is okay to take with everything else. Nothing I take elevates blood pressure. I'm on a blood pressure med that works great and keeps my blood pressure extremely normal. Once someone mentioned stress, I think I know what it is. I've been waiting, every day, for the mailman to bring me some good news about my disability case. Since the psyche exam report was extremely favorable to me, and every doctor has said I can't work, it's almost a sure thing that I'll be approved. It's the waiting and the disappointment each day that is probably building up and causing these palpitations. I will be seeing my doctor for a checkup to make sure this is just stress, though. Of course, if it is stress, I suppose I'll be put on even more medications but I'd rather take them than face a stroke or heart attack! This could be all Social Security's fault, for dragging their feet because they know they have to approve me. If it is stress, I'm going to have to write letters to everyone I can think of, including my senator and congressman, telling them what Social Security is doing to me by stalling my approval.

hopefully you will feel better soon and nothing serious about what you feel or what the doctor will see or discover.

Hi neil, I know pretty much no more than I did before today. I saw my doctor, but because of my irregular heartbeat and an insanely fluctuating heart rate (between 62 and 110), he sent me right to the emergency room. They monitored me, took blood work and X-rays. The monitor recorded my irregular heart beat and fluctuating heart rate, but the X-rays showed nothing abnormal and I assume my blood work was fine because they said they didn't find anything. But, they want me to wear a Holter monitor for 24 hours to monitor my heart but they were out of them today. Apparently, I'm not the only one having heart problems! I'm to call the hospital tomorrow to see if they have any monitors back yet, then go in and have them put it on me. I also have to have a treadmill stress test and an echocardiogram. My doctor is setting them up. So, right now, I'm back home and taking it easy. I do what I can, then lie down and rest. I won't overdo anything and will do everything the doctor's want. I honestly think it's stress that has finally reached the breaking point. Partly my husband, partly this eternal waiting to hear something about my disability case. I just wanted to update you. You're such a good and kind-hearted person and I consider you a friend. I will let you know what these tests show once I get the results.

Hi neil. I have an appointment with my doctor at 8 a.m. today and haven't had anything other than water to drink or eat since last night because I'm sure the doctor will want fasting blood work done. I'm glad that they took this rather seriously at the doctor's office and got me an appointment as soon as possible. I should know more soon. If the doctor can't pinpoint anything today, I'm sure the blood work will show something. I hope it's just a need for more potassium. I'll keep you updated. Marti

It could very well be stress doing it! I had forgotten about that. Living with stress every day when there's nothing you can do about it, you tend to just accept it as part of life. Now I'm thinking that maybe Social Security is causing this episode I'm having! I had my disability hearing on Feb. 13th, my psyche evaluation on April 20th, got a letter from the judge giving me 10 more days if I had anything else I wanted to submit before he made his decision on May 1st. Since then, I've been anxiously waiting for the mailman every day, hoping to hear some good news from Social Security and every day I'm disappointed, again. That could be building up my stress level. I hadn't thought of that before now. Thanks so much!!! Wouldn't it be ironic if Social Security actually causes my disability to get worse just by dragging their heals about approving me? I'll tell you one thing, if this IS stress causing these palpitations, I'm going to have to see a lawyer because if Social Security is causing my health to get worse, there must be something I can do about it. Maybe I should first see my doctor to make sure it's nothing more than stress, then write to my senator and congressman, letting them know what this waiting is doing to me. Of course, I do have other things causing me stress, but nothing is more prominent right now than waiting to hear something about my disability case. A LOT of my problems could be resolved once I'm approved for disability. Grrrrr... now I'm even angrier at them!

I hate to add to your stress, but, this is now beyond ridiculous! You should have had a decision from the Judge by now! It just doesn't take that long! You either need to get a new lawyer as Leenie says or contact your Assemblyman or Congressman or whoever you need to! At this point I have never heard anything like this! After an Appeal and seeing a Judge this is not right! It doesn't take an additional three months for a Judge to make a decision!

So far I haven't needed HRT, and I hope I can slide by without it. I forgot to mention earlier that I had bad panic attacks also, on top of the palpatations. Zoloft has taken care of the panic attacks. I watched an Oprah show a few years ago, they had a doctor on there, and they said that heart palpatations increase with age in women - (that's just great), Oprah said that she gets them too. By the way I heard that a total eclipse of the sun will take place around the 20th or 22nd, so if you become engulfed in darkness going to your appointments, don't panic! Lol, I'll keep you in my prayers....

Hi leenie, I went to Johns Hopkins Hospital last year and had a heart workup. They found nothing wrong. However, years ago, it was suggested that I might have mitral valve prolapse, but no other doctor has ever confirmed that. If I do have it, it is apparently not doing too much damage because it was over 10 years ago when I was told that. I've thought about going to the ER, but have stalled because I've been there twice before because of palpitations and, when they found no apparent cause, they sent me home and never even advised me to see a cardiologist. I'm now thinking that it could be one of two things. Either my potassium level is extremely low right now or it's stress. I've been drinking a lot of orange and apple juice today and the palpitations have calmed down a bit. My potassium level has always been either low or borderline. But, after posting this discussion, I thought it may just be the stress that I'm experiencing every day when I don't hear anything from Social Security about my disability case. I eagerly await the mail every day and am disappointed every day when there's nothing from them. The more time that passes, the angrier I'm getting plus my medical bills are piling up. Our health insurance totally sucks and I honestly don't know why we still have it, other than it is paying for my medications with relatively low co-pays. Although, now that I'm thinking about it, one of the meds I take regularly, this insurance has paid for with a $10.00 copay from me but my last refill cost $89.00 and the insurance did pay for some of it, just not most of it. So, apparently, our insurance is getting even worse, and still no word from Social Security. It really is stressing me out! I'm trying to get out and do a little gardening every day because that always relaxes me but, apparently, it's not enough any more. At least, if this IS stress causing my non-stop palpitations. Right at the moment, they're rather calm. I still have them, but it doesn't feel like my heart is trying to come out of my chest. I just drank a glass of OJ and am now working on a glass of apple juice. I'll call my doctor on Monday and see if she wants to see me or if she wants me to go to a cardiologist. She'll probably want to see me and that's fine. I'll just do what I can to stay as calm as I can for now. If it does get worse, though, I'll head straight for the hospital. Luckily, it's not far from here, only 7 or 8 miles. I'll keep you updated!

OK Marti, Now I'm even more convinced that you should go to the ER. My Mitral Valve Prolapse was detected like 10 years prior to when it became a real problem for me. When or if you do go to the ER, tell them you were told you had a Heart Murmur 10 years ago and are afraid it might be causing these problems. Do not let them send you home without an Echocardiogram. Not an ekg, although they should do both. The Echo will determine what is going on. The stress has probably made the Murmur(Mital Valve Prolapse)worse. I know I'm being pushy but please don't wait till Monday. SSDI will pick up the tab eventually. Hugsss leenie