Bigeminy ~ Extra Heartbeats

[TwingleMum]

I recently experienced bigeminy ~ extra heartbeats. It was pretty scary. I had the symptoms for a few days and finally went to get them checked out at the ER. I was told its not life threatening and is pretty common. I'm worried anyway I have a follow up at my cardiologist on Monday. They say it sometimes is brought on by changes in hormones (I'm entering the perimenuposal age YIKES) Has anyone experienced this?? I'm about 40 lbs overweight which I'm sure does not help. I'm hoping I can reverse or get rid of the extra heart beats without medication. Any info I'd appreciate. Thanks, Maureen

 

[Seahunt]

Oh yes, I have had them! The worst time I remember was one time they were so frequent that driving to the doctors office I was praying I would make it there, only to have the doctor listen to my heart and look at the EKG and yawn that they were no big deal. Well hey, sorry to bother you doc, but when your heart feels like it's jumping out of your chest it's sooooo scary

He asked if I had been under stress (yes, we were in the middle of moving) or having a lot of caffeine, and I immediately thought about the Big Gulp Diet Coke I was having at lunch every day I cut those out, and it helped right away. Have you been under a lot of stress/caffeine lately too?

 

[TwingleMum]

A big yes to both. I have a stressful job, 3 boys (i'm asking for it.9,6,6) drink way too much diet coke and 3 -4 big cups of tea a day. Sounds like

 

[dis-happy]

YES! Hate them with a passion. Glad you're getting checked out by a cardiologist...I had to wear a monitor for 2 days but at least they were able to tell for sure that they weren't going to kill me. I also had an echo done to check for abnormalities (heart defects run in the family).

Mine seem to be peri-menopausal. Some things that help:

I quit all caffeine completely (not even decaf coffee, it still has a bit of caffeine and that would set me off; drinking herbal tea only).
I try to get adequate sleep (makes a huge difference).
I added a fish oil supplement to my daily vitamin.
I try to exercise more regularly.
ETA: don't understimate being adequately hydrated...sometimes drinking a bottle or two of water helps

Even so, there are times when I notice them. You get used to it a bit. Some months are worse than others.

You should join the peri-menopause thread. Hope you feel better soon!!!

 

[3prettyprincesses]

Oh honey, welcome to the club! About 5 years ago mine began after my 3rd baby was born. I swear, I thought I was going to drop dead on the way to the ER. Talk about frightening! When I got there, they did all their fancy tests and the cardiologist was like wow, you sure seem to experience them. Uh, ya, I do! It felt like a trapped bird was fluttering around in my chest! He thought that was funny. I did not! Anyhow, he said that it's not a big deal, especially if your heart is structurally normal. Apparently everyone gets them but some people are more symptomatic than others. Stress, adrenaline, caffeine, lack of sleep or excitement can trigger them. I hardly pay attention anymore but ya, they were quite annoying!

 

[Feralpeg]

They are my regular friend. I feel them the most when I am upset or have consumed to much caffeine. I've had them for many years. Sometimes, they seem to get more frequent. I've noticed that when they become more frequent, I also have more hot flashes. Oh, the joy of menopause!

 

[nerdylightbulb]

That happens to me sometimes and it's sort of uncomfortable feeling.

 

[TwingleMum]

Thanks you guys. God definately is a man~ periods,morning sickness, labor, and now feeling like your hearts running out of your chest. GEE thanks.

 

[Disneylover79]

I am a Nurse Practitioner with a cardiology group, and the extra beat is nothing to be worried about, try to exercise and lose the weight that you think you need too, try to avoid caffeine, and watch what you eat...it can be fixed without medication if you just do this things....if you have any other questions feel free to PM me

 

[Sleepy]

It felt like a trapped bird was fluttering around in my chest!

That is interesting. I always described it as a fish out of water.....just flopping around.

 

[momof5boys]

Add me to the list! They started in Nov when I turned 39?! Really bad for a week, then got better. I have noticed they are alot worse right around my period. Wore the stupid holter monitor for 24 hours and NOTHING, not 1 irregular beat, no big deal really because I work in an ER and hooked myself up one night when it was really bad and printed that off so I know what it was. Bloodwork is fine, Echo normal, haven't scheduled my stress test yet(figured 12 hours working in an ER was stress enough!) It is annoying but I ignore it, I agree it feels like a fish flopping around in there! Wonder if it will get better when my hormones straighten out?