Hiya Seffie
You sound like you've been doing really well. So whatever you've been doing keep it up.

Ever since I have had ectopics my heart has done all sorts - racing, fluttering all wort of weird stuff. Runs of what the cardiologist called AV node re-entrant tachycardia (basically a weird pathway gets triggered for a few seconds / beats). Now I don't really know what that was because he said it would only be a problem if it went on for ages (this is the underlying thing that I suppose I sometimes worry about but it doesn't happen that often).

Ectopics and random racing heart  episodes where my heart goes too fast for what seems normal for me - eg. 90bpm while resting. It doesn't feel right, I can't explain it.

It does sound like you are just having different incarnations of ectopics that seem to feel different depending where in your normal heartbeat cycle they decide to fire off an extra beat or two.

If you are seeing your cardiologist, then that's great - he will be able to assess and reassure you. As will RLR no doubt shortly.

Oh and by the way when you feel your pulse it can feel as if your heart as stopped for three seconds but that is not very likely - it's probaly that the ectopic beats are too weak to be felt in your pulse.

I can imagine it is just more of the usual catching you off guard.

Best of luck
Hope you get to see your doctor soon - as if it feels different for you then always worth updating them.
xx

Listen, you can take a deep breath and relax. I've read your posting and the characteristics you've described fall well within the scope of benign palpitations. The subesquent pounding heart you are experiencing is merely the body responding to a brief change in blood pressure brought about by the palpitations. Increased cardiac force equates with a rise in blood pressure and it's an entirely normal physiological response. Baroreceptors in the carotid arteries of the neck sense the change in perfusion and quickly send signals to the brain to make the necessary adjustments so that homeostasis is restored.  

One of the most perplexing experiences of people with anxiety is that they form a dissociation between their physical symptoms and anxiety disorder. I commonly hear the reponse "yes, but doctor I'm not feeling anxious in the very least, so how can it be anxiety this time?"

Well, to understand the statement you need to realize that the body becomes accustomed to dealing with stressors in certain ways, typically prompted by conditioned responses arising from historical experience by the patient. In other words, to use a simple example, if the presence of a certain relative makes you anxious each time they visit, then your likely to respond in the same manner on each subesquent occasion as a matter of training or conditioned response, so that the anxiety and stress which arises is characteristically discharged in the same manner. What that really means is that the physical symptoms which arise from anxiety are the representation of an inability to emotionally or logistically overcome the underlying reason. Make sense? So the body begins to respond to anxiety with physical symptoms rather than psychological ones and subsequently, the patient says "but I'm not anxious about anything, really I'm not."

You're going to be just fine, Seffie. The return of symptoms has simply overcome your logic in previously being able to accept your symptoms as harmless. They are, by the way, entirely harmless. And I would not consider your description of the symptoms to represent A-fib, nor would I have placed it on my list of differential diagnoses were I to have examined you.

Continue to socialize and enjoy your life. The symptoms will never cause your heart to stop or inflict damage to the tissues. I've been in practice more than 41 years now and in virtually all that time, I've never even once heard of a single patient subcumbing to the effects of benign palpitations. Not one. That should create quite an impact upon you in that you're no different and your case or symptoms are not unique or extraordinary. They are merely benign palpitations experienced as a consequence of Vagus nerve stimulation in the presence of anxiety disorder. Nothing more.

You should seek out Kathryn and speak to her. She really has come a remarkable distance since I first addressed her issues on the forum and frankly, I hear from her only infrequently now and she's out and about, has taken on a new job and is reaching out to get her life back.  Never let your symptoms create fear to the extent it paralyzes you. Use logic and sound reasoning to fight back and employ self-confidence to the extent that you truly know your symptoms to be entirely harmless and nothing more than a nuisance. They will indeed never harm you. It's a medical fact that can't be denied.

So go out on the town and enjoy your life. I see so many ill people and sometimes I have to deliver bad news. You're so very lucky to have your health and your future. Go enjoy it. We'll be here if you need us.

Best regards and Good Health

Hi Seffie

just wanted to add that I too go quite a period of time when the palpitations seem to improve so much, a whole year at one stage, then they seem to come back with a  bump and the worrying starts all over again but I am sure like you the re assurance of RLR puts it into perspective.

Hi

I am still about and feel gulity I do not reply as often.

You say you may not be anxious or stressed, but you most likely are but on a very low level, (if that makes sense) I'm used to very high anxiety levels so I used to think I was feeling normal and ok when I had little anxiety, when we are anxious or stressed it churns our guts so when we eat the acid in are tummy is bubbling so on etc.. and then we irritate our stomach (without even knowing it) and the next we know is bam palpitations, missed, odd beats.  I spent alot of time tuning into myself, trying to recognise the negative thoughts that flittered through my mind, they happened as a natural response as thats how I'd involuntarily trained myself to react and think, so I had to justify those thoughts and change them to positive ones (I really didn't think I was having negative thoughts until I did this) and I learnt the reactions of my body, and to accept I was stressed even if it was very mild, I'd then carry on with what I was doing and carrying out my responsibilties but at a pace that suited me and if something didn't get done then tough!

I still get missed beats and anxiety, I still worry well what if?  But I do not want it to take over my life again like it did before, I'd wake up having a panic attack, heart racing, sometimes I'd be sitting feeling what I thought was fine I'd breathe in and bam really fast heart beat everytime a breathed in for a few seconds., I had my mum and dad in tears as I was convinced I had somethiing seriously wrong with me. There was a stage I'd not move from my chair apart from doing the basics of what I had to do!

I still keep a diary of how I feel and there is still some connection to me ovualting, period to the missed beats etc... but then my doctor once told me that nearer our periods we feel more uptight and anxious (PMS!).

Kath x

Hi Seffie
If you are having loads of ectopics in a row and clustering together it can make your heartbeat feel very erratic and fast indeed. It does not necessarily mean you have any other condition like afib (actually I don't even know what that is - don't know if I want to ,) )

Also I wanted to reassure you that I have had about four or five episodes of really fast heartbeat so fast it felt like a machine gun stuttering in my heart / or a buzzing sensation - it only lasted a couple of seconds each time. It was by some fluke caught on my first 24hr ecg and the cardiologist said it was an irregular pathway causing it but as it didn't happen very often it was of no concern. He said it was probably AV node reentrant tachycardia (a type of SVT). It terrified me each time it happened and in some way I have anxiety still because I always dread it coming back. But I look back on it now and it only happened during the 6 weeks I was coming off my anxiety medication. (So perhaps a coincidence).  anyway I am back on that now anyway, not ready to come off until I am cured!
bead x

Hi Seffie
It's good that you are seeing him soon - but I didn't mean to worry you - I wouldn't know what a cardiologist considers to be frequent episodes (they might mean several times a day). If these spells are brief I think they are less worried too. anyway I am glad you are seeing someone soon and you can get it clarified (if you like, have a name put to it). I am sure you will be okay!
Keep us informed!
bead