Hi RLR - you said I could post the Holter results when I had them, so here I am. Went to the cardio yesterday - unfortunately it wasn't the same man I saw last time, who really sounded like he cared and understood how the symptoms felt. This one was a lot younger and didn't really seem to be listening to what I said (my husband was with me and he thought the same, it wasn't just me!)
I had an echogram which showed my heart was functioning normally, which was reassuring. It was quite a long session so I did feel that they had a good look around in there! She did say that skipped beats were an electrical thing, which the echogram doesn't look at, but if there was an electrical fault, I assume my heart wouldn't be functioning normally.
The cardio said that the Holter showed normal heartbeat, even on the many occasions I had noted feeling skips and jumps. I asked about this, but he really didn't explain anything other than lots of people have skipped beats and some feel them more than others.
I mentioned that sometimes the irregularity was really bad and violent, actually feeling like my heart was jumping around in my chest. He asked when the last episode like that was - it was when I took the monitor back, 4 months ago. I told him that at the moment it wasn't too bad, it comes and goes in cycles - bad for a few weeks, then can be fine again for ages, no idea why or what triggers it. I said there was no pattern to it that I could see. Two minutes later he was asking how often it happens, which is almost impossible to answer!
In about a month I am having an event monitor for a month in the hope of catching a bad session, but he still expects it to be normal, he says.
He asked if I had any questions, but those I had already asked he didn't seem to answer. I know it will look like I'm never satisfied, and that I'm thinking "If only this or that had happened, or if only it had been the original cardio", but it was like he'd already written me off before I went in there. Since yesterday I have noticed more skips and flutters after it being pretty good for ages, so maybe the anxiety is building up again....
I know I'm not imagining the feelings in my chest, I can feel gaps in my pulse too - all of which I noted in the monitor - so how is that a "normal heartbeat"? I don't mean that I don't believe him, but am confused that things I feel as definitely abnormal and irregular and unpleasant are shown up as being 'normal' on the monitor - normal to me means the regular even beat, not this weird jumping about feeling!
I would really welcome your input and hope you are able to spare me a bit of time again
ps It's a couple of weeks since I posted, and although I've had little 'flips' they haven't bothered me really. Obviously I'd rather not have them, but at the moment it's ok!.. I really would like the violent episodes to be caught, just to let me know what it is really. I don't know how to trigger it though! I'm fed up with being worried, it's wasting my life and I've had enough of it.
Also - don't know if this relates to anything, but my thyroid count, which my doctor expected to be high, given the palpitations, has turned out to be borderline low and has to be kept an eye on. They said I would probably be on thyroxin before a year is out. Would low counts have an effect on palpitations?
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