Okay, welcome to the forum and I've read your postings and concerns.

Firstly, you're in no actual danger and the type of rhythm disturbance or palpitation you are referencing holds no capacity whatsoever to place you at risk of any type of cardiac event or jeopardy otherwise. The belief is often established that disturbances of this type are a potential segue to a dangerous arrhythmia and it's simply not the case. These palpitations actually originate from outside the heart and the heart muscle is merely responding to their influence, not as a result of challenge by the heart as an organ. In other words, the symptom doesn't constitute a warning sign that anything is wrong. As stated in many instances, the events are more akin to a muscle twitch than any type of arrhythmia. Remember that the heart is as much a muscle as it is an organ and is susceptible to the same influences.

GI difficulties can very readily produce palpitation events because the nerve which innervates the GI tract is the very same nerve pathway to the heart. The vagus nerve, termed the pneumogastric nerve at the level of the GI tract, is the largest mixed nerve in the body and serves function to many organs and regions other than the GI tract and heart.

Whenever an individual comes under significant stress and anxiety, it alters the basal performance of the central nervous system, in particular inducing a heightened status. Under such influence, mild altered nerve function occurs to include sensory disturbances and wayward nerve impulses. In the instance of the vagus nerve, these impulses travel along the nerve's pathway until they reach the terminal endings, causing the attached organ or tissue region to respond in an equally unnatural context. Incidentally, this is also worth mention with particular respect to the eye pain you are experiencing, which should not be confused with the type of orbital pain and papilledema associated with certain demyelinating diseases such as Multiple Sclerosis. Pain between the scapulae or shoulder blades is also a very common complaint by persons experiencing significant stress and is musculoskeletal in origin. The same is true of the torticollis-like neck pain.  

The belief that something serious is wrong can often arise due to the cyclic nature of the problem that becomes reinforced as matters seem to grow worse, with no ability by the medical community to define a cause which is consistent with beliefs established by the patient. As fear of a serious consequence intensifies, so does the influence of anxiety and this only imparts greater symptomatic features.

A reduction in GI symptoms will directly correspond with relief of the palpitations with respect to frequency and intensity. Although frightening, the palpitations will never cause anything to occur other than the symptomatic sensation itself. There has never been even a single case of serious morbidity or mortality associated with the presence of the type of palpitation events you are experiencing, so you can take a deep breath and relax from that standpoint. The more pressing matter is the actual underlying reason for the somatic anxiety.

You're going to be fine. The pending tests will not reveal the presence of anything serious and working closely with your doctor in treating your GI symptoms successfully will go a long way to help reduce other symptoms presently of concern to you.

Best regards,

Rutheford Rane, MD (ret.)