Heart Palpitations

Posted by mikeyp @mikeyp, Nov 25, 2016

Hi Everyone, whew, where do I start ? I've been to 6 cardiologists, ( 2 were electrophysiologists ) over the last 11 months and basically I have them all scratching their heads on why I get REALLY bad heart palps, and I mean BAD ones to where it feels like someone punched you in the chest an hour ago, that's how it feels if you can imagine having that happen to you and then I get light-headed and disorientated to where I just want to sit and not talk or move for an hour or more until I get back to normal, usually this takes a few hours. Yes I get them THAT bad. I'm hoping that this group can help me because I'm at the end of my rope. One electrophysiologist said what I described to him was " impossible " to be happening, I'm really starting to wonder if I was born on another planet, I can't be the only person in the world with the heart palps that I have.

Mine basically come in two stages, I feel a pressure on the left side of my heart and then a strong thump in the heart itself, this happens within 2 seconds and then it's gone until the next time, no it doesn't happen all day, mine come as fast as they go but when them come it's like a Mike Tyson punch. I usually get these about once or twice a day. I've done every test imaginable, Nuclear Stress Test, Treadmill Stress Test, 2 heart & neck angiograms, 2 twenty four hour Holter Monitors, Echocardiogram, and numerous EKG's and blood tests and every single test comes back absolutely normal, so ( as one cardiologist put it ) " If we can't diagnose what's wrong we can't treat it " That makes sense but I'm still going through this with no new info, no meds, no nothing, I have the same knowledge that I have of whats wrong with me that I did when this all started 11 months ago and that is NOTHING at all, no more knowledge, no meds, nothing.

Here's more info on me, I " had " CLL, Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia, (13q14 deletion ) they caught it fast and treated it with FCR chemo and within 3 months ( not 6 months which is standard ) I was in full remission, if you don't understand what this means I'll just put it this way, if you HAD to get leukemia then this is the one you want to get, it's the most common and most treatable out of all the leukemia's and as much as oncologists " can't " say that I'm cured from this they pretty much say ( in your ear ) that you're cured. Now with that said, every Dr, Oncologist and Cardioligist all agree that this is not the cause of my palps, could it be from the chemo ? Yes possibly but I was diagnosed with CLL in April 2016, the palps started in December 2015 and I did the chemo in May 2016 so you see it doesn't match up.

The ONLY relief I get from the palps is when I take Magnesium Citrate, I tried Magnesium Taurate ( which they say is more for the heart ) but I've noticed that the Citrate works a lot better. Ok so you're saying why are you on here then, just take the Mag.Citrate right ? Well there's a problem, when you take Mag.Citrate on a regular basis you literally have to run to the restroom like 10 to 15 times a day, and when I say run I mean RUN !!!!! From what my last cardiologist said " They give Mag Citrate to people who are about to have a colonoscopy to clean them out " and trust me I believe him. So my question is does anyone know what else I can do to alleviate these palps without running to the restroom all day long ? My quality of life has sunk, I either have palps so bad that I can't enjoy life or I'm running to the restroom every half hour, I don't know which one is worse. I've also tried taking potassium and CoQ10, neither works or am I not taking the right dosage ?

Lastly, does anyone have any knowledge of the " Vagus Nerve " ? It's a nerve that pretty much connects your heart to other parts of the body and I'm thinking when the bad palps hit me it's " short circuiting " the Vagus Nerve and that's what makes me light headed. Any help would be greatly appreciated folks. I'm thinking that with the right supplements I can live with this, but what are the right ones and the right dosage ?

Thanks

Mikey P

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@tyzzon27

Hi Mikey, in December had severe heart palpitations ended up in ER, kept me overnight ran stress test and CT.
My PCP had prescribed BP meds but they made it worse.
Went to Cleveland clinic for a second opinion and was told beta blocker or just live with it. Was on a heart monitor for 2 weeks and it showed episodes of heart palpitations. But I get it nothing to worry about, really.
So at the moment changed my diet no caffeine. Every now and then have an attack.
My doctor has listened to me heart and said he has heard it skipping beats.
So for the most part living with the problem. I do have MVP but have had that for years.

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I am the same. With no caffeine, rarely any problem. I discovered also, was not drinking enough water. I still do not do 8 glasses yet, but enough to stop the palpitations. No meds for me.

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@viperron

I am an 81 year-old male and have had skipped heart beats since I’ve been about 19. I use a product called natural calm, which helped quite a bit, but my doctor put me on propranolol which is helped better than anything else when they really get bad. I actually take 1/2 of a Xanax and almost 100% of the time they go away I’ve been fighting this for 60. years. I’ve been doctored so many times but I found what is somewhat of a cure on my own. I sincerely hope this helps someone.

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What is natural calm ? Where did you get it? What’s the dosage? Your history is almost identical to mine. I’m 75 years old and trying magnesium glycine and taurine. Had PVCs and PACs since 20 years old.

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@713j

What is natural calm ? Where did you get it? What’s the dosage? Your history is almost identical to mine. I’m 75 years old and trying magnesium glycine and taurine. Had PVCs and PACs since 20 years old.

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@713j

Natural Calm is a magnesium powder. You mix it with warm water and then add cooler water (or other liquid). It is recommended that it be taken at bedtime. You can purchase it wherever nutritional supplements are sold (health food stores or in the nutritional supplement section of your pharmacy or grocery store) or online. Here is a link to the product information, https://naturalcalm.ca/.

It is recommended to be taken it at night, it helps with sleep and also constipation (if that is an issue for you). If you try it, you might consider starting with a lower dose that is recommended on the package as loose stools can result.

It is always wise to contact your doctor before starting any supplements.

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@hopeful33250

@713j

Natural Calm is a magnesium powder. You mix it with warm water and then add cooler water (or other liquid). It is recommended that it be taken at bedtime. You can purchase it wherever nutritional supplements are sold (health food stores or in the nutritional supplement section of your pharmacy or grocery store) or online. Here is a link to the product information, https://naturalcalm.ca/.

It is recommended to be taken it at night, it helps with sleep and also constipation (if that is an issue for you). If you try it, you might consider starting with a lower dose that is recommended on the package as loose stools can result.

It is always wise to contact your doctor before starting any supplements.

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Thank you for the reply. I see it’s citrate which does have some laxative effect. Was this prescribed to you or your own research? I need something to reduce my PVCs.

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@viperron

I am an 81 year-old male and have had skipped heart beats since I’ve been about 19. I use a product called natural calm, which helped quite a bit, but my doctor put me on propranolol which is helped better than anything else when they really get bad. I actually take 1/2 of a Xanax and almost 100% of the time they go away I’ve been fighting this for 60. years. I’ve been doctored so many times but I found what is somewhat of a cure on my own. I sincerely hope this helps someone.

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Do you drink or eat anything with caffeine? Coffee, chocolate, Mountain Dew, colas etc? Do you drink water daily? Caffeine and not enough water can produce heart problems. I had problems beginning age 14, and now I do not.

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@713j

Thank you for the reply. I see it’s citrate which does have some laxative effect. Was this prescribed to you or your own research? I need something to reduce my PVCs.

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@713j

Taking this was based on my own research. I began taking it for constipation (I've had three surgeries of the upper digestive tract). I have found, though, that it really helps me sleep more soundly.

I have a PVC problem, but nothing severe.

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@lindy9

Do you drink or eat anything with caffeine? Coffee, chocolate, Mountain Dew, colas etc? Do you drink water daily? Caffeine and not enough water can produce heart problems. I had problems beginning age 14, and now I do not.

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Yes I do drink coke and eat chocolate occasional. But when I have not had the above I still get PVCs. I will quit the above altogether. Thanks for your thoughts.

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@713j

Yes I do drink coke and eat chocolate occasional. But when I have not had the above I still get PVCs. I will quit the above altogether. Thanks for your thoughts.

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In my experience, the pvc's may not be immediately after drinking, but caused by them nevertheless. Very addictive, but once out of your system, will not miss.

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@lindy9

In my experience, the pvc's may not be immediately after drinking, but caused by them nevertheless. Very addictive, but once out of your system, will not miss.

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You’re right addictive. I’ll work on quitting. Thanks for the feedback

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You could try wearing a Fourth Frontier chest strap heart rate monitor. I got one when I started Afibbing as it also does an ECG.

Catching your heart "in the act" can help like crazy. You may still have trouble getting them to believe you, but having some physical evidence is a great start.
https://fourthfrontier.com/

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