Managing and Living With PACs and PVCs

@gloaming yes have used the vagus nerve maneuver but need to look at it more in depth and learn the techniques
I truly wish that all of us who suffer from arrhythmias in all their forms could live without the constant fear that something is going terribly wrong. I appreciate this forum so much it gives me a bit of comfort. Good day all!

I have had PACs for years as well and finally flipped into Atrial Tachycardia (SVT) and had an ablation. Unfortunately, they returned a year and a half later and my burden was 18-26% depending in the day. They tried another ablation but was unsuccessful, so I also began the med path. Everything so far has caused side effects. Have you tried Propranolol? That was okay for me but it doesn't work for me any more. Flecainide was horrible. I am about to try Norpace. I did finally meet with a Naturopath and she had me take Magnesium, and Heart Health. She checked my cortisol. Nothing really helped significantly. There is some evidence that Arginine and Taurine can help, but I had no luck with that either. If you haven't, ask about Propranolol (it also helps with anxiety) and if not better, see if they would consider an EP study/ablation for quality of life.

Hello,
I have been on the roller-coaster of PVC's for the last year. I have had two ablations and trialed several beta blockers. I am currently on 100mg of Flecainide twice daily. The side effects for me is fatigue and it governs my HR to 150, no where near it needs to be for the cycling I love so much. I have questioned the hormone connection and will be going for a consultation with the menopause women's clinic in November. I also get extreme headaches and neck pressure on the left side only when they hit frequently. They have said PVC's won't cause that unless there is possibly a narrowing so neurologist consult is in Sept. Unfortunately, my condition increased with each ablation and I don't tolerate the medications well. Good luck with your treatment. 🙏

For all of you who have experienced difficulty with PVCs and PACs, I have been able to relate to your experiences. I have had PVCs, and PACs, off and on since I was 20 yrs old. Sometimes the episodes would be very bad. About 3 years ago I developed Afib. Tried a couple of meds which work for a while, also had an ablation that failed. Ended up going on dofetilide, which controlled the Afib, but my PVCs and PACs were out of control and I could barely function (I think that previously the flecainide had helped to control them). I found that deep breathing and meditation helped my anxiety and worked a little with the PVCs and PACs. The doctors had me try three different beta blockers and I reacted terribly to all of them. Then they had me try Acebutolol (a beta blocker that works in a different way than most of them). It is time released, so I reluctantly took the chance and tried 200 mg a day (very low dose). It has worked really well to keep the number and intensity of PVCs and PACs under control and with very few side effects compared to the other beta blockers. For any of you who have not tried Acebutolol, you may want to talk to your cardiologist about it. Good luck. I understand your misery!!!

@sandrah2024 said:
"I truly wish that all of us who suffer from arrhythmias in all their forms could live without the constant fear that something is going terribly wrong."

Well, I was pretty terrified at first, and doctor after doctor astounded me by just shrugging it off, but that was ten years ago now and I've got the symptoms greatly reduced and figured hey, maybe they were right after all, LOL.

I've had PAC's and PVCs for almost 50 years. Very annoying. Sometimes scary! I'm 74, I have a very stressful life since my husband has narcissistic personality disease and Dementia. So stress is the only emotion I feel anymore. I recently read how stress plays a major part in our heart health, and now I'm going down the rabbit hole, because I've had a few more episodes than usual, and I think that it's all downhill from here. I'm pretty sure I am causing some of this myself cause I've gotten inside my own head. I had an echo done last month, and they said it was ok. EKG didn't show anything either. I just think I have scared myself, and there is no one I can talk to

@blue717 The echo was to see the flow of blood to make sure you have no narrowing that might pinch off too much oxygen supply to parts of your heart muscle. That much seems to be okay, and frankly, with what you say of your life, you've done very well not to have substantial atherosclerosis. Must be great genes you have! With the stress, we produce cortisol and adrenalin, and eventually it wreaks havoc with the endothelial linings of the major blood vessels. In turn, they get inflamed and that is where the plaque begins to form, just under the endothelium in a layer called the lumen. Plaque does not form where you can put a finger in and feel it, like a lumpy surface of calcified plaque. It's beneath the slippery outer layer that lines all blood vessels.

But, if you have bouts of arrhythmia, it might be sleep apnea, or incipient or progressive metabolic syndrome or diabetes that are the causes. These are the two chief causes of arrhythmia that I know of. There are many triggers to AF, and everyone must find out for themselves what those are....for them. Caffeine, sugar, eating too much and having a distended stomach, alcohol, red wine and its histamines, or preservatives in foods and alcoholic drinks, too hot, too cold.....the list is almost endless. Heartburn.....indigestion, GERD, some drugs, electrolyte imbalances...I did say the list was endless....?

Usually a patient complaining of heart palpitations will be given a monitoring device to wear for at least a full day, but sometimes a week or more is needed to show intermittent arrhythmias. I would hope this is the next step suggested by a cardiologist. If you know you sense something off with your heart, you should have a Holter Monitor, a Zio patch....something. Often PACs go on for years, but they do have a propensity to evolve into atrial fibrillation in some patients. If what you feel is markedly different, this is possibly what is developing. If so, and it checks out, you are in the earliest, and most easily treated, stage called 'paroxysmal.' It comes and goes, so it's not persistent or permanent....which is where you want to be. See a cardiologist, even by Zoom if you must. Also, if you aren't strapped for cash, purchase a Kardia L6 and keep it close to you, in your purse. When you feel lumpy in there, take a recording. It can be uploaded and sent to a cardiologist willing to accept it as 'evidence' of whatever is going on. At the very least what it looks like might induce the cardiologist to invite you in for more comprehensive assessment.