GI Disorder and Internal Shaking

Hi @gigiraj, I have gastroparesis and SIBO amongst other things (POTS, MALS) and I recently began experiencing the same with my heart about two months ago. I have had numerous tests completed and strokes and A-fib have been ruled out. I have normal ekg’s and bloodwork is fine. I do get tremors as well when my heart beats this way. For me it occurs mainly at night and sometimes can last all night and through the day. It would be great if others could reply to what this could be. My Cardiologist is still running tests but has me on Bisoprolol (a beta blocker) for now. I hope you can find relief.

thank you so much for your response, and I hope you find relief as well. if you're comfortable with it, if your cardiologist finds anything concrete out, could you post it here? I hope to find at least some direction in what this could be/what to explain to doctors.

Most definitely. 🙂

Welcome to Connect, @gigiraj. I did find some information that studies the link between digestive disorders and internal tremors:
– The bowel and beyond: the enteric nervous system in neurological disorders https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5005185/
– Tremor in Patients with Inflammatory Bowel Disease https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3582861/

I’d encourage you to take a look at this discussion in the Brain & Nervous System group on Connect, where @tigertoo, who has been diagnosed with POTS (Postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome) and Vitamin B deficiency, talks about similar symptoms:
– Monthly shaking episodes that continue to progress https://connect.mayoclinic.org/discussion/monthly-shaking-episodes-that-continues-to-progress/
I’m also tagging @hopeful33250 to see if she might have some more thoughts.

I can imagine your worry, @gigiraj; how is this shakiness affecting your day-to-day life? Have you considered causes other than GI disorders?

Hello @gigiraj

It looks like others who have had gastrointestinal problems have also experienced these "internal tremors" which might indicated that this related to your other GI problems.

You mentioned that you have had EKGs and I'm wondering if you have ever worn a heart monitor for several weeks to check on the rapid heartbeat? EKGs can certainly rule out certain heart conditions, but sometimes electrical problems need to be examined from another perspective.

As you have also mentioned headaches, perhaps a consult with a neurologist might be helpful. Often people with neurological disorders, like Parkinson's, will complain of internal tremors.

I look forward to hearing from you. Will you post again and let us know how you are doing?

@hopeful33250 and @kanaazpereira thank you SO much for your consideration and resources! I really appreciate it. It has confirmed for me that this is definitely originating along my gut-brain axis. I am looking into VZV as was mentioned in the article. POTS does not really fit but I am looking into it as well.

I haven't had headaches so much as a building pressure in my head that goes away when I passed built-up gas. I looked at @ calical's post about their seizures and luckily, what I am experiencing is nowhere near that severe. @ tigertoo's suggestion on Transverse Myelitis is a possibility (according to symptoms on John's Hopkins' website): I have bowel issues, my legs/arms can sometimes feel heavy/odd, and sometimes I have pain [more like soreness] in my lower back/hips when I've eaten but am constipated. I am also looking into Vagus Nerve Dysfunction as that is what fits my symptoms closest (pain in ear, occasional pain in vocal cords & hoarse voice = possibly due to acid reflux, unusual heart rate)

However, my internal shaking and increased heart rate has temporarily stopped! There could be a number of reasons why this is:
1) I had been anxious about my heart for two weeks. I went to the Emergency Room and started crying. After crying and having confirmation from the ER that I wasn't having a heart attack, I felt calm and comfortable so my shaking was potentially because of a buildup of stress and lack of sleep.
2) I started taking Miralax and Prevacid on the 14th as my doctor prescribed. Perhaps they are just now kicking in.

While I am glad my heart tremors have stopped, I am afraid that this is just another stop on the way to some disease I need to identify before it's too late. I have had a myriad of symptoms over the years, most of which I believe stemmed from my gut; constipation is the one constant. I have also recently been having a variety of brain fog (trouble visualizing reasoning for instinctive activities, trouble reviewing my thoughts) and have always had very poor blood circulation, pains in breastbone/chest, strange & intense drowsiness after eating, inability to feel hunger except by way of fatigue, and post-constipation pain in the left side of my brain/left eye.

I will still look into getting a heart monitor! And I will most likely post about this in the Brain & Nervous System group as well. If it is not a GI disorder, I'm not sure how to move forward.

Hi, my name is Laura, and I have been having pressure in my head for a long time and it's 24/7. I'm also suffering from contapation. I have to take liquid bowl softener to use the bathroom every day.
I'm also have tingling in both of my hands.
On Tuesday 3/6/19 to see if my food is being digested. I also have some kind of magnigment on or around my heart.
Has anyone been through this? Or knows the outcome?

I don’t know if it’s the same thing, but I feel like my insides (particularly in my upper abdomen) are shaking or vibrating on occasion. Occasionally I have had a fluttery feeling in my chest if I’ve dozed in the recliner but seems to be related to the pressure that puts on my abdomen. This all seems to happen when I’m full of gas. This is my primary complaint. I started out with hPylori a couple years ago and had a lot of complications following the massive antibiotics used to kill it. I’ve made a lot of progress but still deal with a lot of gas. It seems to be better if I take Prevacid and Zantac for a couple weeks then switch to IB Guard. Sometimes Gas-X just isn’t enough for the gas and I take charcoal caps bought over the counter. That helps the most. But the shaking or vibrating always seems to be tied to gas for me. It’s almost felt like my heart was fluttering but my pulse was normal. I had a heart monitor once but the fluttery times don’t coincide with anything on the monitor. I had this once when I was a lot younger and had candida yeast problem and it went away after that was treated. I also had excess gas with that. So for me it sure seems to be tied to gas.

Yeah, same, I think it's definitely related to gas for me. It's definitely concentrated in the abdomen but for me it's a full body quivering. Right this moment, I hold still and can feel shaking in my arms that isn't visible on the outside. It's very scary. I'll ask about some of those medicines you mentioned.

The Cardiologist put me on Bisoprolol to help my heart palpitations but the internal and hand shaking still occurs-only much less. He is referring me to a body movement specialist. For me it occurs when I’m sleeping and wakes me. Meantime a few have mentioned whether or not it could be more emotional. I will see. 😌