1. < Heart & Blood Health
Profile picture for jimadman55

Blood and Heart arrthymia

Posted by jimadman55 @jimadman55, Jul 6 1:08pm

I have had Heart Failure for 8 years. I am fortunate because I have never been hospitalized. For some unknown reason my anxiety has escalated. I get flushing with the least little problem. Doctors have no answers for the flushing, definitely anxiety related. It is very uncomfortable as my face feels like it is 100 degrees. So bad I went to Emergency Room this past Friday. Vitals all good and Dr prescribed me a med called Hydroxyzine. Seemed to help a little but it is a med you take as needed up to 4 a day. However, side effects can be QT prolongation. Not good. Has anyone experienced bad Flushing and found a way to treat it? Thank you!

Interested in more discussions like this? Go to the Heart & Blood Health Support Group.

Profile picture for Janell, Volunteer Mentor
Mentor
Janell, Volunteer Mentor | @jlharsh | Jul 15 7:15pm

Hi @jimadman55, I’m sorry you’re dealing with this. It sounds especially frustrating to have lived with heart failure for years without needing hospitalization and then suddenly be faced with intense flushing and anxiety on top of everything else.

I can understand why you’d be concerned about taking hydroxyzine after reading about QT prolongation, especially with your heart history. That’s an important question to discuss with the clinician who prescribed it or your cardiologist so they can weigh the potential benefits and risks based on your specific situation.

I’m wondering, has the flushing been happening only during times when you feel anxious, or does it ever seem to come on first and then make you anxious? Have your doctors suggested any other possible causes besides anxiety?

I’d also be interested to hear if other members with heart failure or heart rhythm concerns have experienced flushing like this. If so, what did your care team find, and were there treatments or strategies that helped?

REPLY
1 reply
Profile picture for jimadman55
jimadman55 | @jimadman55 | Jul 15 8:03pm
In reply to @jlharsh "Hi @jimadman55, I’m sorry you’re dealing with this. It sounds especially frustrating to have lived with..." + (show)
Profile picture for Janell, Volunteer Mentor @jlharsh

Hi @jimadman55, I’m sorry you’re dealing with this. It sounds especially frustrating to have lived with heart failure for years without needing hospitalization and then suddenly be faced with intense flushing and anxiety on top of everything else.

I can understand why you’d be concerned about taking hydroxyzine after reading about QT prolongation, especially with your heart history. That’s an important question to discuss with the clinician who prescribed it or your cardiologist so they can weigh the potential benefits and risks based on your specific situation.

I’m wondering, has the flushing been happening only during times when you feel anxious, or does it ever seem to come on first and then make you anxious? Have your doctors suggested any other possible causes besides anxiety?

I’d also be interested to hear if other members with heart failure or heart rhythm concerns have experienced flushing like this. If so, what did your care team find, and were there treatments or strategies that helped?

Jump to this post

@jlharsh thank you for reaching out. I was referred to another cardiologist who deals a lot with heart failure. He changed my meds. Put me on Renexa and told me to stop taking Spirolactone. Renexa side effect is flushing and anxiety for a few weeks while changes the electrical system in heart Spirolactone is a hormone blocker. I have been on it for 6 years. When I came off, my hormones rebounded. That causes flushing for 1 to 4 weeks. I went back to by original Cardiologist and he told me to stop Renexa immediately. He doesn’t want me to restart Spirolactone. If not better on 2-3 weeks, then he’ll go further. He is an Interventional Cardiologist. I apologized for going to another cardiologist but my wife of 52 years wanted me to go to a heart failure clinic. The lesson I learned is trust your doctor who has treated me for 8 years. It is an illness, it’s not going to ever go away. I’ll get through the next few miserable weeks and Thank God for His Grace in helping me through this episode of being miserable.

REPLY
Please sign in or register to post a reply.