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light headed from ectopic heart beats
Hi, I had very infrequent palpitations starting in my 50s (I'm 62 now). Went to ED twice in that time when my heart wouldn't stop racing. Both times the ECG caught nothing and I was told it was anxiety. A couple of years ago I had a seizure (first and hopefully last) and saw a cardiologist who ruled out my heart being the trigger. But the 24 hr holter did show ectopic beats and a couple of SVT runs. The cardiologist told me to bear down when I get palpitations and didn't think I needed any other treatment. That's worked well for 2 years. Over the past couple of weeks, the ectopic beats have become much more frequent and the really big ones make me light headed. Bearing down still works but I have to do it daily and it's happened a couple of times while I'm driving. My GP did an ECG and of course nothing happened. He referred me back to the cardiologist who I see later this week. I'm curious as to whether anyone else feels like they might faint? I worry that even though bearing down stops it, one day it might not. My fear is probably exacerbated by having had a seizure. The neurologist found nothing when I had all the tests and scans post-seizure and the only potential trigger she saw was lack of sleep. Since then, I've stopped working stupidly long hours and get heaps more sleep which probably helps my heart as well. The increase in ectopic beat frequency and intensity coincided with my annual holidays so it wasn't stress-related.
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I hate to offer you a welcome to the club, but.....well......you know.... 😀
Your story is exceedingly common. An ECG while you are flat on your back, probably calm after waiting a while for it to happen, and nothing shows.....it's typical and unfortunate. Your cardiologist, if you have one, should offer to have a Holter monitor or a Zio Patch applied to run for several days. If you get ectopy most/every day these years, then it should show up, but not likely to on a 10-15 second ECG.
You are, in my inexpert and non-trained opinion, a prime candidate to see an electrophysiologist (cardiologist trained in electrical disorders who do catheter ablations to help stop arrhythmias and who would install pacemakers). What doctors of all kinds, looking after many different disorders and conditions, want for you first is relief from symptoms that rob you of security, peace, and that keep you uncomfortable anxious, and/or in pain. Not that they don't want to also control or to fix problems so that you don't continue to need interventions and medicines, but they want to make you feel better. An EP will listen to you carefully, but also look at several indicators of your heart structure and function. An ECG, probably an echocardiogram, maybe a stress test result, and possibly a CT angiogram to look for blockages or heavy deposition of arterial plaque. A heart acting up sometimes just lacks oxygen, also called ischemia. If those can be ruled out, and you're otherwise healthy and active, no other serious comorbidities that need attention or that might make his work pointless, then he/she will probably offer an ablation or some other suitable treatment. But you have to see him/her first and get to know them. And they you.
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1 Reaction@gloaming Thanks so much for getting back to me. Really appreciate your insights. I'll ask the cardiologist about this when I see them later this week.
I can only relate my experience which was similar to yours. One big difference though- My EP immediately recommended an ICD defibrillator to prevent a run of ventricular tachycardia which could be fatal. Although I’ve never fainted, I would occasionally feel dizzy/light-headed for 1-2 seconds. This happens because there is not enough oxygen carrying blood getting to the brain to sustain consciousness when your heart races. If the arrhythmia goes on for too long, dizziness rapidly progresses to fainting, and eventually, possible death if the rapid heartbeat is sustained.
Because I had an implanted heart monitor, the EP knew exactly what my heart was doing and took action. An ICD defibrillator has a track record of being 99.9% effective in preventing sudden death from an unpredictable arrhythmia by shocking the heart back into preset, desirable beats per minute.
I believe you would be well served by finding an EP who doesn’t dismiss your symptoms. From your post, it sounds like you need a thorough workup including long term monitoring for an accurate diagnosis. An EKG is nothing more than a snapshot in time and is likely to miss intermittent arrhythmias.
Don’t hesitate to change doctors if you can’t get the attention you deserve. See an EP, at the best hospital you can find, even if you have to travel. Do not see a general cardiologist for your issue, but rather the EP specialist.
Best of luck to you!
I have been getting these ectopic beats on a regular basis.
Sometimes I endured less than other days
As a matter of fact, I had so many test done on me to fill the Atlantic ocean. Most of these test came out normal
A cardiologist says that I have a slight valve leakage as well as these annoying skipped beats.
Which he said most people have.
With much prayers and my trust in God I've learned to live with it.
We are not on this path to stay , someday our time on earth would be no more, therefore My faith in God is what keeps me going
Because there's a word call stress and it have a way of creeping up on you if you let it
Therfore, I ignore this parasite, live life and love it.
@okanda I was able to eliminate my ectopic beats by adjusting my thyroid hormone,
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