Heart Arrhythmia

mandyshell
mandyshell Posts: 55
edited September 28 in Fitness and Exercise
Hi everyone! I was wondering if anyone else on here has been diagnosed with a heart arrhythmia? I've noticed for the past month and a half or so that my heart has been beating really weird. Every few minutes or so just for a few seconds I can feel it beat really hard and then stop and go back to normal. I have also had several dizzy spells. I told my mom about it (she's been a nurse for 25 years) and she told me that it was probably stress. (As a side note, within the last 2 months my husband lost his job and we have had to move back in with my parents because I will be in clinicals for school for the next year). So, even though my mom said it was stress (and she thinks I worry too much about everything, lol), I work for a Nurse Practicioner and she has been monitoring my pulse for a few days and said I may have a heart arrhythmia. She said she is concerned but not worried, so no treatment has been given. So, really for all this rambeling, I'm just curious if anyone on here has one, if you have to take medication or change up your work out routine and all in all if I should be worried?

I would like to note too that I do not notice it when I am running or at Zumba. It's probably because my heart is beating faster at those times anyway, but didn't know if that would help, lol.

Replies

  • ChitownFoodie
    ChitownFoodie Posts: 1,562 Member
    I have had everything under the sun wrong with my heart. You should get it checked by a cardiologist to make sure that working out isnt putting too much stress on your heart. When it comes to your heart, you have every right to be concerned.
  • gingerfoxxx
    gingerfoxxx Posts: 267 Member
    I was diagnosed with a mild heart arrhythmia 5 years ago.....it hasn't given me any problems to date (knock on wood) and i am quite active (distance runner). Obviously if you experience pain or dizziness, i would call a doc immediately, but if you feel fine during workouts, i wouldn't worry too much :D
  • dls06
    dls06 Posts: 6,774 Member
    I have cardiac arrhythmia and it is nothing to take lightly. You should see a Cardiologist. There are different degrees 1,2,3. If you are having dizzy spells with it you may be in 2nd degree and really need to see a specialist. I don't want to scare you but You could be at risk for sudden death. I was diagnosed when I was in my early 20's. There are medications and the Doctor will probably ask to wear a heart monitor to track your heart rhythm. I just had one last week. Good luck and you'll be fine.
  • Burly34
    Burly34 Posts: 5
    It sounds like it could be Atrial Fibrilation, too. I have that and the doctor only has me taking a baby aspirin a day and to see him when/if it happens again but he wasn't too concerned yet. You should definitely see a doctor to verify what it is and make sure it's nothing serious.
  • paniolo5
    paniolo5 Posts: 186 Member
    There are a zillion different causes for heart irregularities - they have specialists for electrical issues with the heart who are booked solid with appointments. My husband, son & daughter all suffer with heartbeat problems - son has too many electrical paths in his heart which causes his heart to beat to jump to 180-190 beats (normal resting rate is about 60-70) & he had surgery to get rid of them because it weakens the heart over time & could cause an early death; my husband & daughter have vesovegal (spelling?) syndrome where their blood pressure drops & they feel faint & their heart beats take off wildly and they take meds. My two brothers had different diagnoses (one had surgery for his, the other i son meds), my mother an even different one (no surgery or meds for her). I don't know what I have but I have had issues with rapid heartbeats, although not been enough to send me to the cardiologist.

    Some issues are dangerous, some are stress. I don't think anyone can tell you if it's worrisome or not without knowing the true cause of your rapid heartbeats. So it's up to you to decide if you should get it checked further. The problem is the testing, etc., can be expensive so depending upon whether or not you have good health insurance, your current situation may not allow you to get further testing.

    Probably not helpful but that's my two cents. :smile:
  • nehtaeh
    nehtaeh Posts: 2,849 Member
    I was told some time ago that I had this...also mitrol valve prolapse. I recently asked my GP about it and got an echocardiogram done. More just to check up on it all. They didn't mention anything about the arrhythmia so I don't know about that but I do still have the MVP.

    Really, I would have it checked out. It COULD be stress, it COULD be nothing to worry about, but knowing for sure would be a ton better, because what if it was something you need to monitor or do something about? There is no harm in having some tests run, so I say do it.
  • psb13
    psb13 Posts: 629
    i am an ER nurse. your dizzy spells can very easily be caused by an arrythmia. some are essentially harmless and others are not. if you work for a practitioner-have her do an EKG ASAP. you need to be seen by a cardiologist as soon as possible. you may need to go to the family doctor first for a referral depending on the rules of your insurance. if you are feeling light headed with these symptoms-have someone drive you to the nearest ER. just think about what could happen if you have an episode while driving. your stress and changed activity could be factors, but regardless, this is not something to ignore!! i strongly urge you to seek a medical professional opinion right away. best of luck to you.
  • MsEmmy
    MsEmmy Posts: 254 Member
    Hi, I had arrythmia as a direct result of stress at work. I didn't know what it was, I'd just getting really hard and fast heart beats (I could hear my own pulse in my ears when I lay down!) a few times a day for no apparent reason and then occasionally I'd be sitting down and I'd get a HUGE painful thump in my chest, as if someone had fired a massive elsatic band at my chest!
    A friend persuaded me to go to the docs and I had a few tests. They said it was arrythmia, the result of stress, and wanted to put me on beta blockers. I felt too young for that ( I was about 37 then) so decided to cut out the cause of stress and quit my job. I didn't actually feel stressed by work, but the doc said it was my body telling me that I was under stress. She said my heart would suddenly start beating as if I'd done a long run when I was just sitting still. She said it never went high enough to be a problem BUT obviously it shouldn't be doing that when I'm sitting still. Looking back, I really was under a lot of pressure from different causes.The symptoms completely stopped as soon as I handed in my resignation!
    I do a lot of walking and also Cardio and Dance Central workouts on the Kinect and do not get any unusual heart symptoms.

    I would keep monitoring it and go back for more advice if it continues or gets worse :)
  • mandyshell
    mandyshell Posts: 55
    Thank you so much everyone for all of your advice and information. I knew I wasn't just worrying over nothing, lol. I see my PCP next Thursday for an annual check up so I will call them and add this problem to my appointment so he can check it while I'm there. I am really hoping it is just stress, like one person said, I don't really feel stressed especially since it's summer right now and I'm not in school, but hopefully that's what it is. I will have it checked next week and hopefully get to the bottom of this. Thank you again everyone!! :)
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