I suffer from anxiety and Panic attacks. I also get PVC’s and now my Electrophysioligist tells me that I have been getting SVT’s because some strips show heart rates of 150 and so on. I feel my life is coming to an end even though I am only 40 years old. I can’t live like this anymore, I can’t drive far or alone because I fear getting one of these attacks and what will happen. I have a 10 year old daughter and I have to hide this from her because she gets so afraid when I get anxiety. The doctor suggested having an EP study, but I am terrified because of my anxiety. I think I will die at the table. The thought of someone PROVOKING one of these attacks is scary as hell.

I always had everyone tell me that the anxity was causing that fast heart rates? Sometimes I will get a PVC then it will race. I thought it was my nerves doing this the whole time. What the hell is going on. I am so confused.

Can someone out there please help, let me know if you have or have had similar problems!!!

One thing I don’t understand is just because my heart is beating fast why does it have to be an arrhythmia. How come it can’t just beat fast because I get nervous all of a sudden???

Thanks for reading!!!

Hi there, even though your strips showed the high pulse, was your doctor alarmed, or did he suggest you get an EP study for your peace of mind? I too get these, sometimes the pvc then the racing heart, or the racing heart with the pvc. Fortunately, or unfortunately, the Dr.'s I've seen are not concerned. They told me that when my heart races, it is still healthy, and the ekg's, holter's, echo, and blood work all show a healthy heart. They told me I could get a stress echo to just make sure, but I had an anxiety over that, so I need to get my anxiety down before taking it. I am 35 and have had the pvc's and pac's for 6 years, and I know that anxiety plays a huge part, even when I don't think I'm anxious, my family and friends tell me I am wound up tight all the time. Are you taking anything? I am on Xanax, only as needed right now, but my Dr. said next week if the heart is still doing it even when I'm not anxious, she will put me on a low dose beta blocker. That sounds like something that would work really well for you. Don't get upset just yet. Stress can do so much to your body, and the heart especially. The heart Dr. told me that so many people have the pvc's and even fast heart beat, and are very healthy people. I have a 10 year old son, and he gets really worried over me too, so I try really hard not to let him see me get upset either. What things have you tried to improve this? Michelle

miche, i also have SVT along with several other tachycardic conditions. However mine is not anxiety related. I have a wonderful doctor who is quite an expert in the field of electrophysiology (the study of heart rhythms). We just recently had a discussion on how they are finding more and more who the brain controls your heart rate. I do not believe if you only have bouts of tachycardia up to 150, that it would beneficial at all for you to have an EP study. If they were able to ablate or burn the area that produces this, if you have anxiety as bad as your post leads you to have, then you will more than likely just have a reoccurance of this fast heart rate. You need to get your anxiety under control long before i would recommend and EP study. In your case i think you need to get anxiety under control and then maybe try a drug or two to slow your heart down like a beta blocker before under going an invasive procedure. I would also like to stress to you, to help you feel more comfortable with what you have, that you rarely die from SVT. You may pass out if your body doesnt tolerate it, but MOST SVT is tolerated very well. It is not untill you have long long runs of SVT (like years) that you get into damage of the heart. So maybe you could use your children as a way to help you get control of your anxiety and when you get this SVT make yourself sit down and breathe slowly through it. Hope this helps, feel free to look at my past postings if you want to know more about what i have learned about SVT and tachycardia.

I think panic attacks and anxiety, with ther things like caffeene can be a trigger for a fast heart rate. Maybe if you could get the panic attacks under control, your pulse might not be triggered as much to speed up (I know thats easier said than done). I do know how you feel though. I get episodes of pulse rates going up to 250, and I am 20 years old, and I did feel anxious. I think some of these attacks can bring on stress. When your heart is ebatting so fast, it does make you abit on edge...well at leats it makes me like that. All I can suggest is to take things easy and in your stride. I know these atacks feel awfull, when you get these attacks sit back and relax, and tell yourself it will pass. From what I know these attacks although very scary arent as serious as other arrhythmias, so just keep that in mind if it helps when you get the tachycardia. As for the EP study, tell your doctor your concerns about the procedure, and if you realy need the procedure then go for it, and try not to worry too much!

sorry i couldnt be more help! I can relate though to how you feel with the fast pulse rate!

Hope you get it sorted soon! :)

cat

skorpion,

Ask your doctor for a prescription for diazepam (generic for Valium) and take 5mg./day. I have found it to be a truly REMARKABLE anti-anxiety agent with very few side effects.
Once in a while, taking 10 mg. works very well for occasional insomnia.

It's HARD to get this out of a doctor because the drug works so well and thus is apt to be abused with higher and higher doses (and sold on the streets.) You must resist raising the dosage. Funny how the GOOD drugs are always doomed but the really rotten ones get freely promoted ala: "Take this, you'll HATE it but it is extremely expensive and nobody in his right mind would ever take it to FEEL good!":jester:
I guess effective FEEL GOOD drugs run counter to Puritan roots:nono: .

Don't let him talk you into Ativan instead...an AWFUL drug that can cause clinical depression (my opinion and William Styron's.)

I can't thank you enough for replying to my message! The doctor mentioned that from all the previous results from my regular cardio, he is not concerned, but because it is bothering me so much I should consider the EP study. I do currently take clonazepam 0.5mg / as needed only. The reason I can't take it all the time is because when I was taking it 4 times a day I would get episodes of super fast heartrate out of nowhere. I think the meds were causing it. I was also taking an SSRI but I stopped because I think that was causing the heartrtate as well. It's like now I am afraid of all meds!

Hi~~
I just wanted to say that if I were you, I'd be very careful about what drugs you decide to take. Just make sure you research it very carefully. I have had PVC's for over ten years, sometimes in the thousands per day. I did try medication over the years, mostly in the first few years, probably because at the time, I was less informed about these types of arrythmias, and I was really scared of them, and wanted them to go away. It was only after I really realized that, even though I get so many, they are benign, and going on medicine was not because they were life-threatening, but it was to help ease my symptoms. The thing is, you can either decide if you can live with the symptoms, and find more natural, healthy ways to cope with them, and get rid of them, or go on medication. This is strictly talking about if they are not life-threatening, though. Since I researched it, and found out that every single anti-arrythmia drug out there had the potential to make my symptoms worse instead of better, I decided to live with them. Once you know that they are not going to kill you, you just go through your day, like it's part of your normal heart rhythm. Think about it, the only reason we get so nervous about these things is that it is our heart, and we are not used to it going haywire, and it feels really wrong to have it beat so irregularly. But, in reality, these things are very common, and after a while, you don't notice them as much. I've been having some luck with diminishing my PVC's with mulitvitamins, exercise, and diet. Also, sleeping well, and drinking LOTS of good water, I drink a nice cold big bottle of FIJI several times a day, and I can't tell you how much that helps. Be careful also, though, of the mulivitamins, I would ask your doctor first, some have herbal things in them that can aggravate your condition. I would be very careful of the valium, my Mom took that for years for anxiety, and had a very hard time getting off of it. Valium will not help your condition, it only helps your symptoms, which you can do without dangerous medication. It's ironic, because they type of people that can benefit from something like valium are the same type of people that can have the hardest time getting off it, because of anxiety without it, and all the other symptoms that the medication itself can cause. I might have to go on medication sometime if my PVC's don't settle down, but right now, I am 46, and I've had these since I was about 31. I had an echo recently, and my EF is down to 52%, so I want to go back to the doctor, and ask if that could be somewhat reduced because of all of the PVC's, and if that is true, then that itself might be a good reason to start thinking about some low dose medication. Anyway, I just wanted to give you a heads up about the meds, be careful what you take, and try to work on this yourself if your doctor says that what you are having isn't life threatening. There are lots of things out there that can help you, that won't cause you any side effects. Good luck, Val

I am still so confused. If someone has anxiety attack and there heart rate goes to 140 because of the anxiety is that SVT. In other words how can you tell the difference. I mean I have called the ER several times and when they are here, they tell me that they can't see SVT. I don't get it. Everytime someones heart goes above a certain rate that mean svt????


Please explain!

Thanks so much!!!

Another thing I wanted to mention is that when I had my heartwatch attached, I had several events that shows heart rates up to 170. When I called my cardio for my results the stupiod nurse said "everything is normal". SO the quesio is should I go back to that cardio or not since he I guess lied to me!!!!

Please help!!!

skorpion, it is very hard to differentiate between SVT and sinus tachycardia. True SVT typically is over 160 but can be less. What makes it SVT versus just tachycardia (like from anxiety) is whether it varies. SVT typicall goes really fast and doesnt vary in rate a lot. It can, but usually has to have an intervention to terminate it, like bearing down, meds, etc. Likely if you know that your heart rate goes up from anxiety it is more likely to be just tachycardia not SVT since SVT usually originates from another place in your heart not the normal node. The only way to really tell if you have SVT versus tachycardia is a 12 lead EKG while you are in it or to do the EP study and watch the fast rate. Be patient with your physician, it sounds like you have a lot going on. However be an advocate for yourself. You know what you can tolerate and what you cant. Maybe you need to try something different to control your anxiety that wont provoke your fast heart rate. Sometimes it is just trial and error.

Thank you again for responding. I do appreciate it and it is very helpful.

I can't seem to get a clear answer from anyone, maybe what I am looking for is somrthing I will never find. My electrophysio said Yes I was getting SVT's. Sometimes I will get a spasm in my chest then my heart will start racing. That's when I think I have it. Other times the paramedics will be here and my heart will be very fast and they will tell me that nerves or anxiety can make your heart beat that fast. Are they lying??? It's like the cardio's don't seem too concerned about why I am getting these, also the fact that my electrophysio doc proposed I get an EP study suggests to me that maybe it is very seriuos. I don't know but sometimes it seems like they are just in a hurry to go on another vaction or play golf, because they treat you like your just a number???

:confused:

Ye I see what you meen. It would be better if doctors were more open and that they told you everything, because sometimes they give contradictive advice and say well its not serious, but then they say something completely opposit! Maybe they wanted or suggested a EP study, because you werent happy with the results of the tests. Maybe they just want to make a 100% sure its SVT or tachycardia? Just a thought. It doesnt necessarily meen theres something majourly wrong. Chances are they would have found something serious by now on the other tests. Maybe its to put you at rest and to reasure you that it is SVT or tachycardia!

cat

Skorpion,

I know how you feel I have a 10 year old son and am 43. I am so afraid of going out. I had an episode were I had a massive chest pain. These feelings came over my body and I felt like I was going to die. My pulse went up very high and my blood pressure. I was brought to emergency just to be told that my blood tests were okay, my cardiograme and that I was not having a hearth attack. The worst is going to emergency in an ambulance feeling like you were going to die. I am so afraid to go out now.