Heart Palpitations

[Guest guest]

Hi ,

I found your message very interesting as I have been having some

irregular heart beats for about 3mo's now and according to my regular

Doc, this is due to the fluid in my lungs from asthma. After reading

various posts I ran out yesterday & bought a magnesium supplement that I

started on last night, hoping it will help with the asthma problem. Wish

me luck as I hope it will help with both the asthma & " wacky " heart

beats.

" Lurker " Judy

[Guest guest]

Hi :

I am so glad this is being addressed because some of us have been discussing

this privately and are a little worried. I have been to the ER twice because of

this accompanied by lightheaded and weakness. I was told the old story. It is

stress and the ER nurse on duty didn't even bother to call in the doctor. We

live in a small community and our 38 bed hospital doesn't always have a doctor

there but one is usually available within 15 minutes.

How do you get your magnesium and potassium level checked? And also what is a

mitra valve prolapse and is it common with RA?

Bev

rheumatic heart palpitations

I just thought since we have so many new people in the group, that I would

mention again what happened to me. Last year, I began having periods of 2-10

hours where my heart would beat irregularly: pounding, every beat felt, rapid

beats, missed beats. Four trips to the ER found nothing. A cardiologist

recommended by the hospital found nothing. He said put more salt in my diet to

raise my BP and ignore the beats!! Finally, I found a cardiologist who

recognized some of his own symptoms. He suspected low potassium and magnesium

even though blood tests showed I was at the low end of normal in both. When I

increased my vegetable consumption and magnesium supplements, the irregular

beats disappeared. ( I do have mitral valve prolapse and get the odd irregular

beat from that, but it is totally different.) My naturopath once told me that

people with RA tend to be low in magnesium.

A few months after the irregular beats stopped, I discovered I was low in

progesterone. Dr. Lee's book explains that progesterone is a precursor for

andosterone which controls the potassium and sodium levels in the body. Stress,

emotional or physical, interferes with the whole chain of hormones that are in

the progesterone group. Perhaps there was a connection here too.

I think it's really important to be checked out thoroughly by a good

cardiologist if there are regular episodes of irregular heartbeats.

[Guest guest]

Bev, there are several IMPORTANT issues here:

--Women's complaints about heart related issues are often not dealt with

aggressively enough because symptoms are often different from men's. Therefore,

you must INSIST on adequate testing as soon as possible if you have concerns.

Go to a good cardiologist who should check you out thoroughly with blood work,

ECG, and possibly an echocardiogram done with ultrasound and a stress test.

--Mitral valve prolapse is a condition where the mitral valve does not always

close tightly and can cause a couple or a small series of irregular beats. With

me, it might happen once on one day and not again for a week; or I might have

several occurences on the same day. Sometimes I get a momentary flash of a

sinking feeling. Some people have no symptoms; with others, a doctor can detect

a slight murmur. Usually it is not a cause for concern, although in some people

it can be severe and cause real problems. I don't think it's related to RA,

although I knew someone who developed it after rheumatic fever as a child. In

her 60's she required valve replacement surgery.

--When I went to the ER, each time they put me onto a monitor almost immediately

and did bloodwork. The first time they kept me till about 5 in the morning.

They said it was in the ventricle and therefore not life threatening, but they

couldn't figure out why I was having it. The fourth time, I asked them to check

my potassium and sodium levels because I had read they are involved in

regulating heartbeats. They checked them, but because they were at the low end

of normal thought everything was fine. If you get your magnesium level checked,

a red blood cell magnesium test is more accurate than a serum magnesium test.

--I asked to go to a cardiologist who specializes in electrical impulses of the

heart. My brother-in-law had seen him due to irregular heartbeats and it just

happened that the 4th ER doctor had done part of his residency with him and

referred me to him. This cardiologist has chronically low potassium and

experiences irregular heartbeats himself if he doesn't keep his potassium in

check. He does it through diet. For example, every night for supper, he has a

whole head of romaine lettuce with lots of other raw vegetables along with his

meal.

Bev, I urge you to go to a cardiologist if you have concerns. If everything is

fine, you will gain that knowledge along with peace of mind.

rheumatic heart palpitations

I just thought since we have so many new people in the group, that I

would mention again what happened to me. Last year, I began having periods of

2-10 hours where my heart would beat irregularly: pounding, every beat felt,

rapid beats, missed beats. Four trips to the ER found nothing. A cardiologist

recommended by the hospital found nothing. He said put more salt in my diet to

raise my BP and ignore the beats!! Finally, I found a cardiologist who

recognized some of his own symptoms. He suspected low potassium and magnesium

even though blood tests showed I was at the low end of normal in both. When I

increased my vegetable consumption and magnesium supplements, the irregular

beats disappeared. ( I do have mitral valve prolapse and get the odd irregular

beat from that, but it is totally different.) My naturopath once told me that

people with RA tend to be low in magnesium.

A few months after the irregular beats stopped, I discovered I was low

in progesterone. Dr. Lee's book explains that progesterone is a precursor for

andosterone which controls the potassium and sodium levels in the body. Stress,

emotional or physical, interferes with the whole chain of hormones that are in

the progesterone group. Perhaps there was a connection here too.

I think it's really important to be checked out thoroughly by a good

cardiologist if there are regular episodes of irregular heartbeats.

[Guest guest]

, I quit taking progesterone and estrogen in Dec. because the

progesterone causes flares in my RA. About that same time i started

having heart palpitations and am still having them. Did you mean that

being low on progesterone causes this? I also have had a rise in my

blood pressure in the last two weeks and I am trying to determine why.

Helen

Ken and wrote:

> I just thought since we have so many new people in the group, that I

> would mention again what happened to me. Last year, I began having

> periods of 2-10 hours where my heart would beat irregularly:

> pounding, every beat felt, rapid beats, missed beats. Four trips to

> the ER found nothing. A cardiologist recommended by the hospital

> found nothing. He said put more salt in my diet to raise my BP and

> ignore the beats!! Finally, I found a cardiologist who recognized

> some of his own symptoms. He suspected low potassium and magnesium

> even though blood tests showed I was at the low end of normal in

> both. When I increased my vegetable consumption and magnesium

> supplements, the irregular beats disappeared. ( I do have mitral valve

> prolapse and get the odd irregular beat from that, but it is totally

> different.) My naturopath once told me that people with RA tend to be

> low in magnesium. A few months after the irregular beats stopped, I

> discovered I was low in progesterone. Dr. Lee's book explains that

> progesterone is a precursor for andosterone which controls the

> potassium and sodium levels in the body. Stress, emotional or

> physical, interferes with the whole chain of hormones that are in the

> progesterone group. Perhaps there was a connection here too. I think

> it's really important to be checked out thoroughly by a good

> cardiologist if there are regular episodes of irregular

> heartbeats.

[Guest guest]

Cheri, I don't know your dx - it is too bad I cannot remember things like this!

The heart palpatations are something I am very familiar with. My sister, also

with SD, is, too. One of the things I have learned is to focus on controlling

my breathing when this occurs, which is rare for me now. It used to be often.

(yeaaaaa!).

How you focus on breathing is to think of a bell jar curve. Visualize your

breathing SLOWLY going up the sides of the bell jar and when you get to the top,

PAUSE, and then SLOWLY breath down the other side. This will eventually cause

my heart to slow down and get into its own rhythm again. Needless to say, just

doing this once does not do it but you might have to do it many times. One

thing it DOES do is to help you control your panic when this occurs as you are

having to concentrate on the breathing technique.

Be well.

[Guest guest]

> Dear Group, about a month ago, I started having palpitations, like

someone turned on a switch. Do any of you know anything about this.

Is it common to ai diseases? They don't hurt, but I am as breathless

as can be. Could it be stress?

Do you by chance drink a lot of coffee? I know I started having

flutterings (how I would describe them) about a year ago. Would

even feel like it was fluttering in my throat. Didn't hurt, but

quite unnerving. Took a chance that it might be caffeine and in my

case it was! (it wasn't the metho). So, in case you might be

imbibing quantities of caffeine, i'd try stopping that first and see

what happens.

Mark

[Guest guest]

Cherie, I have DM, MCTD with crest and in the past had heart palpitations

for over a year. I was given more tests than I care to remember and no-one

could give an explanation as to the cause. The cardiologist just shrugged

his shoulders and said everything else was fine so just live with it. At

the time my temperature was a steady 99F. My pulse rate was 121 most of the

time. In my research, I believe it had a lot to do with mineral and adrenal

imbalance. I could never prove this, but in time, after being on supplements

for quite a while, it just stopped. At the time my weight and blood

pressure were normal.

Hope this is of some help to you,

Carol/Piney

rheumatic heart palpitations

> Dear Group, about a month ago, I started having palpitations, like someone

turned on a switch. Do any of you know anything about this. Is it common to

ai diseases? They don't hurt, but I am as breathless as can be. Could it be

stress?

> Yes, my pc dr. knows, i wore the 24hr. monitor, had an ekg and a rhythm

test, but don't go back to the dr til the 16th! I could drop dead for all i

know. It is mighty irritating. When it first started, the first thing I

thought was it must be one of the meds, so I stopped everything. I gave it 2

weeks, and when they didn't stop, I asked the pharmacist about it. She said

it was unlikely, since I had been on them for so long, never to have had

this side effect before. So then I went back on prednisone and to the dr. I

am not going back on methotrexate, period. But i am concerned with whats

going on with my heart. Its scary. I'm not overweight and don't have high

bp. I've never ever had a problem like this. Thank you and please put

your two cents in if you can......cherie

>

>

>

[Guest guest]

Dear Cherie,

I've read everyone else's responses, now here is mine. In mid June

of 2001 I began having heart palpatations...or benign preventricular

contractions (PVC's). My heart skipped every 4-7 beats...it was

maddening. Each time it skipped, my head pulsated like someone was

choking me. I wore the monitor and all the tests showed that it was

PVC's. I tried four different medicines before I gave up. My

potassium levels were OK, but I supplemented with mineral and

electrolytes anyway. My thyroid was OK, but I started taking a low

dose for hypothyroidism anyway. I rarely ate or drank caffeine, but

I eliminated ALL at this time. Nothing helped. My doctor was baffled

and we both gave up. I was on Seldane at the time, which is now off

the market due to heart problems some people were having. I now

believe this was the trigger for me. Problem is, my heart has never

been the same. Whatever I did, it caused permanent damage. Today,

they have subsided somewhat. At present, I am skipping after 10-20

beats. This is heaven compared to what I was doing. Unlike others

I've read from, my PVC's never go away, and for over one year, they

were as I said before maddening. Cherie, take a deep breathe, and

try to envision yourself living with this. I know this is a horrible

reality, but I was extrememly depressed for a long time because

nothing worked. Finally, I just had to accept it, but I still pray

for something to work. I only post this because I wanted you to know

that you are not alone, and just in case everything you try does not

work, I am living proof that it is not the end of the world. With

all of my allergy problems, I am scared to take anything. Allegra

aggravates them and Sudafed(decongestant not antihistamine) is just

as bad. So, whatcha gonna do??? Deal with hand God dealt ya!

That's what I try to do. Good luck. If I can help in any way,

please let me know.

ML

AP 4 months (fibro, raynauds)

> Dear Group, about a month ago, I started having palpitations, like

someone turned on a switch. Do any of you know anything about this.

Is it common to ai diseases? They don't hurt, but I am as breathless

as can be. Could it be stress?

> Yes, my pc dr. knows, i wore the 24hr. monitor, had an ekg and a

rhythm test, but don't go back to the dr til the 16th! I could drop

dead for all i know. It is mighty irritating. When it first started,

the first thing I thought was it must be one of the meds, so I

stopped everything. I gave it 2 weeks, and when they didn't stop, I

asked the pharmacist about it. She said it was unlikely, since I had

been on them for so long, never to have had this side effect before.

So then I went back on prednisone and to the dr. I am not going back

on methotrexate, period. But i am concerned with whats going on with

my heart. Its scary. I'm not overweight and don't have high bp. I've

never ever had a problem like this. Thank you and please put your

two cents in if you can......cherie

>

>

>

[Guest guest]

Regarding heart palpitations - any chance of a food allergy or

sensitivity??

Good luck,

[Guest guest]

Hi

I take a calcium with magnesium and it helps a lot.

Love

Marge

> Cherie, I have had palpitations and tachycardia for many

> years....have RA and Lyme. No one could ever figure out why. I have

> worn monitors and done stress tests. The ONE thing that has helped

> tremendously is magnesium...I took injections twice a week for 7

> months to get my blood levels up to normal. I now just do oral

> supplementation...I have read that most of us are depleted in

> magnesium and I think that the illnesses we have contribute to

having

> low levels. I would recommend supplementing magnesium to anyone

> having heart arrythmias.

[Guest guest]

I was reading some old emails tonight coming across this one that pertains to my

recent Emergency room visit. I went for my regular 4 week rheumie blood

testing etc. They took my blood went into the room for b/p an when they saw 133

pulse they freaked out.I already had been sent by ambulance on march 20th by

this doc for high high bloodpressure with chronic hypertension as the

result.This time i said no i wont go at first so they wheeled me across this

very long large parkn lot to the hospital instead.This stuff costs big money

even with just medicare coverage that I have.(OH yes I have SLE going on 17 yrs

now turn 40 in july)Anyways went in took blood from my other arm this time 4

tubes with I>V oxygen EKG etc..thryroid once again came out good although runs

in my family my mom and her two sisters have to take daily pills for.Long story

to make short potassium was below a 3.Might have been b/p medsor 30 mg daily of

the predisone that zapped it away>Gave me script for 14days of potassium tablets

with tachacarida as the end result.Must see my regular doc I hope tomorrow or by

monday.My feet are still ulcerations and my hands arms (very few on head & chest

area) are covered with lupus sores.Gosh I went on & on will sign off headed to

bed for a hopefully pain free sleep.YEAH RIGHT!LOL>>>>>Take care all. from

Maine:)

From: & Rand

rheumatic

Sent: Friday, January 03, 2003 1:43 PM

Subject: rheumatic re heart palpitations

In rheumatic , " J.C.Bray " <jcbray@2...> wrote:

> Dear Group, about a month ago, I started having palpitations, like

someone turned on a switch. Do any of you know anything about this.

Is it common to ai diseases? They don't hurt, but I am as breathless

as can be. Could it be stress?

-----

Something else for you to consider: my heart palpitations were due to very

low potassium level. It was so long ago that my doctor determined this that I

can't recalled the test. He has sinced retired, but I would think any, for lack

of a better term, nutritional oriented, alternative doctor could help with this.

Perhaps a PCP could do this as well.

[Guest guest]

How long do the Heart Palpatations last ? And is there some way to get

them to get some relief?

[Guest guest]

KC, I'm very sorry to hear about your wife's heart problems. My 20-year-old son

and I have also had many episodes of heart palpitations since we were exposed to

toxic mold a few years ago. We have both had tests, but the doctor's don't have

a clue what to do.

[] Re: Heart Palpitations

This is what my wife is experiencing now and has been for many

months/years. At first we did not know this was related and yes it is

very scarey, just not knowing. Not long ago I rushed her to the

hospital for just this, her blood pressure was all over the place and

of course her pulse and respiratory. The doctor couldn't believe what

was occurring, never seen anything like it. Her heartbeat was

irregular even for irregular. Her ECG showed it, the treating

physician was very concerned, it was early morning hours and made a

call to the cardiologist. I guess he didn't want to get out of bed and

told the doctor to release her, grrrr. Today it has not gotten much

better as a matter of fact it seems to have become worse. She has been

out of the contaminated environment for 8 years. We know she has 3 bad

valves and before this had a strong heart without any problems.

We have been told she a prime candidate for a heart attack or stroke

or failure. Multiple organs have been effected, this is just one that

shows the results of frequently/continuo usly.

This is also another reason why some posts on this board seemed to be

delayed, they are.

I apologize to many individuals that have emailed me that I have not

had time to respond back. I have been spending a little more time with

Sharon. There have been many different scenerios going through my mind

lately and I'm trying to accommodate everyone. Steps are being taken

so your messages will be released in a timely fashion and the help,

support and understanding will continue flowing freely.

KC

>

> How long do the Heart Palpatations last ? And is there some way to

get

> them to get some relief?

>

________________________________________________________________________________\

____

Looking for last minute shopping deals?

Find them fast with Search.

http://tools.search./newsearch/category.php?category=shopping

[Guest guest]

she can always start at 1.5 mg and check also thyroid and adrenal

>

> Hello all,

>

> My mother was taking LDN for a few months, and had to quit due to heart

palpitations - pounding heart in the middle of the night that frightened her.

This happened while on 3mg for the first month, and continued throughout, when

increasing to 4.5mg as well. She also had wild dreams which did not calm down

after a couple of weeks. She experienced some mild relief from Lupus symptoms,

which have resumed since quitting. She'd love to be able to troubleshoot what

was the issue.

>

> Any advice?

> Thanks,

> Durga

>