Heart Palps Support Group

[[no...]]

Thanks wondernova for responding. I can't go to the doctor and  get it checked out, I so wish I could. Last year the nightmare I went through figuring out it was the ativan causing the problems cost right at a quarter million.. since then my insurance had to change and I have to pay 400 a month for a policy that covers nothing till I spend 6000 . Unfortunately it took all my money to survive last year ..I haven't worked in a long time and am still living off savings...

 

Not to mention you can't see a cardio here without a pcp referral and they always want to push drugs instead of referring..I have been totally drug free for 9 months and mentally need to stay that way.

 

Today is day four of dealing with this and I haven't died so I hope that means it's ok. It helped a lot that you said it sounded like something harmless. I did have the event monitor last year and they said my heart was fine.. but I didn't have these then.

 

It scares me terribly. I pray everyday for strength. And I cry over it everyday. In a way this is tougher than last year, and last year was hell.

I don't know how you survive if you have this everyday. Thanks again,

Nomne

 

[[la...]]

Heart Palpitations is what got me in this whole benzo mess.  Last year (June 2014) getting ready for a family vacation (which can be stressful), I started experiencing heart palpitations they started slow and the day we left for our vacation I was having them every minute or so.  I could literally feel my heart stop and then start again.  Ruined my vacation!!!  We came home and I immediately went to the ER, where I was prescribed Lorazapam for anxiety.  Followed up with a cardio work up done with a Cardiologist.....that rendered NORMAL results.  So I continued the Lorazapam (refilled by my GP) for 6 months.  Low dose (2mg/day).  I had no knowledge of Benzos whatsoever, just thought I was taking a low dose of a medication that was helping with anxiety that I thought was causing my heart palps.  By January my heart palps were daily for hours and my life was miserable and I felt HORRIBLE all the time.  Decided I didn't want to be on the medication anymore so I cut down to 1 mg in Jan.  (this is when the hell began).  Still no knowledge that I was in withdrawal!!! By the end January went cold turkey with the other 1 mg.  HOLY MOLY....thought I was dying but still not realizing I was in withdrawal.  Started reading online and found this forum.  Talked to GP about it and she still denied I could be in withdrawal  because of my short term usage and low dose.  Soooooo, fast forward to today!!!  Feeling great, still having windows and bad days (mainly in the evenings) but I am almost heart palp free.  I know for me the Lorazapam was causing me the horrible anxiety (which seemed to increase daily, along with terrible anxiety attacks that I never had before).  AND those scarey heart palpitations.  I believe my heart palps worsened and increased because of the medication.  My life is almost back to normal now with very mild heart palps only during windows.  Just wanted to share in case anyone on this forum is wondering when will they end.  THEY WILL, just hang in there!!! 

[[Ha...]]

So sorry to see all these peeps come to the heart palps group, I do t think I'll ever get used to them, they freak me out, I'm glad I haven't had to call 911 after 16 months off. I sure hope I dont, I'd be mostly healed if they would go away!!! I drink a cup of coffee everyday no palps, I eat sugar and junk no msg though and I'm fine nits in the middle of the night things hit me...

[[no...]]

Ladybugs thank you so much for sharing . Your story gives me hope because that is exactly what I feel like --my heart stops and starts.... when on the  pills I had what I thought were Palps but they felt nothing like this..they were more like a wiggle then a really hard beat.... thankfully after being every couple  of beats this morning  they have  subsided and  I have had only one in the last 2hours but I feel very tired.. and  I'm never tired.. guess the crying and stress has taken it out of me.

 

Happy me, what is the ashton chart you speak of? Sorry you have bad nights.

I pray someday soon we will all be free of this

Nomne

[[Se...]]

Hi all.

I have no reason to be part of this group except for experiencing tachycardia prior to benzos. I have learned a lot. And I know more often than not this is related to benzos. However, I have also done a lot of reading regarding electrolyte imbalance and the heart. Has anybody had their magnesium RBC level checked? I know people don't want to add things into the mix. But low magnesium is a HUGE problem for people I. General as well as the fact that stress and benzos deplete magnesium significantly.

Dr. Carolyn Dean has a book called "the magnesium Miracle". She has hawser problems and takes magnesium every day to keep them away. Magnesium is vital to muscles. Along with real salt salt as Himalayan or Celtic salt and potassium and calcium. All these are needed for regular electrical rhythm and function of our hearts and entire body.

Most cardiologists will never think to check your magnesium levels. But it has to be the RBC test. Not the serum test. The range is from 4to 6.5. But earlier ranges 50 years ago were even higher. Our bodies thrive on magnesium for all cellular functions. May be worth getting checked out.

I apologize if I am interrupting. Have not read the whole thread.  But have read far too much about magnesium depletion in our bodies.

There is a website called Gotmag.org with a ton of info on this.

Just a thought that may help someone. I know our bodies are incredibly sensitive in all this so tread lightly. But it truly may help someone 

Also pre- Benzo I had tachycardia in the middle of the night. Now I know it was linked to my adrenal glands and their need for salt with trace minerals and magnesium etc.

You are all strong and courageous!

Blessings to you!

Selah

[[re...]]

Hi all ,just a heads up......

      I have read somewhere on this site that this may happen,so I wasn't  too freaked out when it did.

  I have had no tachycardia episodes since mid Dec 2014 ,then last night ,bang out of the blue ,got hit with them. In past head dunk in cold water stopped them not this time.They ended after about 15 minutes.

    Still have palps ,some days worst then others .potassium gluconate helps with the palps .

Palps and shoulder joints pain the longest lasting sxs after 14 months since jump

  Still I thank God the worst sxs are gone and I can function.

  Hang is there we will get better with His help.

Shalom,

              am

                  <><

[[Wo...]]

Renacido, our history is similar. I was on .5mg x2 klon for about a year. It's interesting you still have the palps too. I've had them over a year daily with no sign of them leaving. I'm much better in almost every other way though. I hope we both get over this soon. Take care.

[[no...]]

Just thought I would mention here.. when I was having these heart sensations every third or fourth beat that were driving me crazy my neighbor told me to drink some low sodium v8 everyday and they would stop.

 

I bought some of the little 5 ounce cans that come in a 6pack and drank one that morning and another that evening and everything stopped.. maybe it was timing.. maybe it was the juice ....(apparently it is high in potassium).. I don't know, I just know. I am so thankful I don't have to deal with this any more..

 

If he is right and it was the juice........

[[Wo...]]

Just thought I would mention here.. when I was having these heart sensations every third or fourth beat that were driving me crazy my neighbor told me to drink some low sodium v8 everyday and they would stop.

 

I bought some of the little 5 ounce cans that come in a 6pack and drank one that morning and another that evening and everything stopped.. maybe it was timing.. maybe it was the juice ....(apparently it is high in potassium).. I don't know, I just know. I am so thankful I don't have to deal with this any more..

 

If he is right and it was the juice........

 

Wow! Good for you! How long ago did that happen? Are you still drinking the V8 everyday?

[[Ha...]]

I'm 17 almost 18 months off still get heart palps only at night. Weird they will wake me up... any one else???

[[me...]]

I'm 17 almost 18 months off still get heart palps only at night. Weird they will wake me up... any one else???

 

At 18 months off I was still being converted in the ER. Nighttime was generally the best time of day for me. It did suck to wake up to 200 bpm svt's.

 

Took over 5 years to improve about 80%. 

 

Still have rhythm problems but they continue to resolve.

[[Ha...]]

Wow mentor, I'm sorry..I don't think I have rythm pros yet, but my hell nothing suprises me... I'm 18 months today... crazy

I guess now I'm Considered protracted. I'd rather wait till end of 18 to decide... however what do u do for palps? Meds? I find excersize makes them worse once I lay down to sleep! Do u get them all times of the day? It seems I only get them at night now, but early wd it was anytime...

[[me...]]

Wow mentor, I'm sorry..I don't think I have rythm pros yet, but my hell nothing suprises me... I'm 18 months today... crazy

I guess now I'm Considered protracted. I'd rather wait till end of 18 to decide... however what do u do for palps? Meds? I find excersize makes them worse once I lay down to sleep! Do u get them all times of the day? It seems I only get them at night now, but early wd it was anytime...

 

I had to eliminate all caffeine and sugar. I had to remove myself from even simple stressful situations. I was bed ridden for a year and house bound for two more so exercise was impossible. I still never leave the  house without a small cooler of ice water which can reset the heart rhythm. (the cold can be enough to shock the heart back to normal)

and too, I had to take beta blockers which I hate and have given me diabetes yet I still can't get off them.

[[...]]

Hi everyone.  Im so glad I found theres a specific group for this...    I havent posted here yet ( I dont think... though benzo brain!  ) 

 

Ive posted a couple of times in post withdrawal recovery support and no one wants to touch the topic of heart issues.  Tell me what you guys think:

x-posted from other forum:

 

"So here I am at 5 months off as of the 16th. 

 

Up until last week I was about 80% functional.  I was at work.  It was tough but manageable.    A lot of my sx's had been suppressed but I was fighting fatigue and heart palpitations (pounding). 

 

I have had benign heart rhythm issues for the past 6 years and nothing that required any kind of cardiac specific medication.

 

A week and a half ago I *think* I accidentally got into some msg in some food. What I ate had an ingredient listed as 'flavor' and I somehow missed that when I read the label.    It was like some one flicked a switch.  Within 30 minutes of eating I had huge amounts of arrhythmia.  I had to go lay on the couch for the rest of the evening.  Couldn't sleep for a couple of days. Tinnitus.  So ya..... it triggered a bit of wave that screwed with my sleep for a good week .

 

But I've had lot's of Arrhythmia since then.  Way more than before.  This seems to be accented by an increase in chest pain/body pain!  The pain is what scares me.  I could probably deal with the arrhythmia and push through it, but the pain makes me think I have some sort of congestive heart disease. It's doing a number on me mentally.  I've had minor pain in my chest and left arm during my taper and into withdrawal but it seems to have been cranked up a notch or two now and if I'm simply on my feet and walking around I get more arrhythmia. more arrhythmia = more pain it seems.

 

I have 2 types of pain.  I have sort of a dull aching pain that lasts for 2-20 minutes stretches.  Mostly in my left chest and into my left arm down to my elbow.  It almost resembles bone/joint ache due to damp/cold conditions but is slightly different. 

 

Then I have sharper more localized pain as if someone was taking a small stick and jabbing it into me.  These pains also seem to be centered on my torso but they also travel a bit.  Into my back between my should blades. Elbows.  Fingers, legs.  These pains don't last long but they frequently throb with my pulse.  I swear it's some sort of vascular spasm.

 

I've figured out that I'm HIGHLY sensitive to the vaso-constrictive effects of chamomile tea.  If I drink a cup of that, I get huge amounts of palpitation (heart pounding) 30 - 40 mins later.  Not to be confused with tachycardia (rapid heart rate). This lasts for a couple of hours.  This is generally at odds with the idea that chamomile is supposed to be calming on the body.  Not so in my case I guess.

 

Also, when the pain and arrhythmia is elevated, I also get a lot of muscle twitching. random muscles in my body will constantly twitch. 

 

So here's where it gets interesting and in a way makes me want to blame withdrawal. I don't get any pains at night. I don't get any arrhythmia at night.  By night, I mean during sleep and in bed in morning before getting up.    My arrhythmia has ALWAYS followed this pattern.  Nothing at night during sleep and in early morning hours.  Arrhythmia kicks in after being up and awake for an hour.     

 

Here's a line from a study I found regarding the relevance of sleep reduction on my type of arrhythmia..... 

 

"Night time reduction in sympathetic tone is reflected in the diminished incidence of premature ventricular contractions (PVCs) during sleep despite a relatively slow heart rate. Evidence in support of this demonstrates that suppression of PVCs by sleep predicts success of β blockade in PVC suppression."   

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1768090

 

Basically what I'm clinging to here right now is the idea that this withdrawal is obviously messing with my CNS.  I was prone to Arrhythmia before withdrawal and now even though I'm 5 months off and doing better mostly, it's aggravating my sympathetic nervous system and causing me grief.

 

I have an appointment with my Electrophysiologist in a weeks time and I'm going to talk about beta-blockers with him to help curb my wacky heart sx's

 

So if anyone has had any of these symptoms crop up during healing and then pass after I'd love to hear it.

 

PS. I'm also getting my morning cortisol rush alarm clock at 5:30/6 am  every morning.  Can't wait for that to stop."

[[Ra...]]

Yeah, mine is currently driving me nuts.  Started up after a large amount of emotional stress and work stress was piled onto me.  What sucks is the emotional stress is actually a positive stressor!!  So there's work stress along with positive excitement and anticipation.  So needless to say, it's putting a damper on the positive.

 

My symptoms are mostly an annoyance, but they are frequent enough they are worrying me.  A large "thump" of a beat in between beats.  Or a skip beat.  Sometimes it feels like a shudder of a beat, like a valve flapping errantly.  Which is probably what it is..

 

 

Sunday was the worst with an arrythmia episode that lasted a good 10 seconds or.  And I was in the car when it happened. I usually try to stand up and walk around when it does to get my heartbeat stable again, but couldn't.

 

I'm taking a small amount of Propanalol which may be helping some, but I feel it is causing some of the other symptoms.  Tightness in the chest, tired feeling, etc.  It's hard to separate which symptom is caused by what...

 

[[...]]

I really want to try a beta blocker for my ventricular arrhythmia issues.  I have huge amounts of arrhythmia just walking around right now.  Im basically hanging out in the living room or in bed.  My arrhythmia escalated so suddenly in the last week.  Seemed to be due to eating something I suspect had MSG in it but that was 7 days ago and things haven't calmed down yet with my heart.  I'm in a wave right now because of the msg I think. 

 

I've mostly been diagnosed with PVC's.    PVC's are what got me into this mess.  They terrified me.  I'm mid 30's and first started getting them at 29-30 years.  I wish I could go back to the levels of arrhythmia I had then. 

 

My  arrhythmia is a funny one and Ive never discussed it with any cardiologist the way I now understand it.  Ive never brought to light the fact that I'm sure I don't get them during sleep.  I can lay in bed at bed time and my heart will pound and my heart will flip-flop around after a day of intense arrhythmia.  I will try and calm down and eventually Ill drift off to sleep.  If I awaken during the night, my heart feels normal!  As in, I CANT feel it beating unless I really really concentrate. I also dont get any Arrhythmia. Its the same in the morning when I wake up and lay in bed, perfect heart rhythm.  Once I start getting up and moving, things go to hell.

 

I've read that once your brain transitions to the first sleep phase some changes are triggered in your CNS.  I think the SNS stops producing adrenaline?  When that stops, my Arrhythmia stops.  I feel like suppressing the adrenaline could really help me here.

 

I wish they could just ablate to solve this and maybe they could but I don't think in these parts they normally ablate for ventricular issues as all the talk for RCA seems to be around A-fib.

 

 

[[Ra...]]

Well, it makes sense.  That's kind of how I go as well. 

 

When you're at rest, lying down, etc your heart doesn't need to work as hard.  Once you're up and running it needs to up the work load.  Higher blood pressure needed. which means any "flaws" present itself. 

 

I know when I finally get to lie down and meditate or relax, I can slow down the palps to almost nothing.  But once I'm up and running, or at work, whatever, they start up.

 

[[Wo...]]

I've had the PAC/PVCs every day for about 18 months now. I'm almost 12 months post jump. I usually have about 50-100 of them per day. The days with 1000s of them are few and far between now. So I guess improvement? Coffee and food have zero effect on them.

[[...]]

OMG. 

 

CoQ10 lit me up like a Christmas tree!!!.    Jeebus I had a normal day yesterday and thought I'd try out some coq10 and talk about palps and uncomfortable feelings!!!!  Took it mid afternoon.  Couldn't sleep.  shaking. High heart rate.  Hard beat. fluttering and pvcs.  Just horrible!!

 

 

 

[[Bb...]]

Heart palps are by far my worst withdrawal side effect. So any tips on how to deal with them?

 

Also, They seem to be the worst the first two days after a cut, and then again days 5- 10 after a cut. Does anyone else notice a pattern?

 

I had planned to make another cut tomorrow, but given the heart palps I think I need to hold a few days and hopefully let them settle down a bit before continuing. It's frustrating because that's the only thing holding me back.

 

Btw, multiple heart tests and everything is ok.

 

 

[[...]]

Heart palps are by far my worst withdrawal side effect. So any tips on how to deal with them?

 

Also, They seem to be the worst the first two days after a cut, and then again days 5- 10 after a cut. Does anyone else notice a pattern?

 

I had planned to make another cut tomorrow, but given the heart palps I think I need to hold a few days and hopefully let them settle down a bit before continuing. It's frustrating because that's the only thing holding me back.

 

Btw, multiple heart tests and everything is ok.

 

 

 

 

 

I hear ya.  These past 2 days have been better for my Arrhythmia but I also haven't been doing ANYTHING.  No physical work.  When I start doing anything for any period of time I start getting chest pains to go with the Arrhythmia and it just freaks me right the ^&%$ out.  I suspect this is benzo related. A part of me wants it to be.  Another part doesn't.

 

Im going to see my Electrophysiologist tomorrow.   

 

Bballgal....    Personally, during my taper I didn't cut until most of my sx had subsided for at least 2 days,  then I made my cut after my body had a break.  I think I did ok by this.  I will say that once I got down to crumbs (I did dry cutting) I didn't stabilize.  I had a 2 week stretch of constant hungoverness so I said &^%& it and jumped and felt better after I did.

 

-geek

[[Bb...]]

Well that could be why mine have been bad yesterday and today -- lots of housework and running around. But normally if I lay down, do some breathing exercises, massage my vagus nerve a bit, they calm down. But that doesn't seem to be helping as much the last couple of days.

 

I think I'll hold where I am for a few days and see if they get better. I may even take a cold shower and see if that helps.

[[...]]

Great news!

 

Saw my EP today.  They are going to send me for an EP study as a precursor to RFCA.  He says all my arhrythmia seems to be from the left side of my ventricals and though PVC's in general tend to respond poorly to RFCA,  PVC's originating form the left side of the ventricals seem to respond positively on average.   

 

Im trying to not get my hopes up too much but Im so glad a doctor is willing to look at and consider this for me.

 

 

 

edit:  oh I also mentioned my chest pains to the EP and he says it doesn't sound cardiac related.  So theres that also.  Good news.

 

[[Bb...]]

Good news indeed g33k! This last cut I only had heart palps and chest pains for about 8 days afterwards, so hopeful they once I'm off this horrid drug that they'll go away. Time will tell...

[[Mo...]]

Hi all,

 

Had to make a striaght switch from V back to K yesterday to see if V is the culprit of this 6 week fever. But even before that palpitations are insane. 2 doctor visits today. Pulse was 117. BP 161/98, Saturation only 93.

My heart won't stop this. Pulse in 60's before all of this not even this bad while crossed over to V since May 12th. All this DESPITE BP meds and Propanolol.

WHAT GIVES??? Had a stress test in April was fine. ER a few mornings ago, no heart attack. Heart fine. BP and Pulse quite normal at ER.

 

I AM not eating. Gut bad. Drinking though. Diarrhea.  Dehydrated? But I can't be. My pee is very light or even clear.

HELP!!!

 

Mo