Hello Jenny23
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Many of us on here have experienced palpitations during the menopause transition & they are known to be quite common at this stage of life. There are many threads discussing them if you'd find it reassuring to do a search. Mine started in perimenopause & continued throughout those years until 3 years post when I started HRT & had a change of thyroid medication, the 2 changes within a few weeks. Please don't think this means yours will persist for so long; I think the thyroid condition contributed to a difficult menopause & even now many years postmenopause after any change of dose, thyroid medication or HRT, the palpitations return for a couple of weeks, though they are far less troublesome than they were before starting HRT. I have also had a long period without HRT postmenopause & the ectopics didn't persist for long after the initial tapering off, so again, please don't think they will continue forever whether you try HRT or not.
I agree they can be extremely unnerving. Like you I had all the cardiac tests & only benign ectopics were found. Mine came in long episodes of an hour or so 24/7 & were especially bad when sitting relaxing in the evening & overnight which affected my sleep & even made me afraid to go to sleep. As you've found, exercise was also one of the things that set them off - cycling specifically, but even during fast walking (my usual pace) I found that when I stopped e.g. at a kerb waiting to cross the road, my heart rhythm would become irregular. The body's internal pacemaker seems to get upset by the hormonal changes. I was prescribed Propranolol for a while but this didn't stop the ectopics although it did blunt the sensation of each beat. That said, many women do find beta blockers helpful.
I haven't tried acupuncture for them but I did practice meditation & controlled breathing exercises to help me cope with the stress of perimenopause which I found very difficult, with extreme symptoms in addition to the ectopics. Meditation resets the body to a calmer default state when practised regularly over time & whatever you enjoy by way of relaxation should also help your body cope with the changes.
Please don't be alone with any worries & do post as often as you like, there is always someone here to hold out a hand.
Wx