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[goldgalaxy]

I'm sure many of you have suffered from these over the years as I have. Mine started four or five years ago, which coincided with the menopause. They weren't really a big problem for a number of years as they were infrequent and didn't last for long, but in the last 6 months or so they have been horrendous, sometimes lasting for 14 hours, missing every other beat and keeping me up all night. I have had blood tests, 24hr blood pressure monitor, 24hr ECG, a scan, and my heart and body are healthy.  I don't smoke, I weigh 9st 7lb, excercise, eat a healthy diet, have cut out caffeine, and drink in moderation. My consultant cardiologist has said the ectopics are benign and has prescribed bisoprolol (beta blockers). But I have no answers. What is causing them? I still don't know but I'm guessing it's menopause related. I don't want to try HRT which hasn't been suggested anyway, so what do I do? 

I started to do some research and found an interesting blog with replies from people in the same situation as me, but not all menopausal women. One person advised going on YouTube and searching for York Cardiology to watch videos by a cardiologist called Dr Sanjay Gupta (don't just search for his name though as you will come across a character who specialises in marijuana), not the same person!  I have started watching his videos over the last few days and have found huge reassurance and help from them. He gives practical advice for people like me whose heart rhythms are benign but feel like they have no answers.

The advice he gives is just not available from cardiology depts and gp's and I feel that at last I may have some answers. I have started to take some practical steps to try and make my heart beat evenly throughout the day, ie diet, drink, exercise and most importantly have started taking a magnesium supplement.

I will let you know if things improve. If anyone else is in a similar situation I would love to hear from you. If you watch the videos and take some of the advice let me know what you think and how you get on.

These horrible things have been taking over my life and at times I've felt like I want to stab myself in the heart just to stop them.  But at last I have some reassurance and feel much calmer about the situation.

 

[starfish]

Hi,

I sympathise - I have had these really badly in the recent past - thousands per day, as recorded by  24 hr monitor. Mostly PACs but PVCs too. I was terrified and tearful, convinced I had a fatal rhythm disorder. However, I was referred to a cardiologist and reassured that they are totally benign. I was prescribed bisoprolol too. It has worked quite well, as does the occasional alprazolam (xanax). The thing that helped me most was cutting down on stress (I went part time at work), exercising (despite my fears) and meditating (i.e. sitting quietly 20 minutes a day). Very low caffeine and alcohol - and yes, magnesium does help too and calms me down.

I found it took time for my heart to calm down and the ectopics decreased very gradually over a period of months. They are definitely caused by hormonal surges too.

I have other health worries pop up, but now I know the ectopics are benign and will reduce with stress management and medication as needed, I don't worry about them like I did - I just get a few most days now.

Hope that helps, and best wishes,

Starfish x

[Winterose]

thank you - very reassuring useful post, levothyroxine and hrt helped get rid of 98% of mine but I still get them now and again and occasionally have a need cough to clear the built up feeling the can give,

[Kathleen]

Hello goldgalaxy and welcome to the forum.

I have had my fair share of palpitations during the menopause, something I never experienced before this time and I've also laid in bed at night listening to the beats pounding and jumping in my chest. Oddly I don't worry about my heart but the anxiety that comes at the same time often floors me!

The reason I began HRT nearly three years ago was due to such severe and intense jitters in my stomach that I also wanted to take a knife and cut out whatever was causing me to feel do awful.

I'm sorry I can't help you but I do sympathise and sending hugs.

K.

[countrybumpkin]

I started with ectopics when I was pregnant 35 years ago!  I have had them ever since on a daily basis and at their worst about 14 years ago every 3rd beat was a missed beat.  I had endless  24 ecg's over the years that caught them on tape and like you was reassured they were harmless but that does not stop them being horrible   I tried everything from no caffeine, no alcohol, etc etc but nothing seemed to make a huge difference although I still stick with the no caff and no alcohol.
In peri meno they actually improved for a couple of years then one day I felt the most horrendous fluttering in my chest and went very very faint. I felt my pulse and it was so fast it was  just a wild flutter so it was obviously my heart.  I  had quite a few of these attacks over 3 years coinciding with my becoming post meno.  I saw the nhs cardio at my local hospital and he was useless, he said probably runs of ectopics but made no attempt to find out and I knew they were nothig like the ectopics I had had for so many years.  Eventually my gp referred me to specialist cardio at cardiac centre a long way from me and he straight away said I think you have got super ventricular tachycardia as its often triggered at times of hormonal upheaval and he fitted ( which I still have in) an implanted moniter in my left boob   Sure enough a few months later I was sitting quietly with a slowish heartbeat when I got the worst fluttering ever and almost blacked out for a second and my heartrate had gone from 74bpm to 179bpm for 16 seconds.  SVT is also not harmful but its a million times worse than ectopics ever were

I will google the dr on youtube as you suggest as very interested in what he has to say.

I def felt until I saw my cardio that specialises in heart rhythm disorders that because the abnormal beats are not harmful they are dismissed which doesn't take into account how they affect your quality of life.

[goldgalaxy]

Thank you for the replies, each one has given me some re-assurance and it feels good to know that you're not the only one going through distressing times.

I have been taking a magnesium supplement for a couple of weeks now. As my cardiologist suggested I haven't taken beta blockers at the same time as I wouldn't know which of them was working. So far I feel my palpitations have been greatly reduced, and this has made me feel a lot calmer. I haven't done any vigorous exercise yet, so it will be interesting to see what happens if I decide to start back at Zumba classes.  Although it wasn't this that caused them it was eating afterwards.

Has anyone else tried magnesium and found it helps?

[Yammy1]

I am in my second month of hrt and my palpitations have greatly reduced. they are not gone altogether but are a lot less than before hrt. I'm convinced they are hormone related. I have to wear a holter monitor next month for 24 hours just to see what heart is doing especially at night

[jgr]

I have the dreaded ectopic beats as well. I have had them for about 6 years off and on. Now post menopausal and i can get them for a couple of weeks at a time and several hundred a day and then they just stop as quick as they started. I have had all the test, ecg, echocardiogram heart monitors and the cardiologists have found nothing wrong. I hate them even though i know i should not worry about them, i do. I am on HRT, beta blockers and thyroxine, so not sure if any of these are making them worse or helping. 

[Hurdity]

If it was a choice between betablockers and HRT then HRT would be better if you are having other symptoms too - as Winterose said - it eliminated hers

I would worry about taking beta-blockers if there was nothing wrong with my heart. They seem to be given out very freely but they cause a lowering of blood pressure which itself can cause other symptoms. Fair enough if there is a medical reason not to take HRT but otherwise - this should be the first option I would say.

Hurdity x

PS I got these in pregnancy when oestrogen and progesterone are very high so what's that about? I still get them now if too much caffeine...

[Rustysmum]

Hi Goldgalaxy,
I was wondering how you are doing now with the palpitations? I have been struggling with them on a daily basis for six months now. They used to only be at ovulation and two days before a period. I tried several beta blockers without success and did not find magnesium, yoga or meditation helped either. I just posted about a recent consultation I had with a lovely understanding cardiologist. He has prescribed Flecainide but as he was so reassuring that the extra beats were not doing me harm I am trying to cope without and instead am having a course of acupuncture and Chinese herbs which a friend had success with for the same symptoms a few years ago. I hope things settled down for you. If you have any tips for the rest of us please let us know!