[HeartHistory]

As I write this, I am trying not to cry. I am so scared and tired. I am a 34 year old female. I was first diagnosed with PVCs at 21. Since then, I feel them on and off. I have good days and bad days but the last 8 days have been horrible, resulting in a trip to the ER. The doctor there took a chest x-ray, bloodwork, EKG and I was on a monitor. I watched my heartrate flip around for 4 hours only to have the doctor to come back and say he is not sure what I am complaining about and that I have a non malignent heartbeat.

So now I am sit, trying not to worry but how can I not? I am having a PVC every 2nd to third beat and this has been going on for 8 days. I get lightheaded, I'm exhausted and I am so scared of leaving my son without a mom. There is cardiac disease in my family. My father had 3 heart attacks at 45 and a fatal attack at 55. He lost his aunt to a heart attack in her early 40's yet the doctors seem to disregard this.

I searched for a group of people who feel like I do so I don't feel so alone. When I get the palpitations, it is like my whole chest is moving. This run (8 days) has also left me having some weird breathing. Almost like when you run outside and it is an irritation in your throat and hard to get a full breath. Any insight/support would be greatly appreciated. Sorry for the drama.

[CMoore416]

Hello and welcome! I'm so sorry you are feeling this way! I completely know how you feel. I get them everyday and they are every 2-3 beats frnsowntimes hours! I have been to ER and been told I'm fine (mine actually stopped after they told me that so they keep telling Me it's stress. I've had all the heart tests run and all benign. It has thrown me into a Depression and I haven't exercised at all since that brings them on. It has affected my life and relationships and I even avoid my part time job when I can. It's horrible and I so miss the person I used to be. I go to therapy and I don't take any meds. I am sorry you are struggling too! Hang in there and hopefully you will get some reassurance reading these boards! - Christina

[DaniRae]

I am so so sorry sweetie, this can be so scary!

The docs do not care about PVCs it seems. My father who is older, and rather sick was having about 12 per minute and they didn't even look twice. And he has chf. Even in ICU they gave him a beta blocker ONLY because he BP was going up, not because of the PVCs. I have them as well and do not take anything for them.

I think my biggest fear was leaving my children as well. It is scary.... but in a way, by worrying so much, they are losing a part of us already.

I still get freaked out, totally scared and depressed but I have for the most part accepted them. Kind of lol

[Jampot1084]

Hi I know exactly how you feel I can go days of havin a PVC every other beat which amounts to thousands in a day I feel every single one of them. I hate them and have been to see the doc many many times who tells me " go home and relax you are fine" I saw my grandad have a heart attack and my gran die of heart failure which worried me alot thinking I was in for the same fate due to my PVCs so I questioned the docs 3 of them and 1 specialist in the field who told me I was at no more of a risk of having any of the problems as the next person and that worrying only adds to the PVCs making them worse. It is so hard to accept this is true when you can feel such irregular beating in your chest. I also have a baby girl and worry sometimes when they are really bad that its something sinister and my heart may stop and leave her alone not to see her grow but I am at no more risk of this happening as any other mother with a normal beat. Relaxation is the hardest thing to do but that is what we all must do to help our selfs or everyday is wasted on worry.

[DaniRae]

It is sooo true ~ We are not at any greater risk. There are so many people out there who suffer with these and can either ignore them OR just do not feel them. So they go about their lives and just die of old age at 115 years old :p

Its about acceptance... something that we may never fully find but something we all strive for. I know I do. Scary as hell, but I have found a sort of acceptance which is very comforting. Of course on really bad days, forget it lol

[Jampot1084]

Oh and one think. I was trying to get life insurance but the insurance company said they needed to speak to my doc because of the PVCs so they wrote to the doc and my insurance company insured me for the same price as my husband they said I was at no higher risk. Which here in the uk is a good sign as insurance companies find any excuse to increase insurance premiums. And this comes from some one who is having thousands of PVCs a day not just a couple of hundred. Hope that eases ur mind a littke

[jkfrench]

Well you are in the right place. We all have been exactly where you are. There are times I am sitting at this computer feeling skips every 2 or 3 beats for hours. This went on for almost a year on and off. Prior to that, I would get maybe 50 skips a day. I wish we could figure out why we get these sudden increases but it does seem to be the pattern of PVCs in most everyone that gets them. All that fear of dying and not being there for your son is just fueling them. We are so sensitized that it just takes a thought to push that adenaline through our system and aggrivate those heart cells. So they stay jumpy. Change your thoughts as much as you can, and eventually your heart will settle. I know that is hard to believe and hard to do when you feel every one, but try! We are here for you so come back anytime. Someone will always be around to reassure you or just relate to what is going on with you. Take care and try to relax. Get up and move. Don't sit and count them. That just makes them worse. I remember one day I felt one. So of course my hand went to my pulse. Two beats, then another. Okay I thought so I had two. But they wouldn't stop and immediately the fear of what if this time something worse is going to happen. That is all it took. That one thought to set my heart into a tizzy with PVCs, short bursts of SVT and tachy crap. So again, try to not focus on them. Even if it is for just a few minutes at a time. The other day I was making lunch and I felt a skip. I thought to myself, was that a skip? Typically, my finger would go to my pulse to check and of course I would feel more. But this time I just said...I don't want to know. And within a few minutes I didn't notice them anymore. Change your thought pattern. That is the first step in accepting these which will in turn decrease the amount you are getting.

[dr461]

Jodie's experiences describe mine quite well. It is almost as if she read my mind, describing the thought process that goes with experiencing PVCs. It isn't rational thinking that fuels the worry--it is all of our fears, worries, and dreads that make them far more profound than they are. Since 90% of the population experience them at some time, or another, lots of people have them, and don't even know that they are getting them. The consensus is that they are common, almost always benign, and not to worry, but those of us worry all the same.

Welcome to the site, and feel free to ask any of us whatever questions you have, no matter how silly you may think they are. They're not silly--we've all had those worries, HeartHistory.

[HeartHistory]

That you to everyone! I am so relieved now that I have people to talk to. My husband is wonderful but he has never had them and I don't want him to worry too. I will be here often, that is for sure. I have been searching for people to talk too. It is funny, the doctor was telling me how normal they are but with noone to talk to, I felt very abnormal. Thanks again for all the kind words!

[DaniRae]

Originally Posted by HeartHistory

That you to everyone! I am so relieved now that I have people to talk to. My husband is wonderful but he has never had them and I don't want him to worry too. I will be here often, that is for sure. I have been searching for people to talk too. It is funny, the doctor was telling me how normal they are but with noone to talk to, I felt very abnormal. Thanks again for all the kind words!

Awe, I could "hear" the smile in your post! It is sooo true that it helps to have people to talk to, who understand what you fear. You are sooo not alone, we are all right here with you