Heart Palpitations: Are They Serious?

The last couple of weeks I've started getting these sudden spurts of heart palpitations. I've only had them one other time, about two years ago, and never had them again until now. I don't know if it's related to indigestion, anxiety, or an actual heart condition. They seem to be triggered by food, but I could be imagining things. They don't hurt, but they scare the hell out of me. When I'm moving or walking they go away, but they often come back as soon as I sit down. The main thing that worries me is that my left arm is tingly at times, but this could be anxiety as well. I get surges of adrenaline if so much as a plastic cup falls, or a light turns on, so anxiety could be fueling it. It can last many hours, on and off, or they can come one at a time, very sparingly. I am 31 years old and not sure why this is happening, but it worries me.

I cannot see a doctor because I don't have healthcare, so please don't just tell me to see a doctor. It is not an option.

Any experience with this? Thoughts?

 

I have had experience with this. It was anxiety with me. Too much pressure on the job and at home. I am not qualified to give an opinion.

 

Getting a credible answer from the internet doesn't seem like much of an option either.

Not sure I've had palpitations per se, but sometimes I feel my heart skipping a beat when I work out. Almost always I just keep going.

I'd guess worry and fear will kill you before any biomechanical malfunction will.

 

Get an EKG. I had them, and told of them at a checkup. They said, nah, they are nothing. THEY WERE. And they are killing me. BUT, you are likely fine. There are bad ones, and ok ones. Best to know earlier.

 

maybe you should change your eating habits..less fatty foods and no alcohol..cut back on caffeine..and if you have stressful problems try to solve them

 

Probably true. Anxiety is a (*)(*)(*)(*)(*).

I've done some research, but I thought listening to other people who've had them might shed a little light. I cannot see a doctor, so it can't hurt to get some opinions, random though they may be.

Can't. Maybe someday if I ever get employed and have a decent job, but it isn't likely any time in the near future.

Alcohol totally eliminates them. One beer and they are gone, until the alcohol wears off.

There's no solving my problems lol. I've tried, and it's not happening.

 

one beer is okay but not 6 or more everyday...stress can be a (*)(*)(*)(*)(*)...been there before...but i solved the problem and moved on in life

 

Well, I drink more than one, always lol. I usually drink a 1.5 liter of wine when I'm sitting back and don't have anything to do, which kills the palpitations and allows me to sleep.

I'm not sure what the stress is. I'm not really thinking about solving any problems. I've reached the point where I'm not even thinking about them anymore, so I don't know why the anxiety would increase now, of all times. You would think it would have been bad when I still had a chance to fix things, and not after I'd already resigned myself to the situation. When they first came back, I was reading a good book. All of a sudden, boom, followed by intermittent fluttering.

 

I had them for awhile and it seemed to be related to thyroid medication levels. My method to stop them was to punch my chest, which usually worked. They went away eventually, but I don't think the kind I had was the more serious type.

Caffeine is definitely a no-no.

You could possibly also have a mood swing disorder, or some other biochemical condition that periodically raises your anxiety levels. It is better to get a safe prescription for those than to self medicate with alcohol or other substances that could eventually do you harm.

If you have no income at present and are a legal US resident you should at least be eligible for medicaid medical coverage and food stamps, if not unemployment income.. Most hospitals can help get you processed for medicaid if they are planning on treating you. I'm not certain what the eligibilities are for noncitizens right now, but it would be worthwhile to at least ask, even if you aren't a citizen. If you obtain work you need to cancel some of those though.

 

Its probably anxiety, as this is something I'm familier with, but the tingling arm is a concern. You CAN see a doctor if you don't have insurance. You simply pay the office fee. I did it all the time when I had catastrophic insurance which basically covers nothing unless you land in the hospital.. Just visiting with the doctor and getting an over all check can get you started with some answers. You might get information on sliding scale resources from the doctor as well. I know in my community we have facilities that work on a sliding scale.

 

WTF, you punched your chest? That's kind of a badass move lol.

Ugh, I really don't want to give up caffeine...I guess I will if I have to, but I hope there is another answer.

I am bipolar and have been un-medicated since I was 19. I rode a long high of mania through most of college, was doing extremely well, and then I suddenly imploded. I would take meds, but I've already been experimented on enough and have permanent tics from anti-psychotics, not to mention having an organ removed, as a result. The amount of trust and respect I have for doctors is less than zero. I consider psychiatrists to be licensed criminals who belong in jail for the crimes against children they have committed. I don't know if I can stomach it.

I don't know about welfare...I hate the idea and have never had to get it before.

I don't even have bus money most of the month. I'm too broke to do anything like that. The only reason I even have the internet right now is because I'm house sitting for some of my more well-off friends--thank god most of my friends have good jobs lol.

Yeah, the tingling arm could be from when I broke it as a kid, but then again...

 

NOT GOOD ENOUGH. Go do what you must. Get them on a sliding scale. Get them at the VA. Get them. You feel them. That is enough to check.If you live in a red state you are screwed, but if not, you can make 1375 and still get expanded medicaide. Therefore, you are qualified for healthcare.

 

There isn't much I can do. There must be ways I can manage the situation without going to some jerk-off doctor who will fleece me for everything I'm worth (or further ruin my credit).

 

How much INCOME do you make? And what state?>

EKG takes all of five minutes. A doc with a good stethoscope could rule out some.

 

You should probably at least try some of the older, less expensive meds such as lithium, which still work quite well for some--look up side effects, of course, but that would be better than suffering more extreme treatments. Bipolarity and seizure disorders have a tendency to strengthen the neurological pathways that cause the conditions if left untreated, so ignoring the condition is not a good option. Finding the correct doctor can be a real problem, but a person like you should have no difficulty asking questions and shopping around until you find someone reasonable. Talk therapy isn't going to touch the biochemical condition; you need meds and a doctor that knows you well enough and long enough to get a track record on what does and does not work for you. Psychiatrists and neurologists do not come cheap, so you are either going to need Medicaid or an MHMR liability assessment to get yourself into a good space...and it will probably take working with a decent practitioner through several cycles of your disorder to do that. Don't worry--with decent treatment you'll become a taxpayer again soon enough, and it's worth it to society to see that that happens. You and folks like you are too valuable to allow to sit around and deteriorate.

Once you find someone that cares enough to figure out the right specific treatment for you, which may gradually change over time, consider them like gold and stick with them. You will find life much more predictable and stable, and many new possibilities will open up for you.

Also of great value are friends that understand your condition and can tell you when you are beginning to slide toward one edge or the other. People with bipolar are usually not able to themselves tell in time to avoid slipping over the edge to irrational elation or abject depression. The depression can be extremely dangerous if untreated, as some commit unnecessary suicide, and the elation phase as you know can lead to undependability and the consequent loss of jobs and relationships. .Some things that you may consider character flaws in yourself are definitely related to this condition, and the only way you can correct those is to get decent treatment, which is out there somewhere with someone.

...
Regarding caffeine, you might be able to get by with a decent decaff, which still would possibly contain more than you should have, but you could try it. There is also an instant dandelion drink
that can help emulate a cup of coffee if a bit of instant decaff is added which can be gotten in health food stores. I use a brand of coffee I get at a Vietnamese grocery store that has some chicory added to it, which has a calming effect, but again, it still might have too much caffeine. I have to limit myself to one serving early in the day or it totally messes up my sleep cycle. Caffeine is really powerful stuff.

A friend put me onto a useful fact-- instant decaff (or any instant coffee) tastes better if allowed to sit for five minutes when reconstituted. So, what I do is heat up a small cup of boiling water, add my decaff and a bit of the instant dandelion stuff, and let that sit five minutes. Meanwhile, I nuke a larger cup with milk and then add it to that; makes a great coffee. If you don't like milk added, just heat up more water to add your initial mix to. That way, you still get a hot cup of coffee even after allowing your decaff to sit for the five minutes to allow the flavor to develop.

 

They have free clinics in every state....you can google them to see if one is close to you.

 

I don't make any money lol. I made a little bit writing essays a few months ago, but I haven't made a dime since then.

You seem to know a lot about this. I'm still questioning how legitimate the diagnosis is and wondering if I can will myself out of this hell hole at some point.

I've taken every bipolar drug known to man, as a kid. I'm not sure what would happen as an adult.

Yeah, therapy is nonsense. I'm not sure why it is even an industry. I've seen plenty in my life, and saw one quite a few times at UT, but it just doesn't really do anything other than allow me to vent. Sometimes, it even exacerbates the situation. The assumption of therapy seems to be that there is some issue with which the patient is unable to grapple, intellectually, and so they prescribe coping strategies, but they never work for me.

My friends can't really tell. At my worst, I stay away from people, so they don't really know. Moreover, they are too psychologically normal to have any insight into this. They are the same people, day in, day out, which I find miraculous.

Not sure I've ever met a doctor I respect or can trust, but you never know.

Yeah, I'm well aware of what the downswings do lol. I lost my car, ruined my credit, and took a massive scholarship and drank about a third of it away, Ultimately I pissed away my 4.0 and dropped out of school inside 9 months. It was an epic collapse. I even surprised myself, as it was worse than being incarcerated as a juvenile. When I'm manic, I generally spend all my time drinking and womanizing, so the added energy is wasted.

Tea is something I need to get around to trying (I mean the soothing sorts).

Thanks for all the advice, Merwen. I've always respected your posts.

 

No offense, but that's how you end up dead. Doctors are there to help.

 

I got it. I have your solution.

The Dr. Phil Show has a free medical service. You can use the internet and go to his show site and check the Dr. on Demand part. You can get FREE answers. And get them live. A Dr. Will interview you.

http://www.doctorondemand.com/?gcli...2X7VkoGiI5coJ2V_fsdEkc1xpLrAO66lXMaAqk08P8HAQ

 

What the hell, are you kidding me? That's pretty awesome!

 

You need to get on Medicaid so you can see a doctor even though you don't want to use welfare.

There are all kinds of things that can just randomly happen to you where you're going to need a doctor, so you need a way to be able to see one. As a couple of examples, about 10 years ago I was working in my yard and I got bit by a hobo spider. (They are like the Recluse spider only smaller, but just as dangerous.) I needed penicillin to treat it.

I also caught pneumonia a couple of times. That will flat out kill you if it's left untreated, and at first it just feels like the flu. It's not hard to treat if caught in time, but you have to be able to see a doctor.

Just do it. One doctor's visit and an EKG will not necessarily cure you, but it can at least rule out a serious heart problem.

 

Assuming you are not a heavy smoker suffering angina, sit upright and straighten your back out when you eat to see if that changes anything.

 

Go to the ER; it could be a heart rhythm problem. You don't want to take any chances when it comes to any possible cardiac condition. They have to treat you so don't worry about being turned away.

 

Thanks, RD; glad you find my input of use. I did have occasion from an oblique angle to deal with many of these conditions with a number of people and learned a few basics here and there.


Yes; most health food stores have some great teas; you might want to check into Valerian and Skullcap.

Counseling does nothing much for bipolar, because it's a constitutional problem not a personality disorder. It can maybe help a person resign themselves to the fact that they have a real, constitutional, medical condition that really, really needs medical treatment, but that's about it. Most counselors can't even prescribe the necessary meds; only psychiatrists, who are really medical doctors, can do that. Since psychiatrists are rather in short supply, though, they often get counselors they work with in the same agency to get to know a patient and form opinions on just what type of problems they may be having. Post traumatic disorders and early childhood mistreatment issues can lead some to act out in ways similar to biochemical disorders like bipolar and schizophrenia, so a bit of life history exploration is usually necessary with a new patient. In your situation, though, all is needed is a signed information release from you for whoever you choose to work with you so they can get the results of past conclusions from others you saw in the past. Not to do that is a massive waste of time and money, because there is no point in having you try out things that didn't help in the past. No two people with bipolar react exactly the same; the condition is genetically caused and not always by the same identical genetic configuration...it has just been noticed that schizophrenia, bipolar, and seizure disorders all seem to relate to variations in the same basic location on the human chromosome.

Different meds are needed for the highs and lows, and timing is critical. Done skillfully, overmedication can be avoided, but that takes real cooperation between the medical person and the patient. A good practitioner can tell just by looking at a patient and conversing with them a bit, if they are a regular patient, what is needed when; this magic doesn't happen without attending appointments consistently over time and providing factual input as requested..

Many don't like to lose the highs, but repent during the lows because of all the losses that have resulted. Some do self medicate with alcohol, which is a depressant, but I have seen some become alcoholics that way and don't recommend it as a regular crutch.

Supposedly bipolar meds do not work well for kids, and that may be what you ran into back then. Additionally, new (and therefore more profitable) meds are being developed all the time, but a decent practitioner will also try you on some of the old, cheaper reliables if you request a trial on them. Consistency and timing in taking meds is often more important than exactly what is taken, but absolute honesty with the treating doctor is essential to attain a regimen that works.

Bipolar is a condition that will not go away without treatment. It is as constitutional as diabetes and can be just as lethal. Do yourself a favor, grit your teeth, exert all your considerable will power and handle this, or it will handle you for the rest of your life.

ps I forgot to mention that sleep cycle changes are not helpful; they can bring on or trigger problems. Adequate sleep is essential in seizure disorders, as is good nutrition, salads, etc and the avoidance of alcohol. Alcohol uses up an amino acid (starts with G) and that triggers seizures in some. Since the disorders are biologically close on the chromosome, might want to bear those facts in mind too...)