Hello all --
I have read this particular area of Power Surge for several years, and I believe I am destined to be part of the club here! Although I really can't say that I am having cycle changes of perimenopause (periods still pretty regular), I am 47 yrs old, and I do believe that these PVC's I have been plagued with for over 4 years have a hormonal connection. In that time I have had numerous EKG's, holter moniter, 3 stress tests and U/S's (most recently in Jan '09) and there is no evidence of CAD ---not sure how much I need to spell out --- I am a nurse (not currently practicing) but I'm sure most of you are more knowledgable about all this than I am! (I worked with sick babies) I am GRATEFUL for that information and my cardiologist isn't worried, but I still continue to be plagued by PVC's---

All I know is that I would give just about anything to have ANY AND ALL OTHER menopausal symptoms than these blasted "palps"! At least I know the other things are unpleasant but won't kill me. Every time I have a PVC it feels like a little momentary "death". I feel them so strongly, it takes my breath and sometimes I have a true "visceral" reaction that involves a systemic response much like a panic attack, but fortunately short-lived. However, it does something to my mind, it makes me fearful and leads me to morbid thoughts (has anyone else planned their funeral at my age?), and it has taken so much from me, sent me into crying jags and I am NOT a negative person by nature! I have an 8 yr old daughter and the thought of leaving her prematurely is with me daily. No one can understand that if they have not experienced PVC's, and that is why I finally decided to post here and hopefully find some support. I have also experienced an increase in frequency the last couple of months and rarely have a day without them now. On one hand, it does give me hope that perhaps they won't kill me, since I am having them so often and I'm still here. But, it also diminishes my joy and certainly precludes ever having a feeling of "what a wonderful day and I don't have a care in the world!" (please, someone tell me you know what I mean by that!)

Thanks for reading this, I apologize for so much detail in my first post but I am having a bad night --- my daughter is upstairs asleep, my husband is halfway across the country for a meeting, and I am being "beat up" by palps every few minutes (even after taking a xanax).

This is a remarkable forum, from what I have read so far, you are all strong and wonderful women!

Elizabeth

Welcome to our club Elizabeth!
You will find friends here and strength to carry you through your journey. I will make this short but just wanted you to know that I am saying a prayer for you tonight from Oregon, that you will have found some solace in just reading some of these posts of women who are at the same place you are tonight. Picture all of us holding your hand and saying, you will be ok.

Thinking of you,
lr3216

I would also like to welcome you Eliizabeth to our club.

Very welcome to the 'crazy symptoms club'......

hope you find solace and good replies and help that you so deservingly require!

Caz

Hi Elizabeth,
Welcome! Not the greatest club to belong to but a supportive one nevertheless!

If you are having PVC's (originating in the ventricles) then you might get relief with Magnesium Taurate (or Taurinate). Have you tried that?

Have you had an EKG done and did your doc say that they were PVC's?

I could have written your post. I am in my late 40's, some background in healthcare too, and having these damn palps for almost 10 years. Started in my late 30's. All the magnesium in the world doesn't touch them, nor does any other natural product or vitamin. Believe me, I've tried them all. I have had all the tests, all ok. Holter just shows premature beats, like I didn't know that. I do take Tenormin 50mg. twice daily which makes them weaker, but still there. They have improved over the last 6-9 months, but I hold out no hope they will go away for good. Xanax does help some too. I wish I could give you words of wisdom of how to handle or stop them, but I am still looking for that myself. I do think as I am inching towards full meopause, it is helping some. I know some ladies still fight them well into post menopause. Jump over to the palpers club thread, we all have the same issue there. Welcome, Hope

Hi Sariah and thanks for the welcome! Yes, I am definitely having PVC's, many EKG's have shown that. I just had another work-up in January (cardiolite stress test and cardiac ECHO). I had a few PVC's and a couple of PAC's while being monitored. All looked fine, thank goodness --- but here I am, "skipping away"! It is hard for me to believe that so many people have these things and don't feel them.

When I was in nursing school in the 1980's, PVC's were considered a very bad and ominous finding. But obviously that opinion has changed (or we are all in REALLY BIG TROUBLE!)

I have taken Magnesium supplements briefly a couple of years back, but I wasn't very dedicated -- perhaps I should try what you suggested. I will look into it, thanks!

Elizabeth

Hi Elizabeth,
Welcome to the club. It is very difficult to stay upbeat and not be scared when you feel awful. Knowing you have been thoroughly checked should help, but I say should lightly, since many of us here have had wonderful checkups and still feel scared. When your body suddenly doesn't seem like your body,it is very frightening. I went to a cardiologist who offered a beta blocker if I wanted one for the pvc's, which I didn't take, but it was an option. Also, I get them from gerd too. I palp, then burp, it's something with the vagus nerve.

I hope you feel better, keep posting, it helps you through the rough spots.

I totally understand what you are saying about those stupid heart palpitations. I found this site about 6 years ago when my palpitations started. I have been to the ER and hook up to a monitor for a few hours and the doctor just says 'yep I can see them on the monitior' and that is about it. At that point it was just the pause and thump about twice a minute but after about 6 months they got much better. Fast foward a few years...I was on the treadmill and my heart decided to beat all over the place and scared the heck out of me. It did go back to normal after about 10 minutes. I called my doctor and he had me come in 3 DAYS later. I had the heart ultra sound, blood tests and a ekg and everything looked fine so again I was told everything looks fine. Now I can have the pause and thump thing, racing heart for a few seconds at a time and the fluttering feeling and no matter how many years you have these things you never get use to them. When I have had a good stretch without any (doesn't happen very often) you know they won't kill you but the second the come back I feel just as scared as I did the first time I had one.

I also haven't had hot flashes or any of the other number of things I read other ladies talk about but like you I think I would trade the heart palps for a hot flash anyday!!

I wish I had some advise to share that would help!!

Thank you all for your welcome and sharing stories --- it helps so much to know I am not alone!

A couple of folks mentioned beta blockers. I have been hesitant to try that, although my DR offered it and I have a 2 week supply of Bystolic sitting here. I guess you could say I am a bit "medication phobic" -- I take levothyroxine for hypothyroidism and I take a low dose of Cozaar for blood pressure (which is only slightly elevated and if I could get rid of this "hand to mouth disease" and lose some weight I could likely eliminate BP med). But, I really think I will give the Bystolic a try since I am having palps every day now (which was not the case for over 3 years, and hence my resistance to taking BB's -- a great drug for many problems but not without side effects--and I kept hoping and praying these palps would go away!). My family DR suggested leaving the Cozaar off, and taking the Bystolic to see if it would help the PVC's. Taking both would probably drop my BP too much.

I also think there is a gastrointestinal connection, and the vagal nerve response ties into that. My father-in-law used to have bad gas and GERD and he always said his heart would get all messed up (he had atrial fib) when the GI symptoms acted up.

hope61, we do sound similar in our symptoms, glad your palps have diminished somewhat ---

lr3216 ---I'm grateful for your prayers and today has been much better than yesterday!

I will jump over to the palpers club as was suggested and look forward to getting to know everyone!

Interesting... I'm in Alabama too and I'm in the PVC/PAC club as well. I'm a 38 yr old housewife and I suspect I've had ectopic beats all my life, but there are only certain periods I recall them being significant... they first showed up when I was a teenager, but they were rare and didn't bother me much at the time. When they reappeared at 30 I had an episode of trigeminy (every 3rd beat was off) that scared the wits out of me and I ended up in the hospital. Had 4 cardiologists check me out only to tell me my heart was fine, and what felt like 'skipped' beats was actually extra ones thrown in... they put me on metoprolol (a beta blocker) and sent me home. It seemed to bring the frequency of the PVC's down (the trigeminy definitely stopped) but it didn't make them go away entirely.

Because of that I never really trusted the medication and I later got myself weaned off of it... the palpitations continued to be rare for the next 7 years or so after that.

Now I'm 38 and they've come back with a vengeance. =( I'm considering going in for a screening to make sure some new problem hasn't developed... but I'm reluctant to because I don't have insurance at the moment and I suspect the cause of the aggrivation to be a combination of hormonal (I might be approaching peri) and stress (my husband's family is battling cancer and I worry that he will be next... and we still don't have insurance!!). So at least you're not alone and if your heart checked out normal too, it won't kill you... I've had it for years and today I am having a 'moderately bad' day with them... if it doesn't get worse I will probably have ectopic beats in the 100's... if it gets bad it will be 1000's.

[quote name='Kalancarra' date='May 1 2009, 02:39 PM' post='282392']
Interesting... I'm in Alabama too and I'm in the PVC/PAC club as well.

Hi Kakancarra --- nice to hear from a fellow Alabamian. I just wrote you a long response and it disappeared while I was previewing it! Ugh

Main point I shared --- I have taken 4 doses of Bystolic (5 mg daily) this week and I am cautiously optimistic. I was having PVC's every day, usually several dozen. I've had maybe 6 in these last few days. My dr. had given me samples in Jan. to try if I wanted to. I didn't really want to take them but since I have had an increase in PVC's for the last couple of months and now they are daily, I decided to try. Hope this isn't a fluke ---

One day last week the skips were so unbearable I just broke down and cried for the better part of an hour ---I felt better, released some tension, but it sure messed up my make-up!

Elizabeth

Oh today I may get away with only dozens... and that is a good day for me!! On a bad day I have 1000's. Some people have 10,000 or more though so maybe we should count our blessings! It seems I have a genetic predisposition for this sort of thing as my mother has them, my grandmother had them all her life (her rhythm was never 'normal'... it used to freak the doctors out but she paid it no mind, it didn't bother her! She lived to be almost 100) and my uncle had them too. He had to have a pacemaker put in, but not because of the PVC's/PAC's... it was because his heart rate dropped down into the 30's.

They made me cry when they got really bad, too... especially when it seemed like I was having a good day, and it reared its ugly head to ruin it! It's so frustrating... especially when your good days are ruined by worrying or expecting them to go bad! So you're definitely not alone, and we're not just being hysterical women freaking out either, I have heard from several men who have the same kind of palpitations and are just as freaked out by them! My prayers are out for you and all of us who have these issues, either to go away, or if not, at least give us the strength and positive mind to live with them!